The Story of Famous Cities: European Urban Scenery from the Perspective of Architects

Author: Editorial Board of Architectural Creation Magazine
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: The history of Venice is extraordinary. Initially, there were only some fishermen on the islands of the lagoon. In the 6th century, due to chaos in the Italian Peninsula, some wealthy people fled to the islands, forming communities. Venice was once under the rule of the Byzantine Empire and became an independent city-state republic in the mid-9th century. At its peak, Venice controlled vast areas around the Mediterranean, and by the second half of the 14th century, it had become a maritime power with thousands of merchant ships and many colonies. Its powerful navy had 25,000 sailors. Venetian merchant ships reached England, France, and even the Black Sea, engaging in trade with countries like Russia. After the Fourth Crusade captured Constantinople in 1204, Venice acquired vast wealth and occupied some Byzantine ports and territories. The late renowned Chinese scholar Gu Zheng once pointed out that during that period, Venice "did not become a 'Utopia,' but rather developed into a powerful commercial republic, wealthy, with a strong merchant fleet and navy, capable of influencing the Crusades." Venice long controlled maritime trade between the East and West and engaged in the slave trade. There is a record that says: "Venetian merchants seemed superior to all competitors in supplying concubines and slaves to the Muslim world." Venetian industries, such as shipbuilding, textiles, and glassmaking, were highly developed. At its peak, there were 6,000 shipbuilding craftsmen and 16,000 woolen textile craftsmen. Why did Venice have such prosperous commercial activities? This is because Venice was built on a lagoon island in the Adriatic Sea, close to the Italian mainland but not connected to it, allowing it to avoid the turmoil on the Italian Peninsula. Moreover, Venice had no hinterland or resources and could only turn to the sea for development. Venice is located at the northernmost tip of the Adriatic Sea. In the Middle Ages, the eastern side of the Adriatic was the Byzantine Empire, and further east lay the vast Eastern world, placing Venice between the East and West. The southern side of the Adriatic borders the Mediterranean, as if Venice had a natural waterway dedicated to reaching the world. This geographical location turned the small city-state built on a reef island into a dominant maritime commercial power in the Mediterranean during the Middle Ages. Marco Polo, who came to China in 1275 and stayed for 20 years, came from Venice. This example shows how skilled Venetians were at operating in the world. Shakespeare's famous play The Merchant of Venice also tells us how cunning Venetian merchants and moneylenders were, always thinking of ways to make money at any cost. Venice was extremely prosperous in the Middle Ages. In 1284, Venice began minting the gold coin "Ducat," which became the currency of Europe at the time. At one point, the tiny Venice had an annual revenue of 1 million Ducats, a figure exceeding the combined income of England and Spain and matching that of all of France. The political organization of the Venetian Republic in the Middle Ages was also very unique—it was a republic, standing out in the feudal Middle Ages. The upper class consisted of shipowners, financial tycoons, and other merchant nobles, while the lower class included accountants, various craftsmen, and so on, with no large landowners or feudal nobles. The government was controlled by a group of commercial nobles. The legislative body was called the "Great Council," elected by hundreds of aristocratic families listed in the "Golden Book." Later, membership became hereditary. From the "Great Council" emerged the "Senate," which held executive power. The head of state was called the "Doge" (or translated as Duke). In the 14th century, a "Committee of Ten" was established, which had immense power and supervised all people using brutal means such as intimidation, assassination, secret trials, and torture to persecute opponents. The politics of the Venetian Republic were known for their intrigue and darkness. P10-11