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| Fall of the Venetian Republic | |||||||
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| Part of theItalian campaign of 1796–1797 in theWar of the First Coalition | |||||||
 Contemporary engraving of the entry of French troops into Venice in 1797 | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 First French Republic |  Republic of Venice | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Napoleon Bonaparte | |||||||
TheRepublic of Venice was dissolved and dismembered by the French generalNapoleon Bonaparte and theHabsburg monarchy on 12 May 1797, ending approximately 1,100 years of its existence. It was the final action of Napoleon'sItalian campaign of 1796–1797 before theWar of the First Coalition formally ended in October.
In 1796, General Napoleon had been sent by the newly formedFrench Republic to confront Austria, as part of theItalian front of theFrench Revolutionary Wars. He chose to go through Venice, which was officially neutral. Reluctantly, the Venetians allowed the formidableFrench army to enter their country so that it might confront Austria. However, the French covertly began supportingJacobin revolutionaries within Venice, and theVenetian Senate began quiet preparations for war. The Venetian armed forces were depleted and hardly a match for the battle-tested French or even a local uprising. After thecapture of Mantua on 2 February 1797, the French dropped any pretext and overtly called for revolution among the territories of Venice. By 13 March, there was open revolt, withBrescia andBergamo breaking away. However, pro-Venetian sentiment remained high, and France was forced to reveal its true goals after it provided military support to the underperforming revolutionaries.
On 25 April, Napoleon openly threatened to declare war on Venice unless it democratised. The Venetian Senate acceded to numerous demands, but facing increasing rebellion and the threat of foreign invasion, it abdicated in favor of a transitional government of Jacobins (and thus the French). On 12 May,Ludovico Manin, the lastdoge of Venice, formally abolished the Most Serene Republic of Venice after 1,100 years of existence.
The French and the Austrians had secretly agreed on 17 April in theTreaty of Leoben that in exchange for providing Venice to Austria, France would receive theAustrian Netherlands. France provided an opportunity for the population to vote on accepting the now public terms of the treaty that yielded them to Austria. On 28 October, Venice voted to accept the terms. The preference for Austria over France was well founded: the French proceeded to thoroughly loot Venice. They further stole or sank the entireVenetian Navy and destroyed much of theVenetian Arsenal, a humiliating end for what had once been one of the most powerful navies in Europe.
On 18 January 1798, the Austrians took control of Venice and ended the plunder. Austria's control was short-lived, however, as Venice would be back under French control in 1805. It then returned to Austrian hands in 1815 as theKingdom of Lombardy–Venetia until its incorporation into theKingdom of Italy in 1866.
The fall of the ancient Republic of Venice was the result of a sequence of events that followed theFrench Revolution and the subsequentFrench Revolutionary Wars that pitted theFirst French Republic against the monarchic powers of Europe, allied in theFirst Coalition (1792), particularly following theexecution of Louis XVI on 21 January 1793, which spurred the monarchies of Europe to common cause against Revolutionary France.
The pretender to the French throne, Louis Stanislas Xavier (the futureLouis XVIII), spent a period of time in 1794 inVerona, as a guest of the Venetian republic. This led to fierce protests from the French representatives, so that Louis' right of asylum was revoked, and he was forced to depart Verona on 21 April. As a sign of protest, the French prince demanded that his name be removed from thelibro d'oro of theVenetian nobility, and that he be returned the armour ofHenry IV of France, that was kept at Venice. The behaviour of the Venetian government also provoked the displeasure and censure of the other European courts.
In 1795, with theConstitution of Year III, France put an end to the turmoils of theReign of Terror, and installed the more conservative regime of theDirectory. For 1796, the Directory ordered the launching of a granddouble-pronged offensive against the First Coalition: a principal attack east over theRhine into the German states of theHoly Roman Empire, and a diversionary attack against the Austrians and their allies in the south, innorthern Italy. The conduct of the Italian campaign was given to generalNapoleon Bonaparte, who in April 1796 crossed the Alps with 45,000 men to confront the Austrians and thePiedmontese.
In alightning campaign, Napoleon knocked Sardinia out of the war and then moved on theDuchy of Milan, which was controlled by the Habsburg forces. On 9 May ArchdukeFerdinand, the Austrian governor of Milan, retired with his family toBergamo in Venetian territory. Six days later, after winning theBattle of Lodi, Napoleon entered Milan, and forced KingVictor Amadeus III of Sardinia to sign the humiliatingTreaty of Paris, while the Habsburg forces withdrew to defend thePrince-Bishopric of Trent. On 17 May theDuchy of Modena likewise sought an armistice with the French.
During the course of this conflict, the Republic of Venice had followed its traditional policy ofneutrality, but its possessions in northern Italy (theDomini di Terraferma) were now in the direct path of the French army's advance towardsVienna. Consequently, on 20 May the French denounced the armistice agreement, and recommenced hostilities.
At the approach of the French army, already on 12 May 1796, theVenetian Senate had created aprovveditore generale for the Terraferma,Nicolò Foscarini, with the task of overseeing all magistrates in its mainland territories (thereggimenti). However, the state of Venetian defences was parlous: arms were lacking, and the fortifications were in disrepair. Venetian Lombardy was soon invaded by masses of refugees fleeing the war, and shattered or fleeing detachments of Austrian troops, who were soon followed by the first infiltrations by French contingents. Only with great difficulty did the Venetian authorities manage to prevent first the Austrians of GeneralWilhelm Lothar Maria von Kerpen, and then the pursuing French ofLouis Alexandre Berthier, from passing throughCrema. Napoleon himself finally arrived before the city, bringing a proposal of alliance with Venice, which gave no reply to it. In view of the bad state of the defences, both the Venetian government as well as the authorities in the Terraferma put up only a weak resistance to the crossing of Venetian territory by the retreating Austrians, but firmly refused the requests of the Habsburg ambassador to provide, even secretly, food and supplies to the Austrian forces.
In short, however, the situation was critical for the Most Serene Republic: not only Lombardy, but evenVeneto were threatened with invasion. First the Austrian commander-in-chief,Jean-Pierre de Beaulieu, tookPeschiera del Garda by ruse, and then, on 29 May, the French division ofPierre François Charles Augereau enteredDesenzano del Garda. On the night of 29/30 May, Napoleon crossed theMincio River in force, forcing the Austrians to withdraw toTyrol. To the complaints of the Venetians, who through theprovveditore generale Foscarini protested the damage inflicted by the French troops during their advance, Napoleon replied by threatening to pass Verona through iron and fire, and of marching on Venice itself, claiming that the Republic had shown itself as favouring the enemies of France by not declaring war after the events at Peschiera, and by harbouring the French pretender Louis.
On 1 June, Foscarini, in an effort not to provoke Napoleon further, agreed to the entry of French troops into Verona. The Venetian territories thus officially became a field of battle between the opposing camps, while in many cities the French occupation created a difficult cohabitation between French troops, the Venetian military, and the local inhabitants.
In the face of imminent threat, the Senate ordered the recall of theVenetian fleet, the conscription of thecernide militia inIstria, and the creation of aprovveditore generale for theVenetian Lagoon andLido, to ensure the defence of theDogado, the core of the Venetian state. New taxes were raised and voluntary contributions were requested to provide for the rearmament of the state. Finally, the Republic's ambassador at Paris was ordered to protest to the Directory of the violation of its neutrality. At the same time, Venetian diplomats in Vienna remonstrated at the Habsburg forces' bringing war to the Terraferma.
On 5 June, the representatives of theKingdom of Naples signed an armistice with Napoleon. On 10 June, the heir to theDuchy of Parma,Louis of Bourbon, and two days later, Napoleon invaded theRomagna, which belonged to thePapal States; on 23 June the Pope had to accept the French occupation of the northernLegations, allowing the French to occupy the port city ofAncona on theAdriatic Sea.
The appearance of French warships in the Adriatic led Venice to renew the ancient decree that prohibited the entry of foreign fleets into the Venetian Lagoon, and informed Paris of that. Flotillas and fortifications were established along the lagoon's shores with the mainland, as well as in the canals, to block access from the land as well as from the sea. In this regard, on 5 July theprovedditore responsible for the defence of the Lagoon,Giacomo Nani, recalling the victoriousWar of the Morea against theOttoman Turks, wrote:
It mortifies my soul to see that, only a century after that important era, Your Excellencies are reduced to thinking only about the defence of the estuary, without thinking of turning your thought even a line further than that.
— Giacomo Nani,Provveditore generale alle Lagune e ai Lidi)
Venice seemed to have lost forever the Terraferma, as in former times during theWar of the League of Cambrai. The government resolved to mobilize its forces to avoid such an outcome; under the exhortations of Nani, the Venetian government prepared to order a mobilization and give command of its land forces toWilliam of Nassau, but stopped at the last moment before the joint opposition of the Austrians and the French.
Towards the middle of July the French troops quartered themselves in the cities of Crema, Brescia, andBergamo, to allow the separation of French and Austrian forces, who in the meantime had concluded a truce. At the same time, diplomatic efforts were under way to induce Venice to abandon its neutrality and enter a joint alliance with France and the Ottoman Empire againstRussia. However, the news of the preparations of the generalDagobert Sigmund von Wurmser for an Austrian counteroffensive from Tyrol prompted the Republic to officially reject the French proposals with a letter from theDoge on 22 July. In the meantime, aprovedditore extraordinary,Francesco Battagia, had been appointed to join, and in practice replace, theprovveditore generale Foscarini. In Venice, night patrols composed of shopkeepers and journeymen, and commanded by twopatricians and twoburghers (cittadini), maintained order and safety. In Bergamo also, troops were silently recruited in the neighbouring valleys, taking care to avoid conflict with the French occupiers, but only "to restrain the populace's fervour, without debasing it", as theInquisitori di Stato magistrates put it.
On 31 July, on his part, Napoleon occupiedBrescia Castle.
On 29 July, the Austrians under Wurmser began their counteroffensive, descending from Tyrol in a two-pronged advance along the shores ofLake Garda and the course of theBrenta River, passing through Venetian and Mantuan territory. The two Austrian columns were stopped atLonato del Gardaon 3 August andCastiglione delle Stiviereon 5 August respectively. Defeated, Wurmser was forced to return to Trent. After reorganizing his troops, Wurmser returned to the attack, advancing along the course of theAdige, but on 8 September, at theBattle of Bassano, the Austrians were heavily defeated: forced to a precipitous flight to Mantua, abandoning their artillery andtrain.
As a result, during the autumn and winter, the French consolidated their presence in Italy, so that on 15/16 October, they founded theCispadane Republic and theTranspadane Republic as Frenchclient states. At the same time, in the Terraferma, the French soldiers progressively took over the Venetian defensive system by assuming control over cities and fortresses. While the Venetian government continued to instruct its magistrates, placed at the head of the variousreggimenti, to supply the maximum collaboration and to avoid giving rise to any excuse for a conflict, the French ever more openly began to support local revolutionary andJacobin activities.
On 29 October the Austrians, amassed inVenetian Friuli, attempted a new offensive, underJózsef Alvinczi, by crossing theTagliamento, then thePiave on 2 November, and arriving atBrenta on 4 November. The Austrians pushed the French back in theSecond Battle of Bassano on 6 November, and enteredVicenza. However, the battles ofCaldiero (12 November) and above allArcole (15–17 November) blocked the Austrian advance. Finally, in theBattle of Rivoli on 14–15 January 1797, Napoleon decisively defeated Alvinczi and restored French supremacy.
With thecapture of Mantua on 2 February 1797, the French removed the last bastion of Habsburg resistance in Italy. The French now began to promote openly the "democratization" of Bergamo, which, under the pressure of generalLouis Baraguey d'Hilliers, rose in revolt against Venice on 13 March, establishing theRepublic of Bergamo. Three days later, theprovveditore extraordinary Francesco Battagia, in an effort to restore order, issued a general amnesty for any acts disturbing the public order. However, Battagia was already fearing the loss of Brescia, the city where he resided, and to which the Bergamasque revolutionaries were marching, as well.
On 16 March, at theBattle of Valvasone, Napoleon defeated ArchdukeCharles, thus opening the way to Austria proper. On the next day, the Venetian Senate issued affirmations of gratitude to the towns and forts remaining loyal to the Republic, and for the first time ordered them to take defensive measures. The barricading of the Lagoon of Venice, the establishment of armed patrols in the Dogado, and the recall of naval units stationed in Istria, were ordered. TheArsenal of Venice, the military heart of the state, was ordered to increase its production, and troops were to be sent from the overseas possessions of theStato da Mar to the Terraferma. On 19 March, theInquisitori di Stato reported to the Senate on the condition of thereggimenti. For Bergamo, which was in rebellion, no information was available, and the inquisitors awaited for news from the neighbouring forts and valleys. The situation in Brescia was still calm and under Battagia's control, as well as Crema, where they recommended the reinforcement of its garrison. An anti-French mood prevailed in Verona, whilePadua andTreviso were quiet, although the Venetian authorities kept the former under close watch in case of trouble from the students of theUniversity of Padua. The report read:
Bergamo: the rebel leaders are supported by the French, and try to discredit the Republic, communications are disrupted, notices from the valleys and localities and forts of the province are being awaited.
Brescia, through the prudent direction of theprovveditore extraordinary, is still firm [...].
Crema [...] requires some garrison.
Verona [...], whose population is said to appear disinclined towards the French, [...] who [...] do not seize being both armed and dangerous. [...]
Padua, beyond being too immune from the poison among some in the city and the student body [...] has many students from the cities beyond the Mincio [...].
Treviso does not offer particular observations.
— Report of the threeInquisitori di Stato of 19 March 1797[1]
In reality, however, the inquisitors were not aware that at Brescia the previous day (18 March), a group of notables, desiring to liberate themselves from Venetian rule, had launched a revolt. Amidst the general indifference, they could count only on the support of the Bergamasque, and the French, who controlled the city's citadel; however, Battagia, so as not to endanger the population, which was still largely pro-Venetian, decided to abandon the city with his troops. News of this arrived in Venice only on 20 March, after Battagia arrived at Verona. The government seemed to rally at the news: a ducal letter was sent to allreggimenti ordering the preparation of "absolute defence" and demanding anew their oaths of allegiance to the Republic. On 21 March, while Bonaparte enteredGradisca, taking control ofTarvisio and the entry of the valleys leading to Austria, came the first reply: Treviso proclaimed itself fully loyal to Venice.
The following day, however, came fromUdine a letter by the Venetian ambassadors sent to deal with Napoleon, who informed the Venetian government of the French general's increasingly evasive and suspicious attitude. In return, the government considered it necessary to inform the main magistrates of the Terraferma, who had gathered at Verona, to operate with the greatest circumspection towards the French, thus essentially replacing the concept of "absolute defence" with the vague hope of not giving Napoleon a pretext for entering in an open conflict with Venice. On 24 March, nevertheless, arrived the new pledges of allegiance from the citizens ofVicenza and Padua, shortly after followed by Verona,Bassano,Rovigo and, one after the other, the other centres. Numerous delegations even came from the valleys of Bergamo, ready to rise up against the French.
On 25 March, however, the Lombard revolutionaries occupiedSalò, followed on 27 March by Crema, where on the next day they proclaimed theRepublic of Crema. The French intervention became increasingly audacious, with French cavalry employed in suppressing the resistance of Crema, and then, on 31 March, with French artillery bombarding Salò, which had rebelled against the Jacobins.
All these facts at last induced the Venetian magistrates of the Terraferma to authorize the partial mobilization of thecernide, and the preparation for defence of Verona, the principal military stronghold. The French occupiers were initially constrained by keeping up appearances, and consented not to interfere with the Venetian forces that intended to retake control of the cities of Venetian Lombardy. This is borne out by the agreement, signed on 1 April, with which Venice agreed to pay one millionlire per month to Napoleon, to finance his campaign against Austria. In this way, the Republic hoped to expedite a speedy conclusion of that conflict, with its concomitant departure of the French occupying troops, and secure a certain freedom of action against the Lombard revolutionaries.
Confronted with the spread of popular uprisings in favour of Venice and the rapid advance of Venetian forces, the French were finally forced to aid the Lombard Jacobins, revealing their true intentions. On 6 April a Venetian cavalry ensign was arrested for treason by the French and led to Brescia. On 8 April the Senate was informed of raids carried out by Brescian revolutionaries clad in French uniforms up to the gates ofLegnano. On the next day, a proclamation called the population of the Terraferma to abandon Venice, which had up till then been preoccupied only by the security of its own capital. At the same time, the French generalJean-Andoche Junot received from Napoleon a letter in which the latter complained about the anti-French general uprising of the Terraferma. On 10 April, after the French captured a Venetian ship loaded with arms in Lake Garda, they accused Venice of having broken its neutrality by instigating anti-Jacobin revolts among the inhabitants of the valleys of Brescia and Bergamo. The generalSextius Alexandre François de Miollis denounced the attacks suffered by a battalion ofPolish volunteers, that had intervened in one of the clashes. On 12 April, on account of the ever more frequent presence of French warships, the Venetians ordered all their ports to maintain the greatest vigilance.
On 15 April, finally, Napoleon's ambassador to Venice informed theSignoria of Venice of the French intention to support and promote the revolts against the "tyrannical government" of the Republic. The Signoria responded by issuing a proclamation urging all its subjects to remain calm and respect the state's neutrality.
On 17 April 1797, Napoleon signed a preliminary armistice atLeoben inStyria, with the representatives of the HabsburgFrancis II, Holy Roman Emperor. In the secret annexes of the treaty, the territories of the Terraferma were already conceded to the Habsburg empire, in return for French possession of theAustrian Netherlands. On the same day, however, events precipitated themselves at Verona. The population, and a part of the Venetian troops quartered there, tired of French arrogance and oppression, rose in revolt. The episode, known as the "Veronese Easter", quickly reduced the occupation troops to the defensive, reducing them to the city's forts.
On 20 April, although the ban on foreign warships entering the Lagoon of Venice had recently been reiterated, the French frigateLe Libérateur d'Italie [it] (transl. Italy's Liberator) tried to enter the Porto di Lido, the northern entry to the Lagoon. In response, the artillery on theFort of Sant'Andrea opened fire, sinking the ship and killing its captain. The Venetian government, however, still hesitated to seize the moment, and still hoped to avoid an open conflict, even at the loss of its mainland possessions: it refused to mobilize the army, or send reinforcements to Verona, which was forced to capitulate on 24 April.
On 25 April, on the feast day of Venice's patron,Mark the Evangelist, atGraz, the bewildered Venetian emissaries were openly threatened with war by Napoleon, who boasted that he had 80,000 men and twenty gunships ready to overthrow the Republic. The French general announced that:
I want no more Inquisition, no more Senate, I shall be anAttila to the state of Venice.
— Napoleon Bonaparte[citation needed]
On the same occasion Napoleon accused Venice of having refused an alliance with France, that would have consented to the restoration of the rebellious cities, with the sole purpose of maintaining its army under arms and thus cut the path of retreat for the French army in case of a defeat.
During the next days, the French army proceeded to definitively occupy the Terraferma, up to the shores of the Lagoon of Venice. On 30 April a letter from Napoleon, who was now atPalmanova, informed the Signoria that he intended to alter the Republic's system of government, but offered to maintain its substance. Thisultimatum was to expire in four days. The Venetian government made attempts to affect a reconciliation, informing Napoleon on 1 May that it intended to reform its constitution on a more democratic basis, but on 2 May the French declared war on the Republic.
On the other hand, on 3 May Venice revoked the general recruitment order for thecernide of Dalmatia. Then, in yet another attempt to appease Napoleon, on 4 May theGreat Council of Venice, with 704 votes in favour, 12 against, and 26 abstentions, decided to accept the French demands, including the arrest of the commandant of the Fort of Sant'Andrea, and the threeInquisitori di Stato, an institution that was particularly offensive to Jacobin sensibilities due to its role as the guarantor of theoligarchic nature of the Venetian republic.
On 8 May the Doge,Ludovico Manin, declared that he was ready to depose his insignia at the hands of the Jacobin leaders, and invited all magistrates to do the same, even though theducal councillorFrancesco Pesaro urged him to flee toZara in Dalmatia, which was still securely in Venetian hands. Venice still possessed a fleet, and the still loyal possessions inIstria and Dalmatia, as well as the intact defences of the city itself and its lagoon. However, the patriciate was seized by terror at the prospect of a popular uprising. As a result, the order went out to demobilize even the loyalDalmatian troops (Schiavoni) present in the city. Pesaro himself was forced to escape the city, after the government ordered his arrest in an effort to please Napoleon.
On the morning of 11 May, in the penultimate convocation of the Great Council, and under the menace of an invasion, the Doge exclaimed:
Tonight we are not secure even in our own bed.
— Doge Ludovico Manin[citation needed]
On the morning of 12 May, between rumours of conspiracies and the imminent French attack, the Great Council met for the last time. Despite the presence of only 537 of the 1,200 patricians that formed its full membership, and hence the lack of aquorum, Doge Ludovico Manin opened the session with the following words:
As much as we are with a very distressed and troubled soul, even after having taken with near unanimity the two previous resolutions, and having declared so solemnly the public will, we are also resigned to the divine decisions. [...] The decision presented to you is not but a consequence of what has already been agreed with the previous ones [...]; but two articles give us supreme comfort, seeing one assuring our Holy Religion, and with the other the means of sustenance of our fellow citizens [...]. While iron and fire are always threatened if one does not adhere to their demands; and in this moment we are encircled by sixty thousand men fallen from Germany, victorious and freed from the fear of Austrian arms. [...] We will therefore conclude, as is proper, with recommending to you to always turn to the Lord God and to His most holy Mother, so that they will deign, after so many scourges, which deservedly have tried us for our errors, to look at us anew with the eyes of their mercy, and lift at least in part the many anguishes that oppress us.
— Doge Ludovico Manin[citation needed]
The council then proceeded to examine the French demands, brought before it by some Venetian Jacobins, that entailed the abdication of the government in favour of aProvisional Municipality of Venice (Municipalità Provvisoria di Venezia), the planting in theSquare of St Mark's of atree of liberty, the disembarkation of a 4,000-strong contingent of French soldiers, and the handover of certain magistrates who had championed resistance. During the session, the assembly was thrown into panic at the sound of gunshots from the Square of St Mark's: theSchiavoni fired their muskets in salutation of theBanner of Saint Mark before embarking on a ship, but the terrified patricians feared that it signalled a popular revolt. The vote was immediately taken, and with 512 votes in favour, 5 abstentions, and 20 against, the Republic was declared abolished. As the assembly dispersed in haste, the Doge and the magistrates deposed their insignia and presented themselves at the balcony of theDoge's Palace to announce the decision to the crowd gathered below. At the end of the proclamation, the crowd erupted; not, as feared by the patricians, in cries for revolution, but in the cries ofViva San Marco! andViva la Repubblica!. The crowd raised the Flag of St. Mark on the three masts in the square, attempted to reinstate the Doge, and attacked the houses and properties of Venetian Jacobins. The magistrates, fearful of having to answer to the French, attempted to pacify the crowd, and patrols of men from the Arsenal and shots of artillery fired atRialto restored order in the city.
On the morning of 13 May, still in the name of the Most Serene Prince, and with the usual coat of arms of Saint Mark, three proclamations were issued, which threatened by death anyone who dared to rise up, ordered the restitution to theProcuratie of the valuables looted, and finally recognized the Jacobin leaders as deserving of the fatherland.
Because on the next day the last deadline for the armistice granted by Napoleon was to expire, after which the French would have forced their entry into the city, it was eventually agreed to send them the necessary transports to carry 4,000 men, of whom 1,200 were destined for Venice and the rest for the islands and forts surrounding it.
On 15 May the Doge departed forever the Ducal Palace, and retired to his family's residence. In the last decree of the old government, he announced the birth of theProvisional Municipality of Venice.
The Provisional Municipality established itself in the Ducal Palace, in the hall where the Great Council used to convene. On 16 May it issued a proclamation to announce the new order of things:
The Venetian government, desiring to give an ultimate degree of perfection to the republican system that for centuries forms the glory of this country, and to make the citizens of this capital enjoy more and more a liberty that safeguards at once religion, individuals, and property, and hastening to recall to the motherland the inhabitants of the Terraferma who detached themselves from it, and who nonetheless conserved for their brothers in the capital their ancient attachment, convinced, moreover, that the intention of the French government is to increase the power and happiness of the Venetian people, associating its fate with that of the free peoples of Italy, announces solemnly to all of Europe, and especially the Venetian people, the free and frank reform that he has believed necessary to the constitution of the Republic. Only the nobles were entitled by right of birth to the administration of the State; these nobles themselves today renounce voluntarily that right, so that the most meritorious among the entire nation shall in future be admitted to public service. [...] The last vote of the Venetian nobles, by making the glorious sacrifice of their titles, is to see all the children of the fatherland at once equal and free, to enjoy, in the bosom of brotherhood, the benefices of democracy, and honour, from respect of the laws, the most sacred title that they have acquired, that of Citizens.[citation needed]
On the same day at Milan a peace treaty was signed. On the request of the Municipality, conforming to the terms of the treaty, the French troops entered the city; the first foreign troops to set foot in Venice since its establishment a millennium earlier. At the same time, the provinces began to rebel against the authority of the Municipality of Venice, seeking to institute their own administrations, while the rise in the public debt, no longer supported by revenue from its possessions, the suspension of bank returns, and the other fiscal measures, pushed part of the population to ever more manifest forms of insufferance. On 4 June, in St Mark's Square, the Tree of Liberty (Albero della Libertà) was raised: during the ceremony thegonfalone of the Republic was cut to pieces, and the nobility'slibro d'oro was burned, while the new symbol of a winged lion bearing the inscriptionDIRITTI DELL'UOMO E DEL CITTADINO ("Rights of Man and of the Citizen") was presented.
A month later, on 11 July, theGhetto of Venice was abolished, and the city's Jews were given the freedom to move about freely.
On 13 June the French, fearing that the Municipality would not succeed in maintaining control ofCorfu, sailed with a fleet from Venice, with the intention of deposing the Venetianprovveditore generale da Mar in Corfu,Carlo Aurelio Widmann, who still controlled the Republic's overseas territories, and establishing a democratic regime. Thus on 27 June, the Provisional Municipality of the Ionian Islands was established.
Meanwhile, in Istria, Dalmatia, andVenetian Albania, the Venetian magistrates and the local nobles refused to recognize the new government. The fleet, that had repatriated theSchiavoni to their homelands, remained at anchor there, without showing any intention of returning to the Lagoon, nor of imposing the control of the Municipality. AtTraù the goods of the pro-revolutionaries were looted, while at Sebenico (nowŠibenik,Croatia) the French consular agent was assassinated. The spread of the news concerning the terms agreed at Leoben then led the population to push for a rapid occupation by the Austrians. On 1 July, the Austrians entered Zara, and were greeted by pealing bells and artillery shots in salute. The flags of the Republic, which had been flying up to that point, were led in procession to the cathedral, where the population paid them homage. AtPerasto (in present-dayMontenegro, which enjoyed the title offedelissima gonfaloniera ("most loyal standard-bearer") and the last Venetian settlement to surrender, the banner was symbolically buried beneath the main altar, followed by a speech of the garrison captain,Giuseppe Viscovich on 23 August. The entire Istro-Dalmatian coast thus passed to Austrian hands, provoking the futile protests of the Provisional Municipality of Venice.
On 22 July, a Committee of Public Salvation (Comitato di Salute Pubblica), established by the Provisional Municipality of Venice, instituted a Criminal Council (Giunta Criminale) to begin the repression of political dissent, and decreed the penalty of death for whoever pronounced the cryViva San Marco!. Moving about without a pass was prohibited. On 12 October, the Municipality announced the discovery of a conspiracy against it. This led the French generalAntoine Balland, military governor of the city, to decree astate of siege, and to proceed to the arrest and incarceration of hostages.
After theCoup of 18 Fructidor on 4 September 1797, the Republican hardliners took control in France, pushing for a resumption of hostilities with Austria. On 29 September, Napoleon was given orders from the Directory to annul the accord of Leoben and issue an ultimatum to the Austrians, so as to leave them without any possibility of retaking control of Italy. The general, however, disregarded his instructions, and continued peace talks with the Habsburgs.
Meanwhile, confronted with the precipitating deterioration of the political situation, and the risks raised by the provisions of Leoben, the cities of the Terraferma agreed to participate in a conference at Venice to decide the common fate of the Most Serene Republic's former territories. The union with the newly formedCisalpine Republic was decided, but the French did not follow the population's choice. The last meeting between French and Austrians took place on 16 October in thevilla of the ex-DogeLudovico Manin, inCodroipo. On 17 October, the Treaty of Campoformio was signed. Thus, in accordance to the secret clauses of Leoben, the territories of the Republic of Venice, formally still extant as the "Provisional Municipality", were consigned to Austria, while the Provisional Municipality and all the other Jacobin administrations established by the French ceased to exist.
On 28 October, in Venice, the people were summoned by parish to express its acceptance of the French decisions, or to resist them: of 23,568 votes, 10,843 were for submitting. While the heads of the Provisional Municipality were trying to resist, sending envoys to Paris, the activities of the Austrian agents and the deposed patriciate had already opened the way for Austrian occupation. The Provisional Municipality's envoys were arrested in Milan and sent home.
On 21 November, during the traditionalFesta della Salute, the representatives of the Municipality were publicly upbraided by the people, and abandoned power, while the French occupiers gave themselves over to unbridled plunder. Of the 184 ships in the Arsenal, those already equipped were sent toToulon, and the rest were scuttled, thus putting an end to theVenetian navy. In order to deprive Austria of any benefits, the fleet's magazines were plundered, the two thousand Arsenal workers were dismissed, and the entire complex was burned down.
Churches, convents, and numerouspalazzi were emptied of valuables and artworks. The state mint (zecca) and the treasury ofSt Mark's Basilica were confiscated, while the Doge's ceremonial galley, theBucintoro, was denuded of all its sculptures, which were burned in the island ofSan Giorgio Maggiore to recover their gold leaf. Even the bronzeHorses of Saint Mark were carried off to Paris, while private citizens were imprisoned and forced to hand over their wealth in exchange for their freedom.
On 28 December, the French military and a committee of police took power, until the entry of Austrian troops into the city on 18 January 1798.
The Austrian administration did not last for long. On December 26th, 1805, theTreaty of Pressburg ceded the Habsburgs'Venetian Province to France: on 26 May of the same year, Napoleon, having been proclaimedEmperor of the French the previous year, was crownedKing of Italy with theIron Crown of Lombardy at Milan.
Venice thus returned to French control. Napoleon suppressed thereligious orders and began large-scale public works in a city that was to become one of the capitals of his empire. In thePiazza San Marco, a new wing was constructed in what was to be a royal residence for Napoleon: theAla Napoleonica, orProcuratie Nuovissime; a new avenue was opened in the city, theVia Eugenia (renamedVia Garibaldi in 1866), named after Napoleon's stepson and viceroyEugène de Beauharnais.
In 1807, the post ofPrimicerius of St Mark's was suppressed, and the basilica became the cathedral of thePatriarchate of Venice. In 1808, Dalmatia too was annexed to theNapoleonic Kingdom of Italy, and aProvveditore generale di Dalmazia was established until 1809, when, following theTreaty of Schönbrunn, Dalmatia passed under direct French administration as theIllyrian Provinces.
The second period of French rule ended with the fall of Napoleon in theWar of the Sixth Coalition. On 20 April 1814, Venice returned to Austrian rule, and with the collapse of the Kingdom of Italy, the entire Veneto followed. The region was incorporated in theKingdom of Lombardy–Venetia in 1815.
Venice was alone among the major states destroyed by the French Revolution to not be restored after Napoleon's defeat.[2]
The shock of the Fall of the Republic, and particularly its handing over to the autocratic Austrian Empire, is portrayed in the novelThe Last Letters of Jacopo Ortis (1798) byUgo Foscolo, a Venetian noble from the Ionian Islands.[3]
In 19th-century national-minded historiography, the matter was largely avoided by both French and Italians as an embarrassing episode. For the former, the betrayal of the democratic municipalities at Campo Formio was explained away by emphasizing the long decline of the Republic, and the corresponding inevitability of its demise; for the latter, the "collaboration" of the Venetian elites in the fall of the Republic was evidence of a lack of patriotism.[4]
On 12 May 1997, on the 200th anniversary of the Fall of the Venetian Republic, the separatistLega Nord party staged an occupation ofSt Mark's Campanile.[4]
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