The Grand Tour of Mercantilism: Lord Fauconberg’s Italian Mission (1669–1671)

This is the final version. Available on open access from Oxford University Press via the DOI in this recordThe extraordinary mission of Lord Fauconberg to some of the Italian states in 1669–1671 took place at a pivotal moment in early modern diplomatic relations, and is a most evocative case-study of the relationship between Restoration England and Europe in the last decades of the seventeenth century. This article will provide a close analysis of the mission and its protagonists, aiming to re-evaluate English diplomacy through cross-referencing English and Italian documentary evidence, but with a special attention to the Italian side of the story. By analysing how the Republic of Venice and the Grand Duchy of Tuscany—the major Italian trade partners of England––perceived and interpreted English trade policy, it provides an original analysis of Caroline diplomacy and trade in the early Restoration era.British AcademyLeverhulme Trus

General Average and Risk Management in Medieval and Early Modern Maritime Business

This is the final version. Available on open access from Palgrave Macmillan via the DOI in this recordThe chapter "Sharing Risks, on Averages and Why They Matter" by Maria Fusaro is available in ORE at http://hdl.handle.net/10871/132151This open access book explores the history of risk management in medieval and early modern European maritime business, focusing particularly on 'General Average' – a mechanism by which extraordinary expenses regarding ship or cargo, incurred during a voyage to save the venture, are shared between all participants to protect equity. This volume traces the history of this risk management tool from its origins in the pre-Roman Mediterranean through to its use in the shipping sector today. Contributions range from the Islamic Mediterranean to the Low Countries, and taken together, provide a wide-ranging analysis of social, cultural, and political aspects of pre-modern maritime commerce in Europe. The volume is divided into five parts. The first one—Why and How Risk is Shared—starts with Maria Fusaro’s introduction and analytical description of the concept of General Average [GA] at large, highlighting some of its peculiarities and importance regarding both its historical development and future policy. This is followed by essays by Ron Harris and Giovanni Ceccarelli that, from two different perspectives, contextualise GA’s importance within the development of medieval and early modern risk management tools and business strategies. The second part—Origins and Variants of Mutual Protection—traces the development of GA from Byzantium to Early Modern Italy. It starts with Daphne Penna detailing the complex transition of GA from Roman law to the Digest, the Byzantine collection known as the Rhodian SeaLaw and their transmission in the Basilica. The focus then shifts to Hassan Khalilieh’s discussion of how GA rules and practices evolved in the Islamic Mediterranean. This section ends with Andrea Addobbati’s analysis of how this complex genealogy was received in early modern Italy. The third part—The Iberian Experience—is dedicated to the multifaceted articulation of Averages within the Hispanic world. Ana María Rivera Medina argues for the medieval roots of maritime risk mutualisation in northern Spain, and the second essay—by Gijs Dreijer—analyses the transplantation of these usages in the Spanish Low Countries in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The section concludes with Marta García Garralón discussing the peculiarities of GA as practiced within the Carrera de Indias. The next part—The Genoese Experience—focuses on the extremely rich documentary evidence regarding GA in Genoa. It starts with Antonio Iodice’s discussion of local early modern normative developments. Then—in the essay by Luisa Piccinno—the focus shifts to the importance of GA data for the analysis of maritime trade passing through the port of Genoa. Andrea Zanini completes this section discussing the intersection between financing the maritime sector and risk-sharing strategies in the eighteenth century. The fifth and last part—Mature Systems—presents three cases in which GA was used as a tool of political economy by states with a strong maritime sector. Jake Dyble analyses the free port of Livorno, Sabine Go discusses developments in Amsterdam, and Lewis Wade the effects of the Ordonnance de la Marine in the French case.European Union Horizon 202

Oxidative damage in DNA bases revealed by UV resonant Raman spectroscopy

We report on the use of the UV Raman technique to monitor the oxidative damage of deoxynucleotide triphosphates (dATP, dGTP, dCTP and dTTP) and DNA (plasmid vector) solutions. Nucleotide and DNA aqueous solutions were exposed to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and iron containing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to produce Fenton's reaction and induce oxidative damage. UV Raman spectroscopy is shown to be maximally efficient to reveal changes in the nitrogenous bases during the oxidative mechanisms occurring on these molecules. The analysis of Raman spectra, supported by numerical computations, revealed that the Fenton's reaction causes an oxidation of the nitrogenous bases in dATP, dGTP and dCTP solutions leading to the production of 2-hydroxyadenine, 8-hydroxyguanine and 5-hydroxycytosine. No thymine change was revealed in the dTTP solution under the same conditions. Compared to single nucleotide solutions, plasmid DNA oxidation has resulted in more radical damage that causes the breaking of the adenine and guanine aromatic rings. Our study demonstrates the advantage of using UV Raman spectroscopy for rapidly monitoring the oxidation changes in DNA aqueous solutions that can be assigned to specific nitrogenous bases

Commercio, rischio, guerra. Il mercato delle assicurazioni marittime di Livorno (1694-1795)

Il contratto d’assicurazione, che tanta parte ha avuto nello sviluppo delle società industriali, nasce in Italia nel Medioevo, ma è solo nel XVIII secolo, con l’elaborazione di tecniche sempre più specializzate e la creazione delle prime grandi compagnie per azioni, che l’impresa assicurativa conquisterà una sua autonomia rispetto alla casa di negozio tradizionale. Specializzazione e concentrazione finanziaria sono fenomeni che, sull’esempio delle prime compagnie londinesi, si diffonderanno in tutta Europa a partire dagli anni della Guerra di successione austriaca. Il caso della piazza assicurativa di Livorno, uno dei più importanti crocevia mediterranei del commercio nel Sei-Settecento, permette di ripercorrere le tappe di una lunga vicenda, nel corso della quale un mercato concorrenziale e sovranazionale si andrà sostituendo ad un vecchio modello di mercato a base mutualistica. Il confronto tra vecchio e nuovo verrà deciso a fine secolo dalle guerre rivoluzionarie, in seguito alle quali le piazze assicurative più conservatrici andranno incontro alla catastrofe: alla caduta di Livorno, Venezia e Amsterdam farà da controcanto il grande sviluppo che nell’Ottocento caratterizzerà Trieste e Amburgo

The capture of the Thetis. A Cause célèbre at the Madrid Council of War (1780-1788)

Il saggio ricostruisce una controversia giudiziaria dibattuta in Spagna negli anni ’80 del XVIII secolo e originata dalla cattura di un mercantile neutrale battente bandiera toscana da parte di un corsaro spagnolo. Il caso della Thetis ebbe importanti ripercussioni diplomatiche ed entrò a far parte in seguito degli annali della giurisprudenza marittima. L’esame delle circostanze e delle modalità con le quali fu eseguita la cattura permise, infatti, di chiarire meglio i termini di alcuni assunti dottrinari concernenti la guerra di corsa e la navigazione neutrale. Nello stesso tempo il caso della Thetis evidenziò l’inconsistenza della giustizia amministrata dai tribunali di preda. La battaglia legale, dipanatasi per ben sette istanze di giudizio, fu inquinata dalla corruzione, e finì per compromettere le più alte sfere della magistratura e del governo, contribuendo alla caduta del primo ministro Floridablanca. Un episodio, dunque, che getta più di una luce sugli intrighi di potere degli ultimi anni del regno di Carlo III e sui difficili rapporti tra paesi belligeranti e neutrali negli anni della guerra d'Indipendenza Americana e della Lega della Neutralità Armata di Caterina II di Russia