History of Venice

Venice was built, accordingto tradition, in AD 452 when Teutonic tribes invading Italyforced the inhabitants of northern Italian cities to take refuge on the islands in the lagoon. In AD 697 a republic was established under elected leaders known as the Doges, and Venice soon developed into a prosperous commercial hub.

When the Venetians conquered Constantinople and Cyprus, Venice was elevated to one of the most powerful commercial trade centers in Europe, having control over the major trade routes through the Mediterranean. Marco Polo symbolized its spirit of enterprise in the 13th century.

Venice became known as the "Queen of the Adriatic" as its territory reached into the mainland to include cities such as Vicenza, Verona and Padova and the Friuli region. The city-state of Venice reached the height of its power and splendor during the Renaissance, and then began to decline towards the century's end. Venice's power began to decline after the Ottoman Turks captured Constantinople in the 15^th century, and later Crete and Cyprus in the 16^th century. It was next given over to Austrian rule in 1797, and soon afterwards Napoleon I invaded, ruling from 1805 through 1814. Venice did not come back under the Italian kingdom until 1866.