The case of Casanova, an escape described in detail by the Venetian adventurer in the Memoirs of him, offers us a clear vision of the difference that money could make in prison and in living with the guardians.
After the conviction Casanova was sentenced to Piombi which is the worst cell but where he was granted more than one privilege. He did not have to share the space with others by being assigned a private cell; he was served two meals a day prepared especially for him from the tavern inside the courtyard of the Doge’s Palace, the same one that worked for the staff and the guardians themselves; everything needed for personal hygiene and regularly cleaned clothes; books and candles to pass the time. It is clear that this is a special treatment to be traced back to the fact that someone paid for all this: Casanova does not mention names in the pages of his book but suggests that he can rely on a circle of influential friends that he seeks in every possible manner, to make his imprisonment more bearable and that help him when he decides to escape – an escape that goes back to his decision, taken when it is clear how it is possible to rely on the help of certain powerful figures but also how such an opportunity could have vanished by waiting too long. In fact, he manages to escape thanks to a hole in the roof that others made for him, he walks on the roof of the Doge’s Palace until he finds a window left open just for him, enters the building through several rooms, and upon reaching the exit he finds the door closed, as it is now night, which is the best time to escape. The next morning the guardian who comes to open the door meets Casanova but does not understand that he is facing a fugitive, since the fop was running away dressed as an elegant gentleman. After an exchange in which Casanova manages to get away with the naive guardian, he continues his escape to the mainland where he finds the horses ready and escapes from Venice.
It is therefore clear that his guardians were paid a huge amount of money in the period of detention – as he lived in a privileged condition – but also for the organization of the escape: the case clarifies why such a job was considered good and even sought after, seen how much it could be easily earned if the prisoner was “the right one”.
The income was guaranteed and abundant to the point of allowing the guardians to appoint substitutes who worked on a percentage basis, although from a certain stage onwards, the law tried to intervene in order to prohibit such a practice
