The establishment of the free port (1648) was followed by the recognition of the Jewish Community, subject to the ten-year renewal of the capitularies that regulated their conduct and lives. The area of the first ghetto, created in 1660 around Vico del Campo had by then become overcrowded, so in 1674 the town authorities ruled to move the ghetto to Piazza dei Tessitori, next to the church of St. Augustine. The area is now very different, but at the time it had been chosen because it was inhabited by ‘plebeians’, who could be moved elsewhere. At the same time, with the renewal of the capitularies (1675) harsher conditions were imposed on the Jews and many left for Leghorn (Livorno) reducing the two hundred who had lived in the city in middle of the century to about a hundred.Fears of repercussions on the city’s economy prompted the Republic to alleviate limitations, at least in practice, and when the capitularies expired in 1679 provisions such as compulsory abode were lifted. In the following years Jews gradually moved to Molo (pier or dock) District, between Piazza dell’Olmo (now Piazza Cavour area) and the Malapaga Walls. In 1707, a new synagogue was inaugurated in 1935 and is still in use. Following the repeal of the last deportation order (1737) due to financial reasons, the Community was re-admitted in the city in 1752 and the Ghetto, the identifying symbols, sermons, and forced conversions, were finally abolished. Records corresponding to this period reveal internal reorganisation and relations with Jewish communities abroad, which led to a gradual economic recovery and population growth. After the Napoleonic period, and even more so by participating in the fight for United Italy, Jews became fully integrated in public life and local industry.
Piazza dei Tessitori
