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City of Venice

Type Object Region Europe Time 421

Venice, founded on Adriatic lagoon islands (traditionally 421 CE), became a famed maritime, shipbuilding, and financial power and today a major touri…

Timeline

  1. 421–1000Venice Lagoon · VenetoMainland residents moved to the lagoon islands to escape barbarian invasions, gradually forming settlements centered on Rialto; pile foundations and the canal network shaped the city's distinctive form.
  2. 1000–1300Venice · Republic of VeniceThe Republic of Venice expanded eastern Mediterranean trade, took part in the Crusades, and controlled outposts such as Crete and Cyprus; expansions of St Mark's Basilica and the Doge's Palace displayed the city's power.
  3. 1298–1381Venice · Republic of VeniceIn the 1320s Venice and Genoa competed fiercely on Mediterranean and Black Sea trade routes; war and commercial blockades tested the city's finances and navy, and Venice established the upper hand after the War of Chioggia.
  4. 1400–1797Venice · Republic of VeniceDuring the Renaissance, Venetian art, architecture, and printing flourished, but Ottoman expansion and shifting trade routes eroded its maritime dominance, and Napoleon ended the republic in 1797.
  5. 1797Venice · VenetoAfter Austrian rule and the 1848 uprising, Venice was incorporated into the Kingdom of Italy in 1866; since the 20th century, cultural heritage preservation and tourism have been its main economic mainstays.

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