History of Venice Podcast

Today we’re looking at the life of Doge Pietro Ziani – the man who picked up the baton after the death of Enrico Dandolo and presided over the chaotic situation that we’ve been narrating over the past few episodes. Contemporary Venetian writers praise his wisdom, his fairness, and his desire for peace. Are they right, or are they just blowing smoke in our eyes? Join us as we examine the life of the wealthiest man in this increasingly wealthy city.

Email us at histvenicepod@gmail.com, or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

This week we're looking around the Mediterranean at the international political events that provide the wider context to the stories that we’ve been telling lately. We’ll be travelling to Genoa, Sicily, Nicaea, Epirus, Outremer, and, very briefly indeed, introducing a new threat from the East that’s about to burst into our story.

Email us at histvenicepod@gmail.com, or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

Easter 1214. In Treviso, about 20 miles north of Venice, the city’s governors have decided to set up a week-long “court of solace and mirth”. There will be dancing and jousting, feasting and fine fooling. And the symbolic heart of the celebrations will be the splendid Castle of Love, which the area’s finest ladies, wearing their most ostentatious hats, will be defending against the symbolic assaults of teams of young men brandishing flowers, fruits, and spices. The whole game is an idiosyncratic fusion of ancient springtime celebrations of courtship, and the latest fashions of courtly love which have been taking hold in respectable societies across the chivalric states of western Europe. 

It’s a welcome distraction from the trials and tribulations of high politics and foolish wars. Until things go wrong. Tune in to find out more.

Email us at histvenicepod@gmail.com, or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

1205. Venice wasn’t the only mercantile vulture who was looking at the carcass of the Eastern Roman Empire and realising that if she didn’t take advantage of this mess, someone else would. And if that someone else – most likely Genoa – turned out to be more effective at seizing the opportunities, then Venice’s hopes of commercial dominance would be severely dented. The Crusade had shaken the kaleidoscope and the pieces were still in flux. These were dangerous times for everyone, even for the apparent winners.

Email us at histvenicepod@gmail.com, or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Primavera from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org

1750. The dream is over. The love of his life has gone. Casanova picks up the pieces and, after a pause to reflect, heads for Paris. But in sophisticated French high society, our smooth-tongued, charming Venetian will soon find out that he’s little more than a bumbling ingénue. Will he make a name for himself, or will he continue to flounder out of his depth in the capital of European culture? 

Email us at histvenicepod@gmail.com, or find us on Bluesky, Facebook, and Instagram.

Intro and outro music is Estate from Vivaldi’s Le Quattro Stagioni, used under Creative Commons licence from musopen.org