Abstract

The numerous transnational maritime connections of the free port of Livorno could turn into an element of biological and economic danger every time the threat of contagious diseases spreading via sea trade loomed. This was the case when the plague struck the population of Marseille in the summer of 1720. The main purpose of my paper is to study the response by the Magistrate of Health of Livorno to the challenges posed by such an unforeseen emergency. This significant case study will therefore provide new insights into the development of standardised public health practices in a thriving eighteenth-century free port and, no less important, it will show the interrelatedness of health policy and commercial rivalries in the Mediterranean