Venice and Its Lagoon Archipelago

Renaissance Venice was strongly tied to the brackish waters and the cluster of islands encircling its city center, each shaping the other to form what was – and is – known as the Venetian lagoon. In early modern times, this singular environment, whose fragile waterscape has drastically changed over time, was viewed with a double face. The first referred to the long-standing imagery forged by early Venetian chroniclers and bolstered by subsequent histories and visual representations that conveyed the myth of a harmonious city reigning almost miraculously over an ordered and peaceful environment. However, the pervasiveness of this image was severely at odds with the less friendly face of the lagoon, whose capricious waters besieged the city for centuries. Despite natural challenges, the center constantly constructed interdependent relationships with its watery settlements, assigning them various functions according to its needs. At different moments, the islands constituting Venice’s archipelago were used as spiritual spaces for religious communities, loci dedicated to the city’s food supply, or for hosting defense structures and hospitals. Venice’s unique aqueous environment was also the stage set on which the Republic promoted its exceptional qualities, principal among which was the celebration of a city that seemed to miraculously float on water. Sumptuous festivals, spectacles, processions, and games contested on water fostered a crafted message about the glory, wealth, and power of the state. The history of the tight relationship of the capital city to its environment suddenly came to an end with the fall of the Venetian Republic in 1797. Political changes and urban transformations significantly altered the geographic configuration and functions of most of the islands, which would ultimately be abandoned and sidelined to their current peripheral roles.