In the collective imagination, the Carnival of Venice is often linked to the splendors and transgressions of the 17th and 18th centuries, also helped by the famous paintings of Francesco Guardi and Pietro Longhi, as well as the theatrical works of Carlo Goldoni and the writings of Giacomo Casanova. In reality, the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries are just a moment in the long and complex history of the Carnival of Venice, today perhaps the most well-known and spectacular festival of the lagoon city, which in 2022 turns 1600 years old.
Rituals of the Serenissima
Appearing at the end of the 11th century, the Venetian Carnival quickly became one of the key episodes of an important ritual aimed at celebrating the political and economic success of the Serenissima; its celebratory and festive dimension was gradually refined over time until, in the 18th century, it became the quintessential symbol of urban carnivals throughout Europe. Through the centuries, no one has remained immune to the changing charm and mystery of the millenary Venetian Carnival, least of all Professor Gilles Bertrand, professor of modern history at the University of Grenoble Alpes, as well as one of the foremost experts on the history of the Carnival of Venice.
Although the etymology, the Latin “carnem levare” meaning “to take away the flesh“, is of Christian derivation, the roots of the carnival tradition go back to an even more remote time, when the passage from winter to spring was celebrated. Already the Dionysian cults in Ancient Greece and the Saturnalia in the Roman era indicated a time of year when it was allowed to overturn the strict social order.
First testimonies
The first testimony of Carnival in Venice is a document from the Doge Vitale Falier, dated 1094, which talks about public amusements, while in 1296 the day before Lent officially becomes, thanks to an edict from the Senate of the Most Serene Republic, a public holiday. However, documents are not very numerous during the Middle Ages, and it seems that the Venice Carnival was very similar to that of other cities in the Mediterranean Europe, at least until the 13th century. At this time, the festival lasted six weeks, from December 26 to Ash Wednesday, although celebrations sometimes began as early as the first days of October.
The Venice Carnival among the neighborhoods
It is only from the 14th century that a properly Venetian Carnival begins to be developed, which fits into a context of clear political and economic origins. “Besides the religious dimension,” explains Professor Bertrand, “the Carnival had at least two other functions. One of these was political: since the Middle Ages, the Carnival served to reinforce the aggregation, the cohesion of the population of the neighborhoods, using the memory of historical or legendary events aimed at recalling the successes and the progressive extension of the Republic’s dominion. But there was also, at a certain point, an economic survival dimension, linked to the ability to be seen as a luxurious and attractive city to which people from all over the rest of Europe flocked. This third function, one could say, extended from the beginning of the modern era, that is from the mid-16th century, the time of Titian and Veronese, until the end of the Republic in 1797. This meaning began to acquire prominence when the economic and diplomatic prestige of Venice, at its peak in the 14th and 15th centuries, weakened. Venice then sought to maintain itself as a prestigious, rich, and lavish capital in the eyes of monarchs, aristocrats, merchants, and artists from all over Europe.”
Entertainment for all social classes
The Carnival of Venice is a time of entertainment for all social classes, both for the common people and the nobility, although certain distinctions remain in effect. “Everyone had fun,” says Professor Bertrand, “and for certain carnival spectacles, like the regattas, bull hunts, or the Fat Thursday festival, the common people and nobles could come together. Everyone could meet at Campo Santo Stefano or Piazza San Marco. But overall, there was a real division, even on those occasions. With the practice of liston, the nobles showed off in front of everyone, making their difference from the common people clear. Even the disguise in bautta did not equalize conditions, since the quality of lace or the way the tricorne was worn on the head were further signs of distinction. The common people in the modern era, and perhaps even more in the nineteenth century, liked to enjoy the Carnival as a time of pleasures for the palate, while the crowd phobia pushed nobles to retreat to their villas outside Venice, to escape the noise.”
Transformations of the Venice Carnival over the centuries
The carnival celebrations in Venice have undergone profound metamorphoses over the centuries, and consist of countless events, some more refined, others more popular. “Certain games, rituals, and festivities that were very popular among the people during the Middle Ages gradually disappeared because they were considered too violent. First in the mid-sixteenth century a more refined Carnival established itself in its costumes and way of dressing up, more controlled by the government, with private parties on one side, separate from the popular ones, and collective celebrations on the other, intended to dazzle Venetians and foreigners alike, playing on the virtues and magnificence of the scenery, particularly that of Piazza San Marco and the Grand Canal. Secondly, the military dimension and protection against hostile natural elements had generated acrobatic exercises or fights between groups of young people or with animals: the government tried to maintain them to please the people, but they were gradually interrupted.”
Some Shows of the Venice Carnival Disappear
Among the events that disappear, there is also the fistfight between the Castellani and Nicolotti, abolished in 1705, the bull hunts (1802) and, in 1816, the popular show of the Forces of Hercules with human pyramids in the Piazzetta San Marco. Unfortunately, with the fall of the Serenissima and the French and Austrian occupation of 1797, the very long tradition of the Venice Carnival is interrupted for fear of rebellions and popular disorders. “The need for Venice to be seen as beautiful in the eyes of all Europe disappears,” says professor Bertrand, “and to use the Carnival as a showcase to show that it remained independent, rich, and sumptuous as in the times when it dominated the Mediterranean, in the 14th and 15th centuries. Furthermore, the French arrive with a suspicion, typical of revolutionary times, against masks and disguises; then follows the Austrians’ desire to reorganize this ancient capital as a simple provincial capital. Few theaters, few pleasures: the Carnival first disappears, then after the Napoleonic era, and then under the second Austrian rule, its events are limited to the opening of theaters, some balls, some regattas and street masquerades, until the complete disappearance of its public expressions with the Unification of Italy. For decades the Carnival is mostly limited to nostalgic parties in private palaces and with the participation of artists.” Only on the islands of the Venice lagoon, such as Murano and Burano, do celebrations continue, maintaining vigor and cheerfulness.
The Venice Carnival Today
Feast of the Maries and the Flight of the Angel
The revival of this millennium-old tradition arrived nearly two centuries later, in 1979, through the initiative of the Municipality of Venice and some local associations. Masks, costumes, parades, dances: the Venice Carnival, now celebrated every year in the ten days leading up to Lent, is largely inspired by the Baroque atmospheres of the 17th century, as well as the splendors of the 18th century. Often characterized and dedicated to an underlying theme, the new editions of the Carnival have also been enriched by many events inspired by the history and traditions of the lagoon city, such as the Feast of the Maries and the Flight of the Angel.
