Showing posts with label Doges. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Doges. Show all posts

14 May 2021

Ludovico Manin - the last Doge of Venice

Surrender to Napoleon ended La Serenissima’s independence 

Ludovico Manin was Doge of Venice from 1789 until its fall in 1797
Ludovico Manin was Doge of Venice
from 1789 until its fall in 1797 
The man who would become the last of Venice’s 120 Doges, Ludovico Giovanni Manin, was born on this day in 1725.

The Doge was the highest political office in Venice, its history going back to the seventh century, when the Venetian Lagoon was a province of the Byzantine (Eastern) Roman Empire and, in common with other provinces, was governed by a Dux (leader).

By the 11th century, when Venice had become an independent republic, the Doge was more of a figurehead, the head of a ruling council, and the title tended to be given to one of the oldest and most respected members of Venetian nobility.

Manin was 64 by the time he was elected but his eight years in post were significant in that they ended with the fall of La Serenissima - as the Venetian Republic was grandly known -its 1,100 years of independence ending with surrender to the French army of Napoleon Bonaparte, who subsequently handed control of the city to Austria.

The eldest of five sons of Lodovico III Alvise and Lucrezia Maria Basadonna, the great-granddaughter of cardinal Pietro Basadonna, Ludovico went straight into public life after completing his studies at the University of Bologna.

At 26 he was elected captain of Vicenza, then of Verona and finally Brescia, before being appointed procurator de ultra of Saint Mark's Basilica in 1764. 

Noted for his generosity, honesty and kindness as a governor, he married Elisabetta Grimani in 1748 but the marriage produced no children. 

The conclave of the Venetian Grand Council at which Ludovico Manin formally abdicated
The conclave of the Venetian Grand Council at
which Ludovico Manin formally abdicated
Despite his own failing health, he was elected Doge in March, 1789, a few months before the start of the French Revolution. Although Venice was even then regarded as a playground for the rich, its own wealth had been in decline for some years, and Manin had to oversee policies designed to reduce the republic’s financial obligations.

These included cutting the size of Venice’s merchant and military fleets to the degree that when Napoleon’s series of empire-building wars reached Italy, it was clear that Venice would be unable to defend itself.  Manin declined to enter the coalition of Italian states formed to counter Napoleon’s advance in 1795 and Venice declared itself neutral.

However, Napoleon had signed a secret deal with Austria, his most powerful rival for European dominance, to cede control of Venice to Austria in exchange for territories in the Netherlands, which meant he ignored Venice’s neutrality and came after the city anyway.

Manin refused an ultimatum from the French to surrender and on 25 April, 1797, the French fleet arrived at the Lido. Venice responded by sinking one of the French vessels but with only seven warships of their own to call on, the prospects for defending the city were remote and the French needed no second bidding to launch an attack.

The reaction of Manin and the Venetian Grand Council was to pass a motion to dissolve the republic and put the city under French rule.  After all the formalities of the surrender were completed, 4,000 French soldiers entered the city on 16 May and staged a parade in Piazza San Marco - St Mark's Square.

The Manin Chapel at the church of the Scalzi in Venice
The Manin Chapel at the church
of the Scalzi in Venice
It was a humiliation for Venice, the first time that foreign troops had set foot in the city, but worse was to come. Despite having agreed to hand Venice to the Austrians, Napoleon first wanted to help himself to its treasures and triggered a large-scale looting operation by his troops, who also destroyed what remained of the Venetian fleet and the Venice Arsenal.

Manin, meanwhile, was offered the chance to become interim head of the new Venice but refused, returning the ducal insignia and withdrawing to Palazzo Dolfin Manin, his residence on the Grand Canal.

It was a lonely life. He refused to answer the door even to friends and his meek surrender to the French did not go down well with Venetians, who jeered and insulted him when he ventured out.

Manin died of heart problems in October, 1802. His remains were interred in the family tomb, in a chapel designed by Jacopo Antonio Pozzo, in the Church of the Scalzi in Venice, near the present railway station of Venice Santa Lucia.

The Palazzo Dolfin Manin is now an office of the Banca d'Italia
The Palazzo Dolfin Manin is now
an office of the Banca d'Italia
Travel tip:

The Palazzo Dolfin Manin, the home of Ludovico Manin, is a 16th century palace on the Grand Canal, a short distance from the Rialto Bridge in the sestiere San Marco. It was built in 1536 for the Dolfin family by the great Florentine architect Jacopo Sansovino, whose work in Venice includes the Biblioteca Marciana, opposite the Doge’s Palace in Piazzetta San Marco, which connects St Mark’s Square with the waterfront. Sansovino created the palace by merging two existing structures and adding a facade in white Istrian stone with a portico of six arches. Inside are works by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, who decorated the palace for the wedding of Ludovico Manin and Elisabetta Grimani. The palace remained in the possession of the Manin family until 1867, when it was bought by the Banca Nazionale del Regno, forerunner of the Banca d’Italia, which still has its Venice headquarters in the building.

The Chiesa degli Scalzi fronts on to the Grand Canal near the railway station
The Chiesa degli Scalzi fronts on to
the Grand Canal near the railway station
Travel tip:

The Chiesa degli Scalzi, site of the Manin family tomb and Ludovico’s final resting place, can be found immediately next to Venice’s Santa Lucia railway station, at the foot of the bridge of the same name. Formally known as the church of Santa Maria di Nazareth, it takes its other name from the Carmelite religious order of which it was the seat, the Discalced, which means ‘without shoes’ or ‘scalzi’ in Italian. Designed by Baldassare Longhena, best known for the magnificent Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute at the end of the Grand Canal where it meets the Lagoon, its sumptuous interior includes paintings by Tiepolo and sculptures by Giovanni Maria Morlaiter. The Venetian Late Baroque facade is the work of Giuseppe Sardi, while the statues mounted at various points on the facade were sculpted by Bernardo Falconi.

Also on this day:

1509: The Battle of Agnadello 

1916: The birth of designer Marco Zanuso

1934: The birth of footballer Aurelio Milani


Home


12 December 2020

Loredana Marcello – Dogaressa of Venice

Doge’s wife developed treatments for plague sufferers

Loredana Marcello developed  treatments for plague
Loredana Marcello developed 
treatments for plague in Venice
Loredana Marcello, who became a Dogaressa of Venice as she was the wife of Doge Alvise I Mocenigo, died on this day in 1572.

A scholar and writer, Loredana developed treatments to help people suffering from the horrific symptoms of the plague. These were put to good use during the deadly outbreak that brought Venice to a standstill in 1575, three years after her death.

Loredana was the daughter of Giovanni Alvise Marcello. She received a good education, along with her sisters, Bianca, Daria and Maria. They were all considered by the nobility in Venice to represent the ideal of the educated Renaissance woman.

Loredana wrote letters and poetry and also studied botany, under Melchiorre Giulandino, a custodian of the Botanical Garden of the University of Padua and the first to occupy the chair in botany at the university.

As part of her research into plants, Loredana developed formulas and recipes to help plague sufferers, but unfortunately all her written work has been lost.

She married Alvise I Mocenigo in 1533. He was elected Doge of Venice in 1570 but Loredana’s time living in the Doge’s Palace didn’t last very long as she died on 12 December 1572.

Tintoretto's painting Doge Alvise Mocenigo and Family before the Madonna and Child sees Loredana seated on the right
Tintoretto's painting Doge Alvise Mocenigo and
 Family before the Madonna and Child
 
According to John Edgcumbe Stayley in his book The Dogaressas of Venice: The wifes of the Doges, Loredana is remembered as being ‘remarkable for her constancy, both in the experiences of adversity and in the distractions of prosperity, judicious and discreet in the supervision of her household, reverent and charitable in her church duties, benevolent to her relatives and her dependents, in a word, she was a most virtuous and noble Princess.’

It has been suggested Loredana died from the plague herself, but this is not certain.

One of the worst outbreaks of plague in the city’s history began in the summer of 1575, nearly three years after her death, and killed a third of the city’s 170,000 inhabitants before it petered out in the middle of 1577.

The Basilica di San Giovanni e Paolo, where Loredana is buried
The Basilica di San Giovanni e
Paolo, where Loredana is buried
Venice went into lockdown, using similar measures to the ones currently being used to stop the spread of Covid 19.

Preaching and church services were stopped, shops, inns and taverns were closed and people were not allowed to congregate in the streets.

Venice became eerily quiet with vessels going back and forth to the lazzaretti, the plague hospitals out on the islands, being the only traffic seen out in the lagoon.

Although Loredana’s research into plague treatments is now no longer in existence, it went on record that her treatments were used on plague sufferers during this outbreak.

Loredana’s husband was the first of three doges named Alvise Mocenigo.

He became severely depressed after Loredana’s death and committed suicide in 1577 by hanging himself.

He was interred in the Basilica di San Giovanni e Paolo, the traditional burial place of the doges, in a tomb alongside his wife.

The Doge's Palace occupies a position next to St Mark's Basilica overlooking the lagoon
The Doge's Palace occupies a position next to St
Mark's Basilica overlooking the lagoon
Travel tip:

The Doge’s Palace, where Loredana lived for the last two years of her life, was the seat of the Government of Venice and the home of the Doge from the early days of the republic. For centuries this was the only building in Venice entitled to the name palazzo. The others were merely called cà, short for casa. The current palazzo was built in the 12th century in Venetian Gothic style, one side looking out over the lagoon, the other side looking out over the piazzetta that links St Mark’s Square with the waterfront. The palace opened as a museum in 1923 and is now run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.

The Botanical Garden of the University of Padua is a UNESCO World Heritage Site
The Botanical Garden of the University of Padua
is a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Travel tip:

It is possible that Loredana Marcello may have visited Padua’s Botanical Garden (Orto Botanico) as it was created in 1545. Thought to be the world’s first botanical garden, it is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The garden, which still belongs to the University of Padua, is in Via Orto Botanico close to Prato della Valle, a main square where there is a tram stop. When it was founded, the garden was devoted to the growth of medicinal plants that could provide natural remedies. The garden was designed by Bergamo architect Andrea Moroni as a circle enclosing a square divided into four quadrants, in which the plants were grown. Normally the Botanical Garden is open to the public every day but it is currently closed due to the Covid 19 pandemic.

Also on this day:

1685: The birth of composer Lodovico Giustini

1889: The death, in Venice, of poet Robert Browning

1901: Marconi receives the first transatlantic radio signal

1957: The birth of novelist Susana Tamaro

1969: The Piazza Fontana bombing


Home


19 February 2020

Domenico Grimani - cardinal and art collector

Owned works by Da Vinci, Titian and Raphael among others


Lorenzo Lotto's portrait of Cardinal Domenico Grimani, painted in the 16th century
Lorenzo Lotto's portrait of Cardinal Domenico
Grimani, painted in the 16th century
The Venetian cardinal Domenico Grimani, whose vast art collection now forms part of the Museo d'Antichità in the Doge's Palace in Venice, was born on this day in 1461.

Grimani acquired works among others by Italian Renaissance masters such as Leonardo da Vinci, Giorgione, Titian and Raphael, as well as by Hans Memling and Hieronymus Bosch, two of the great Early Netherlandish painters of the 15th century.

He also owned the illustrated manuscript that became known as the Grimani Breviary, produced in Ghent and Bruges between 1510 and 1520, which is considered one of the most important  works of Flemish art from the Renaissance period. 

Gerard David, Gerard Horenbout, Simon Bening and other illustrators contributed to the work, which was acquired by Grimani for 500 gold ducats, and subsequently bequeathed to the Venetian Republic.  It is now housed in the Biblioteca Marciana, opposite the Doge’s Palace.

Domenico also began the collection of Greek and Roman antiquities that was subsequently expanded by his nephew, Giovanni, and now kept in the Palazzo Grimani museum, near Campo Santa Maria Formosa in the Castello District.

Grimani's father, Antonio, a wealthy merchant who was elected Doge of Venice
Grimani's father, Antonio, a wealthy
merchant who became Doge of Venice
Grimani was the eldest of five sons of Antonio Grimani, a merchant who had grown wealthy through the spice trade and would be elected as the oldest Doge of Venice in 1521 at the age of 87. His mother was Catarina Loredan, who came from another noble Venetian family.

After showing an early interest in humanist studies, Domenico moved to the Medicean academy in Florence, where he became part of the circle of Lorenzo de' Medici and associated with scholars such as Giovanni Pico della Mirandola and Angelo Poliziano. He obtained a doctorate in canon law at the University of Padua in 1487 and was elected a Senator of Venice that same year.

He became a cardinal in 1493, an appointment paid for by his father. He was not ordained a priest until 1498, becoming cardinal priest of San Marco after the election of Pope Julius II in 1503.

Other titles he held during his life included apostolic administrator in Nicosia, Patriarch of Aquileia, cardinal bishop of Albano, administrator of the diocese of Urbino and Bishop of Ceneda.

He died in 1523. Initially buried in the church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Rome, his remains were later moved to San Francesco della Vigna in Venice.

In addition to his fascination with art and antiquities, which began when he stumbled upon buried Roman remains while building a villa and a vineyard in Rome, Domenico also wrote several theological treatises.

The entrance to the Palazzo Grimani in Venice, which now houses a museum
The entrance to the Palazzo Grimani in
Venice, which now houses a museum
Travel tip:

The Palazzo Grimani was built at the confluence of the canals of San Severo and Santa Maria Formosa. Purchased by Antonio Grimani, it was  passed on as a legacy to his grandsons Vettore Grimani, Procurator de Supra for the Venetian Republic, and Giovanni Grimani, Patriarch of Aquileia, who refurbished the old structure inspired by architectural models taken from classicism. In 1558, at the death of Vettore, Giovanni became the sole owner of the building, in which he set up his collection of antiques, including sculptures, marbles, vases, bronzes and gems.  Until 1865, the palace was the property of the Santa Maria Formosa branch of the Grimani family but it later deteriorated and passed through several owners until it was bought by the city in 1981. After a long period of restoration, it was opened to the public in December 2008.

The Piazzetta San Marco, with the Doge's Palace on the  left and the Biblioteca Marciana opposite
The Piazzetta San Marco, with the Doge's Palace on the
left and the Biblioteca Marciana opposite
Travel tip:

The Doge’s Palace - Palazzo Ducale in Italian - is the former seat of the Government of Venice and the home of the Doge from the early days of the republic. For centuries this was the only building in Venice entitled to the name palazzo. The others were merely called Cà, short for Casa. The current palazzo was built in the 12th century in Venetian Gothic style, one side looking out over the lagoon, the other side looking out over the piazzetta that links St Mark’s Square with the waterfront. It opened as a museum in 1923 and is now run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.  The Biblioteca Marciana sits opposite, across the Piazzetta.

Also on this day:

1743: The birth of composer Luigi Boccherini

1953: The birth of actor and director Massimo Troisi

1977: The birth of opera singer Vittorio Grigolo


Home


10 May 2018

Antonio Priuli - Doge of Venice

Doge clamped down on Spanish ‘spies’


Antonio Priuli rounded up hundreds of suspected Spanish plotters
Antonio Priuli rounded up hundreds of
suspected Spanish plotters
Antonio Priuli, who was the 94th Doge of Venice, was born on this day in 1548 in Venice.

He took office in 1618 in the midst of allegations that the Spanish were conspiring to invade Venice. He immediately began a brutal process of ferreting out individuals suspected of plotting against La Serenissima, the Most Serene Republic of Venice.

The so-called ‘spy war’ did not end until 1622 and resulted in the imprisonment and deaths of many innocent people.

Priuli was the son of Girolamo Priuli and Elisabetta Cappello. He grew up to enjoy a successful career as a sailor and a soldier and married Elena Barbarigo, with whom he had 14 children.

In 1618 Priuli was appointed provveditore, a type of governor, of Veglia, an island in the Adriatic, which now belongs to Croatia.

That same year, following the death of Doge Nicolo Donato, Priuli was recalled from Veglia to become the next Doge.

At the time it was believed that the Spanish, led by the Spanish Ambassador to Venice, Alfonso de la Cueva, 1st Marquis of Bedmar, had landed mercenaries on Venetian territory. It was thought Bedmar had successfully infiltrated the Venetian military and that a Spanish fleet was poised to take Venice.

On Priuli’s orders, hundreds were arrested, many of them foreign soldiers and sailors. Among the innocent victims was Antonio Foscarini, a Venetian nobleman who was arrested after attending an event at the English embassy and executed in April 1622.

The Venetian government issued an apology for Foscarini’s execution the following year and then scaled down the search for plotters. Priuli died just a few months later on August 12, 1623 in Venice.

The Palazzo Priuli in Castello is now an hotel
The Palazzo Priuli in Castello is now an hotel
Travel tip:

Palazzo Priuli, Antonio Priuli’s family home, is now the four-star Hotel Palazzo Priuli in Castello overlooking Fondamento Osmarin. This fine Venetian Gothic palace was built in the 14th century and still has the original, elegant windows. You can choose to stay in the Doge Antonio Priuli suite, which is furnished with a Murano glass chandelier and oriental rugs to create the atmosphere of a noble Venetian’s home.

The Doge's Palace was the home of the Doge and the seat of the government of the Venetian Republic
The Doge's Palace was the home of the Doge and the
seat of the government of the Venetian Republic
Travel tip:

The Doge’s Palace, where Antonio Priuli lived during his five-year reign, was the seat of the Government of Venice and the home of the Doge from the early days of the republic. For centuries this was the only building in Venice entitled to the name palazzo. The others were merely called Cà, short for Casa. The current palazzo was built in the 12th century in Venetian Gothic style, one side looking out over the lagoon, the other side looking out over the piazzetta that links St Mark’s Square with the waterfront. It opened as a museum in 1923 and is now run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.

Also on this day: 

1922: The birth of Neapolitian journalist Antonio Ghirelli

1949: The birth of Miuccia Prada, driving force behind the Prada fashion label

Home



30 April 2018

Andrea Dandolo - Doge of Venice

Reign tested by earthquake, plague and war


A bust of Andrea Dandolo, sculpted by Lorenzo Larese Moretti in 1861
A bust of Andrea Dandolo, sculpted by
Lorenzo Larese Moretti in 1861
Andrea Dandolo, the fourth member of a Patrician Venetian family to serve as Doge of the historic Republic, was born on this day in 1306.

A notably erudite scholar, Dandolo wrote two chronicles of the history of Venice in Latin and reformed the Venetian legal code by bringing together all of the diverse laws applicable to the Venetian Republic within one legal framework.

He achieved these things despite his reign being marked by a devastating earthquake, a catastrophic outbreak of the Black Death plague and two expensive wars, against Hungary and then Genoa.

Dandolo studied at the University of Padua, where he became a professor of law, a position he maintained until he was elected Doge. He quickly rose to a position of prominence in Venetian life, being appointed Procurator of St Mark’s Basilica, the second most prestigious position in the Venetian hierarchy after the Doge, at the age of just 25.

He was elected Doge in 1343, aged 37.  It was a particularly young age at which to be given the leadership of the Republic, but his family history and the manner in which had conducted himself as Procurator gained the respect of the republic’s aristocratic elders.

Dandolo was a benefactor of the arts. He added the Chapel of San Isidoro to the Basilica of St Mark and oversaw improvements to the Pala d'Oro and the Baptistery.

Mosaics inside the Chapel of San Isidoro, which was Andrea Dandolo's addition to the Basilica of St Mark
Mosaics inside the Chapel of San Isidoro, which was
Andrea Dandolo's addition to the Basilica of St Mark
He became a close friend of the poet Petrarch, who described him as a “just and incorruptible man”, although they would later fall out over the latter’s attempt to mediate between Venice and Genoa after the third Venetian-Genoese War of 1350-55.

The first conflict began in 1345 after a revolt against the rule of the Republic by the people of what is now Zadar, a coastal city in Croatia, sometimes known in Italian as Zara.  The Venetian fleet laid siege to Zadar and eventually recaptured the city, but only after 16 months of fighting, during which between 2,000 and 3,000 Venetians died along with an unknown number of soldiers dispatched to support Zadar by the king of Hungary, Louis of Angevin.

Louis wished to gain control over the Kingdom of Croatia and in particular Dalmatia, the area controlled by Venice, and achieved his aim only a few years later, taking advantage of Venetian forced severely depleted by the third Venetian-Genoese War, in which a large Genoese fleet under the command of Paganino Doria devastated large areas of Venetian territory around the Adriatic and eventually captured the entire Venetian fleet. Peace was finally brokered by Dandolo’s successor as Doge, Marino Faliero.

The former Palazzo Dandolo, facing the lagoon on Riva degli Schiavoni, now houses the luxurious Hotel Danieli
The former Palazzo Dandolo, facing the lagoon on Riva degli
Schiavoni, now houses the luxurious Hotel Danieli
In the meantime, Dandolo had needed to support the people of Venice in recovering first from a violent earthquake in 1348, which destroyed many buildings and killed hundreds of citizens.

This was followed swiftly by the arrival of the Black Death, the plague spread by fleas living off black rats that would arrive in Europe in the hold of merchant ships importing goods from central Asia via the Black Sea.

The plague is thought to have killed between 75 and 200 million people all told. The outbreak in Venice, which lasted from 1348 until 1350, claimed the lives of a third of the population.

Dandolo survived both events, yet died in 1354 at the age of 48.  He was the last Doge from the Dandalo family and the last Doge to be interred in St Mark’s Basilica.

The Palazzo Dandolo, which was built towards the end of the 14th century as a grand family residence, today houses the exclusive Hotel Danieli.

The Basilica of St Mark is one of Venice's most popular tourist attractions
The Basilica of St Mark is one of Venice's most
popular tourist attractions
Travel tip:

The Basilica of St Mark dates from the 11th century, although it was not open to ordinary Venetians to venture inside until the early 19th century, its Byzantine grandeur having previously been off limits to all but the Doges and other senior figures in the Venetian government.  The chief attraction for many visitors to St Mark’s today are the golden mosaics, which cover more than 8,000 square metres of the walls, vaults and cupolas.

The poet Petrarch's house in Arquà Petrarca
The poet Petrarch's house in Arquà Petrarca
Travel tip:

Petrarch - whose given name was Francesco Petrarca - the poet and diplomat who was a contemporary of Dandolo and was for a long time his close friend, was born in Arezzo in Tuscany but travelled widely.  He spent the last four years of his life in the small town of Arquà, about 25km (16 miles) southwest of Padua, in the Colli Euganei (Euganean Hills). The town added his name to its own to become Arquà Petrarca in 1870. The house where he lived (and died, in 1374) is now a museum dedicated to the poet.

Home




3 March 2018

Sebastiano Venier – Doge of Venice


Victorious naval commander briefly ruled La Serenissima


Jacopo Tintoretto's portrait of Sebastiano Venier at the Battle of Lepanto
Jacopo Tintoretto's portrait of Sebastiano
Venier at the Battle of Lepanto
Sebastiano Venier, who successfully commanded the Venetian contingent at the Battle of Lepanto, died on this day in 1578 in Venice.

He had been Doge of Venice for less than a year when fire badly damaged the Doge’s Palace. He died soon afterwards, supposedly as a result of the distress it had caused him.

Venier was born in Venice around 1496, the son of Moisè Venier and Elena Donà. He was descended from Pietro Venier, who governed Cerigo, one of the main Ionian islands off the coast of Greece, which was also known as Kythira.

Venier worked as a lawyer, although he had no formal qualifications, and he went on to become an administrator for the Government of the Republic of Venice. He was married to Cecilia Contarini, who bore him two sons and a daughter.

Venier was listed as procurator of St Mark’s in 1570, but by December of the same year, he was capitano generale da mar, the Admiral of the Venetian fleet, in the new war against the Ottoman Turks.

As the commander of the Venetian contingent at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571, he helped the Christian League decisively defeat the Turks.

The plaque to Sebastiano Venier at his house in Campo Santa Maria Formosa in Venice
The plaque to Sebastiano Venier at his house in Campo
Santa Maria Formosa in Venice
The battle took place in the Gulf of Patras when Ottoman forces sailing westwards from their naval station in Lepanto encountered the fleet of the Holy League sailing east from Messina in Sicily. The Holy League was a coalition of European Catholic maritime states, largely financed by Phillip II of Spain.

The Battle of Lepanto was the last major naval engagement to be fought almost entirely by rowing vessels and the victory of the Holy League was of great importance in the future defence of Europe against Ottoman military expansion.

Venier returned to Venice a hero and, as a popular figure, was unanimously elected Doge in 1577 at the age of 81.

The Doge’s Palace was in the process of being refurbished in the aftermath of a fire in 1547 when another fire broke out, damaging the Great Council Chamber and many works of art.

A heartbroken Venier died a few weeks later on March 3, 1578 and was interred in the Basilica di Santi Giovanni e Paolo, a traditional burial place of the doges.

There is a plaque commemorating his memory on the wall of the Palazzetto Venier in Campo Santa Maria Formosa, not far from St Mark’s.


The monument to Sebastiano Venier outside the Basilica of SS Giovanni e Paolo in Venice
The monument to Sebastiano Venier outside the
Basilica of SS Giovanni e Paolo in Venice
Travel tip:

The Doge’s Palace, where Sebastiano Venier lived during his brief reign, was the seat of the Government of Venice and the home of the Doge from the early days of the republic. For centuries this was the only building in Venice entitled to the name palazzo. The others were merely called Cà, short for Casa. The current palazzo was built in the 12th century in Venetian Gothic style, one side looking out over the lagoon, the other side looking out over the piazzetta that links St Mark’s Square with the waterfront. It opened as a museum in 1923 and is now run by Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.

Travel tip:

The Basilica di Santi Giovanni e Paolo, where Sebastiano Venier is buried, is referred to by Venetians as San Zanipolo. The church, in Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo in the Castello district, is one of the largest in Venice. It has the status of a minor basilica and a total of 25 of Venice’s Doges are buried there.


23 October 2017

Francesco Foscari – Doge of Venice

Ignominious ending to a long and glorious reign


Lazzaro Bastiani's profile portrait of the  65th Doge of Venice, Francesco Foscari
Lazzaro Bastiani's profile portrait of the
65th Doge of Venice, Francesco Foscari
After 34 years as Doge of Venice, Francesco Foscari was abruptly forced to leave office on this day in 1457.

Stripped of his honours, he insisted on descending the same staircase from the Doge’s Palace that he had climbed up in triumph more than a third of a century before, rather than leave through a rear entrance. Eight days later the former Doge was dead.

The story behind the downfall of Foscari and his son, Jacopo, fascinated the poet Lord Byron so much during his visit to Venice in 1816 that he later wrote a five-act play about it.

This play, The Two Foscari: An Historical Tragedy, formed the basis of Verdi’s opera, I Due Foscari, and ensured that the sad story of the father and son was never forgotten.

Francesco Foscari, who was born in 1373, was the 65th Doge of the Republic of Venice. He had previously served the Republic in many roles, including as a member of the Council of Forty and the Council of Ten, Venice’s ruling bodies, and as Procurator of St Mark’s. He was elected Doge in 1423, after defeating the other candidate, Pietro Loredan.

As Doge he led Venice in a long series of wars against Milan, which was then governed by the Visconti, who were attempting to dominate northern Italy.

An 1872 representation of the two Foscaris - Francesco and  Jacopo - by the Spanish painter Ricardo Maria Navarette Fos
An 1872 representation of the two Foscaris - Francesco and
Jacopo - by the Spanish painter Ricardo Maria Navarette Fos
The war was extremely costly for Venice, whose real source of wealth and power was at sea. Under Foscari’s leadership, Venice was eventually overcome by the forces of Milan under the leadership of Francesco Sforza, but meanwhile some of Venice’s eastern territories had been lost to the Turks.

In 1445, Foscari’s only surviving son, Jacopo, was tried by the Council of Ten on charges of bribery and corruption and exiled from the city. After two further trials, in 1450 and 1456, Jacopo was imprisoned on Crete, where he died.

After receiving the news of Jacopo’s death, Foscari withdrew from his Government duties. His enemies conspired to depose him and the Doge was forced to abdicate by the Council of Ten on October 23, 1457.

Foscari’s death, just over a week later at the age of 84, provoked such a public outcry that the former Doge was given a state funeral in Venice.

As well as being the subject of Byron’s play, Foscari’s life features as an episode in Italy, a long poem written by Samuel Rogers.

Byron’s play was the basis for the libretto written by Francesco Maria Piave for Giuseppe Verdi’s opera I Due Foscari, which premiered on November 3, 1844 in Rome. Mary Mitford also wrote a play about Foscari’s life, which opened in 1826 at Covent Garden, with the celebrated actor, Charles Kemble, playing the lead role.

The Doge's Palace has been the seat of the Venetian government since the early days of the republic
The Doge's Palace has been the seat of the Venetian
government since the early days of the republic
Travel tip:

The Doge’s Palace, where Francesco Foscari lived for 34 years, was the seat of the Government of Venice and the home of the Doge from the early days of the republic. For centuries this was the only building in Venice entitled to the name palazzo. The others were merely called Cà, short for Casa. The current palazzo was built in the 12th century in Venetian Gothic style, one side looking out over the lagoon, the other side looking out over the piazzetta that links St Mark’s Square with the waterfront. It opened as a museum in 1923 and is now run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.

The church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari
The church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari
Travel tip:

Francesco Foscari’s tomb is in the chancel of the magnificent church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari in Venice. This huge, plain Gothic church in Campo dei Frari in San Polo is known simply to Venetians as the Frari. The church also houses the tombs of Monteverdi, Rossini, Titian and Doge Nicolo Tron. It has works of art by Titian, Bellini, Sansovino and Donatello. The church is open daily from 9.00 to 5.30 pm and on Sundays from 1.00 to 5.30 pm.




19 July 2017

Jacopo Tiepolo - Doge of Venice

Ruler laid down the law and granted land for beautiful churches


Jacopo Tiepolo was Doge of Venice for 20 years
Jacopo Tiepolo was Doge of Venice for 20 years
Jacopo Tiepolo, the Doge who granted the land for the building of Basilica di Santi Giovanni e Paolo and Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, died on this day in 1249 in Venice.

His election as Doge in 1229 had sparked a feud between the Tiepolo and Dandolo families, which led to the rules being changed for future elections. He also produced five books of statutes setting out Venetian law which was to change life in Venice significantly, bringing a raft of civil and economic regulations to which Venetians were obliged to adhere.

Tiepolo, who was also known as Giacomo Tiepolo, had previously served as the first Venetian Duke of Crete and had two terms as podestà – chief administrator - in Constantinople.

He acted as the de facto ruler of the Latin Empire, negotiating treaties with the Egyptians and the Turks.

Tiepolo was elected Doge, a month after his predecessor, Pietro Ziani, abdicated. At the election a stalemate was reached between Tiepolo and his rival, Marino Dandolo, both of them having 20 votes each. The contest was decided by drawing lots, which led to Tiepolo’s victory.

A feud then broke out between the Dandolo, who were an old Venetian aristocratic family, and the Tiepolo, who were seen as ‘new money’.

The Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari was built on land granted by Doge Jacopo Tiepolo
The Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari was
built on land granted by Doge Jacopo Tiepolo
In an attempt to prevent a split vote in the future, the number of electors was increased from 40 to 41. Tiepolo also had to sign a promissione, a document limiting his powers.

Tiepolo was married twice and had three children with his first wife and, after her death, two more with his second wife.

Relations between the republic of Venice and the Holy Roman Empire deteriorated during Tiepolo’s reign. Venice joined the Lombard League in 1239 and fought against Ezzelino III da Romano, a feudal lord of the Veneto who was a powerful ally of the Emperor, Frederick II.

One of the Doge’s sons, Pietro Tiepolo, was captured at the Battle of Cortenuova and taken to Frederick II’s castle in Trani, where he was hanged, making relations between the two powers even worse.

Tiepolo abdicated in 1249 and retired to live at his private residence in San Polo in Venice. He died on 19 July and was buried in the Church of San Zanipolo, for which he had given the land during his time as ruler of Venice.

The Doge's Palace was traditionally the seat of the  Government of Venice under the Doge
The Doge's Palace was traditionally the seat of the
Government of Venice under the Doge
Travel tip:

The Doge’s Palace was the seat of the Government of Venice and the home of the Doge from the early days of the republic. For centuries this was the only building in Venice entitled to the name palazzo. The others were merely called Cà, short for Casa. The current palazzo was built in the 12th century in Venetian Gothic style, one side looking out over the lagoon, the other side looking out over the piazzetta, the small square linking the large Piazza San Marco with the waterfront. It opened as a museum in 1923 and is now run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.


The Basilica of Santi Giovanni e Paolo, where Jacopo Tiepolo was buried after he died soon after abdicating
The Basilica of Santi Giovanni e Paolo, where Jacopo
Tiepolo was buried after he died soon after abdicating
Travel tip:

The Basilica di Santi Giovanni e Paolo, known in Venice as San Zanipolo, is in the Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo in the Castello district. The land was donated to the Dominicans by Tiepolo after he dreamt of a flock of white doves flying over it. One of the largest churches in Venice, it has the status of a minor basilica and a total of 25 of Venice’s Doges are buried there.


Home

13 May 2017

Daniele Manin - Venetian leader

Lawyer who led fight to drive out Austrians


Daniele Manin, whose legal knowledge helped him draw up a constitution for Venice
Daniele Manin, whose legal knowledge helped
him draw up a constitution for Venice
The Venetian patriot Daniele Manin, a revolutionary who fought to free Venice from Austrian rule and thereby made a significant contribution to the unification of Italy, was born on this day in 1804 in the San Polo sestiere.

Manin had Jewish roots. His grandfather, Samuele Medina,  from Verona, had converted to Christianity in 1759 and took the name Manin because Lodovico Manin, the last Doge of Venice, had sponsored his conversion.

He studied law at the University of Padua and then took up practice in Venice. As his practice developed, he gained a reputation as a brilliant and profound jurist.

He harboured a deep hatred and resentment towards the Austrians, to whom control of the city passed after the defeat of Napoleon in 1814. The city became part of the Austrian-held Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia.

Manin's first physical act to advance cause of liberation was the presentation of a petition in 1847 to a body called the Venetian Congregation, an advisory assembly that had no actual powers. The petition listed the grievances of the Venetian people but Manin’s frankness was not to the liking of the Austrians, who arrested him in January 1848 on charges of treason.

The house opposite Campo Manin in Venice's San Marco sestiere, where Manin lived
The house opposite Campo Manin in Venice's
San Marco sestiere, where Manin lived
With his arrest, however, his popularity only increased. The revolution sweeping Europe reached Venice and riots broke out. The Austrians released Manin on March 17 in the hope of quelling the unrest but the uprising continued and nine days later they were driven out of the city. Manin drew on his legal knowledge to create a structure for a government and became president of the new Venetian Republic.

A supporter of the concept of a united Italy, Manin nonetheless did not favour joining forces with Piedmont and it was only under pressure from his compatriots that he signed over his powers to Piedmontese government – and with justification, too, it turned out.

When the armies of Sardinia-Piedmont suffered defeat to the Austrians at Custoza in July 1848, King Charles Albert signed an armistice in which he abandoned Venice to their former hated rulers, along with Lombardy. This prompted another uprising in Venice in which the Piedmontese representatives in the city came close to being lynched. It was only when Manin intervened that their lives were saved.

Venice remained an independent republic for almost another year but gradually the Austrians regained control of the surrounding mainland, with a clear intention of re-occupying the city. The Venetians were in no mood to capitulate meekly, however, and early in 1849 the Venetian Assembly reaffirmed Manin as president, with a mandate to resist until the end.

Manin is carried on the shoulders of joyful Venetians after the Austrians left the city. Painting by Naploeone Nani
Manin is carried on the shoulders of joyful Venetians after
the Austrians left the city. Painting by Naploeone Nani
The Austrian forces by now were strong enough to maintain an attack on the city for as long as it took to achieve their goal. Manin proved a good defensive tactician and with the help of Sardinian navy vessels and a Neapolitan army led by general Guglielmo Pepe he was able at least to delay the inevitable.

However, in May the Venetians had to abandon Fort Marghera, halfway between the city and the mainland and as food supplies dwindled cholera broke out. When the Sardinian fleet withdrew the Austrians had free rein to attack from the sea and in August 1849, when all provisions and ammunition were exhausted, Venice capitulated. Manin achieved an honourable surrender, obtaining an amnesty for all his supporters on condition that he, Pepe and other leaders agreed to go into exile.

Manin spent the rest of his life in France, giving his support eventually to the idea of a united Venice under a monarchy rather than a republic and working to promote the idea. He died in Paris in September 1857.

Luigi Borro's bronze statue of Manin and the winged lion is in Campo Manin
Luigi Borro's bronze statue of Manin and
the winged lion is in Campo Manin
In 1868, two years after the Austrians finally left Venice, his remains were returned home and he was granted a public funeral which saw his coffin carried in a gondola decorated with a golden lion of Saint Mark and two statues waving the national colours of Italy to represented the unification of Italy and Venice. His remains are interred in a sarcophagus, which is located in the Piazzetta dei Leoncini, on the north side of the Basilica San Marco.

Travel tip:

One of the main pedestrian routes in San Marco, roughly linking Teatro la Fenice with Teatro Goldoni in the direction of the Rialto Bridge leads through Campo Manin, the centrepiece of which is a bronze statue of Daniele Manin, sculpted by Luigi Borro and erected in 1875.  A bronze winged lion of Venice rests at the foot of the plinth.  Campo Manin, the former Campo San Pernian, abuts the Rio de l’Barcaroli  canal at one end, with Manin’s residence facing the square, looking towards the incongruously modern Palazzo Nervi-Scattolin, headquarters of the Venice Savings Bank.

The birthplace of Daniele Manin in Venice is marked with a plaque and portrait in relief
The birthplace of Daniele Manin in Venice is marked
with a plaque and portrait in relief
Travel tip:

Daniele Manin was born in the house of his parents in Rio Astori, an alley off Rio Terra Secondo in the San Polo sestiere, a short distance away from the broad Campo San Polo, just off Campo Sant’Agostin in a quiet, unpretentious area of the city well away from the crowds that throng the Rialto and Piazza San Marco.  The house is at the end of the alley with a stone plaque over the door bearing Manin's name and date of birth and a small portrait in relief.

More reading:


How the capture of Rome in 1870 completed Italian unification

Garibaldi and the Expedition of the Thousand

When the Austrians were driven out of Milan

Also on this day:


1909: The first Giro d'Italia







23 February 2017

Gentile Bellini - Renaissance painter

Bellini family were Venice's leading 15th century artists



A self-portrait of Gentile Bellini which he is  thought to have drawn in 1496
A self-portrait of Gentile Bellini which he is
thought to have drawn in 1496
Gentile Bellini, a member of Venice's leading family of painters in the 15th century, died in Venice on this day in 1507.  He was believed to be in his late 70s, although the exact date of his birth was not recorded.

The son of Jacopo Bellini, who had been a pioneer in the use of oil paint in art, he was the brother of Giovanni Bellini and the brother-in-law of Andrea Mantegna.  Together, they were the founding family of the Venetian school of Renaissance art.

Although history tends to place Gentile in their shadow, he was considered in his time to be one of the greatest living painters in Venice and from 1454 he was the official portrait artist for the Doges of Venice.

He also served Venice as a cultural ambassador in Constantinople, where he was sent to work for Sultan Mehmed II as part of a peace settlement between Venice and Turkey.

Gentile learned painting in his father's studio.  Once established, he had no shortage of commissions, for portraits, views of the city, and for large paintings for public buildings, often characterised by multiple figures.

Gentile Bellini's Miracle of the True Cross at the Bridge of San Lorenzo can be found at the Galleria dell'Accademia
Gentile Bellini's Miracle of the True Cross at the Bridge of
San Lorenzo
can be found at the Galleria dell'Accademia 
He was one of the artists hired by the Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista to paint a 10-painting cycle known as the The Miracle of the Relics of the Cross.  His contribution included the Procession of the True Cross in Piazza San Marco (1496) and the Miracle of the True Cross at the Bridge of San Lorenzo (1500), which includes a self-portrait and a portrait of his brother, Giovanni.

Gentile was despatched by the Venetian senate to Turkey in 1479. Mehmed II had been interested for many years in the art and culture of Italy and one of his life's wishes was to have his portrait painted by an Italian.  It is certain that Gentile would have executed at least one, possibly more.  The portrait of Mehmed in the National Gallery has for many years been attributed to Gentile, although there are some who question that assumption.

His painting Saint Mark Preaching in Alexandria, which was completed by Giovanni after Gentile's death, has an Oriental flavour influenced by his time there. Saint Mark, the patron of Venice, was from Alexandria.

Gentile Bellini's painting Saint Mark Preaching in Alexandria
Gentile Bellini's painting Saint Mark Preaching in Alexandria
Back in Venice, Gentile Bellini was an early teacher of Titian, although they were said to have had a difficult relationship and Titian found his adherence to conventions somewhat restricting.  He is said to have preferred to learn from Giovanni, although soon afterwards he went to work with Giorgione.

Some 70 years after his death, a large fire at the Doge's Palace in Venice destroyed some of Gentile's most notable work, although there are several examples preserved in galleries around the world, notably in the United States and in London as well as Italy.

Saint Mark Preaching in Alexandria is in the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan, while the Procession of the True Cross in Piazza San Marco and the Miracle of the True Cross at the Bridge of San Lorenzo can both be found in the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice.

Two of his portraits of the Doges - of Giovanni Mocenigo and Leonardo Loredan - are housed in the Museo Correr in Venice. Another in the series, of Pasquale Malipiero, is in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.  The Frick Collection in New York has another portrait of Giovanni Mocenigo; another of Leonardo Loredan can be seen in the Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco.

The entrance to the Galleria dell'Accademia in Campo della Carità in the Dorsoduro district of Venice
The entrance to the Galleria dell'Accademia in Campo
della Carità in the Dorsoduro district of Venice
Travel tip:

The Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice is housed in the Scuola della Carità on the south bank of the Grand Canal, in the Dorsoduro district. It evolved from the gallery of the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia, from which it became independent in 1879.  The church of Santa Maria and the monastery of the Canonici Lateranensi, built by Andrea Palladio, are integral parts of the Accademia. As well as works by Gentile and Giovanni Bellini, its collection includes paintings by Canaletto, Carpaccio, Guardi, Giorgione, Longhi, Lotto, Mantegna, Tiepolo, Tintoretto, Titian, Veronese, Vasari and Leonardo da Vinci.  Opening hours are 8.15am to 2pm on Mondays, 8.15am to 7.15pm on Tuesday to Sunday.

Hotels in Venice from Booking.com

The Museo Correr in St Mark's Square has a substantial collection of Venetian works of art
The Museo Correr in St Mark's Square has a substantial
collection of Venetian works of art
Travel tip:

Venice's Museo Correr is located on the south side of Piazza San Marco (St Mark's Square) on the upper floors of the Procuratorie Nuove.  The museum originated with the collection bequeathed to the city of Venice in 1830 by Teodoro Correr, a member of a prestigious Venetian family who dedicated most of his life to the collection of works of art, documents and objects that reflected the history of Venice, which he donated to the city after his death. Museo Correr is open from 10am to 5pm from November 1 to March 31 and from 10am to 7pm from April 1 to October 31.


More reading:

Why Titian was a giant of Renaissance art in Venice

How Andrea Mantegna pioneered use of perspective

The boundless energy of Tintoretto

Also on this day: