Venice was reputedly founded in 421 A.D.,but did not become an independent republic until many years later.. Legend has it that one Paoluccio Anafesto was elected the first Doge in 697. At that time Venice was a Byzantine Province. It is probable that in fact this Paoluccio was Paulicius or Paul, Exarch of Ravenna, who was responsible for fixing the Venetian boundary. Orso Ipato was Doge between 726 and 737 and he is the first Doge of whom there is any reliable knowledge. When he died there was an apparent gap until Teodato Ipato became Doge from 742 until 755. Thereafter an unbroken succession of Doges ruled untll Lodovico Manin surrendered to Napoleon in 1797.
For the following 1000 years, it flourished as a center of trade and commerce, easily dominating the region with its wealth and power--for awhile, anyway.
The Venetian form of government was ahead of its time in being an early example of democracy, in that it was a Republic ruled by a Council with an elected leader, the Doge. The Grand Council of approximately 2000 powerful officials drawn from the leading families (mostly merchants) would elect a leader for life - known as a Doge (meaning Duke) by a system designed to prevent "fixing". A special Council of Ten functioned as a kind of "secret police" seeking to overturn conspiracies and threats against the Republic of Venice. Eventually the Ten gained so much power that many Doges were reduced to the status of figureheads.
During the Middle Ages, Venice seemed unstoppable. In 1204, the Venetians conquered Byzantium. In 1271, Venetian explorer Marco Polo set out for China. Even while half of Venice's population was killed during the Plagues of 1348, 1575/7 and 1631, Venice remained at the height of its power. A long period of fluctuating fortunes began with the fall of Byzantium to the Turks in 1453. Ongoing maritime battles with the Turks with celebrated victories such as the Battle of Lepanto in October 1571 culminated in the Treaty of Passarowitz in 1718 which fixed the frontiers of the Venetan Empire.. (This period of declining power, however, was a remarkable time of artistic and cultural ferment in Venice--as evidenced in the works of artists like Tiepolo, Bellini, Canaletto and musical composers like Claudio Monteverdi and Antonio Vivaldi, and fascinating cultural icons like Casanova.)
In 1797, Napoleon invaded the Veneto region and the last Doge, Lodovico Manin, surrendered the Republic to him. Over the next 50 years Venice was passed around, from Napoleon to the Austrians and back again. The Venetians revolted against Austrian rule in 1848, but did not achieve liberation until 1866, and became part of the newly formed Italy in 1870.
Since then, Venice has survived two world wars, a near-disastrous flood (in 1966, which prompted formation of the Save Venice foundation), and being stormed by millions of tourists every year.
