Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Venice Versus Genoa
The puppet emperor Doge Dandolo put on the throne in Constantinople didn't last long: the
Genoese conspired with the Byzantines to overthrow the pro-Venetian regime. Having
taken Constantinople for all it was worth, Venice set its sights on distant shores. Through
the overland trip of native son Marco Polo to China in 1271-91, Venetian trade routes ex-
tended all the way to China. Rival Genoa's routes to the New World were proving slower to
yield returns, and the impatient empire cast an envious eye on Venice's spice and silk-trade
routes.
In 1372 Genoa and Venice finally came to blows over an incident in Cyprus, initiating
eight years of maritime warfare that took a toll on Venice. To make matters worse, plague
decimated Venice in the 1370s. Genoa's allies Padua and Hungary took the opportunity to
seize Venetian territories on the mainland, and in 1379 a Genoese fleet appeared off the
Lido. Venetian commander Carlo Zeno's war fleet had been sent out to patrol the Mediter-
ranean, leaving the city outflanked and outnumbered.
But the Genoese made a strategic mistake: instead of invading, Genoa attempted to
starve out the city. With stores of grain saved for just such an occasion, Venice worked day
and night to build new ships and defences around the islands. Mustering all of Venice's
might, Venetian commander Vittore Pisani mounted a counter-attack on the Genoese fleet -
but his forces were inadequate. All hope seemed lost for Venice, until ships flying the lion
of St Mark banner appeared on the horizon: Carlo Zeno had returned. Venice ousted the
Genoese, exerting control over the Adriatic and a backyard that stretched from Dalmatia
(Croatia) to Bergamo (northern Italy).
