Repubbliche Marinare - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The maritime republics were a number of city-states which flourished in Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

in the Middle Ages

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

. The best known are the Amalfi, Pisa

Republic of Pisa

The Republic of Pisa was a de facto independent state centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa during the late tenth and eleventh centuries. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italian trade for a century before being surpassed and...

, Genoa

Republic of Genoa

The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....

and 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...

. These states competed with each other both militarily and commercially. From the 10th to the 13th centuries these cities built fleets of ships both for their own protection and to support extensive trade networks across the Mediterranean, leading to an essential role in the Crusades

Crusades

The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...

. As they found themselves in competition, these republics engaged in shifting alliances and warfare.

Number

The best known maritime republics in Italy are the four mentioned above, and they are usually given in that order, reflecting the temporal sequence of their dominance. However, other Italian towns also have a history of being maritime republics, though less known. These include Gaeta, Ancona

Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....

, Trani

Trani

Trani is a seaport of Apulia, southern Italy, on the Adriatic Sea, in the new Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani , and 40 km by railway West-Northwest of Bari.- History :...

and Noli

Noli

Noli |Ligurian]] Nöi ) is a coast comune of Liguria, Italy, in the Province of Savona, it is about SW of Genoa by rail, about 4 m above sea-level. It has a population of 2,957. In 1901, it had a population of 1,985...

. Gaeta, for example, provided a fleet for the Papal alliance's victory against the Saracens at the Battle of Ostia. On the eastern coast of the Adriatic, in Dalmatia

Dalmatia

Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....

, there was the Republic of Ragusa

Republic of Ragusa

The Republic of Ragusa or Republic of Dubrovnik was a maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik in Dalmatia , that existed from 1358 to 1808...

, centered on the city of Ragusa (today a part of modern Croatia

Croatia

Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

with the name Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...

Overview

The maritime republics were city-states. They were generally republic

Republic

A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...

s in that they were formally independent, though most of them originated from territories once belonging to the Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

(the main exceptions being Genoa and Pisa). All these cities during the time of their independence had similar (though not identical) systems of government in which the merchant class had considerable power.

The maritime republics were heavily involved in the Crusades

Crusades

The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...

, providing transport and support but most especially taking advantage of the political and trading opportunities resulting from these wars. The Fourth Crusade

Fourth Crusade

The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...

, notionally intended to "liberate" Jerusalem, actually entailed the Venetian conquest of Zadar

Zadar

Zadar is a city in Croatia on the Adriatic Sea. It is the centre of Zadar county and the wider northern Dalmatian region. Population of the city is 75,082 citizens...

and Constantinople

Constantinople

Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

.

Each of the maritime republics over time had dominion over different overseas lands, including many of the islands of the Mediterranean and especially Sardinia

Sardinia

Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...

and Corsica

Corsica

Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....

, lands on the Adriatic, Aegean Sea

Aegean Sea

The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...

, and Black Sea

Black Sea

The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...

(Crimea

Crimea

Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...

), and commercial colonies in the Near East

Near East

The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...

and North Africa

North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...

. In this respect Venice stands out from the rest in that she maintained enormous tracts of land in Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

and Cyprus

Cyprus

Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...

until as late as the mid 17th century.

Origins

The economic growth of Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

around the year 1000, together with the lack of safety on the mainland trading routes, made possible the development of major commercial routes along the coast of the Mediterranean

Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...

. In this context, the growing independence acquired by some coastal cities gave them a leading role in the European scene.

These cities, exposed to pirate raids (mostly Saracen

Saracen

Saracen was a term used by the ancient Romans to refer to a people who lived in desert areas in and around the Roman province of Arabia, and who were distinguished from Arabs. In Europe during the Middle Ages the term was expanded to include Arabs, and then all who professed the religion of Islam...

), organized autonomously their defence

Defense (military)

Defense has several uses in the sphere of military application.Personal defense implies measures taken by individual soldiers in protecting themselves whether by use of protective materials such as armor, or field construction of trenches or a bunker, or by using weapons that prevent the enemy...

, provided themselves heavy war fleets. Thus they were able in the 10th and 11th centuries to switch to the offensive role, taking advantage of the rivalry between the Byzantine

Byzantine

Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...

and Islamic maritime powers and competing with them for the control of the commerce and trade routes with Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

and Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

Development

On the institutional level, the cities formed from autonomous Republic

Republic

an governments, an expression of the merchant

Merchant

A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...

class, which constituted the backbone of their power. The history of the maritime republics intertwines both with the launch of European expansion to the East, and with the origins of modern capitalism

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...

as a mercantile and financial system. The merchants of the Italian maritime republics, using coins

Currency

In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...

minted in gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

(in disuse for centuries), began to develop new foreign exchange transactions and accounting. There were also stimulated technological advances in navigation

Navigation

Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...

, an essential support for the growth of mercantile wealth.

The Crusades offered them the opportunity for expansionist aims; the Crusades increasingly relied on Italian sea-transport, for which the Republics extracted concessions of colonies as well as a cash price. Venice, Amalfi, Ancona, and Ragusa were already engaged in trade with the Levant, but the phenomenon increased with the Crusades: thousands from the Italian maritime republics poured into the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea

Black Sea

, creating bases, ports and commercial establishments known as "colonies". These were small gated enclaves, often just a single street, within a city, where the laws of the Italian city were administered by a governor appointed from home, and there would be a church under home jurisdiction, and shops with Italian styles of food. These Italian mercantile centers also had a large political influence locally: the Italian merchants were, in fact, forming in the center of their business, guild

Guild

A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...

-like associations, directed at obtaining legal privileges, tax and customs from foreign governments within a clear policy; several personal dominions were born. Pera

Beyoglu

Beyoğlu is a district located on the European side of İstanbul, Turkey, separated from the old city by the Golden Horn...

in Constantinople

Constantinople

, first Genoese, then under the Ottomans Venetian, was the largest and best known Italian trading base.

The history of the various maritime republics is quite varied and this is understandable if we consider the difference in their longevity: Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...

, Genoa

Genoa

Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....

, Noli

Noli

, and Ragusa

Dubrovnik

had a very long life with an independence that, outlasting the medieval period, continued up to the threshold of the contemporary era when the set of Italian and European states was devastated by the Napoleonic campaigns.

Other republics kept their independence until the Renaissance

Renaissance

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...

: Pisa, which came under the dominion of Florence in 1406, and Ancona, which came under control of the Papal States

Papal States

The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...

in 1532.
Amalfi

Amalfi

Amalfi is a town and comune in the province of Salerno, in the region of Campania, Italy, on the Gulf of Salerno, c. 35 km southeast of Naples. It lies at the mouth of a deep ravine, at the foot of Monte Cerreto , surrounded by dramatic cliffs and coastal scenery...

and Gaeta

Gaeta

Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....

instead lost their independence very soon: the first in 1131 and the second in 1140, both having passed into the hands of the Normans.

Amalfi

, perhaps the first of the maritime republics to play a major role, had developed extensive trade with Byzantium

Byzantine Empire

and Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

. Amalfian merchants took away the trade monopoly in the Mediterranean from the Arabs and founded mercantile bases in Southern Italy and the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

in the 10th century. Amalfitans were the first to create a colony in Costantinopole. The compass was probably invented in Amalfi, which is still in use today.

Among the most important products of the Republic of Amalfi are the Amalfian Laws
Amalfian Laws
The Amalfian Laws are a code of maritime laws compiled in the 12th century in Amalfi, a town in Italy.They took the form of the Tabula Amalfitana , and were for centuries the international mercantile code accepted and taken as a model....

, a code collecting the rules of maritime law which remained in force throughout the Middle Ages

Middle Ages

.

From 1039, Amalfi came under the control of the Principality of Salerno

Principality of Salerno

The Lombard Principality of Salerno was a South Italian state, centered on the port city of Salerno, formed in 851 out of the Principality of Benevento after a decade-long civil war....

. Then in 1073, Robert Guiscard

Robert Guiscard

Robert d'Hauteville, known as Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, from Latin Viscardus and Old French Viscart, often rendered the Resourceful, the Cunning, the Wily, the Fox, or the Weasel was a Norman adventurer conspicuous in the conquest of southern Italy and Sicily...

conquered the city and took the title Dux Amalfitanorum ("Duke of the Amalfitans"). In 1096, Amalfi revolted and returned to be an independent republic, but this was put down in 1101. It revolted again in 1130 and was finally subdued in 1131.

Amalfi in 1137 was sacked by Pisa

Pisa

Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...

ns, in a time when it was weakened by natural disasters (severe floodings) and from the annexion to the Norman lands in southern Italy. After the Norman conquest, Amalfi began a rapid decline and was replaced in its role as the main commercial hub of Campania by Naples

Duchy of Naples

The Duchy of Naples began as a Byzantine province that was constituted in the seventh century, in the reduced coastal lands that the Lombards had not conquered during their invasion of Italy in the sixth century...

Pisa

In 1016 Pisa

Pisa

Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...

and Genoa

Genoa

Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....

, allied with each other, defeated the Saracens and conquered Corsica

Corsica

Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....

, in addition to gaining control of the Tyrrhenian Sea

Tyrrhenian Sea

The Tyrrhenian Sea is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy.-Geography:The sea is bounded by Corsica and Sardinia , Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata and Calabria and Sicily ....

. A century later they freed the Balearic Islands

Balearic Islands

The Balearic Islands are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain with Palma as the capital...

and this expedition was celebrated in the "Gesta triumphalia per pisanos" and in an epic poem the "Liber Maiorichinus" composed in the years 1113-1115.

Pisa, at that time overlooking the sea at the mouth of the Arno

Arno

The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber.- Source and route :The river originates on Mount Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and initially takes a southward curve...

, reached the pinnacle of its glory between the 12th and 13th centuries, when its ships controlled the western Mediterranean.

Rivalry between Pisa and Genoa grew worse in the 12th century and resulted in the naval Battle of Meloria (1284)

Battle of Meloria (1284)

The Battle of Meloria was fought between 5 and 6 August 1284 near the Meloria islet, in the Tyrrhenian Sea between the Genoese and the Pisan fleet, as part of the Genoese-Pisan War...

, which marked the beginning of Pisan decline, with the Pisan renunciation of all claim to Corsica and the concession of part of Sardinia to Genoa (1299). Moreover the Aragon

Aragon

Aragon is a modern autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. Located in northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces : Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel. Its capital is Zaragoza...

ese conquest of Sardinia, which began in 1324, deprived the Tuscan city of the domain over the Giudicati
Giudicati
The giudicati were the indigenous kingdoms of Sardinia from about 900 until 1410, when the last fell to the Aragonese. The rulers of the giudicati were giudici , from the Latin iudice , often translates as "judge". The Latin for giudicato was iudicatus The giudicati (singular giudicato) were the...

of Cagliari

Giudicato of Cagliari

The Giudicato of Cagliari was one of the four Sardinian giudicati of the Middle Ages. It covered the entire south and central east portion of the island and was composed of thirteen subdivisions called curatoriae. To its north and west lay Arborea and north and on the east lay Gallura and Logudoro...

and Gallura

Giudicato of Gallura

The Giudicato of Gallura was one of four Sardinian giudicati of the Middle Ages. These were de facto independent states ruled by judges bearing the title iudex . Gallura, a name which comes from gallus, meaning rooster , was subdivided into ten curatoriae governed by curatores under the judge...

. In territorial terms, Pisa maintained its independence and essentially the domain of the Tuscan coast until 1409, when it was annexed by Florence

Florence

Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....

Genoa

Genoa was reborn at the dawn of the 10th century, when - after the destruction of the city by Saracens - its inhabitants took up the sea route. The importance of its fleet gained the recognition, by the Holy Roman Emperor

Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...

, of the city's claims to legislative-common law and economic autonomy.

The alliance with Pisa allowed the liberation of the western sector of the Mediterranean from Saracens pirates, with the reconquest of Corsica, Balearic Islands

Balearic Islands

and Provence

Provence

Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...

.

The formation of the Compagna Communis, a meeting of all trade associations in the city (called Compagnie), comprising also the noble lords

Feudalism

Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...

of the surrounding valleys and coasts, finally signalled the birth of Genoese government.

The fortunes of the town increased considerably by joining the First Crusade

First Crusade

The First Crusade was a military expedition by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem...

: their participation gave them the acquisition of great privileges for the Genoese communities

Genoese colonies

The colonies of the Republic of Genoa were a series of economic and trade posts in the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Some of them had been established directly under the patronage of the republican authorities to support the economy of the local merchants , while others originated as feudal...

who moved to many places in the Holy Land

Holy Land

The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...

. The apex of Genoese fortune came in the 13th century with the conclusion of the Treaty of Nymphaeum (1261)

Treaty of Nymphaeum (1261)

The Treaty of Nymphaeum was a trade and defense pact signed between the Empire of Nicaea and the Republic of Genoa in Nymphaion in March of 1261...

with the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus, which, in exchange for the aid to the Byzantine reconquest of Constantinople, actually ousted the Venetians from the straits leading to the Black Sea

Black Sea

, which quickly became a Genoese sea. Shortly afterwards Pisa was finally defeated in the Battle of Meloria, in 1284.

In 1298, the Genoese also defeated the Venetian fleet at the Dalmatia

Dalmatia

n island of Curzola

Battle of Curzola

Battle of Curzola was the naval battle which was fought on September 9, 1298 between the fleets of Genoa and Venice; it was a disaster for Venice, a major setback among many battles fought in the 13th and 14th centuries between Pisa, Genoa and Venice in a long series of wars...

: the confrontation led to the capture of the Venetian doge and Marco Polo

Marco Polo

Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant traveler from the Venetian Republic whose travels are recorded in Il Milione, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. He learned about trading whilst his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, travelled through Asia and apparently...

, who during his imprisonment at Palazzo San Giorgio

Palazzo San Giorgio

The Palazzo San Giorgio or Palace of St. George is a palace in Genoa, Italy. It is situated in the Piazza Caricamento....

dictated to Rustichello da Pisa

Rustichello da Pisa

Rustichello da Pisa, also known as Rusticiano and Rustigielo , was an Italian romance writer best known for cowriting Marco Polo's autobiography while they were in prison together in Genoa. A native Pisan, he may have been captured by the Genoese at the Battle of Meloria in 1284, amid a conflict...

, his cellmate, the story of his travels. Genoa remained relatively powerful until the last major conflict with Venice, the War of Chioggia

War of Chioggia

The War of Chioggia was a conflict between Genoa and Venice which lasted from 1378 to 1381, from which Venice emerged triumphant. It was a part of the larger Venetian-Genoese War which began in 1350.-Background:...

of 1379, which ended with the victory of the Venetians, who finally recaptured the dominance over trade to the East.

After the gloomy break of the fifteenth century marked by plagues and foreign domination, the city enjoyed its moment of greatest splendor after the regaining of self-government at the hands of Andrea Doria

Andrea Doria

Andrea Doria was an Italian condottiere and admiral from Genoa.-Early life:Doria was born at Oneglia from the ancient Genoese family, the Doria di Oneglia branch of the old Doria, de Oria or de Auria family. His parents were related: Ceva Doria, co-lord of Oneglia, and Caracosa Doria, of the...

in 1528. In fact, throughout the following century Genoa became the primary sponsor of the Spanish monarchy, reaping huge profits, which allowed the old patrician class to maintain for a certain period a substantial vitality.
However the republic was only de jure independent, because in fact it was often under the influence of the major neighboring powers, first the French and Spanish, then the Austrians and Savoyards; the republic was finally subdued by the Napoleonic wave in 1805 and annexed to the Kingdom of Sardinia

Kingdom of Sardinia

The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...

in 1815 that finally buried the economy and forced the emigration of the best workers and most of the rural population to the Americas.

Venice

The Republic of Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...

, also known as "The Most Serene" (La Serenissima), born in the year 421, and thriving from the development of trade relations with the Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

, which formally was part of initially, but in a substantially independent way. Venice later on remained allied with Byzantium in the fight against Arabs and Normans.

Around the year 1000 it began its expansion in the Adriatic Sea

Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...

, defeating the pirates who occupied the coast of Istria

Istria

Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...

and Dalmatia

Dalmatia

by placing the region and its main city under Venetian control.

At the beginning of 13th century, the city reached the peak of its power, dominating the commercial traffic in the Mediterranean and with the Orient.
During the Fourth Crusade

Fourth Crusade

(1202–1204) its fleet was decisive in the acquisition of possession of the islands and the most commercially important seaside towns of the Byzantine Empire. The conquest of the important ports of Corfu

Corfu

Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality. The...

(1207) and Crete

Crete

Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...

(1209) gave it a trade that extended to the east and reached Syria

Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....

and Egypt

Egypt

, endpoints of trading routes.
At the end of 14th century, Venice had become one of the richest states in Europe.

Its dominance in the Eastern Mediterranean

Mediterranean Sea

in later centuries was threatened and compromised by the expansion of the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

in those areas, despite the great naval victory in the Battle of Lepanto

Battle of Lepanto (1571)

The Battle of Lepanto took place on 7 October 1571 when a fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of Catholic maritime states, decisively defeated the main fleet of the Ottoman Empire in five hours of fighting on the northern edge of the Gulf of Patras, off western Greece...

in 1571 against the Turkish fleet, fought with the Holy League

Holy League (Mediterranean)

The Holy League of 1571 was arranged by Pope St. Pius V and included almost all the major Catholic maritime states in the Mediterranean. It was intended to break the Ottoman Turks' control of the eastern Mediterranean Sea and was formally concluded on 25 May 1571...

.

The Most Serene Republic of Venice had strong expansion on the mainland too, becoming the largest of the maritime republics and was the most powerful State of northern Italy until 1797, when Napoleon invaded the Venetian lagoon and conquered Venice. After the fall of the Cisalpine Republic

Cisalpine Republic

The Cisalpine Republic was a French client republic in Northern Italy that lasted from 1797 to 1802.-Birth:After the Battle of Lodi in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte proceeded to organize two states: one to the south of the Po River, the Cispadane Republic, and one to the north, the Transpadane...

, Venice became independent again, but was now reduced to a small state city. The Grand Council decreed the dissolution of the many organizations which manage the republic and was forced to put at the head of the city a Habsburg cadet duke. Venice finally fell in 1848 when General Radetzky, annexed it to the Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom, controlled by Austria

Austrian Empire

The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...

, with Milan as capital. On this occasion, was dissolved last Venetian power, the most serene Signoria, and Venice remained under Austria until 1866, when the Veneto passed into the Kingdom of Italy

Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)

The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...

Ancona

Included in the Papal States

Papal States

since 774

774

Year 774 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 774 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Europe :* Charlemagne conquers the kingdom of the...

, Ancona

Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....

came under the influence of the Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

around the year 1000, but gradually gained independence to become fully independent with the coming of the communes

Medieval commune

Medieval communes in the European Middle Ages had sworn allegiances of mutual defense among the citizens of a town or city. They took many forms, and varied widely in organization and makeup. Communes are first recorded in the late 11th and early 12th centuries, thereafter becoming a widespread...

(12th century). Although rather closed by Venetian supremacy on the sea, was a notable maritime republic for its economic development and its preferential trade particularly with the Byzantine Empire. Was in excellent relations with the kingdom of Hungary

Kingdom of Hungary

The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...

and fraternal ally of the Republic of Ragusa

Republic of Ragusa

The Republic of Ragusa or Republic of Dubrovnik was a maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik in Dalmatia , that existed from 1358 to 1808...

. Despite the link with Byzantium, maintained good relations with the Turks too, offering itself as Oriental gateway of central Italy; warehouses of the Republic of Ancona

Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....

were continuously active in Constantinople

Constantinople

, Alexandria

Alexandria

Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...

and in other Byzantines ports, while for the sorting of goods imported by land (especially textiles and spices) entrusted to Jewish Luccans and Florentian merchants.

From the artistic point of view was one of the centers of so-called Adriatic renaissance, in essence that particular kind of renaissance that spread between Dalmatia, Venice and the Marches, characterized by a rediscovery of classical art accompanied by a certain continuity with the Gothic art. The noted maritime cartographer Grazioso Benincasa was born in Ancona; likewise from Ancona was the navigator-archeologist Ciriaco de' Pizzicolli, named by his fellow humanists "father of the antiquities," which made known to his contemporaries the existence of the Parthenon

Parthenon

The Parthenon is a temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their virgin patron. Its construction began in 447 BC when the Athenian Empire was at the height of its power. It was completed in 438 BC, although...

, the Pyramids, the Sphinx

Sphinx

A sphinx is a mythical creature with a lion's body and a human head or a cat head.The sphinx, in Greek tradition, has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless...

and other famous ancient monuments believed destroyed.

Ancona, throughout its existence had to guard itself against the designs of both the German Empire

German Empire

The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

(of which won repeated sieges), and the papacy. Significant worthy feature of its history was that it never attacked other maritime cities, but it was always forced to defend itself, the thing which he managed until 1532, when it lost its independence after the pope Clement VII

Pope Clement VII

Clement VII , born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici, was a cardinal from 1513 to 1523 and was Pope from 1523 to 1534.-Early life:...

, with a shrewd political maneuver, managed to take possession.

Ragusa

In the first half of the 7th century Ragusa began to develop an active trade in the East Mediterranean

Mediterranean Sea

. From the 11th century emerged as a maritime and mercantile city especially in the Adriatic; the first known commercial contract goes back to 1148 and was signed with the city of Molfetta

Molfetta

Molfetta is a city and comune of the province of Bari in the southern Italian region of Apulia, on the Adriatic coast, at sea-level. It is 25 km WNW of Bari.It has a well restored old city, and its own dialect.- History :...

, but other cities came along in the following decades, including Pisa

Pisa

Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...

, Termoli

Termoli

Termoli is a town and comune on the Adriatic coast of Italy, in the province of Campobasso, region of Molise. It has a population of around 32,000, having expanded quickly after World War II, and it is a local resort town known for its beaches and old fortifications...

and Naples

Naples

Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

.

After the fall of Constantinople

Constantinople

during the Fourth Crusade

Fourth Crusade

in 1204, Ragusa came under the dominion of the Republic of Venice

Republic of Venice

, from whom he inherited most of its institutions. The Venetian rule lasted for a century and a half, determining the institutional structure of the future republic, with the emergence of the Senate (1252) and the approval of the Ragusa Statute (May 9, 1272). In 1358, following a war with the Kingdom of Hungary

Kingdom of Hungary

, Venice was forced to give up, with the Treaty of Zadar, to a large part of its possessions in Dalmatia. Ragusa voluntarily gave himself as a vassal to the Kingdom of Hungary

Kingdom of Hungary

, from which obtained the right to self-government in exchange for the constraint of help with its fleet and payment of an annual tribute. Ragusa was fortified and equipped with two ports. The Communitas Ragusina began to be called itself Respublica Ragusina from 1403.

Basing its prosperity on maritime trade, Ragusa became the major power of South Adriatic and came to rival the Most Serene Republic of Venice. For centuries Ragusa was an ally of the other Adriatic maritime Republic rival of Venice: Ancona

Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....

. This alliance enabled the two towns set on opposite sides of the Adriatic to resist attempts by the Venetians to make the Adriatic a "Venetian Bay", also said to control directly or indirectly all the Adriatic ports. Ancona and Ragusa developed an alternative trade route to the Venetian (Venice-Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

-Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

): this route started from the East, passed through Ragusa and Ancona, then interested Florence

Florence

and finally the Flanders

Flanders

Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

.

Ragusa was the door of the Balkans

Balkans

The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...

and the East, a place of commerce of metals, salt, spices and cinnabar. Ragusa reached its peak during the 15th and 16th centuries thanks to tax exemptions for affordable goods.

The social structure was rigid and the lower classes did not have any influence on the Government of the Republic. On the other hand, the Republic of Ragusa proved highly advanced in other ways. In the 14th century was opened the first pharmacy, then an hospice and the first lazaretto

Lazaretto

A lazaretto or lazaret is a quarantine station for maritime travellers. Lazarets can be ships permanently at anchor, isolated islands, or mainland buildings. Until 1908, lazarets were also used for disinfecting postal items, usually by fumigation...

(1347); finally in 1418 was abolished the trafficking of slaves.

Before the advancing Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

in the Balkan Peninsula and after the Hungarian defeat in the Battle of Mohács

Battle of Mohács

The Battle of Mohács was fought on August 29, 1526 near Mohács, Hungary. In the battle, forces of the Kingdom of Hungary led by King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia were defeated by forces of the Ottoman Empire led by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent....

, Ragusa passed formally under the supremacy of the sultan, binding themselves to pay him a symbolic annual tribute: a clever move that allowed it to maintain his independence.

In the 17th century began a slow decline for the Republic of Ragusa, mainly due to an earthquake

Earthquake

An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...

(6 April 1667), which razed much of the city claiming 5000 victims, including the rector Simone de Ghetaldi.

The city was quickly rebuilt at the expense of the Pope

Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...

and the kings of France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

and England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, which made it a jewel of seventeenth-century urbanism, and the Republic lived an ephemeral revival. The Treaty of Passarowitz

Treaty of Passarowitz

The Treaty of Passarowitz or Treaty of Požarevac was the peace treaty signed in Požarevac , a town in Ottoman Empire , on 21 July 1718 between the Ottoman Empire on one side and the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria and the Republic of Venice on the other.During the years 1714-1718, the Ottomans had...

of 1718 first recognized the full independence, but on the other increased the tax to be paid at the gate, staring at 12.500 ducats.

The Republic of Ragusa was occupied by the Austria

Austria

n on 24 August 1798. The Peace of Pressburg

Peace of Pressburg

The Peace of Pressburg refers to four peace treaties concluded in Pressburg . The fourth Peace of Pressburg of 1805 during the Napoleonic Wars is the best-known.-First:...

of 1805 assigned the city to France. In 1806, after a siege of a month, Ragusa surrendered to French. The Republic was finally suppressed by order of General Auguste Marmont

Auguste Marmont

Auguste Frédéric Louis Viesse de Marmont, 1st Duke of Ragusa was a French General, nobleman and Marshal of France.-Biography:...

on 31 January 1808 and annexed into the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy

Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic)

The Kingdom of Italy was a state founded in Northern Italy by Napoleon, fully influenced by revolutionary France, that ended with his defeat and fall.-Constitutional statutes:...

Relationships

Relationships between the maritime republics originates from their nature of commerce oriented States. These relationships concerned political or economical agreements, aimed at reciprocal profit gain from a trade route or to decide not to hinder reciprocally.

However, often the competition for the trade routes control with the East and in the Mediterranean sparked rivalries that could not be settled on diplomatic grounds and there were several clashes among the maritime republics.

Pisa and Venice

Towards the end of the 11th century begun the First Crusade

First Crusade

The First Crusade was a military expedition by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem...

in the Holy Land thanks to the initiative of Urban II and supported by the speeches of Peter the Hermit

Peter the Hermit

Peter the Hermit was a priest of Amiens and a key figure during the First Crusade.-Before 1096:According to Anna Comnena, he had attempted to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem before 1096, but was prevented by the Seljuk Turks from reaching his goal and was tortured.Sources differ as to whether he...

. Venice intervened in the crusade events almost simultaneously with Pisa and the two republics soon entered in competition with each other. In the waters of Rhodes

Rhodes

Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...

the Venetian naval army of bishop Eugenio Contarini clashed with the Pisan army of archbishop Daibert. Pisa and Venice gave their support for the victorious Siege of Jerusalem

Siege of Jerusalem (1099)

The Siege of Jerusalem took place from June 7 to July 15, 1099 during the First Crusade. The Crusaders stormed and captured the city from Fatimid Egypt.-Background:...

of the army led by Godfrey of Bouillon

Godfrey of Bouillon

Godfrey of Bouillon was a medieval Frankish knight who was one of the leaders of the First Crusade from 1096 until his death. He was the Lord of Bouillon, from which he took his byname, from 1076 and the Duke of Lower Lorraine from 1087...

. The Pisan expedition, after that event, continued staying in the Holy Land: the archbishop Daibert became the Jerusalem Patriarch

Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem

The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem is the title possessed by the Latin Rite Catholic Archbishop of Jerusalem. The Archdiocese of Jerusalem has jurisdiction for all Latin Rite Catholics in Israel, the Palestinian Territories, Jordan and Cyprus...

and crowned Godfrey of Bouillon

Godfrey of Bouillon

first Christian King of Jerusalem. Contrary to Pisa, Venice soon ended their participation to the first crusade, probably because Venice interests were mainly aimed at balancing Pisan and Genoese influence in the Orient.

However, relationships between Pisa and Venice were not always characterized by rivalry and antagonism. In fact, the two republics, during the centuries, signed several agreements to set influence and action zones of Pisa and Venice for not hinder each other. On 13 October 1180 was signed an agreement for the non-reciprocal interference in the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian affairs between the Venice Doge and the representative of the Pisan consuls and in 1206 Pisa and Venice concluded a treaty in which they reaffirmed the respective zones of influence.

Between 1494-1509, during the events of the siege

Siege

A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...

of Pisa by Florence, the Serenissima, following the political stance towards safeguarding the "Freedom of Italy" with the elimination of foreign intervention on Italian territory, went in rescue of Pisans, that tried to preserve the restoration of their republic from Florence aggression, not ostracized by Charles VIII

Charles VIII of France

Charles VIII, called the Affable, , was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. Charles was a member of the House of Valois...

, sovereign of France, present in Italy with his army.

Venice and Genoa

The relationship between Genoa and Venice was almost continuously hostile and competititve, both economically and military.
Until the beginning of the 13th century hostilities were limited to rare acts of piracy and isolated skirmishes. In 1218 Venice and Genoa reached an agreement to end noxious privateering with the guarantee to safeguard each other, while Genoa was guaranteed the right to trade in the eastern imperial lands, a new and profitable market.

War of Saint Sabas and the conflict of 1293–99

Crisis between the two Republics sparkled with unbelievable violence in the events of Saint-Jean d'Acre

Acre, Israel

Acre , is a city in the Western Galilee region of northern Israel at the northern extremity of Haifa Bay. Acre is one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites in the country....

for the ownership of the Saint Sabas monastery that Genoese occupied in 1255, beginning hostilities with the sacking of the Venetian neighbourhood and the destruction of the docked ships. The Serenissima first agreed to an alliance with Pisa for the common Syrian-Palestinian interests, and then counter-attacked destroying the fortified monastery of Saint Sabas. The flight, together with the Genoese, of the baron Philip of Montfort

Philip of Montfort, Lord of Tyre

Philip of Montfort, was Lord of La Ferté-Alais and Castres-en-Albigeois 1228–1270, Lord of Tyre 1246–1270, and Lord of Toron aft. 1240–1270...

, ruler of the Christian principality of Syria, concluded the first phase of the punitive expedition.

Just one year later, the three maritime powers battled each other in an uneven conflict in the waters facing Saint-Jean d'Acre. Almost all of the Genoese galleys were sunk, while the human loss accounted to 1,700 between fighters and sailors. Genoese replied with new alliances in the Oriental scenario. The Nicaean

Empire of Nicaea

The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the three Byzantine Greek successor states founded by the aristocracy of the Byzantine Empire that fled after Constantinople was occupied by Western European and Venetian forces during the Fourth Crusade...

throne was usurped by Michael VIII Palaiologos

Michael VIII Palaiologos

Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus reigned as Byzantine Emperor 1259–1282. Michael VIII was the founder of the Palaiologan dynasty that would rule the Byzantine Empire until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453...

that aimed at taking back militarily the lands once owned by the Byzantine Empire. His expansionist project met with the Genoese. The Nicaean fleet and army conquered and occupied Constantinople, causing the collapse of the Latin Empire of Constantinople

Latin Empire

The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. It was established after the capture of Constantinople in 1204 and lasted until 1261...

less than sixty years after its creation. Genoa Republic replaced Venice in the monopoly of commerce with the Black Sea territories.

This phase of clashes between Genoa and Venice was concluded with the Battle of Curzola

Battle of Curzola

(won by Genoa), in which, beside Venetian admiral Andrea Dandolo, was taken prisoner Marco Polo

Marco Polo

, in 1298. Dandolo, not to live with the shame of arriving to Genoa in shackles, preferred to suicide himself smashing his head against the row to which he was tied. A year later, the Republics signed peace in Milan

Milan

Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

War of Chioggia

Towards the end of the 14th century, the island of Cyprus

Cyprus

, ruled by the "signoria" of Pietro II of Lusignano, was occupied by Genoese, while the smaller island of Tenedo, important port of call on the Bosphorous and Black Sea

Black Sea

route, was conceded by Andronicus Palaeologus

Andronikos IV Palaiologos

Andronikos IV Palaiologos was Byzantine Emperor from 1376 to 1379.-Life:...

to Genoa the Superb in contrast with the previous concession of his father John V

John V Palaiologos

John V Palaiologos was a Byzantine emperor, who succeeded his father in 1341, at age nine.-Biography:...

to the Serenissima. These two events fuelled the resume of the hostilities between the two maritime Republics, that were expanding from the oriental to the occidental scenario of the Mediterranean.

The conflict was named War of Chioggia, because Venetians, after an initial success, were defeated in Pola

Pula

Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...

by the Genoese that occupied Chioggia

Chioggia

Chioggia is a coastal town and comune of the province of Venice in the Veneto region of northern Italy.-Geography:...

and besieged Venice. However, the Venetians managed to set up a new fleet and siege in turn the Genoese in Chioggia

Chioggia

Chioggia is a coastal town and comune of the province of Venice in the Veneto region of northern Italy.-Geography:...

, forcing them to surrender (1380). War ended in Venetian favour with the Peace of Turin

Peace of Turin

The Peace of Turin signed on August 8, 1381, ended the War of Chioggia, the last stage of the larger Venetian-Genoese War. Neither the Republic of Venice nor the Republic of Genoa succeeded in gaining the upper hand, and Venice temporarily lost some territories...

of the 8 April 1381.

The capture of Constantinople of the 29 May 1453, by the Ottomans of Mehmed II

Mehmed II

Mehmed II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446, and later from...

, put an end to the eleven centuries of history of the Byzantine Empire. This event stirred up a sentimental reaction that materialized in the Nicholas V

Pope Nicholas V

Pope Nicholas V , born Tommaso Parentucelli, was Pope from March 6, 1447 to his death in 1455.-Biography:He was born at Sarzana, Liguria, where his father was a physician...

project of a crusade.

To realize this feat the pope mediated between the two coalitions that were continuing to battle in Tuscany and Lombardy. Cosimo de'Medici and Alfonso of Aragon

Alfonso V of Aragon

Alfonso the Magnanimous KG was the King of Aragon , Valencia , Majorca, Sardinia and Corsica , and Sicily and Count of Barcelona from 1416 and King of Naples from 1442 until his death...

entered the Italic League

Italic League

The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on the 30 August 1454, stipulated by the Serenissima and the States of Milano and Florence, which follows the Peace of Lodi signed a few months earlier....

, together with Nicholas V

Pope Nicholas V

Pope Nicholas V , born Tommaso Parentucelli, was Pope from March 6, 1447 to his death in 1455.-Biography:He was born at Sarzana, Liguria, where his father was a physician...

, Francesco Sforza of Milan and the Serenissima.

While the popes Callistus II and Pius II tried to carry on the idea of their predecessor and were addressing the States of the Italic League and other European powers to interest them in a crusade in Orient, the Ottomans defeated and forced to tribute them many Genoese and Venetians colonies.
These events showed the dominion in the Oriental Mediterranean of the new great naval and military Ottoman power and forced the two Italian maritime republics to search a new destiny. Genoa found it the rising international finance

Finance

"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...

, Venice in the land expansion.

Land battles and gathering in the Holy League

Around the middle 15th century, Genoa signed a triple alliance with Florence and Milan; this was led by the France of Charles VII

Charles VII of France

Charles VII , called the Victorious or the Well-Served , was King of France from 1422 to his death, though he was initially opposed by Henry VI of England, whose Regent, the Duke of Bedford, ruled much of France including the capital, Paris...

. On the other side, Venice sided with Alfonso V of Aragon

Alfonso V of Aragon

Alfonso the Magnanimous KG was the King of Aragon , Valencia , Majorca, Sardinia and Corsica , and Sicily and Count of Barcelona from 1416 and King of Naples from 1442 until his death...

, installed on the Naples' throne. Due to the rivalry of the Italian States, two great coalition were formed behind which was developing progressively the foreign intervention in the peninsula.

In the 16th century, to oppose the Ottomans, Venice and Genoa put aside their divergences to join the Holy League created by Pius V.
Most of the Christian fleet was formed by Venetians ships, around 100 galleys, Genoa instead was under the Spanish flag, as the Republic of Genoa lent to Philip II all its ships.
The impressive League fleet gathered in the gulf of Lepanto

Naupactus

Naupactus or Nafpaktos , is a town and a former municipality in Aetolia-Acarnania, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Nafpaktia, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit...

to clash with the Turkish fleet commanded by Capudan Ali Pasha. Was the 7 October 1571 and the great naval battle

Battle of Lepanto (1571)

, fought from midday to dawn, ended with the victory of the Christian League.

Genoa and Pisa

These two Maritime republics had many exchanges, given their position on the Tyrrhenian Sea

Tyrrhenian Sea

. In the beginning, relationships were collaborative and allied against the impending and menacing Arab expansion.
However, later rivalry sparked to dominate the occidental side of the Mediterranean Sea

Mediterranean Sea

Allied against Arabs

In the beginning of the second millennium, the expansion of the Muslim armies arrived in Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...

and was pushing northward in Calabria

Calabria

Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....

and attempting to conquer Sardinia

Sardinia

. To fight the pirate actions of Arabs, Pisa and Genoa joined forces to wipe out the Fleet of Mujāhid al-Āmirī from the coasts of Sardinia, where it was temporary settled between 1015-16, that threatened survival of Sardinian Giudicati

Giudicati

The giudicati were the indigenous kingdoms of Sardinia from about 900 until 1410, when the last fell to the Aragonese. The rulers of the giudicati were giudici , from the Latin iudice , often translates as "judge". The Latin for giudicato was iudicatus The giudicati (singular giudicato) were the...

. the operations reached their purpose, but soon begun disputes for the control of the conquered territories. Due to the limited forces available, they were not able to occupy the big Tyrrhenian island for long.

The multiple disputes, armed too, were overcame in 1087 when, to safeguard their reciprocal interests, they reunite to fight their common enemy. In the summer of the same year a massive fleet composed by two hundred Genoese and Pisan galleys but also from Gaeta, Salerno and Amalfi, set sail for the Mediterranean African

Maghreb

The Maghreb is the region of Northwest Africa, west of Egypt. It includes five countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Mauritania and the disputed territory of Western Sahara...

coast. The fleet succeeded in the offensive against Al-Mahdijah (6 August 1087). On the 21 April 1092 the Pope raised the diocese to the rank of metropolitan

Metropolis (religious jurisdiction)

A metropolis is a see or city whose bishop is the metropolitan of a province. Metropolises, historically, have been important cities in their provinces....

archdiocese. Moreover, subdued the bishops of Corsica to the metropolitan power of the Pisan Church.

That same victorious expedition persuaded Pope Urban II that the project of a large crusade to liberate the Holy Land

Holy Land

was possible.

Around the twenties of the 12th century, Pope Paschal II

Pope Paschal II

Pope Paschal II , born Ranierius, was Pope from August 13, 1099, until his death. A monk of the Cluniac order, he was created cardinal priest of the Titulus S...

asked Pisans and Genoese to organize a crusade in the Western Mediterranean. The expedition was very successful and freed the Balearic Islands

Balearic Islands

from the Muslims. The pope, as sign of gratitude, granted many privileges to the two republics. The Pisan archbishop was granted the primacy over Sardinia, beside Corsica.

First War between Pisa and Genoa

Concessions made by the pontifex to the Pisan archbishop greatly increased the fame of the Tuscan republic in the whole Mediterranean Sea, but at the same time aroused the Genoese envy that soon turned into competition and clashes.

In 1119, Genoese assaulted some Pisan galleys, beginning a bloody war, fought on sea and land, that lasted till 1133 interrupted by several truces that were sometimes observed and sometimes violated. the clashes were of alterante outcomes and they were ended with the partition between the two cities of the influence over the Corsic dioceses.

Second War

When Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa came to Italy to oppose the power of the Italian cities, Genoa gave their support to the imperial cause, although with some reservations. Pisa, instead, gave their unconditional support to the emperor taking part in the siege

Siege

of Milan

Milan

. In 1162 and 1163 Frederick I granted Pisa great privileges.

This reignited the resentments and rivalries with Genoa, rivalry that turned in open conflict in this case too. The conflict had a pause in the event of the fourth descent in Italy of the emperor Frederick Barbarossa, but continued soon after his depart.
Peace was reache on 6 November 1175 with the return of the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

in Italy. The agreement favoured Genoa that expanded their oversas territories.
Pisa and Genoa took part in the campaign commanded by Henry VI

Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor

Henry VI was King of Germany from 1190 to 1197, Holy Roman Emperor from 1191 to 1197 and King of Sicily from 1194 to 1197.-Early years:Born in Nijmegen,...

, successor of Frederick I Barbarossa, against the Kingdom of Sicily

Kingdom of Sicily

The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...

Defeat of Pisa

From 1282 to 1284 Genoa and Pisa reverted back to fighting each other. A decisive naval battle occurred on August 6, 1284. Pisan and Genoese fleets fought the whole day in what became known as the Battle of Meloria

Battle of Meloria (1284)

The Battle of Meloria was fought between 5 and 6 August 1284 near the Meloria islet, in the Tyrrhenian Sea between the Genoese and the Pisan fleet, as part of the Genoese-Pisan War...

. The Genoese emerged victorious, while the Pisan galleys, having not received help, were forced to retreat to the Pisa port.
Prisoners taken by Genoese were in the order of thousands. Between them was the poet Rustichello da Pisa

Rustichello da Pisa

that met another famous prisoner, Marco Polo

Marco Polo

captured during the battle of Curzola

Battle of Curzola

, and wrote down the adventures of the Venetian explorer.

That battle greatly halted the power of the Tuscan Republic, that never gained back a leading role in the Western Mediterranean. With the battle of Meloria, Pisa had lost thousands of young men, causing a sensitive demographic break.
Venice didn't intervene to help the allied Pisa in their crisis. According to some historians, this decision can be considered an error of the Serenissima that, gave up the supremacy of the Tyrrhenian to the rival Genoa and, at the same time, lost the precious Pisan help in the East.
However, Pisa was able to continue their territorial expansion in Tuscany some decade afterwards with Guido da Montefeltro

Guido da Montefeltro

Guido da Montefeltro was an Italian military strategist and lord of Urbino. He became a monk late in life, and was condemned by Dante Alighieri in his Divine Comedy for giving false or fraudulent counsel.-Biography:...

and Henry VII

Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor

Henry VII was the King of Germany from 1308 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1312. He was the first emperor of the House of Luxembourg...

.

In the 14th century, Pisa changed from a communal

Medieval commune

reality to a signoria

Signoria

A Signoria was an abstract noun meaning 'government; governing authority; de facto sovereignty; lordship in many of the Italian city states during the medieval and renaissance periods....

. Fazio Novello della Gherardesca was an aristocrat wise and enlightned enough for the era. He improved relationships with Florence, the Pope and Genoa. The treaty with Genoa was just the first of a series of commercial agreements.

However, in the first years of the following century, under the rule of the lord Gabriello Maria Visconti, the city of Pisa was besieged

Siege

by Milan, Florence, Genoa and France. Took advantage of this the rival Giovanni Gambacorta that raised to power but secretly negotiated the surrender with the besiegers. On the 6 October 1406 Pisa became a possession of Florence, realizing this long sought objective of reaching the sea. The glorious Republic was no more.

Amalfi and Pisa

Amalfi lost the complete autonomy already from the second half of the 11th century, although it continued running its commercial routes enjoying a large (at least in this period) administrative autonomy. Under the protection of Norman William II

William II, Duke of Apulia

William II was the duke of Apulia and Calabria from 1111 to 1127. He was the son and successor of Roger Borsa. His mother, Adela of Flanders, had previously been queen of Denmark, and he was a half-brother of Charles the Good....

, third Duke of Apulia, the administrators of Amalfi reached in October 1126 a profitable commercial agreement with the neighbouring Pisa with the goal to collaborate in the protection of common interests in the Tyrrhenian. This agreement was the outcome of friendship with the Tuscan republic lasting from decades.

However, Amalfi didn’t had an army of its own to protect the Amalfian commercial interests. That’s the reason why we don’t find Amalfian ships engaged often in military action against other Maritime Republics. Indeed, was the Pisan army to break the pact with Amalfi attacking the coastal city on the 4 August 1135 in the context of the war between Pope Innocent II and the new emperor Lothar II (with the republics of Genoa and Pisa along side) against the Norman Roger II of Sicily

Roger II of Sicily

Roger II was King of Sicily, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his brother Simon. He began his rule as Count of Sicily in 1105, later became Duke of Apulia and Calabria , then King of Sicily...

that had control over Amalfi. That war ended in favour of Roger II that had acknowledged his rights over the territories of South Italy.

In that occasion, Amalfi lost also its political autonomy.

Venice, Ancona and Ragusa

Commercial competition between Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...

, Ancona

Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....

and Ragusa

Republic of Ragusa

The Republic of Ragusa or Republic of Dubrovnik was a maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik in Dalmatia , that existed from 1358 to 1808...

was very strong because all were bordering the Adriatic Sea

Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...

. In more than one occasion they arrived to open battles. Venice, aware of its major economic and military power, didn’t like competition of other maritime cities in the Adriatic. Several were the Adriatic ports under Venetian rule, but Ancona and Ragusa retained their independence. These two republics, for not succumbing under the domain of the Venetian republic, made multiple and lasting alliances.

In 1174, Venice united its forces with Frederick I Barbarossa imperial army to try to dominate Ancona

Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....

. The emperor Fredrick was in fact in Italy to reconfirm its authority over the Italian cities. The Venetians deployed numerous galleys and the galleon Totus Mundus in the port of Ancona, while imperial troops lay siege from land. After some months of dramatic resistance of Anconitans, supported by Byzantine

Byzantine

Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...

troops, they were able to send a small contingent in Emilia-Romagna

Emilia-Romagna

Emilia–Romagna is an administrative region of Northern Italy comprising the two historic regions of Emilia and Romagna. The capital is Bologna; it has an area of and about 4.4 million inhabitants....

where they can ask for help. Ferrara

Ferrara

Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...

and Bertinoro

Bertinoro

Bertinoro is a town and comune in the province of Forlì-Cesena, Emilia-Romagna . It is located on hill, Mount Cesubeo, in Romagna, a few kilometers from the Via Emilia.-History:...

feud troops arrived to save the city and after a battle, repelled the imperial troops and the Venetians.

Venice in 1205 tried to conquer Ragusa

Republic of Ragusa

The Republic of Ragusa or Republic of Dubrovnik was a maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik in Dalmatia , that existed from 1358 to 1808...

as well, with more success: it took it over and held it until 1382 when Ragusa regained a de facto freedom, as it was paying tributes first to the Hungarians, and after the Battle of Mohács

Battle of Mohács

, to the Turks. During this period Ragusa reconfirmed its old alliance with Ancona.

Number

Overview

Origins

Development

Amalfi

Pisa

Genoa

Venice

Ancona

Ragusa

Relationships

Pisa and Venice

Venice and Genoa

War of Saint Sabas and the conflict of 1293–99

War of Chioggia

Land battles and gathering in the Holy League

Genoa and Pisa

Allied against Arabs

First War between Pisa and Genoa

Second War

Defeat of Pisa

Amalfi and Pisa

Venice, Ancona and Ragusa

See also