Marino Grimani was the 89th Doge of Venice

Doge of Venice

The Doge of Venice , often mistranslated Duke was the chief magistrate and leader of the Most Serene Republic of Venice for over a thousand years. Doges of Venice were elected for life by the city-state's aristocracy. Commonly the person selected as Doge was the shrewdest elder in the city...

, reigning from April 26, 1595 until his death. Grimani's reign as doge was principally remembered for two reasons: (1) the splendid celebrations for the coronation

Coronation

A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...

 of his wife, Morosina Morosini

Morosina Morosini-Grimani

Morosina Morosini-Grimani , was a Venetian patrician. She was the Dogaressa of Venice from 1595 to 1606.Morosina Morosini-Grimani was the daughter of Andrea Morosini, a wealthy Venetian patrician. She was married in 1560 to Marino Grimani...

; and (2) the beginning of the quarrel with the papacy that resulted in Pope Paul V

Pope Paul V

-Theology:Paul met with Galileo Galilei in 1616 after Cardinal Bellarmine had, on his orders, warned Galileo not to hold or defend the heliocentric ideas of Copernicus. Whether there was also an order not to teach those ideas in any way has been a matter for controversy...

 placing the Republic of Venice

Republic of Venice

The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...

 under papal interdict

Interdict (Roman Catholic Church)

In Roman Catholic canon law, an interdict is an ecclesiastical censure that excludes from certain rites of the Church individuals or groups, who nonetheless do not cease to be members of the Church.-Distinctions in canon law:...

 in the reign of Grimani's successor, Leonardo Donato

Leonardo Donato

Leonardo Donà, or Donato was the 90th Doge of Venice, reigning from January 10, 1606 until his death...

 (1606–1607).

Background and pre-Doge political career, 1532-95

Grimani was born in 1532 to Donata Pisani and Girolamo Grimani

Grimani

The Grimani family were a prominent Venetian patrician family, including three Doges of Venice. They were active in trade, politics and later the ownership of theatres and opera-houses...

. Grimani's father was a wealthy man and an able politician. Given his wealthy background, Marino Grimani became podestà

Podestà

Podestà is the name given to certain high officials in many Italian cities, since the later Middle Ages, mainly as Chief magistrate of a city state , but also as a local administrator, the representative of the Emperor.The term derives from the Latin word potestas, meaning power...

at a relatively young age, and was then appointed as Venice's Ambassador to the Vatican

Holy See

The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...

 in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

. Upon his return to Venice, he was made a cavaliere. He became active in city politics and used his immense wealth to gain the acclaim of the people.

Career as Doge, 1595-1605

Following the death of Pasquale Cicogna, Grimani was a candidate for Doge. After 70 ballots, none of the candidates had the votes necessary to be elected. At this point, Grimani made liberal use of "gifts" in order to break the deadlock, and he was eventually elected Doge on April 26, 1595.

Given Grimani's popularity with the people, his election set off a long round of festivities and celebrations, and, just as these were waning, the coronation of Morosina Morosini as dogaressa set off a new round of opulent festivities.

Between 1601 and 1604, Venice, under Grimani's leadership, passed a number of laws limiting the power of the papacy within the Republic of Venice and withdrew a number of clerical privileges. This came to a head in late 1605 when Venice charged two priests as common criminals, thus denying their clerical immunity from facing charges in secular courts. On December 10, 1605, Pope Paul V

Pope Paul V

-Theology:Paul met with Galileo Galilei in 1616 after Cardinal Bellarmine had, on his orders, warned Galileo not to hold or defend the heliocentric ideas of Copernicus. Whether there was also an order not to teach those ideas in any way has been a matter for controversy...

sent a formal protest to Venice.

Grimani died on December 25, 1605, leaving the dispute with the papacy unresolved.