The Growth of the power of Venice

Note: this is a follow-up to "A History of Venice by C. Diehl: The Origins". You can learn more about the book and my attempt at summarizing its content there.

Where were we already and why put this chapter here, huh? Ok, so Venice has been founded, first to be one among many little cities to welcome the refugees of the former Roman Empire from the barbrian invasions, to then rise as the center of the religious and political powers in the region. During this time, and the centuries to come (i.e. from its foundation until the Crusades -11th century), Venice's history will be tightly tied to that of Byzance, from subject to ally, until it will become Byzance's heir. This is what we'll focus on here.

At first, during the 6th century, Venetia was really a province of the Byzantine Empire. During this time, it was, like the rest of the Empire, administrated by "tribunes" undirectly elected among the local aristocracy by the imperial power (did they have the same role as under the Roman Empire? I would need to look into it....). On top of it, at the end of the 7th century, was also elected a duke, later to become the Doge. Initially, like the tribunes, he was chosen by Byzance, but after the rise of most Italy against its power, the duke was elected by the tribunes and the Church. When the situation calmed down, the Eastern Roman Empire agreed to let the election system for the duke in place.

What's interesting with this Doge business is that the evolution of his status is representative of the evolution of the relations between Venice and Byzance. At first, he is, like the rest of the population, nothing but a mere subject of the Byzantine Empire, and everything around him is inspired by the imperial court: his titles, the clothes worn by him and those at his court, up until the rituals after his death. This continued even after the weakening of the dominance by Byzance, from the mid-9th century. There's one simple reason that explains why the Doge would embrace so easily behaviors marking him as being within the Eastern Roman Empire's sphere of influence: it gave him great prestige in the eyes of his own subjects.

This prestige was all the more important since Doges usually tried to make their position hereditary; this was especially true once they and the rest of the aristocracy were all located on Rialto. The elections became formalities, and thus were created dynasties. However, the Venitians remained strongly against absolute monarchy or tyranny, something that some of the Doges, like Pietro IV Candiano in 976, would learn soon enough when his palace would be set afire (a fire that would also burn down the first St-Mark's Basilica), and him and his son killed when they tried to escape. He had been so hated because he had been too gready for power and had become a tyrant. Indeed, even though the power of the Doge became close to that of a monarch as he was the head of the curia ducis, the heart of the public administration, was in charge of the foreign relations, commanded the army, etc, he was still assisted by the representents of the aristocracy and the Church, and by the public assembly, even under the 'reign' of Pietro IV Candiano.

It may seem ironical, but what drew also Venice to Byzance was its ambitions for independance. As I said, ironic, but once you'll have an idea of the geo-political situation in Europe, you will understand better. At the end of the 7th century, there was an important choice before most Italian provinces: either to take part to the new Empire that Charlemagnes had created, or remain within the sphere of the Byzantine Empire. For Venice, the decision was easy to make: being under the suzerainty of Byzance meant that it would deal with a power far away, leaving it pretty much free. Despite the presence in the lagoon and around, of people in favor of the Francs (notably at Gardo), and numerous attacks by the armies of Pepin, in 812, Charlemagne agreed to sign a treaty leaving Istria and Venetia in the hands of Byzance.

This is capital to understand the specificity of the evolution of Venice compared to the rest of Italy. By escaping the domination of the Frankish Empire, it also escaped its political divisions later on and the new social order that would appear in Western Europe, the feodal system. That being said, Venice will remain in good terms with the Frankish Empire and its successors, especially where trade is concerned. But the ties will never be as strong as they were with Byzance.

This chapter is called "the growth of power", yet I haven't talked about the one source of the Venetian power: trade. But it seemed important that you first understood the peculiar situation of Venice, acting as a link between Western and Eastern Empires, and free of strong foreign dominance. Naturally, Venice was always drawn to the sea. From the 9th century and the treaty with Charlemagne, its ships would bring from the Byzantine Empire luxurious items, like textiles. In 992, they will sign a treaty with Basil II granting them many privileges, notably lowers taxes and a special legal protection within the Empire. Similar treaties will be signed later with the Western Empire. Those advantages placed the concurrence (Bari, Amalfi) in an impossible situation. Also, from the 10th century, Venice started to trade with Islamic countries, even though it was, in theory, forbidden. So Venice became, by the 11th century, one of the busiest marketplaces in Europe, and the Adriatic became the one commercial route that most of the merchandise, but also most letters, exchanged between West and East, would take.

It is because of trade that Venice also developped battleships. It was their source of power, and they needed to secure the Adriatic route, where pirates also dwelt, on the other side of the sea, in Croatia. In 1000, Pietro II Orseolo, one of the most important Doges in Venitian history, decided to get rid of them once and for all, and with a fleet, defeated the pirates, restoring, at the same time, the mastery over Istria and the Adriatic coast of Croatia (Dalmatia). As a symbole, one of the titles of the Doges will be, from 1002, that of "Duke of Istria and Dalmatia".

Given all that has been said above, it will, I hope, not come as a surprise if I say that the Venetian culture and art will be under both eastern and western influences, with a strong predilection, espeically in those early years, for Byzance as a reference. In 828, two merchands brought back from Alexandria, the relic of St Mark, who has been always revered in Venice. In its honor was built St Mark's Basilica, which, as we saw earlier, was burnt down in 976. It was rebuilt within years, then again in 1063, laying the foundations for the Basilica we know today. It is probably a far cry from its earliest versions, but elements clearly influenced by Byzance in their decoration were re-used, giving us glimpses at what it used to be. It is around St Mark's Basilica that Venice grew as a city. The culture of the Byzantine Empire will also be imported not just through trade, but also by the marriages between Byzantin princesses and Doges or their sons. The most famous example is that of the princess Selvo, who notably was the first to import forks in Western Europe. There is a whole tale there that would deserve to be told elsewhere.

In a nutshell, what you need to remember:From the 6th to the end of the 11th century and the Crusades, Venice will slowly build its power, which rests essentially on trade and the mastery of the sea and the main commercial routes. Its position will allow Venice to become the link between Western and Eastern Civilizations. While at first it was a clearly a subject of Byzance, over centuries, it became more independent, even if Byzance remained the reference in terms of culture and art for a long time.

To follow: the Venitian trade (11th -16th centuries)

Additional bibliography:

Various articles at Wikipedia

Pietro II Orseolo@Liceo Foscarini di Venezia