When was venice powerful

His symbol, the winged lion, was from now on the landmark of Venice. Living on the water, the Venetians were skilled sailors and merchants. Thanks to the protection of Byzantium, which opened all ports to the Venetians, the lagoon city quickly developed into a state trading power and managed to gain extraordinary wealth. Due to the volume of trade, Venice eventually became the largest financial centre in Europe. A powerful navy provided military might, and so, one after the other, Venice conquered Friuli, Istria and Dalmatia.

Venice took advantage of the Fourth Crusade to the Holy Land to attack its former patrons and occupy Constantinople. With the conquest of the Byzantine Empire, the Greek Aegean islands also belonged to the Venetian empire. Many art treasures from Constantinople, including the horses on St. In it defeated the arch enemy of Genoa at Chioggia and the Doge republic dominated the entire eastern Mediterranean region from then on.

With some , inhabitants, Venice itself had grown to become the third largest city in Europe after Paris and Naples. A European great power — the Queen of the Adriatic — was born. With 3, merchant ships and 15, sailors, Venice dominated trade in the Mediterranean region.

The state itself enjoyed stability and, with the exception of the unsecured hinterland, no one posed a danger to the sea power.

The hinterland was therefore secured in relatively short order, and, one by one, Padua, Vicenza and Verona fell to Venice. When it finally conquered Cyprus, the Venetian empire reached its peak and Venice reached the height of its power. In , however, the tide began to turn with the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans. Venice was involved in a 3 year war against the Turks. At the same time, with the discovery of America, the trade centre shifted from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic.

In Europe, new powers were formed and Venice slipped increasingly into political isolation. Despite a last major victory at the Battle of Lepanto against the Turks, the Venetian empire began to crumble across the board.

During this time, Venice's leading families vied with each other to build the grandest palaces and support the work of the greatest and most talented artists. The city was governed by the Great Council, which was made up of members of the most influential families in Venice. The Great Council appointed all public officials and elected a Senate of to individuals. The Senate hen chose the Council of Ten, a secretive group which held the utmost power in the administration of the city.

One member of the great council was elected 'doge,' or duke, the ceremonial head of the city. The Venetian doge ruled for life under a system of constitutional monarchy. The Doge of Venice ruled in great splendor, and laws were passed in his name, but his power was severely limited by the Great Council, and most notably, the Council of Ten. In , Francesco Fosari became doge.

He ruled with excessive grandeur and exercised far greater power than had past doges, aggressively pursuing a policy of western expansion. Many in the Great Council thought he had usurped too great a degree of power. To torment and control the doge, the Council of Ten falsely accused his son, Jacopo, of treason, and began a long process during which Jacopo was exiled, readmitted, tortured, and exiled again, all the while refusing to allow the doge to resign.

Finally, when the Council of Ten was satisfied that its message had gotten across, they forced Fosari to resign, affirming its power over the monarch. Throughout the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, Venice was assailed at sea by the Ottoman Turks and on land by the so-called Holy League against Venice, which sought to knock Venice from its pedestal of arrogance. The city survived the onslaught, however, by relying on its strength in sea trade.

Milan, the most northern of the major Italian city-states, came to dominate the Po River valley. The Veneti, who had been expelled by the Ostrogoths and the Lombards, took refuge in these marshlands in the mouth of the River Po, forming the city of Venice. In , the wealthy families of Venice took advantage of the Exarchate's weakened position to place the first doge Anafestus Paulicius in power.

The position of the doge was at first hereditary and lifelong. Constantinople granted Venice trading privileges in the Eastern Roman Empire in return for helping the Byzantine Emperor resist the Norman incursions.

This fruitful relationship and trading allowances guaranteed Venice important commercial ties with other regions and countries. The Venetian ambassador had exclusive concessions with Byzantium and his diplomacy was characterized by his sagacity, flexibility and opportunism. An example of these privileges is that the Venetians kept on trading with the Muslim world, even when the Lateran councils had prohibited it. One of their most successful businesses was buying slaves from the south of Russia to sell them in North Africa.

Venice would also sell the slaves it would buy from Turkey and Alexandria in Europe. Venice became an imperial power and established the Latin Empire as a consequence of the fourth crusade that took place between and The Venetian galley ships led by Enrico Dandolo captured and brutally sacked Constantinople. The Greek Empire was then divided up between the crusaders and Venice. It was during this period that Marco Polo , a Venetian merchant reached China and wrote a book about his travels.

Once Venice controlled the Mediterranean, it turned its attention to the Atlantic, reaching Southampton, Bruges and London , where the Venetians established their colonies. From the beginning, the Republic of Venice strove to ensure that the doge would never have complete power over the city. In , the Great Council was introduced to diminish the influence of certain great families.

The council was made up by selected members of the nobility. These institutions were then merged by the doge with the creation of the Signoria of Venice in In , a senate, the Consiglio dei Pregadi, was formed. It consisted of 60 members that were elected by the Major Council.

A Council of Ten was established in This organization was similar to a secret state police. Throughout the years, it became very powerful and turned into the central political body in Venice. These created an executive branch. In fact, the doge had very little power and most of the decisions were made by the Major Council.

The members of the Great Council of Venice were passed from father to son from onwards. Threatened by the power of the Duke of Milan , Venice began to conquer other parts of Italy during the first half of the fifteenth century.

In , Venice controlled most of the region including Verona and Padua , reaching eventually Brescia and Bergamo.