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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Battle of Novara 1513

Many lives lost in battle between French and Swiss on Italian soil

Swiss troops defeated a French occupying army on this day in 1513 in a bloody battle near Novara in the Piedmont region of northern Italy.

The Swiss forces mass to celebrate victory at Novara

The French loss forced Louis XII to withdraw from Milan and Italy and after his army were pursued all the way to Dijon by Swiss mercenaries, he had to pay them off to make them leave France.

The battle was part of the War of the League of Cambrai, fought between France, the Papal States and the Republic of Venice in northern Italy, but often involving other powers in Europe.

Louis XII had expelled the Sforza family from Milan and added its territory to France in 1508.

Swiss mercenaries fighting for the Holy League drove the French out of Milan and installed Maximilian Sforza as Duke of Milan in December 1512.

More than 20,000 French troops led by Prince Louis de la Tremoille besieged the city of Novara, which was being held by the Swiss, in June 1513.

Maximilian Sforza was installed
as Duke of Milan 

However, a much smaller Swiss relief army arrived and surprised the French just after dawn on June 6.

German Landsknecht mercenaries, armed with pikes like the Swiss troops, put up some resistance to the attack, enabling the French to deploy some of their artillery.

But the Swiss encircled the French camp, seized their guns and pushed the German infantry back. Caught off guard, the French cavalry fled the field.

There were at least 5,000 casualties on the French side and about 1,500 casualties among the Swiss pikemen.

The Swiss mercenaries caught and executed hundreds of German Landsknecht troops who had fought for the French. They could not pursue the French cavalry, but they later marched into France and got as far as Dijon before they accepted money to leave. It was one of the last, big victories for the infamous Swiss mercenaries of that period.

Novara: The tall cupola of the Basilicata di San Gaudenzio was
designed by Alessandro Antonelli, who designed Turin's Mole 

Travel tip:

Novara is to the west of Milan in the Piedmont region of Italy. It is the second biggest city in the region after Turin. Founded by the Romans, it was later ruled by the Visconti and Sforza families. In the 18th century it was ruled by the House of Savoy. In the 1849 Battle of Novara, the Sardinian army was defeated by the Austrian army, who occupied the city. This led to the abdication of Charles Albert of Sardinia and is seen as the beginning of the Italian unification movement.

The Novara Pyramid was built to hold the ashes of soldiers
who were killed in the 1849 Battle of Novara

Travel tip:

Among the fine old buildings in Novara, which include the Basilica of San Gaudenzio and the Broletto, a collection of buildings showing four distinct architectural styles, is the Novara Pyramid, which is also called the Ossuary of Bicocca. It was built to hold the ashes of fallen soldiers after the 19th century Battle of Novara.

Also on this day:

1772: The birth of Maria Theresa of Naples, the last Holy Roman Empress

1861: The death of Camillo Benso Cavour, Italy's first prime minister

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Battle of Agnadello

The day Venice lost most of its territory

The French painter Pierre-Jules Jollivet's
depiction of the Battle of Agnadello

Venetian forces were defeated by troops fighting on behalf of France, Spain and the Pope on this day in 1509 at Agnadello in Lombardy.

As a result, the Republic of Venice was forced to withdraw from much of its territory on the mainland of Italy. The writer Niccolò Machiavelli later wrote in his book, The Prince, that in one day the Venetians had ‘lost what it had taken them 800 years of exertion to conquer.’

Louis XII of France, the Emperor Maximilian, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Pope Julius II had formed the League of Cambrai with the aim of dismantling the mainland empire of Venice as they all had their own claims to areas held by the Venetians.

The French army left Milan on April 15 and invaded Venetian territory. Venice had organised a mercenary army near Bergamo commanded by the Orsini cousins, Bartolomeo d’Alviano and Niccolò di Pitigliano, who had been ordered to avoid direct confrontation with the advancing French but just to engage them in light skirmishes.

By May 9 Louis had crossed the Adda river at Cassano d’Adda and the Orsini cousins decided to move south towards the River Po in search of better positions.

On May 14, as the Venetian army was making its move, the section commanded by Alviano was attacked by a French detachment commanded by Charles II d’Amboise, who had massed his troops around the village of Agnadello.

Bartlomeo d'Alviano's troops suffered
a heavy defeat, losing 4,000 men

Pitigliano was several miles ahead when the French began their attack and, in reply to Alviano’s request for help, sent a note suggesting that a pitched battle should be avoided and continued his move south.

Louis reached Agnadello with the rest of the French army who surrounded Alviano on three sides and proceeded to attack his troops. Alviano was wounded and captured and more than 4,000 of his men were killed.

When news of the battle reached the rest of the Venetian army, many soldiers deserted. Pitigliano retreated to Treviso and Louis then occupied the rest of Lombardy.

Venice rapidly withdrew from Bergamo, Brescia, Crema and Cremona, all of which were taken by the French. Their possessions in the Romagna were taken over by the Pope and Verona, Vicenza and Padua were allowed to surrender to representatives of the Emperor Maximilian.

The Santuario of Santa Maria delle Grazie
is a 17th century church in Crema

Travel tip:

Agnadello, where the battle took place, is a village in the province of Cremona in Lombardy. It is close to the historic town of Crema, where there are many beautiful old buildings and churches to see. In Via delle Grazie is the 17th century church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, which was built to house an ancient painting of the Madonna and a short distance away in Via XX Settembre is the beautiful baroque church of Santa Trinita. The Duomo was completed in 1341 on the site of an earlier church and although changes were made over the years, it has been restored back to its original Gothic design and still contains some 14th century frescoes.

The Borromeo Castle at Cassano d'Adda

Travel tip:

Cassano d’Adda, where Louis XII crossed into Venetian territory before the battle, lies between Milan and Bergamo. Due to its strategic position at a crossing of the River Adda it has been the site of many historic battles over the centuries. The most important sight in the town is the Borromeo Castle which was built in about 1000 AD but was expanded and redesigned in the 15th century by Bartolomeo Gadio, who also worked on Milan’s Cathedral and Sforza Castle.

Also on this day:

1916: The birth of architect and designer Marco Zanuso

1934: The birth of '60s football star Aurelio Milani

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Battle of Ravenna

Thousands die in pointless conflict of the Italian Wars

The chaos of the Battle of Ravenna depicted in a
15th century woodcut

French forces inflicted appalling casualties upon a largely Spanish Holy League army on this day in 1512 at Molinaccio just outside Ravenna.

The French, under the command of their brilliant 21-year-old leader Gaston de Foix, had taken Brescia in Lombardy by storm in February and then marched on Ravenna intending to provoke the papal Holy League army into battle. They also had an Italian contingent of soldiers with them under the command of Alfonso I d’Este, Duke of Ferrara.

Ramon de Cardona, Spanish viceroy of Naples and commander of the Holy League forces, led an army through the papal states of the Romagna to relieve Ravenna, passing Forlì and advancing north along the Ronco River.

Both sides had learned the new rules of warfare in the gunpowder age and were reluctant to assault well defended earthworks with cavalry or infantry.

They indulged in an artillery duel and had to manoeuvre unwieldy cannons to find effective lines of fire.

But after two hours they changed tactics and both cavalry and infantry threw themselves forward in assaults. The casualties were heavy as horsemen clashed in swirling melees and infantry swarmed over ramparts and ditches.

Alfonso I d'Este, who led a contingent of
Italian soldiers in the battle

The issue was decided when the French cavalry, having driven the opposing horsemen from the field, returned to attack the Spanish infantry.

While many of his soldiers were slaughtered, Cardona was taken prisoner.

Then, when the battle was effectively over, the French commander De Foix was killed during a pointless skirmish with the retreating Spanish infantry.

It was estimated that the French lost 4,500 men and the Holy League 9,000 in this battle, part of the War of the League of Cambrai, which took place during the long period of the Italian Wars.

The victory failed to help the French secure northern Italy and they were forced to withdraw from the region entirely by August of the same year.

Travel tip:

The Romagna, controlled by the Pope in the 16th century, was a region of Italy that approximately corresponds to the south eastern part of the present day region of Emilia-Romagna. It included the cities of Cesena, Faenza, Forlì, Imola, Ravenna and Rimini, where the Romagnola dialect is still spoken today.

The Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna

Travel tip:

Ravenna, in Emilia-Romagna, was the capital city of the western Roman empire in the fifth century. It is known for its well preserved late Roman and Byzantine architecture and has eight UNESCO world heritage sites. The Basilica of San Vitale is one of the most important examples of early Christian Byzantine art and architecture in Europe.

More reading:

How the Treaty of Lodi brought peace to northern Italy

Ravenna, the Ostrogoths and the Sack of Rome

The murder of papal military leader Girolamo Riario

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