Preventing Plague in the Italian Renaissance: Milanese Health Policies and Surveillance in the Sforza Registers of the Dead

Summary During the fifteenth century, measures to prevent the plague were implemented almost everywhere in Italy. One essential tool for controlling urban epidemics situation was the use of Registers of the Dead. Francesco Sforza made Milan a pioneer city, establishing one of Europe’s first daily recording systems. These Registers (1450–1801) not only tracked deaths but also provided socio-demographic and clinical information on the population. Through a groundbreaking network circulation of information, the Registers played a crucial role not only in monitoring the plague but also in the overall health situation during non-epidemic periods. This study focuses on the evolution of preventive health policies, highlighting the Registers as the culmination of them. The study also analyses the number of deaths in Milan in 1480, investigating the town’s health landscape during a year without plague, wars, or other epidemics.