Leonardo Loredan - Doge of Venice

Strong ruler steered Venice through wars and established first Ghetto

Giovanni Bellini's Portrait of 
Doge Leonardo Loredan

One of the most important Doges to reign over Venice in its 1,100 years of history, Leonardo Loredan died on this day in 1521 in the city, where he also had been born.

As a wartime ruler of the Most Serene Republic, his extraordinary cunning and ability to construct Machiavellian plots against Venice’s many powerful opponents, saved his beloved city from potential downfall.

Loredan was born into a noble Venetian family in 1436 and had a classical education.  In accordance with the traditions of his family, he then focused on trade with Africa and the Levant, to add to the family’s fortune.

He began his political ascent as a lawyer in a legal magistracy concerned mainly with financial scandals and bankruptcies. This he followed by occupying positions such as Sage of the College, Sage of the Terrafirma, Cameriengo (or treasurer) di Comun, Podestà of Padua, ducal councillor for Cannaregio, and Procurator of Saint Mark.

In 1481, he married Giustina Giustiani, also known as Morosina Giustiani, with whom he had nine children. Her influential family is believed to have played a significant part in his election as the 75th Doge of Venice in 1501.

His reign began with the disastrous Second Ottoman War, which he was able to settle after  two years, but only at the cost of losing territory. Then he had a dispute with Pope Julius II, which escalated into the 1509 War of the League of Cambrai. Venice was fighting against both the Pope and France, and was defeated.

However, in 1513, Loredan formed a military alliance with the French King Louis XII against the Pope, which they won decisively. Venice was able to regain some of its lost territory and the Pope was forced to pay back a large amount of money owed to the Loredan family.

Unfortunately, Loredan fell and injured his leg in 1514, and his health was to deteriorate from then on.

In 1516, Loredan arranged a truce with the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I and was able to regain Verona. The end of war celebrations in Venice that year were to be the high point of Loredan’s reign as Doge. He also bought titles and offices for his children and relatives, making the most of his influence while he had it.

Girolamo Campagna's statue of
Leonardo Loredan is part of his tomb

It was under Loredan’s rule, in 1516, that a decree was enacted to formally isolate the Jews in Venice. The first Ghetto in the world was created, from which all others have derived their names.

Loredan’s last years as Doge were filled with financial and political scandals, some caused by rival families. Meanwhile, his health deteriorated further and he died in pain, suffering from gangrene, in 1521.

He was interred in the Basilica di Santi Giovanni e Paolo, at first in a simple grave which no longer exists. But in 1572, a monumental tomb was erected for him in the basilica, adorned with marble Corinthian columns.

Among the many portraits and paintings of Loredan, the most famous is the Portrait of Doge Leonardo Loredan, painted by Giovanni Bellini in about 1501, which is now in the National Gallery in London.

One of his descendants, Francesco Loredan, became the 116th Doge of Venice in 1752, and after his death he was interred in Leonardo Loredan’s tomb.

Another of his descendants, Pietro Loredan, was the 84th Doge between 1567 and 1570.

Pietro Loredan also established a winery in the Veneto, which is still known for its celebrated robust and powerful Capo di Stata red wine.

The Campo di Gheto Nuovo, the main square in
the fashionable Ghetto quarter in Venice

Travel tip:

A decree creating Venice’s historic Ghetto was pronounced by Leonardo Loredan in 1516. It meant that the Jewish population of the city, who were already obliged to live under restrictions since the 13th century, were forced to move to an island in the northwestern part of the Cannaregio sestiere and could not live in any other district. There are a number of theories about how it came to be known as the Ghetto, the most plausible of which is that the area was known to Venetians by the dialect word geto - foundry - as it used to be home to a factory making heavy iron cannons for the Venetian fleet. The word may have acquired an ‘h’ in its spelling to reflect its mispronunciation by the early inhabitants, mainly German Jews, who incorrectly gave it a hard ‘g’ rather than the soft one of the dialect. At some time later, it acquired a second ‘t’, although street signs in Venice have only one. The freedom of the rest of the city was not restored to the Jewish population until 1797, when the French Army, commanded by Napoleon Bonaparte, occupied Venice and forced the dissolution of the Republic. The Ghetto’s gates were removed, with Jews given the same status as other citizens.

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The Basilica di Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Venice,
where Loredan and many other Doges are buried

Travel tip:

Leonardo Loredan was buried in the Basilica di Santi Giovanni e Paolo in the Castello district. The Basilica is known in Venice as San Zanipolo, and is in the Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo. The land was donated to the Dominicans by Doge Jacopo 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. It has many works by Veronese in the Chapel of the Rosary, as well as paintings by Lorenzo Lotto and sculptures by Pietro Lombardo.  Outside is a statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni, a Bergamo condottiero (mercenary) and a former captain-general of the Republic of Venice, sculpted by Andrea del Verrocchio. A total of 25 of Venice’s Doges are buried there, among them Tiepolo himself.

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More reading:

The Ghetto - Venice’s Jewish quarter

Jacopo Tiepolo, the Doge who granted land for beautiful churches

Ludovico Manin - the last Doge of Venice

Also on this day:

1427: The birth of political adviser and businesswoman Lucrezia Tornabuoni

1633: Galileo Galilei convicted of heresy

1930: The birth of mountaineer Walter Bonatti

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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, 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

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

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

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.

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