European Kingdoms

Republic of Venice
AD 697 - 1797

Initially formed by scattered marsh islands inhabited by refugees, Venice became one of the Mediterranean's great powers, the Serenissima Repubblica (the Most Serene Republic).

It was situated at the northern end of the Adriatic, largely in territory which had belonged to the pre-Roman Adriatic Veneti people, the republic encapsulated most of modern north-eastern Italy, as well as having coastal territories under its control along the Dalmatian coast and elsewhere in the eastern Mediterranean. It was one of the most long-lived post-Roman states (considering the immobility of its form of government). During Middle Ages it became almost a byword for the serenity its name claimed: it joined together monarchy, aristocracy and democracy in a way that seemed to be perfect.

By the twelfth century Venice already had all its typical bodies of power in place, and the doges of Venice were elected for life by the aristocracy of the city-state. The doge (or duke), was elected by the Major Council through an extraordinarily complicated procedure which included consultations with the Major Council, which was an expression of the patrician families and was the most important organ of the republic, and other councils, such as the Minor Council, formed by the doge and six advisers, the Council of Pregadi, a senate which qualified for the foreign politic, the Council of Ten, guarantor of the state's security, the Quarantia, a supreme tribunal, and others.

(Information by Peter Kessler, from an original list supplied by Francesco Costa, with additional information from Josafa Barbaro & Ambrogio Contarini: Travels to Tana and Persia, Henry E J Stanley (Ed, Hakluyt Society Series No 49, 1873), from The History of the Medieval World: From the Conversion of Constantine to the First Crusade, Susan Wise Bauer (2010), from The Despotate of Epiros, Donald McGillivray Nicol (Blackwell & Mott, 1957), from The History of the Franks, Volume II, Gregory of Tours (O M Dalton, Trans, 1967), from From Roman Provinces to Medieval Kingdoms, Thomas F X Noble, from Frankish Kingdoms under the Carolingians 751-987, R McKitterick (1983), and from External Links: the Foundation for Medieval Genealogy, and from Encyclopaedia.com, and Otto's Reign in Italy (Stories Preschool).)

421

The conventional day on which Venice's foundation is celebrated is 25 March.

452

Attila, king of Huns, invades Roman Italy, burning every city in his path. Aquileia is totally destroyed, burned to the ground, taking with it one of the grandest early Christian churches (although its beautiful mosaic floor survives under the rubble and later deposits of spoil to be uncovered by modern archaeologists). Refugees from Aquileia and other nearby cities (including Altinum) escape in the lagoon marsh islands for mutual protection, forming a settlement there. This is the real birth of Venice.

The coastal town of Altinum (modern Altino) was one of the victims of Attila's invasion, being evacuated in a hurry and afterwards gradually abandoned on a permanent basis, but archaeologists have been able to produce detailed images of the old street plan

552

General Narses leads Eastern Roman troops through the marshes to surprise and fight-off the Ostrogoths. Byzantine tribunes are placed in command of the region from the Italian capital at Ravenna. Byzantine supremacy is compromised after 568 with the invasion of the Lombards.

580

Eastern Roman Emperor Tiberius II reorganises the surviving Roman territories in Italy into five provinces which are given the Greek name eparchies. The new provinces are the Annonaria in northern Italy around Ravenna, Calabria, Campania, Emilia and Liguria, and the Urbicaria around the city of Rome (Urbs). To the north, across the River Po which forms the border, the duchy of Venice remains nominally under the service of the Eastern Romans.

640

Eraclea is founded.

672 - 676

In this period, Pope Adeodatus II grants Venice the right to select its own doge, although the office appears not to be introduced for another two decades.

697

The Eastern Roman tribunes are substituted with an elective, life-long office, the doge. The seat of government is Eraclea. The first dodge, Paoluccio Anafesto (otherwise known by the more Romanised name of Paulucius Anafestus or Anafestus Paulicius), is only first attested in the eleventh century. There is a school of thought which suggests that the doge and Exarch Paul of Ravenna are one and the same person, although the dates of office do not match up).

697 - 717

The first doge. Killed. Not in all lists.

717 - 726

726

Orso Ipato is the first fully attested doge, being confirmed by the Eastern Roman emperor and honoured with the titles of hypatus (consul) and dux (doge).

726 - 737

Killed after a plot.

737

The doge is substituted by the year-long, Eastern Roman office of magister militum, although Byzantine control in Italy at Ravenna is now very weak in the face of Lombard superiority.

738

Magistri militum.

739

740

741

742

After the magistri militum sequence, the elective doge is reintroduced. Venice is surrounded by the Lombard kingdom, and is split into factions which support the Eastern Romans, the Franks, the Lombards, and outright independence from all of them.

742 - 755

Deposed and killed by Galla Gaulo in a plot.

755 - 756

Deposed and blinded by Domenico Monegario.

756 - 764

Deposed and blinded.

764 - 787

787 - 804

Deposed.

804 - 810

Deposed.

807

Obelerio is faithful to Charlemagne of the Franks, but the intervention of the Niceta fleet reaffirms Eastern Roman sovereignty over the lagoon, Istria and Dalmatia.

Under Charlemagne's leadership, the Franks greatly expanded their borders eastwards, engulfing tribal states, the Bavarian state and its satellite, Khorushka, and much of northern Italy, with the Avars now an eastern neighbour (click or tap on map to view full sized)

810

The seat of government is transferred to Rialto. A military expedition guided by Pepin, king of the Franks of Italy, to conquer the region is stopped by the Venetian people. Pepin's siege of Venice lasts for six months, but his forces are ravaged by disease borne by insects from the surrounding swamps and are in no fit state to fight off the Venetians. Pepin dies a few months later.

811 - 827

Founder of the first doge's palace.

827 - 829

Founder of the first church or basilica of St Mark.

828

Following the revolt by Euphemius, commander of the Eastern Roman fleet of Sicily, and his invasion of the island alongside Emir Ziyadat Allah I of Tunis, a large Byzantine force is sent from Palermo against them. This is assisted by a fleet from Venice under the personal command of the doge, Giustiniano Partecipazio, but it is defeated. Sicily is in the hands of the Arabs as part of the Islamic empire.

In the same year, the body of St Mark the Evangelist is brought to Venice from Alexandria in Egypt, to become the state's patron saint.

829 - 836

Deposed following a plot.

836 - 864

Killed following a plot.

840

Venice claims victory at Lussino against the Islamic empire. A treaty is agreed with Lothar I, emperor of the Franks. It establishes the boundaries between the empire and Venice, and permits free trade.

King Louis 'the Pious' of the Frankish empire attempted to leave the empire intact for his eldest son, Lothar, but the others rebelled at the idea. The treaty of Verdun in AD 843 confirmed the official division of the empire between Charlemagne's three surviving grandsons (click or tap on map to view full sized)

864 - 881

867

Venice again wins over the Islamic empire at Taranto.

881 - 887

Abdicated.

887 - 888

888 - 912

900

As part of their initial invasion of Europe, the Magyars invade Italy, possibly at the prompting of Arnulf, king of Germany. Berengar refuses a request by them for an armistice but his army is surprised and routed at the Battle of the Brenta on 24 September 899. The Magyar invasion is subsequently blocked by the Venetians at Pellestrina in 900.

912 - 932

Abdicated.

932 - 939

937

A massive invasion is conducted by the Magyars as they sweep around in a giant circle through central and Southern Europe. They begin from their base in Pannonia to enter into and ravage Bavaria, Swabia, Saxony, Franconia, and Thuringia within the East Frankish kingdom.

From the Aachen area, the Magyars advance deep into the West Frankish kingdom, the kingdom of Provence, and then the territory of the Middle (Italian) Franks. They attack Tuscany and the Papal States as far south as Naples, before returning to their adopted Hungarian homeland via Venice.

939 - 942

942 - 959

944

Istrian pirates kidnap some intended brides on 31 January, but they are soon freed at Caorle. From this event arises the Feast of Marie.

959 - 976

Accused of tyranny and killed.

962

With the accession of the Saxon king, Otto I, the power of the Germanic Roman empire is confirmed. Otto is quite vigorous in establishing new counties and border areas within and without the empire's borders. The county of Ardennes under Sigfried gains the stronghold of Lucilinburhuc (the later Luxemburg), Arnulf I the Elder is restored in Flanders, and the March of Austria is formed from territory which had already been captured from an early Hungary (around 960).

Germany in AD 962 may have had its new emperor to govern those territories which are shown within the dark black line, but it was still a patchwork of competing interests and power bases (click or tap on map to view full sized)

At the same time, Saxony gains Hermann Billung as its duke, charged with maintaining the duchy's eastern borders and expanding them further to the east, alongside the recently-created North March. Perhaps as a reaction to this or as the culmination of a process that is already heading that way, the duchy of Poland is formed around the same time.

967

Emperor Otto I of the Holy Roman empire repairs relationships with the republic of Venice. In 966 the doge of Venice, Peitro IV, marries a relative of Otto's, strengthening ties.

In the following year Otto grants Venice a general series of commercial agreements, with Pietro's family particularly benefiting. These agreements further strengthen Venice's ties to the west, which greatly angers the soon-to-be Eastern Roman emperor, John I Tzimisces, as Venice controls all sea trade between Western Europe and the Roman Levant in the east.

976

With Holy Roman Emperor Otto I dead and his son and successor occupied in suppressing revolts in Germany, the people of Venice revolt against the unpopular Pietro IV, killing him by locking him in the palace and setting fire to it. St Mark's Basilica is also set alight by the blaze, resulting in the greater part of the city being burned.

976 - 978

Pro-Eastern Roman. Abdicated to become a monk.

978 - 979

Son of Pietro IV. Restored HRE relations. Abdicated.

979 - 991

983

While an initial embargo has shown little effect on Venice, Holy Roman Emperor Otto II imposes a second embargo which deals considerable damage to the Venetian economy. The effects are disastrous enough to cause the ruling Venetian families to surrender to Otto, but his untimely death in the very same year prevents that from taking place.

991 - 1008

992

'Golden Bull': the first important commercial treaty with Eastern Roman Emperor Basil II, which give an advantage to Venetian merchants.

1000

Pietro Orseolo leads an expedition against Slavonic pirates, becoming doge of Venice, Istria and Dalmatia. Here begins the 'Sea Dominion' of the republic, and the traditional 'wedding of the sea' during Ascension Day.

1002

Venice achieves victory over the Islamic empire at Bari.

1008 - 1026

Deposed.

1026 - 1032

Deposed.

1032

It is now forbidden for the doge to elect a successor. Rather, he is supported by a group of councillors.

1032 - 1043

1043 - 1071

1071 - 1085

Deposed.

1082

A 'Golden Bull' is agreed with Eastern Roman Emperor Alexius I Comnenus, establishing new commercial privileges.

1085 - 1096

1085

Alexius I Comnenus declares the formal independence of Venice from the Eastern Romans.

1096 - 1102

1100

Venice takes part in the First Crusade, obtaining from Godfrey de Bouillon, king of Jerusalem, a complete exemption on duty.

1102 - 1118

Killed in the Battle of Zara.

1104

Venice captures Saint-Jean d'Acre. The Arsenal is founded.

1118

War against the Hungarians sees Ordelaf Falier killed at the Battle of Zara. This important coastal city on the Dalmatian coast is better known today as Zadar.

1118 - 1129

Abdicated.

1123

King Baldwin II of Jerusalem is captured by the Ortoqids in northern Syria. In his absence the kingdom is governed by the constable of Jerusalem, Eustace Grenier, and the Fatamid military vizier, Al-Ma'mum, spies an opportunity to capture the coastal stronghold of Jaffa. Launching his attack from Egypt, Al-Ma'mum's force is intercepted by Crusader troops at the Battle of Yibneh (or Yibna), close to the Fatamid coastal fortress of Ashkelon (Ascalon). The battle is short and decisive, with the Fatamid fleet also being destroyed by the Venetians, and the Fatamid threat is virtually ended for the next thirty years.

1124

Returning from the Holy Land, Domenico Michiel conquers Tyre, Spalato (Split), Sebenico (Šibenik), and other Eastern Roman cities.

1130 - 1148

1143 - 1144

Venice goes to war against Padua for control of the borderline along the River Brenta, and is victorious.

1148 - 1156

1156 - 1172

Killed during a popular revolt.

c.1167

With Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I forcibly attempting to increase his power over Italy, the Lombard League is formed. Its job is to counter the imperial threat, and it is bolstered by the support of the Papacy, which is just as keen to reduce imperial interference in 'its' domain. At its height it manages to incorporate most of the cities of northern Italy, including Venice.

1170 - 1171

Zara rebels and switches allegiance to the Hungarians. In 1171 Zara is re-conquered. Eastern Roman Emperor Manuel Comnenus orders the arrest of all Venetians living in Constantinople.

1172

Foundation of the Major Council.

1172 - 1178

Abdicated.

1177

Venice offers hospitality to Pope Alexander III and Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, and the republic arbitrates the peace.

1178 - 1192

1178

Foundation of the Minor Council.

1179

Foundation of the Quarantia supreme tribunal.

1190

Having long been a territory within the Eastern Roman empire, recent Roman fragmentation now allows the formation of the principality of Arbanon within modern Albanian borders. This is sometimes claimed as the first Albanian state.  It occupies the region of Krujë, with Venetian territories situated to its west and south-west.

1192 -1205

1195 - 1196

Pisa tries to block the Adriatic Sea with the help of Ragusa (Dubrovnik), but is defeated in the Istrian Gulf and at Modone (in Greece).

1204

The Fourth Crusade results in the conquest of Angeli dynasty Constantinople. In return for its support of the conquest, the best part of the former empire is given to Venice. The doge becomes lord of 37.5 percent of the former Byzantine empire.

1205 - 1229

Abdicated.

1206

Marco Sanudo conquers the Cyclades and Sporades islands.

1207

The Venetian fleet conquers Corfu, Modone (Methoni), and Corone (Koroni).

1211

Venice begins its first colonisation of Candia (Crete).

1214 - 1216

War is rekindled against Padua.

1229 - 1249

Abdicated.

1238

Venice is in league with Genoa and the Pope against the Emperor Frederick II.

1244

Peace is agreed with Bela IV of Hungary, and he releases the city of Zara.

1249 - 1253

1253 - 1268

1252 - 1257

Golem of Arbanon submits in 1252 to Emperor John III Ducas Vatatzes. But the principality suffers a revolt against imposed Nicæan rule. That is put down but the principality is then annexed by the individual who becomes responsible for writing down much of the short history of Arbanon - Grand Logothete George Akropolites of Constantinople.

Albanian independence is ended by this act, although only briefly. Such is the chaos in the Balkans at this time, as the Eastern Roman empire gradually rebuilds itself, that it is only fifteen years later that the Albanian '(First) Kingdom' is declared.

1261

The fall of the Latin empire is effected with the return of the Byzantine emperor to Constantinople. Venice maintains its possessions in the Greek islands and in Morea (Peloponnesus).

1257 - 1270

Venice goes to war against Genoa.

1268 - 1275

1274 - 1294

Venetian trader Marco Polo arrives in Kanbaliq on a visit to the court of the Chinese emperor, Kublai Khan. He remains in China for seventeen years, and returns to Venice after completing a diplomatic mission for the emperor. His voyage, opening up new sea routes, contributes to a marked decline in the use of the ancient Silk Road within 150 years of his return home.

Marco Polo's journey into China along the Silk Road made use of a network of east-west trade routes which had been developed since the time of Greek control of Bactria

1275 - 1280

Abdicated.

1280 - 1289

1282

All of the scheming with Venice by Charles of Anjou to build up a retaliatory force which will capture Constantinople from the Eastern Romans comes to nothing. His fleet is docked at Sicily, part of his holdings within the Angevin kingdom of Naples, when the rebellion of the Sicilian Vespers massacres Angevins on the island and destroys the fleet.

1289 - 1311

1291

Saint-Jean d'Acre is conquered by the Mamelukes, signalling the end of Outremer. The Christian kingdom of Cyprus continues, while the Teutonic Knights retire to Venice from where they become involved in the conquest of the Baltic tribes.

1294 - 1299

A second war is waged against Genoa. Venice suffers disastrous defeats at Laiazzo (Ayas) and in Dalmatia.

1297

'Lockout of the Major Council': only those families which are now represented in the council can take part in it in the future.

1310

The Plot of Baiamonte Tiepolo. To avoid other plots, the Council of Ten is founded.

1311 - 1312

1312 - 1328

1314

Venice annexes Muggia (in Istria).

1322

Venice annexes Sebenico (Šibenik) and Traù (Trogir).

1329 - 1339

1337 - 1339

Venice is at war against Mastino II della Scala, tyrant of Verona, and annexes Treviso and Bassano.

1339 - 1342

1343 - 1354

1345

Another war is fought against Hungary for the rebel city of Zara.

1350 - 1355

The third war is fought against Genoa. Venice enjoys mixed fortunes.

1354 - 1355

Deposed and decapitated after his conspiracy.

1355 - 1356

1356 - 1361

1361 - 1365

1365 - 1368

1368 - 1382

1372 - 1380

The last great war against Genoa is waged. At the Battle of Chioggia, near Venice, the city is conquered by Genoans and then recaptured by Carlo Zen. Venice is ultimately victorious. Mediation between Venice and Genoa is carried out by Count Amadeus VI of Savoy, who sponsors the peace treaty that finally ends the conflict between the two great naval powers.

1382

1382 - 1400

1392

The '(First) Kingdom' of Albanians has gradually lost its territory and has become weaker. Now it surrenders to Venice. Thereafter the Balkans are largely a possession of the Ottomans (with Venetian Albania falling in the mid-fifteenth century).

1395

The duchy of Milan is created along the western border of the republic, out of territory that belongs ultimately to the Holy Roman empire. The duchy will become an important player in the tangled web of Italian politics.

1400 - 1413

1404 - 1405

Venice makes conquests for its Dry Land Dominion, including Vicenza, Feltre, Belluno, Verona, and Padua.

1414 - 1423

1420

Aquileia (which is allied to the Hungarians) is defeated. Friuli is annexed.

1423 - 1457

Deposed.

1423

Venice completes the purchase of Scutari (Shkodër in former '(First) Kingdom' Albania) and Salonicco (Thessaloniki in Macedonia).

1423 - 1454

When Giorgio Ordelaffi, lord of Forlì, dies, his son succeeds him although he is still a child. Duke Filippo Visconti of Milan becomes his guardian but abuses his position of trust and attempts to conquer areas of the Romagna in 1423. The republic of Florence refuses to allow Milan's unchecked expansion of territory, so the Wars in Lombardy are triggered. Venice is soon persuaded to join in 1425, on the side of Florence. In March 1426 Francesco Bussone foments riots in Brescia (a Milanese possession), beginning the process by which Venice conquers it after a long campaign, expanding its Dry Land Dominion by obtaining not only Brescia, but also Bergamo and Cremona. Duke Filippo is forced to accept a peace deal proposed by Pope Martin V which favours Venice and Francesco Bussone. At the first opportunity, Filippo resumes the fighting but is quickly defeated at Maclodio on 12 October 1427. A more concrete peace is signed at Ferrara. Fighting against Milan continues on and off until 1454.

1447 - 1450

Upon the death of Duke Filippo Visconti of Milan, the last direct male representative of his family, the Golden Ambrosian republic is declared on 13 August 1447. Ably defended by Francesco Sforza, the duchy is still unable to prevent Venice from capturing the last of the Milanese territories that it claims, and Crema becomes a Venetian holding.

1453

The Ottoman Turks conquer Byzantine Constantinople. The Sporades Islands prefer to join Venice.

1457 - 1462

1462 - 1471

1462

The Ottomans conquer Argos. This marks the beginning of a difficult war for Venice against Sultan Mehmet II in the form of the First Ottoman-Venetian War of 1463-1479. Lord Skanderbeg of the Albanian League supports Venice against growing Ottoman strength.

The Ottomans directly challenged the most powerful of Europe's Mediterranean empires in the form of the Venetian republic, leading to a series of vicious wars over the course of three centuries which are known as the Ottoman-Venetian Wars

1468

The Dukagjini domain of Lekë III covers areas of today's northern Albania and southern Kosovo. Despite being involved in some serious long-running feuds with his fellow Albanians, he attempts to lead the Albanian League following Skanderbeg's death. Occasionally he links up with the Venetians whose own position is becoming increasingly vulnerable.

1470

The Ottomans conquer the important island of Negroponte (Euboea in Greece).

1471 - 1473

1473

Having requested military aid as early as 1464 from one of the most powerful of the opponents of the Ottoman rulers, Venice, Uzun Hassan of the White Sheep emirate in eastern Anatolia is disappointed to find that the aid fails to arrive when he most needs it. Instead he is defeated by the Ottomans at the Battle of Otlukbeli in 1473. The Ak Qoyunlu survive, however.

1474 - 1475

Ambrogio Contarini is a Venetian diplomat and merchant who, during his travels, records his adventures throughout the east as a form of travelogue. As the envoy of Venice, he has been visiting the royal Persian court at Isfahan in 1474 in pursuit of a military alliance with the dominant White Sheep emirate against the mutually hostile Ottomans. The talks are largely fruitless (especially after the events of 1473), so in 1475 Contarini begins a circuitous return that must by necessity avoid the Ottomans. The task is even more difficult because, at the start of 1475, they conquer Caffa and the Crimean khanate. Contarini travels through Derbent in Dagestan and visits Astrakhan to be able to access the Volga and a return to Europe via Moscow state.

1473 - 1474

1474 - 1476

1476 - 1478

1478 - 1485

1479

After the loss of Scutari, and a battle in Friuli, peace is agreed with Ottoman Sultan Mehmet II.

1481 - 1484

Venice is at war against Ferrara at the insistence of Pope Sixtus IV. Rovigo and Polesine are annexed, but the pope is under pressure on all sides to end the hostilities that he has started, so in 1483 he places Venice under interdict.

1485 - 1486

1486 - 1501

1489

Queen Caterina Cornaro give Cyprus to the republic.

1495

Venice agrees an alliance with Naples, the Pope, Milan, and the Emperor in order to defend Italy from Charles VIII of France. Further west, John II of Portugal encourages the exploration of the western coast of Africa and beyond in an attempt to find a new source of riches outside the Mediterranean, which is controlled by Venice.

1501 - 1521

1499 - 1503

A new war breaks out against the Ottoman Turks. Venice loses Modone and Lepanto.

1508 - 1509

The League of Cambrai is formed with France, Castile, Hungary, the Papal States, the Holy Roman empire, and Ferrara against Venice. Venice is defeated at Agnadello, with the loss of all the Dry Land Dominion - essentially its territories in Italy.

1516

Thanks to exceptional diplomacy, Venice manages to recover from the serious turn of events and regains all its Dry Land possessions.

1521 - 1523

1523 - 1538

1525

The French are defeated at the Battle of Pavia, leaving Holy Roman Emperor Charles V dominant in Italy. Newly-installed Duke Francesco Sforza of Milan joins the League of Cognac against the emperor along with Florence, France, the Pope, and Venice. This backfires when the emperor takes military action against Milan.

1539 - 1545

1537 - 1540

Another war is fought against the Ottoman Turks. Venice suffers more losses in Morea (the Greek Peloponnesus).

Introduced in Venice's northern border in 1560, the system of imperial states replaced the now-outdated feudal system, with an imperial circle ('Reichskreis') being a regional grouping of the imperial states (click or tap on map to view full sized)

1545 - 1553

1551

Admiral Turgut Reis, beylerbey of Algiers, sails with a large fleet of galleys under the command of Admiral Sinan Pasha to attack Venetian ports and then effect a landing on Sicily. The city of Augusta is bombarded in revenge for Sicily's invasion and destruction of Mahdia, and for the massacre of its inhabitants.

1553 - 1554

1554 - 1556

1556 - 1559

1559 - 1567

1567 - 1570

1570 - 1577

1570 - 1573

Ottoman Selim III besieges the cities on Cyprus from 1570. A great naval victory at Lepanto is gained in 1571 when Venice, the Pope, and Spain defeat the Ottoman Turks (and kill their admiral, Müezzinzade 'Sofu' Ali Pasha, former governor of Egypt). Even so, Venice is still forced to give up Cyprus in 1573.

European victory at the Battle of Lepanto was considered the saviour of Europe itself from the advancing Ottoman threat, shown in this 1640 oil by Andries van Eertvelt (1590-1652)

1577 - 1578

1578 - 1585

1580

Although Italy does not possess the political cohesiveness to replicate Spain's general expulsion of 1492, various anti-Semitic acts are perpetrated in the middle of this century. Members of the Jewish Diaspora in Italy gradually head north as the south becomes increasingly inhospitable to them. Then conditions in Rome worsen after 1556 and in the Venetian republic in the 1580s.

Some are Sephardi Jews who have found a home in Italy since 1492, but the majority are Romaniote Jews who have been in Italy since the time of the exarchate of Ravenna. Now both communities migrate away, largely, but not exclusively, into Ottoman-controlled Greece.

1585 - 1595

1591

The present Rialto Bridge is completed in stone, replacing several wooden structures that have existed since 1181, some of which have collapsed into the canal below.

The Ponte di Rialto's stone arches crossing the Grand Canal

1595 - 1605

1606 - 1612

Son of Giovanni Battista Donà, governor of Cyprus (1556).

1612 - 1615

1615 - 1618

1618

1618 - 1623

1623 - 1624

1625 - 1629

1630 - 1631

1631 - 1646

1646 - 1655

1655 - 1656

1656

1656 - 1658

1658 - 1659

1659 - 1675

1644 - 1669

The Ottomans besiege Candia (Heraklion). Venice loses Crete, the last island in its old sea empire.

1675 - 1676

1676 - 1684

1684 - 1688

1688 - 1694

Called the Peloponnesiacus.

1684 - 1694

Francesco Morosini reconquers the Morea (the Greek Peloponnesus) from the Ottomans. He becomes the last hero of Venice (but he is also known for the bombing at the Parthenon).

Modelled after the Treaty of Warsaw, a 'Holy League' is formed in 1684 by the Papal States to prevent further Ottoman expansion into Europe. This coalition consists of the massed forces of the Holy Roman empire, Poland, Russia, Venice, and Spain.

1694 - 1700

1700 - 1709

1709 - 1722

1718

This year marks the definitive loss of Morea to the Ottomans.

1722 - 1732

1732 - 1735

1735 - 1741

1741 - 1752

1752 - 1762

1762 - 1763

1763 - 1778

1779 - 1789

1784 - 1788

Tunis faces several campaigns of naval bombardment. The Venetians are responsible for this and the bombardment of other Tunisian coastal cities. Muhammad has been accused of supporting the piratical raids of the Barbary corsairs against European vessels (almost certainly a fair accusation). The campaign certainly minimises Tunisian participation in piracy, at least in the short term.

1789 - 1797

Abdicated.

1797

Napoleon Bonaparte, leader of the French First Republic begins campaigning against Austria in northern Italy, starting with the Battle of Rivoli on 14-15 January. The Treaty of Leoben is signed with Austria on 17 April, which leads to the loss for Austria of the Austrian Netherlands and Lombardy, but which gains it the Venetian territories of Dalmatia and Istria in return. The Transpadane republic gains the rest of conquered Venice, signalling the end of the great republic in a period that is a crisis point for the established monarchies of Europe. In the following year Napoleon sells the region to Austria.

1805

The western section of the former republic is added to Napoleon Bonaparte's kingdom of Italy.

1814 - 1866

With the abdication of Napoleon Bonaparte from the thrones of France and Italy the scene is set for a renewal of Austrian control of Venice. The Austrians occupy Milan on 28 April 1814, and on 30 May the Treaty of Paris officially hands the remains of the kingdom of Italy to Austria, including Venice. Lombardy and Venice are combined into the Austrian state of Lombardy-Venetia, which falls under the direct control of the Austrian emperor and is administered by viceroys.

1866

Prussia fights the Austro-Prussian War against Austria, essentially as a decider to see which of the two powers will be dominant in Central Europe. Prussia gains Italy as an ally in the south and several minor German states in the north. Austria and its southern German allies are crushed in just seven weeks (giving the conflict its alternative title of the Seven Weeks' War), and Prussia is now unquestionably dominant. Bismark oversees the seizure of four of Austria's northern German allies, the kingdom of Hanover, the electorate of Hessen-Kassel, and the duchy of Nassau, along with the free city of Frankfurt. Prussia also subsumes Schleswig and Holstein and Saxe-Lauenberg, while despite being defeated in its own theatre of the war, Italy gains Venice thanks to Prussia's dominance.