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65-468: The Great Council was unique at the time in its usage of lottery to select nominators for proposal of candidates, who were thereafter voted upon. The exact origins of the Great Council are unclear. Tradition places its establishment in 1172, but it likely has its origin in a 'Council of Wise Men' ( Consilium Sapientium ) that is attested in 1141. That was a council established to limit and control

130-447: A deadlocked tie at the election of 1229, the number of electors was increased from forty to forty-one. New regulations for the elections of the doge introduced in 1268 remained in force until the end of the republic in 1797. Their intention was to minimize the influence of individual great families, and this was effected by a complex electoral machinery. Thirty members of the Great Council, chosen by lot , were reduced by lot to nine;

195-548: A fourth part and a half of the Empire of Romania' was first claimed by the ambitious Venetian podestà of Constantinople , Marino Zeno, in his capacity as the Doge's representative in the 'Empire of Romania', and it was only subsequently adopted as part of the dogal title by Doge Pietro Ziani . The Greek chronicler George Akropolites used the term despotes to translate dominus , 'lord', which has led to some confusion with

260-565: A great majority of the citizens and provoking some unrest. In 1308, during Gradenigo's reign as doge, Venice became involved in war with the Papacy over the control of Ferrara and on 27 March 1309 the Republic was excommunicated by Pope Clement V , barring all Christians from trading with Venice. The Doge's policy, seen by many as disastrous, led to a plot to depose him and the Great Council, led by Bajamonte Tiepolo and other members of

325-505: A new design. In the end, it was decided to restore the building, and during this time, until 30 September 1578, the Great Council met in a storage shed in the Arsenal of Venice . In some rare cases, facing severe economic difficulties and dangers, access to the Great Council was open to new families. By means of lavish gifts to the state, this was the case at the time of the War of Chioggia and

390-478: A procession in minute detail in 1581. His description is confirmed and complemented by Cesare Vecellio 's 1586 painting of a ducal procession in the Piazza San Marco. From the 14th century onward, the ceremonial crown and well-known symbol of the doge of Venice was called corno ducale , a unique ducal hat. It was a stiff horn-like bonnet, which was made of gemmed brocade or cloth-of-gold and worn over

455-473: A sceptre for ceremonial duties. Until the 15th century, the funeral service for a deceased doge would normally be held at St Mark's Basilica , where some early holders of this office are also buried. After the 15th century, however, the funerals of all later doges were held at the Basilica di San Giovanni e Paolo . Twenty-five doges are buried there. As the oligarchical element in the constitution developed,

520-513: A son with themselves in the ducal office, this tendency toward a hereditary monarchy was checked by a law that decreed that no doge had the right to associate any member of his family with himself in his office, nor to name his successor. After 1172 the election of the doge was entrusted to a committee of forty, who were chosen by four men selected from the Great Council of Venice , which was itself nominated annually by twelve persons. After

585-645: A title granted to him by Alexios III Angelos . As Byzantine power declined in the region in the late ninth century, reference to Venice as a province disappeared in the titulature of the doges. The simple titles dux Veneticorum (duke of the Venetians) and dux Venetiarum (duke of the Venetias) predominate in the tenth century. The plural reflects the doge's rule of several federated townships and clans. After defeating Croatia and conquering some Dalmatian territory in 1000, Doge Pietro II Orseolo adopted

650-543: Is considered to be the first Doge of Venice, Venetians were not truly free from the Byzantine Empire until 742. While it is not known for certain, historians widely accept that Anafesto was born in Oderzo , a city in modern-day Veneto. Historians are unsure of how and where Anafesto died. According to some, he was the victim of a conspiracy hatched by the nobles of Malamocco in 717. Others suggest that he died in

715-570: Is notable that the reform passed during a nearly disastrous conflict with Venice's main rival, the Republic of Genoa , and that the common people made no serious move to oppose it. Over the following years, the entry of new members was limited by additional laws that raised the necessary number of votes in the Forty to a majority, 25, and finally 30. In 1319, membership became automatic at the 25th year of age—except for thirty who were chosen by lot on

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780-597: The Serrata as "the death of the Venetian republican system and the birth of a closed oligarchy", but in actual fact, the effects of these reforms were broadly beneficial, and spared Venice the bitter factional rivalries that consumed the other Italian cities. Unlike the volatile general assembly of the people, the Great Council members were guaranteed a share in power and thus less easy to manipulate. The relatively large number of families participating in this oligarchic elite

845-685: The Fall of Acre , the last Crusader stronghold in the mainland, to the Mamluks of Egypt in 1291. The war between Venice and Genoa began in 1294, and Venice sustained some serious losses: it lost a naval battle; its possessions in Crete were pillaged; and the Byzantine emperor, Andronikos II , arrested many Venetians in Constantinople . In response, the Venetian fleet sacked Galata and threatened

910-655: The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I . On state occasions the Doge was surrounded by an increasing amount of ceremony, and in international relations he had the status of a sovereign prince . The doge took part in ducal processions, which started in the Piazza San Marco . The doge would appear in the center of the procession, preceded by civil servants ranked in ascending order of prestige and followed by noble magistrates ranked in descending order of status. Francesco Sansovino described such

975-425: The War of Candia , when, to support the enormous cost of the wars, new wealthy families were admitted. Another peculiarity was the creation over time of a division within the nobility itself, that is, families who were able in time to keep intact or to increase their economic capacity, and the poor ones (the so-called Barnabites ). The latter may have gradually or suddenly lost their wealth, but continued to maintain

1040-520: The camauro . This was a fine linen cap with a structured peak reminiscent of the Phrygian cap , a classical symbol of liberty. This ceremonial cap may have been ultimately based on the white crown of Upper Egypt . Every Easter Monday the doge headed a procession from San Marco to the convent of San Zaccaria , where the abbess presented him a new camauro crafted by the nuns. The Doge's official costume also included golden robes, slippers and

1105-541: The Byzantine court title of despot . The latter title was never claimed by the doges, but was sometimes used by the Venetian podestàs of Constantinople in their capacity as the doge's representatives. The title of 'lord of a fourth part and a half of the whole Empire of Romania' was used in official titulature thereafter, with the exception, after the re-establishment in 1261 of the Byzantine Empire under

1170-638: The Doges of Venice without that part of their title, while in turn the Venetians tried to force the Hungarian kings to drop any title laying claim to the two provinces. This dispute ended in the Treaty of Zadar of 1358, where Venice renounced its claims to Dalmatia; a special article in the treaty removed Dalmatia and Croatia from the doge's title. The resulting title was Dux Veneciarum et cetera , 'Duke of

1235-539: The Great Council was more than doubled in size to over 1100 members by 1300, or about 1 percent of the total Venetian population at the time. This widening of the ruling class appears to have broadly satisfied ambitious men and calmed matters, although at least one commoner who thought that he should have been admitted to the Council, a certain Marin Bocconio , was hanged in 1300 for plotting to kill Gradenigo. It

1300-486: The Great Council were further elaborated over time. Men born to women of lower status were banned, as were, from 1498 on, nobles who followed an ecclesiastical career. The process culminated in the establishment, in 1506 and 1526, of records of births and marriages of the nobility. Kept and maintained by the Avogadori de Comùn , this was the famous 'Golden Book' ( Libro d'Oro ) of the Venetian nobility. At this point,

1365-416: The Great Council, and thus to the political elite, up to newcomers, and conservatives, who wished to preserve the patriciate's dominance. While the names of noble families predominate during the 13th century, commoners were still included in the rolls. But even among the nobility there were dissensions. A rising population and wealth meant that more and more citizens sought admission to the Great Council, but

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1430-519: The Palaiologos dynasty , of Venice's relations with the Byzantine emperors, when that part of the dogal titulature was substituted by 'and lord of the lands and islands subject to his dogate' ( dominus terrarum et insularum suo ducatui subiectarum ) or similar formulations. In a similar manner, the disputes between Venice and Hungary over Dalmatia and Croatia led to the Kings of Hungary addressing

1495-552: The Venetian provinces'. Between 1091 and 1102, the King of Hungary acquired the Croatian kingdom in a personal union . In these circumstances, the Venetians appealed to the Byzantine emperor for recognition of their title to Croatia (like Dalmatia, a former Byzantine subject). Perhaps as early as the reign of Vital Falier (d. 1095), and certainly by that of Vital Michiel (d. 1102), the title dux Croatiae had been added, giving

1560-643: The Venices and the rest'. Even though Dalmatia would be regained by Venice in the early 15th century, the title was never modified, and remained in use until the end of the Republic . Even when the body of such documents was written in Italian, the title and dating clause were in Latin. The doge's prerogatives were not defined with precision. While the position was entrusted to members of the inner circle of powerful Venetian families, after several doges had associated

1625-497: The acquisition of the Croatian title to Doge Ordelaf Falier (d. 1117). According to the Venetiarum Historia , written around 1350, Doge Domenico Morosini added atque Ystrie dominator ('and lord of Istria') to his title after forcing Pula on Istria to submit in 1150. Only one charter, however, actually uses a title similar to this: et totius Ystrie inclito dominatori (1153). The next major change in

1690-463: The aristocratic families. On 15 June 1310, the coup failed and its leaders were severely punished. Tiepolo's plot led to the creation of the Council of Ten , initially as a temporary institution, which later evolved into the permanent body which in reality governed the Republic. On 13 August 1311, Gradenigo died, and, since Venice was under interdict and the religious ceremonies could not be held, he

1755-493: The arrival of the Black Death , the membership of the Council declined, but building of the new hall continued, with decoration starting in 1365. It was not until c.  1420 , however, that the new hall of the Great Council started being used by it. The hall was destroyed in the fire of 20 December 1577, in which the Doge's Palace suffered so much damage that for a time it was considered to tear it down and rebuild it to

1820-532: The chief functions of government, such as nominating military commanders or receiving ambassadors, were taken over by the Senate . Over the 15th and 16th centuries, the Senate also became the de facto legislative body, with, the Great Council reduced to discussing or approving measures already decided upon in the Senate, but it retained its judicial power and the authority to elect officials. The rules of admission to

1885-524: The council reached its maximum size of 2746 members. The effect of the provisions of the Serrata had increased dramatically the number of members. In the sixteenth century, it was common for up to 2095 patricians to have the right to sit in the Ducal Palace. There was an obvious difficulty in managing such a body. The enlargement of the body also led to the need for a larger meeting space. This need

1950-429: The day of St. Barbara, and were allowed to become members already at 20. In 1323, membership was restricted only to men with ancestors who had held high office, effectively making it hereditary. Regardless of their previous patrician or common origins, the now permanent and hereditary members of the Great Council henceforth constituted the nobility of Venice. This new ruling class numbered almost 200 families and monopolized

2015-471: The dogal title came with the Fourth Crusade , which conquered the Byzantine Empire (1204). The Byzantine honorific protosebastos had by this time been dropped and was replaced by a reference to Venice's allotment in the partitioning of the Byzantine Empire . The new full title was 'By the grace of God duke of the Venices, Dalmatia and Croatia and lord of a fourth part and a half [three eighths] of

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2080-473: The doge was constantly under strict surveillance: he had to wait for other officials to be present before opening dispatches from foreign powers; he was not allowed to possess any property in a foreign land. The doges normally ruled for life (although a few were forcibly removed from office). After a doge's death, a commission of inquisitori passed judgment upon his acts, and his estate was liable to be fined for any discovered malfeasance. The official income of

2145-400: The doge was never large, and from early times holders of the office remained engaged in trading ventures. These ventures kept them in touch with the requirements of the grandi . From 7 July 1268, during a vacancy in the office of doge, the state was headed ex officio , with the style vicedoge , by the senior consigliere ducale (ducal counsellor). One of the ceremonial duties of the doge

2210-412: The ducal residence of Eraclea . Another theory suggests he died in battle in 728, after being promoted to exarch of Ravenna . Not much is known about the second Doge of Venice, Marcello Tegalliano , who ruled from 717 to 726. At the time of his appointment, the duchy was in turmoil as a result of growing tensions between pro-Lombard bishop of Aquileia and the pro-Byzantine leaders of Grado. In

2275-443: The election of new members be approved by a majority of the sitting Great Council. Matters came to a head in 1289, when Doge Giovanni Dandolo died, and a mob formed itself into an ad hoc assembly, or arengo , as had been convened in earlier times, demanding the election of admiral Giacomo Tiepolo the son and grandson of Doges, as the new Doge. The Great Council vacillated and suspended its own election process, but Tiepolo refused

2340-488: The emperor to the recipient for life but were not inherent in the office ( ἀξία διὰ βραβείου , axia dia brabeiou ), but the title doux belonged to the office ( ἀξία διὰ λόγου , axia dia logou ). Thus, into the eleventh century the Venetian doges held titles typical of Byzantine rulers in outlying regions, such as Sardinia . As late as 1202, the Doge Enrico Dandolo was styled protosebastos ,

2405-414: The full dogal title four parts: dux Venetiae atque Dalmatiae sive Chroaciae et imperialis prothosevastos , 'Duke of Venice, Dalmatia and Croatia and Imperial Protosebastos' . In the fourteenth century, the doges periodically objected to the use of Dalmatia and Croatia in the Hungarian king's titulature, regardless of their own territorial rights or claims. Later medieval chronicles mistakenly attributed

2470-424: The governor of a province, authorized to conduct operations beyond provincial boundaries. The Doge of Venice acted as both the head of state and head of the Venetian oligarchy. Doges were elected for life through a complex voting process. The first Doge of Venice, Paolo Lucio Anafesto , was elected in 698 and served until 717. Anafesto was not a typical Venetian Doge, as he was a subject of Byzantium . While he

2535-401: The hands of the very few electors, who were constrained only by force of custom to not abuse their position. In addition, certain office-holders, such as the ducal councillors or members of the Council of Forty, were members ex officio , and they outnumbered the elected members by a considerable margin. As the historian Frederic C. Lane puts it, "one can say that the Great Council contained all

2600-482: The hereditary right to sit in the Great Council. This often took the two sides of the nobility to clash in council and opened the possibility to cases of vote buying . It was the Great Council, on 12 May 1797, that declared the end of the Republic of Venice, by deciding - upon the Napoleonic invasion - to accept the abdication of the last Doge Ludovico Manin and dissolve the aristocratic assembly: despite lacking

2665-445: The higher levels of power in the Republic. Deserving men who distinguished themselves were still admitted in later years, but this was a very rare occasion. To provide for social mobility for ambitious families of wealth and distinction, a new class, the 'citizens' ( cittadini ) was instituted as a middle class between the closed nobility and the broad mass of the common people (the popolo ). Traditional historiography has lamented

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2730-581: The imperial palace of Blachernae , but in 1298 they lost again - this time at Curzola . Eventually, in 1299 the two republics signed a peace treaty. Doge Gradenigo was responsible for the so-called Serrata del Maggior Consiglio , the "locking" or "closing" of the Great Council of Venice . This new law, passed in February 1297, restricted membership of the future Councils only to the descendants of those nobles who were its members between 1293 and 1297. This move created an oligarchic system, disenfranchising

2795-515: The imperial title of protosebastos , and recognised him as imperial doux over the Dalmatian theme . The expression Dei gratia ('by the grace of God') was adopted consistently by the Venetian chancery only in the course of the eleventh century. An early example, however, can be found in 827–29, during the joint reign of Justinian and his brother John I : per divinam gratiam Veneticorum provinciae duces , 'by divine grace dukes of

2860-697: The latter half of the eighth century, Mauritius Galba was elected duke and took the title magister militum, consul et imperialis dux Veneciarum provinciae , 'master of the soldiers, consul and imperial duke of the province of the Venetias'. Doge Justinian Partecipacius (d. 829) used the title imperialis hypatus et humilis dux Venetiae , 'imperial hypatos and humble duke of Venice'. These early titles combined Byzantine honorifics and explicit reference to Venice's subordinate status. Titles like hypatos , spatharios , protospatharios , protosebastos and protoproedros were granted by

2925-453: The more important functions of the ducal office were assigned to other officials, or to administrative boards. The doge's role became a mostly representative position. The last doge was Ludovico Manin , who abdicated in 1797, when Venice passed under the power of Napoleon 's France following his conquest of the city. While Venice would shortly declare itself again as a republic, attempting to resist annexation by Austria, it would never revive

2990-474: The most important people who were available in Venice and a sprinkling of others named to it because someone thought they were potentially important". As the Great Council elected people to the various offices of the Venetian government, it "had become the gatekeeper for power and prestige in Venice". During the 13th century, this gave rise to a political struggle between reformers, who wanted to open membership to

3055-534: The mother city. There were proposals for reform, notably in October 1286, when the heads of the Council of Forty proposed that only those whose ancestors had been members would automatically have the right to be considered for membership, and that all others would have to be approved by the Doge, the Minor Council , and by the Great Council itself. This proposal failed to pass, as did another, which proposed

3120-446: The nine chose forty and the forty were reduced by lot to twelve, who chose twenty-five. The twenty-five were reduced by lot to nine, and the nine elected forty-five. These forty-five were once more reduced by lot to eleven, and the eleven finally chose the forty-one who elected the doge. Election required at least twenty-five votes out of forty-one, nine votes out of eleven or twelve, or seven votes out of nine electors. Before taking

3185-431: The nomination, and the Great Council proceeded with the election of Pietro Gradenigo . This was a critical moment: had the mob prevailed, the trajectory of politics in Venice might have followed that of other Italian city-states, where dynastic rule or populist autocrats backed by mob violence were the norm. Following his election, Gradenigo devoted considerable effort into pushing through a commonly acceptable reform. This

3250-439: The oath of investiture, the doge-elect was presented to the concio with the words: "This is your doge, if it please you." This ceremonial gesture signified the assent of the Venetian people. This practice came to an end with the abolition of the concio in 1423; after the election of Francesco Foscari , he was presented with the unconditional pronouncement – "Your doge". While doges had great temporal power at first, after 1268,

3315-558: The power of the Doge of Venice , and dominated by the Venetian nobility . The Great Council superseded the general assembly of the people (the Concio or Arengo , which was convened only to ratify laws and elect a new Doge. Its role was to elect all magistracies, approve laws, as well as exercise judicial functions including the granting of pardons. However, as the Great Council itself

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3380-594: The required quorum of 600 members, the board voted overwhelmingly (512 votes in favor, 30 against, 5 abstentions) the end of the Venetian Republic and the transfer of powers to an indefinite provisional government. The first volume of Annali Veneti e del Mondo written by Stefano Magno describes the origins of the Venetian noble families and presents the alphabetically arranged list with dates of their admission to Great Council. Doge of Venice The Doge of Venice ( / d oʊ dʒ / DOHJ )

3445-471: The six ducal councillors , and the Doge, constituted the Signoria of Venice . In its early days, the Great Council was a relatively open and democratic institution, its membership being in theory open to the entire body of free citizens. Members were nominated by three electors, though it is unclear how these were chosen; they were selected partly by lot and partly by rotation. In 1230, the electoral process

3510-477: The size of the Great Council were removed, and a law allowed for additional candidates for membership to be submitted by three sitting members, confirmed by the Doge and the Minor Council, and approved by the Council of Forty. Several old-established Venetian commoner families became permanent members of the Council in this way, along with about a dozen families fleeing the fall of Acre in 1291. In this way,

3575-479: The title dux Dalmatiae , 'Duke of Dalmatia', or in its fuller form, Veneticorum atque Dalmaticorum dux , 'Duke of the Venetians and Dalmatians'. This title was recognised by the Holy Roman Emperor Henry II in 1002. After a Venetian request, it was confirmed by the Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos in 1082. In a chrysobull dated that year , Alexios granted the Venetian doge

3640-462: The title of doge. It used various titles, including dictator , and collective heads of state to govern the jurisdiction, including a triumvirate . Pietro Gradenigo Pietro Gradenigo (1251 – 13 August 1311) was the 49th Doge of Venice , reigning from 1289 to his death. When he was elected Doge, he was serving as the podestà of Capodistria in Istria. Venice suffered a serious blow with

3705-697: The traditional patrician families of the Rialto resisted the addition of these nouveau riche to the Council. Likewise complicated was the issue of foreigners, nobles from Venice's nascent colonial empire in the East or from Dalmatia , or Venetian expatriate families returning to the metropolis after decades of absence, due to the fall of the Crusader states in the Levant in the late 13th century. These men were counted as Venetian citizens, but were culturally foreign to

3770-470: The whole Empire of Romania' ( Dei gratia dux Venecie [or Venetiarum ] Dalmatiae atque Chroatiae, dominus [or dominator ] quartae partis et dimidie totius imperii Romaniae ). Although traditionally ascribed by later medieval chroniclers to Doge Enrico Dandolo, who led the Venetians during the Fourth Crusade, and hence known as the arma Dandola , in reality the title of 'lord of

3835-495: Was achieved on 28 February 1297, an event known as the Serrata ( lit.   ' lock-out ' ). The continued presence of existing members was ensured by stipulating that the present members, or those who had been members during the previous four years, would remain members if they gathered a minimum threshold of 12 votes in the Council of Forty, effectively guaranteeing that all of them would be accepted. In addition, limits on

3900-553: Was also a peculiar feature of the Venetian state, making it both more representative, and ensuring that any rivalry between two families could be kept in check, and did not affect the nobility as a whole. For the remainder of the Republic's history, the Great Council was the supreme body of the state, replacing the virtually defunct Concio , which was formally abolished in 1423. The Great Council retained its legislative authority, but many of its powers were delegated to other, smaller bodies, more capable of action. Soon, however, most of

3965-489: Was altered for unknown reasons, with seven electors serving between 29 September and 29 March, and three during the other six months. However, it appears that the number of electors fluctuated, and could be as small as four. These electors chose one hundred members to be nominated for election to the next year's Great Council, but since there was no alternate slate of candidates, the names chosen were also elected. The "somewhat haphazard" election process placed enormous power on

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4030-503: Was identified already by Pietro Gradenigo, and a hall was enlarged for this purpose in the buildings lining the Molo , the embankment alongside the Doge's Palace . As the Council continued to increase in size in the early 14th century, and other magistracies were added to the government, it was decided that a new wing of the Doge's Palace be built alongside the Molo in order to house them. Due to

4095-533: Was the highest role of authority within the Republic of Venice (697 CE to 1797 CE). The word Doge derives from the Latin Dux , meaning "leader," originally referring to any military leader, becoming in the Late Roman Empire the title for a leader of an expeditionary force formed by detachments ( vexillationes ) from the frontier army ( limitanei ), separate from, but subject to,

4160-541: Was to celebrate the symbolic marriage of Venice with the sea . This was done by casting a ring from the state barge, the Bucentaur , into the Adriatic . In its earlier form this ceremony was instituted to commemorate the conquest of Dalmatia by Doge Pietro II Orseolo in 1000, and was celebrated on Ascension Day . It took its later and more magnificent form after the visit to Venice in 1177 of Pope Alexander III and

4225-442: Was too large and unwieldy, numbering some 300–400 members already in the 13th century, the actual deliberation and decision-making of government took place in smaller councils, more capable of action. In the 13th century, the most important of these was the Council of Forty , which not only served as the supreme judicial body, but also prepared legislation to be submitted to the Great Council. Its three heads (the capi ), along with

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