Italian Economies

The Economy of Ancient Rome

The Roman Empire covered extensive territory but relied on a relatively simple economic system. Its major challenges were to feed its citizens, direct their production, and maintain a large military presence. Beyond these basic needs, however, Rome developed few major industries of its own. The peninsula possesses relatively scarce mineral reserves and arable land. Its populace, therefore, was largely bent toward food production. They grew staple crops like wheat, olives, and grapes, which in turn provided their basic foods: bread, olive oil, and wine. Upper-class senators and equestrians owned large estates, which were worked by slaves and peasant farmers.

Rome’s merchant class was relatively small, with land-ownership being the preferred path to wealth and status. Craftsmen tended to operate on a local level. They produced pottery and textiles in large quantities. Ceramic vases, or amphorae, carried the three major Roman foods across the empire. The shards of these amphorae are some of the most common artifacts found in most former Roman provinces.

This economic foundation worked to hold together an empire harboring millions of people and many cultures. Keeping a steady supply of food available proved particularly important for Roman authorities. Territories like North Africa provided a significant amount of the Empire’s diet. When those supply lines failed, riots sometimes broke out in the cities. The panem et circenses, or ‘bread and circuses,’ policy was meant to appease the public and maintain internal order. Foreign trade mainly catered to the upper classes, who imported silks from Persia and China as well as marble, spices, and other luxury goods.

Trade Among the Italian City-States

Specialist industries and foreign trade grew more common among the independent city-states of medieval and Renaissance Italy. Although Italy had lost its political prominence to Byzantine Greece, it remained an important trading hub. Trade flowing from China, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East all converged on the Mediterranean. Cities like Genoa, Venice, Milan, Amalfi, Florence, and Naples capitalized on their location through strong mercantile expansions. Genoa and Venice in particular grew into powerful merchant republics. Their ships carried the first crusaders to the Holy Land in 1095, securing valuable spice contracts in the process. The Venetians, for example, specialized in pepper.

Within each city there existed a complex web of politicians, nobles, lawyers, burgher merchants, craftsmen, and laborers. Italian merchants made significant early progress in European navigation, most notably through the use of star charts. The magnetic compass, a Chinese invention, further expanded their reach. Voyages were financed by multiple partners, minimizing the risk for all involved. In this way, the Italian city-states set the stage for Europe’s Age of Exploration and later colonial ventures. They also unwittingly enabled the Black Death, which crept into Genoese ports through rats from the Silk Road.

The city-states fell out of economic prominence toward the end of the Renaissance. Their position in the Mediterranean grew less vital to global trade as attentions shifted to the New World and oceanic voyages. The Spanish, backed by stronger imperial power, dominated the New World through military force. The Dutch organized more efficient corporations and stock exchanges to fund their voyages. As the Renaissance in Italy spread to the rest of Europe, its city-states fell into a period of relative stagnation.

Modernization in Italy

Italy began to modernize its economy at a relatively late period. This was due in part to its long fragmentation and several centuries of foreign control. Even after political unification, poverty in the southern peninsula led to a widespread diaspora in the late 19th and early 20th century. Many of these emigrants set sail for the United States and South America. Those who remained watched their kingdom swing from socialist policies to a fascist backlash. Under fascism, Mussolini’s state worked with corporations to protect industries of national importance. The aftermath of World War I and the Great Depression, however, continued to drag on Italy’s economy.

Another defeat in World War II pushed the peninsula toward more open markets. Italy participated in the Marshall Plan, allowing it to build new industries and recover from the costly loss. This led to a major boom period, though the nation has struggled to maintain that growth in recent decades. Its northern regions, home to many of the historic city-states, remains more developed than the south. The Italian economy is best known for highly specialized craft industries, emphasizing luxury and quality over mass production. The country was hit especially hard by the global economic recession of 2008. While its situation has improved, youth unemployment in particular is still high at around 37 percent.

References

Crawford, Michael Hewson. The Roman Republic. Harvard University Press. 1993.

Duggan, Christopher. A Concise History of Italy. Cambridge University Press. 2014.

Garnsey, Peter and Richard Saller. The Roman Empire: Economy, Society and Culture. University of California Press. 2014.

Jones, Philip. The Italian City-State: From Commune to Signoria. Oxford University Press. 1997.

Kelly, Christopher. The Roman Empire: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. 2006.

Killinger, Charles. Culture and Customs of Italy. Greenwood Publishing. 2005.

Slatyer, Will. Ebbs and Flows of Medieval Empires, AD 900-1400. Partridge. 2014.

“The World Factbook: Italy.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 12 July 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/it.html.

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