Social, economic and cultural impact of the ottoman Empire and barbary states in the kingdom of naples under the bourbons (1734-1806)

Southern Italy has been in constant “state of war” during the 16th and the 17th centuries, when Turkish pirates and Barbary corsairs attacked its coasts and engaged in hostilities against the Spanish monarchy. Therefore, sea workers living in the cities of the gulfs of Naples and Salerno had been joining in professional associations since the beginning of the 17th century. They had formed some “Monti di padroni di barche, marinai e pescatori” (mutual aid societies for boat owners, seamen and fishermen), inside the churches, ensuring protection to seamen and their families in case of death (an adequate insurance cover could provide survivor benefits for spouses or dowries for daughters) or providing the payment of ransoms to the Turks or the Barbary corsairs for the release of the prisoners. In the 18th century, these institutions broadened the scope of their professional activities (for example, the coral fishers from Torre del Greco). When the Kingdom of Naples came under the influence of the Austrian Habsburgs, in the early 18th century, the consequences of piracy were a matter of great concern for the government pursuing a policy of the mercantilism in international trade: its aim was indeed to expand trade with the Levant. Therefore, a radical solution to the problem was adopted, and some trade agreements were signed with the Ottoman Porte and the Barbary States. Charles of Bourbon, who became king of Naples in 1734, and later his son Ferdinand, pursued the same policy.