hrvatski

Noćne družine u renesansnom Dubrovniku

Adding a special cultural flair to the life of Dubrovnik, its numerous companies of actors (noble and citizen youth) were proof of a high standard of living and sophistication. The character of the night companies, the members of which were of the same social standing, was altogether different. Calling themselves kumpanji, they gathered at random with the sole purpose of having a good time, frequently at someone else`s expense. Unruly and violence-prone, theyenjoyed in harassing others in their rude manners and rough ways. Difficult to recognize in the dark, their identity remained highly confidential and inaccessible even to the Dubrovnik Criminal Court. But once revealed, witnesses were too frightened to testify to the culprits` names for fear of revenge. Wasting their days in idleness and not having to work for living, members of these night bands wee mostly young men who shunned school obligations. While, exhausted from the day`s work, most townsfolk retired to bed early, usualy after the third stoke of the bell, the kumpanji started to gather, most often involved in minor pranks, such as singing mocking songs but also humiliating their victims. Their behaviour was the result of the times when amassing large sums in monetary transactions, including usury, and profitable business ventures, combined with certain privileges were possible. Frequent victims of these attacks were women who could not feel safe even during the day. In the last decades of the sixteenth century, the economy of Dubrovnik, along with its political power, began to decay. The oncoming changes produced a social environment in which the night companies tended to loose in significance and no longer affected Dubrovnik`s way of life to such an extent.

Renesansa, Dubrovnik, noćne družine, burla

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