Venice, the Walkable Sixteenth-Century City

For many people today, walkability is a highly prized attribute for a city. And, as historian Filippo de Vivo writes, back in the sixteenth century, Venice residents felt the same way.

At the time, Vivo writes, Venice was among the biggest European cities, and it was also growing quickly, from about 115,000 at the start of the century to around 170,000 in the 1570s. The density of the city and narrowness of the streets made animal transportation much less practical than it was elsewhere. In fact, people from other parts of Europe often mocked Venetian elites for being unable to ride horses.

Of course, just like today, the aspect of Venetian transportation that stood out the most to outsiders was the boats traversing the canals. But hiring a boat was expensive, and the canals didn’t go everywhere. A pedestrian might have to briefly board a ferry to cross between two streets, and an especially high tide might sometimes block them from a part of the city, but for the most part, their feet could take them anywhere.

In fact, Vivo writes, the need to build streets up out of wetlands actually contributed to their attractiveness. Elsewhere in Europe, streets might simply emerge from the continual flow of traffic tamping down dirt—and then get muddy and dusty—but in Venice they had to be carefully constructed with bricks and stones. Travelers often commented on the cleanliness of the streets.

Commerce depended on walkers—people commuting to work, travelers and pilgrims stopping at shops to buy goods that were unavailable in other cities, and peddlers selling food, drink, and a variety of goods and services, among others. And walking was also a way to enjoy the liveliness of the city and mingle with friends and strangers.

Venice was particularly notable for the fact that its noble class, the patricians, walked around the city. Beyond the difficulty with horses, this was part of a republican culture that prized physical ruggedness and frugality and derided pompousness.

“By taking a more lowly approach to physical movement, Venetian patricians put forward a higher sense of their nobility, or civility, which they contrasted with the haughtiness of foreign aristocrats,” Vivo writes.

More practically, spending time walking in public spaces allowed political leaders and would-be-leaders to rub shoulders with potential supporters. It was important that conversations among lawmakers happen in public since private meetings smacked of collusion. And strolling while chatting allowed politicians to avoid eavesdroppers.

However, Vivo writes, some patricians also felt it was potentially harmful for people of their class to mix with common people. They used numerous techniques to maintain social distance, including wearing distinctive clothes enforced by sumptuary laws and walking at a dignified, slow pace.

Nonetheless, the investment the ruling class had in walking paid off for everyone. Venetian authorities took pains to keep their city walkable, widening streets when necessary and keeping walkways, including canal banks, free of obstacles.

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