ABSTRACT
Towards the end of the Middle Ages taxation was mostly indirect, with direct taxation being applied prevalently in so-called extraordinary circumstances, although it should be pointed out that extraordinary circumstances were not in fact very rare.1 The year 1543 was an important turning point. This was the year of the introduction of the first real direct State tax – the Triennial Subsidy. Like most other direct taxes, the subsidy was initially an extraordinary tax, but then, in practice, it became ordinary (see section 5). As Stumpo notes, however, if the distinction between direct and indirect taxes was clear at the central level, it was not so at all at the local level, where every commune could take an independent decision as to how taxes would be collected.2 Direct taxation, which was applied only to owners of real estate, was generally calculated at the local level and was based on estimates that took into consideration the size and the agronomic conditions of the lands. There were, however, constant protests about both the estimates and the exemptions, as well as about the subsequent adjustments. These protests were directed not only towards the amount of money to be paid, but also towards the uncertainty as to how much this would actually be and towards the fact that there was unequal division between the taxpayers.3
