Ionian Islands under Venetian rule
Encyclopedia
The Ionian Islands
were a maritime and overseas possession of the Republic of Venice
from the mid-14th until the 18th century. The conquest of the islands took place gradually. The first to be captured was Cythera and the neighboring islet of Anticythera, in 1363. Twenty-three years later, Corfu
voluntary became part of Venice's colonies. Following a century, Venice captured Zante in 1485, Cephalonia in 1500 and Ithaca
in 1503. The conquest was completed in 1718 with the capture of Lefkada
. Each of the islands remained part of the Venetian Stato da Màr
until Napoleon Bonaparte dissolved the Republic of Venice in 1797. The Ionian Islands are situated in the Ionian Sea, off the west coast of Greece
. Cythera, the southernmost, is just off the southern tip of the Peloponnese
and Corfu, the northernmost, is located at the entrance of the Adriatic Sea
. In modern Greek, the period of Venetian rule over Greek territory is known as Venetokratia or Enetokratia ( or Ενετοκρατία) and literally means "rule of the Venetians". It is believed that the Venetian period on the Ionian Islands was agreeable, especially compared with the coinciding Turkish rule over other parts of present-day Greece.
The governor of the Ionian Islands during the Venetian period was the Provveditore generale da Mar, who resided on Corfu
. Additionally, each island's authorities were divided into the Venetian and the domestic authorities. The economy of the islands was based on exporting local goods, primarly raisins, olive oil
and wine
, whereas Venetian lira
, the currency of Venice, was also the currency of the islands. Some features of the culture of Venice were incorporated in the culture of the Ionian Islands. Italian language, for instance, which was introduced on the islands as the official language and was adopted by the upper class, is still popular today throughout the islands.
After the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, of which Venice was a part, Justinian I
reconquered Venice and incorporated it into the Eastern Roman Empire's Exarchate of Ravenna
. The political centre of the exarchate, and the most senior military officials of the Empire, were situated in Ravenna
. The subordinate military officials who were their representatives in the Venetian lagoons
were called tribunes, and only in about AD 697 were the lagoons made a separate military command under a dux (doge
). Notwithstanding the election of the first Doge
, vassalic evidence such us honours and orders received by the doge from the Emperor implies that Venice was considered part of the Byzantine Empire even after the capture of Ravenna by the Lombards
. Despite the Pax Nicephori
(803), which recognised Venice as Byzantine territory, the influence of the Eastern Roman Emperor slowly faded away. By 814 Venice functioned as a fully independent republic. Even so, Venice became a partner of the Empire and trading privileges were granted to it by the Emperors via treaties, such as the Byzantine–Venetian Treaty of 1082
.
The Fourth Crusade
(1202–1204) was initially intended to invade Muslim-controlled areas; instead, the Crusaders attacked the capital of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople
, resulting in the temporary dissolution of the empire and the sack of its capital. As Venice was one of the participants in the Crusade its relations with the Byzantine Empire were strained during this period. Moreover, by styling himself "Lord of one-quarter and one-eighth of the whole Empire of Romania" after the Crusade, the Doge of Venice at that time, Enrico Dandolo
contributed to the deterioration of the relations between the two states. Efforts to improve relations, for example through the Nicaean–Venetian Treaty of 1219
, proved unsuccessful. A period of friendly relations only followed the Sicilian Vespers
in 1282, when Venice, foreseeing the fall of Charles, the French King of Sicily, began forming closer relations with Byzantium. Venice had been bound by an alliance with Charles against Byzantium in 1281.
Cephalonia in 24 December 1500, the administration of the defense of all the islands was delegated to an official seated in Corfu. This official was being referred to as "the General Provveditore
of the Three Islands" (Provveditore Generale delle Tre Isole). The Three Islands refer to Corfu, Zante and Cephalonia. The Venetian equivalent for "Ionian Islands" is Ixołe Jonie, the Italian being Isole Ionie and the Greek Ιόνια Νησιά in Modern Greek
and in Katharevousa
.
Below are the seven principal islands from north to south, including their Greek and Italian names in parentheses:
Cythera and Lefkada were additionally called Çuha Adası or Çuka Adası and Ayamavra respectively by the Ottomans.
of Achaea
and Epirus vetus. These would form, with the exception of Cythera, the Byzantine
theme of Cephallenia
in the late 8th century. From the late 11th century, the Ionian Islands became a battleground in the Byzantine–Norman Wars. The island of Corfu was held by the Normans in 1081–1085 and 1147–1149, while the Venetians unsuccessfully besieged it in 1122–1123. The island of Cephalonia was also unsuccessfully besieged in 1085, but was plundered in 1099 by the Pisa
ns and in 1126 by the Venetians. Finally, Corfu and the rest of the theme, except for Lefkada, were captured by the Normans
under William II of Sicily
in 1185. Although Corfu was recovered by the Byzantines by 1191, the other islands henceforth remained lost to Byzantium, and formed a County palatine of Cephalonia and Zakynthos
under William's Greek
admiral Margaritus of Brindisi
.
, Corfu came under Venetian rule. In 1207 though, doge Pietro Ziani
ceded the island as a feudum to ten Venetian nobles, provided that they demonstrate loyalty and devotion and that they pay taxes. Corfu passed in the hands of the Despotate of Epirus
around 1214, and was captured in 1257 by Manfred of Sicily
, who put his admiral
Philippe Chinard
there in charge of his eastern possessions. Nonetheless, with the defeat of Manfred at Benevento
and the signature of the Treaty of Viterbo
on 27 May 1267, Corfu became a possession of the Angevin
Kingdom of Naples
. Meanwhile the rest of the islands continued to form part of the County palatine, which throughout its existence was governed by three families: the Orsini family
, the House of Anjou
and the Tocco family
. The rule of the family of Tocco lasted for 122 years, up until 1479, when Ottomans captured Cephalonia, Zante, Lefkada and Ithaca.
, known as the Holy League
, against the Ottoman Empire. Another major unsuccessful Ottoman attack was that of July 1716.
After the partition of the Byzantine Empire in 1204, Cythera fell into Venetian hands; Venice sent there Marco Venier
in 1207. Cythera and Anticythera constituted part of the Stato da Mar
for the first time in 1363 followed by an interruption of a three-year Turkish rule, between 1715 and 1718. With the Treaty of Passarowitz
Cythera and Anticythera passed to the Venetian Republic and remained under its control until its fall, in 1797.
The Turkish rule in the three islands of Cephalonia, Zante and Ithaca was short-lived. In 1481, two years after the beginning of the Turkish rule, Antonio Tocco invaded and briefly occupied Cephalonia and Zante but he was soon driven out by the Venetians. Zante was officially recovered by the Venetians in 1485. Then, Cephalonia, after sixteen years of Turkish occupation (1484–1500), became part of the Stato da Mar on 24 December 1500, with the Siege of Saint George
. Finally, Ithaca, following the fate of Cephalonia, was conquered by Venice in 1503.
Lefkada, part of the Despotate of Epirus
since the latter's foundation in 1205, was incorporated by Leonardo I Tocco
into the County of Cephalonia in 1362. The Despotate of Epirus was one of the three Byzantine Empires in exile created after the Fourth Crusade in 1204. Following the fate of the other central Ionian Islands, it was captured by the Turks in 1479 and then by the Venetians in 1502. However, Venetian rule did not last, as Lefkada was given back to the Ottoman Empire one year later. Turkish rule over Lefkada lasted for over 200 years, from 1479 to 1684, when Francesco Morosini
attacked and subdued the island during the Morean War
. Lefkada, however, did not become officially Venetian until 1718, with the signature of the Treaty of Passarowitz.
, on the 17th October 1797, marked the dissolution of the Republic of Venice and the sharing of its territories between France and Austria. The lands of the Terraferma up to the River Adige
, the city itself and the possessions of the Balkan peninsula of Istria
and Dalmatia
were yielded to Austria. The Ionian Islands, part of Venetian maritime territories, were ceded to France. Napoleon organized the islands into three departments
: Corcyre
, Ithaque
, and Mer-Égée
. The first included the islands of Corfu and Paxos, as well as the former Venetian settlements of Butrint
and Parga
situated in Epirus
. The second department was formed by the islands of Cephalonia, Ithaca and Lefkada whereas Zante and Cerigo were part of the third department. The French rule, however, did not last as Russia
allied with the Ottoman Empire in September 1798 and in 1799 a Russo-Ottoman naval expedition captured the islands. With the signing of a treaty between Russia
and the Porte on 21 March 1800, an independent island republic under the protection of both the empires was established. The name of the new state was agreed to be the "Septinsular Republic
" and included all the territories of the three former French departments except for the continental possessions of Parga, Preveza
, Vonitsa
and Butrint. With the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807, the seven islands were given back to France by Russia. In October 1809, Great Britain took possession of all the islands with the exception of Corfu, which was only surrendered in 1814. In 1815, the Ionian Islands became a British protectorate under the name United States of the Ionian Islands
.
Authorities in the islands were divided into two types: the Venetian ones, occupied by Venetians and represented the sovereign state and its political and military power over the Islands, and the domestic authorities, which were appointed by the Communal Council (Consiglio della Comunità). The Venetians were appointed by the Great Council of Venice
. There were three officials constituting the reggimento ("regime") of each island. The head of the reggimento had the title of Provveditore
in all the islands except for Corfu, where he was called Bailo
. The title could only be held by a nobleman. The subordinate Venetian officials were the consiglieri
, two on each island, who performed administrative and judicial functions along with the Provveditore of each island. The Provveditore 's responsibilities also included security from hostile raids, taxation, religious and other issues.
In Corfu the Venetian officials included a Bailo, a Provveditore and a Capitano, two Consiglieri, a Capitano della cittadella and a Castellano della fortezza. In Cephalonia and Zante there were only one Provveditore and two Consiglieri. When Lefkada was incorporated a Provveditore ordinario and a Provveditore straordinario became the respresentatives of Venice on the island, although, in 1595, another provveditore was appointed to the Fortress of Asso. In Cythera the reggimento included both a Provveditore and a castellano. The domestic authorities comprised both a Consiglio Maggiore and a Consiglio Minore composed of members of the local aristocracy.
There were ten fortresses throughout the islands, with one on each island serving as its capital. On Corfu, however, there were three fortresses; two in the town of Corfu and the Angelokastro
. On Cephalonia there were two, the castle of St. George or the Fortress of Cefalonia and the Fortress of Asso in the northern part.
. On the islands of Cephallonia and Zante the main exports were raisins, olive oil and wine
. One of the most significant exports was olive oil. Groves of olive trees were planted throughout the islands during the Venetian period as olive oil was important to Venice's economy. Although the production of it was successful, the Republic only allowed exportation to Venice. Statistics for the years 1766-1770 indicate 1,905,917 olive trees on Corfu, 113,161 on Zante, 38,516 on Cephalonia, 44,146 on Lefkada and 31,884 on Cythera.
Nevertheless, raisin exports were the most important export of the islands during the Venetian rule. By the early 18th century Zante, Cephalonia, and part of Ithaca had become a major centre of the currant trade. Because of the fierce competition in the raisin trade between Venice and the United Kingdom, Venice prohibited the free export of raisins from the islands. Another measure was the nuova imposta, a heavy export tax for foreign ships.
The currency of the islands during Venetian rule was the Venetian lira
, as in Venice. There was a special issue for the Islands; the observe side of it has the complete or shertened inscription CORFU/CEFALONIA/ZANTE in three lines. The reserve depicts the winged and haloed lion of Saint Marc in a front view, holding the book of the Gospel in his fore-paws. The Ionian Islands formed part of the Venetian maritime trade route to the Orient.
Italians from Terraferma and Orthodox
Greeks
from the Stato da Mar were transferred to the islands as part of the colonisation. Τhe population eventually increased: in 1765-1766 it had reached 111,439; in 1780, the population was 150,908. Forteen years later, there were 155,770 inhabitants throughout the islands.
These are some figures concerning the population of each island during the Venetian period:
, the official language of the Government. Greek
remained spoken by the peasantry whereas Venetian was adopted by the upper class and it was generally preferred within the towns. Thus, the Venetian language became, if not the dominant language of the Ionians, at least the most common one. The Venetians did little in the area of education, mainly due to the fact that schooling was not a responsibility of the state at that time in Europe but a private matter. Some authors believe that this was done intentionally by Venice, as part of its colonial policy. People belonging to the upper classes were more likely to be educated and to have studied in an Italian university, usually that of Padua.
between Catholic and Orthodox Christians were allowed. These two were the main factors in the decline of Roman Catholicism in the Islands.
Jews
were also a native religious group to the Islands during the Venetian period. They were even fewer in number than the Catholics; in 1797 the number of Jews in Corfu appears to have been only two thousand. Jewish presence in Corfu can be traced since the times of the Principality of Taranto
. In Cephalonia, there is evidence of Jewish habitation in the old capital, the Castle of St. George, since the early 17th century. When the capital of the island was transferred to Argostoli
the Jews resettled there.
(citadini) and the common people
(populari).
was established; its flag design was based on the flag of the Republic of Venice. In addition, Italian was the co-official language of both the Septinsular Republic and the United States of the Ionian Islands
. Because of its status, Italian was also taught at schools along with Greek and English (Ionian Islands were a protectorate
of the United Kingdom
from 1815 until 1864). In the First Year of the secondary education, for instance, Greek was taught four times a week, Italian three times and English twice. In the Greek Census of 1907, 4,675 people from the Ionian Islands stated Italian as their mother tongue. The Italian language remains popular on the islands. The Hellenic Union of Eptanisians, a civil non-profit company working for the promotion of the Heptanesian Culture, objected to the decision of the Ministry to abolish the teaching of Italian in schools, saying that "especially for the Ionian Islands the selection of the Italian language has become a tradition for their schools, but also a necessary language because of the many tourists from Italy and other relations e.g. cultural, commercial, etc., of the islands with the country" and they propose "respect for the choice of the children and recognition of their right to learn the language they want and especially the Italian as it's the language with the greatest preference on the Ionian Islands".
Ionian Islands
The Ionian Islands are a group of islands in Greece. They are traditionally called the Heptanese, i.e...
were a maritime and overseas possession of the Republic of Venice
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
from the mid-14th until the 18th century. The conquest of the islands took place gradually. The first to be captured was Cythera and the neighboring islet of Anticythera, in 1363. Twenty-three years later, Corfu
Corfu
Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality. The...
voluntary became part of Venice's colonies. Following a century, Venice captured Zante in 1485, Cephalonia in 1500 and Ithaca
Ithaca
Ithaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and...
in 1503. The conquest was completed in 1718 with the capture of Lefkada
Lefkada
Lefkada, or Leucas or Leucadia , is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of Greece, connected to the mainland by a long causeway and floating bridge. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Lefkada . It is situated on the northern part of the island,...
. Each of the islands remained part of the Venetian Stato da Màr
Stato da Màr
The Stato da Màr or Domini da Màr was the name given to the Republic of Venice's maritime and overseas possessions, including Istria, Dalmatia, Negroponte, the Morea , the Aegean islands of the Duchy of the Archipelago, and the islands of Crete and Cyprus...
until Napoleon Bonaparte dissolved the Republic of Venice in 1797. The Ionian Islands are situated in the Ionian Sea, off the west coast of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. Cythera, the southernmost, is just off the southern tip of the Peloponnese
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
and Corfu, the northernmost, is located at the entrance of the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
. In modern Greek, the period of Venetian rule over Greek territory is known as Venetokratia or Enetokratia ( or Ενετοκρατία) and literally means "rule of the Venetians". It is believed that the Venetian period on the Ionian Islands was agreeable, especially compared with the coinciding Turkish rule over other parts of present-day Greece.
The governor of the Ionian Islands during the Venetian period was the Provveditore generale da Mar, who resided on Corfu
Corfu (city)
Corfu is a city and a former municipality on the island of Corfu, Ionian Islands, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it is part of the municipality Corfu, of which it is a municipal unit. It is the capital of the island and of the Corfu regional unit. The city also serves as a capital...
. Additionally, each island's authorities were divided into the Venetian and the domestic authorities. The economy of the islands was based on exporting local goods, primarly raisins, olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
and wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, whereas Venetian lira
Venetian lira
The lira was the distinct currency of the Venice until 1807. It was subdivided into 20 soldi, each of 12 denari. The ducato was equal to 124 soldi, whilst the tallero was equal to 7 lire...
, the currency of Venice, was also the currency of the islands. Some features of the culture of Venice were incorporated in the culture of the Ionian Islands. Italian language, for instance, which was introduced on the islands as the official language and was adopted by the upper class, is still popular today throughout the islands.
Relations between Venice and Byzantium
Justinian I
Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...
reconquered Venice and incorporated it into the Eastern Roman Empire's Exarchate of Ravenna
Exarchate of Ravenna
The Exarchate of Ravenna or of Italy was a centre of Byzantine power in Italy, from the end of the 6th century to 751, when the last exarch was put to death by the Lombards.-Introduction:...
. The political centre of the exarchate, and the most senior military officials of the Empire, were situated in Ravenna
Ravenna
Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...
. The subordinate military officials who were their representatives in the Venetian lagoons
Venetian Lagoon
The Venetian Lagoon is the enclosed bay of the Adriatic Sea in which the city of Venice is situated. Its name in the Venetian language, Laguna Veneta— cognate of Latin lacus, "lake"— has provided the international name for an enclosed, shallow embayment of saltwater, a lagoon.The Venetian Lagoon...
were called tribunes, and only in about AD 697 were the lagoons made a separate military command under a dux (doge
Doge
Doge is a dialectal Italian word that descends from the Latin dux , meaning "leader", especially in a military context. The wife of a Doge is styled a Dogaressa....
). Notwithstanding the election of the first Doge
Doge of Venice
The Doge of Venice , often mistranslated Duke was the chief magistrate and leader of the Most Serene Republic of Venice for over a thousand years. Doges of Venice were elected for life by the city-state's aristocracy. Commonly the person selected as Doge was the shrewdest elder in the city...
, vassalic evidence such us honours and orders received by the doge from the Emperor implies that Venice was considered part of the Byzantine Empire even after the capture of Ravenna by the Lombards
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
. Despite the Pax Nicephori
Pax Nicephori
Pax Nicephori is a term used to refer to both a 803 peace treaty allegedly concluded between the Frankish ruler Charlemagne and Nikephoros I, emperor of Byzantium, and the outcome of negotiations that took place between the same parties, but were concluded by different emperors, between 811 and 814...
(803), which recognised Venice as Byzantine territory, the influence of the Eastern Roman Emperor slowly faded away. By 814 Venice functioned as a fully independent republic. Even so, Venice became a partner of the Empire and trading privileges were granted to it by the Emperors via treaties, such as the Byzantine–Venetian Treaty of 1082
Byzantine–Venetian Treaty of 1082
The Byzantine–Venetian Treaty of 1082 was a trade and defense pact signed between the Byzantine Empire and the Republic of Venice, in the form of an imperial chrysobull issued by Emperor Alexios I Komnenos...
.
The Fourth Crusade
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...
(1202–1204) was initially intended to invade Muslim-controlled areas; instead, the Crusaders attacked the capital of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, resulting in the temporary dissolution of the empire and the sack of its capital. As Venice was one of the participants in the Crusade its relations with the Byzantine Empire were strained during this period. Moreover, by styling himself "Lord of one-quarter and one-eighth of the whole Empire of Romania" after the Crusade, the Doge of Venice at that time, Enrico Dandolo
Enrico Dandolo
Enrico Dandolo — anglicised as Henry Dandolo and Latinized as Henricus Dandulus — was the 41st Doge of Venice from 1195 until his death...
contributed to the deterioration of the relations between the two states. Efforts to improve relations, for example through the Nicaean–Venetian Treaty of 1219
Nicaean–Venetian Treaty of 1219
The Nicaean–Venetian Treaty of 1219 was a trade and non-aggression defense pact signed between the Nicaean Empire and the Republic of Venice, in the form of an imperial chrysobull issued by Emperor Theodore I Lascaris...
, proved unsuccessful. A period of friendly relations only followed the Sicilian Vespers
Sicilian Vespers
The Sicilian Vespers is the name given to the successful rebellion on the island of Sicily that broke out on the Easter of 1282 against the rule of the French/Angevin king Charles I, who had ruled the Kingdom of Sicily since 1266. Within six weeks three thousand French men and women were slain by...
in 1282, when Venice, foreseeing the fall of Charles, the French King of Sicily, began forming closer relations with Byzantium. Venice had been bound by an alliance with Charles against Byzantium in 1281.
Appellation
The Islands were referred to, both individually and collectively, by various names. After Venice had recapturedReconquest of Cephalonia
The Reconquest of Cephalonia or less common, the Siege of Saint George occurred on 8 November 1500 until 24 December 1500, when following a series of Venetian disasters in hands of the Turks, the Spanish-Venetian army under Captain Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, succeeded in capturing the Turkish...
Cephalonia in 24 December 1500, the administration of the defense of all the islands was delegated to an official seated in Corfu. This official was being referred to as "the General Provveditore
Provveditore
The Italian title provveditore or proveditore , "he who sees to things", was the style of various local district governors in the extensive, mainly maritime empire of the Venetian dogal republic...
of the Three Islands" (Provveditore Generale delle Tre Isole). The Three Islands refer to Corfu, Zante and Cephalonia. The Venetian equivalent for "Ionian Islands" is Ixołe Jonie, the Italian being Isole Ionie and the Greek Ιόνια Νησιά in Modern Greek
Modern Greek
Modern Greek refers to the varieties of the Greek language spoken in the modern era. The beginning of the "modern" period of the language is often symbolically assigned to the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, even though that date marks no clear linguistic boundary and many characteristic...
and in Katharevousa
Katharevousa
Katharevousa , is a form of the Greek language conceived in the early 19th century as a compromise between Ancient Greek and the Modern Greek of the time, with a vocabulary largely based on ancient forms, but a much-simplified grammar. Originally, it was widely used both for literary and official...
.
Below are the seven principal islands from north to south, including their Greek and Italian names in parentheses:
- CorfuCorfuCorfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality. The...
(Kerkyra; Corfù) - PaxosPaxosPaxos may refer to:* Paxos algorithm, an algorithm for fault tolerant distributed systems* Paxoi, a Greek island...
(Paxi; Passo) - LefkadaLefkadaLefkada, or Leucas or Leucadia , is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of Greece, connected to the mainland by a long causeway and floating bridge. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Lefkada . It is situated on the northern part of the island,...
(Leucas; Santa Maura) - Cephalonia (Kefal(l)onia or Kefal(l)inia; Cefalonia)
- IthacaIthacaIthaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and...
(Ithaki or Thiaki; Val di Compare or Piccola Cefalonia) - Zante (Zakynthos; Zante or Zacinto)
- CytheraKythiraCythera is an island in Greece, once part of the Ionian Islands. It lies opposite the south-eastern tip of the Peloponnese peninsula. It is administratively part of the Islands regional unit, which is part of the Attica region , Greece.For many centuries, while naval travel was the only means...
(Kythira; Cerigo)
Cythera and Lefkada were additionally called Çuha Adası or Çuka Adası and Ayamavra respectively by the Ottomans.
Roman and Byzantine period
During the Roman Empire, the Ionian Islands were variously part of the provincesRoman province
In Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and, until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of Italy...
of Achaea
Achaea (Roman province)
Achaea, or Achaia, was a province of the Roman Empire, consisting of the Peloponnese, eastern Central Greece and parts of Thessaly. It bordered on the north by the provinces of Epirus vetus and Macedonia...
and Epirus vetus. These would form, with the exception of Cythera, the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
theme of Cephallenia
Cephallenia (theme)
The Theme of Cephallenia or Cephalonia was a Byzantine theme located in western Greece, comprising the Ionian Islands, and extant from the 8th century until partially conquered by the Kingdom of Sicily in 1185.-History:...
in the late 8th century. From the late 11th century, the Ionian Islands became a battleground in the Byzantine–Norman Wars. The island of Corfu was held by the Normans in 1081–1085 and 1147–1149, while the Venetians unsuccessfully besieged it in 1122–1123. The island of Cephalonia was also unsuccessfully besieged in 1085, but was plundered in 1099 by the Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
ns and in 1126 by the Venetians. Finally, Corfu and the rest of the theme, except for Lefkada, were captured by the Normans
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
under William II of Sicily
William II of Sicily
William II , called the Good, was king of Sicily from 1166 to 1189. William's character is very indistinct. Lacking in military enterprise, secluded and pleasure-loving, he seldom emerged from his palace life at Palermo. Yet his reign is marked by an ambitious foreign policy and a vigorous diplomacy...
in 1185. Although Corfu was recovered by the Byzantines by 1191, the other islands henceforth remained lost to Byzantium, and formed a County palatine of Cephalonia and Zakynthos
County palatine of Cephalonia and Zakynthos
The County palatine of Cephalonia and Zakynthos existed from 1185 until 1479, as part of the Kingdom of Sicily.The title and the right to rule the Ionian islands of Cephalonia and Zakynthos was originally given to Margaritus of Brindisi for his services to William II, king of Sicily, in...
under William's Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
admiral Margaritus of Brindisi
Margaritus of Brindisi
Margaritus of Brindisi , called the new Neptune, was the last great ammiratus ammiratorum of Sicily...
.
The Frankokratia
Following the Fourth Crusade and the signature of the Partitio terrarum imperii RomaniaePartitio terrarum imperii Romaniae
The Partitio terrarum imperii Romaniae was a treaty signed after the sack of the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, by the Fourth Crusade in 1204...
, Corfu came under Venetian rule. In 1207 though, doge Pietro Ziani
Pietro Ziani
Pietro Ziani was the forty-second Doge of Venice from 15 August 1205 to 1229, succeededing Enrico Dandolo. He was the son of Doge Sebastian Ziani of the very rich noble family....
ceded the island as a feudum to ten Venetian nobles, provided that they demonstrate loyalty and devotion and that they pay taxes. Corfu passed in the hands of the Despotate of Epirus
Despotate of Epirus
The Despotate or Principality of Epirus was one of the Byzantine Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire that emerged in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. It claimed to be the legitimate successor of the Byzantine Empire, along with the Empire of Nicaea, and the Empire of Trebizond...
around 1214, and was captured in 1257 by Manfred of Sicily
Manfred of Sicily
Manfred was the King of Sicily from 1258 to 1266. He was a natural son of the emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen but his mother, Bianca Lancia , is reported by Matthew of Paris to have been married to the emperor while on her deathbed.-Background:Manfred was born in Venosa...
, who put his admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
Philippe Chinard
Philippe Chinard
Philippe Chinard was a French noblemen, admiral and governor of Manfred of Sicily. After Manfred had captured some territories in Albania, Philip was appointed as Manfred's general governor of those dominions...
there in charge of his eastern possessions. Nonetheless, with the defeat of Manfred at Benevento
Battle of Benevento
The Battle of Benevento was fought near Benevento, in present-day Southern Italy, on February 26, 1266, between the troops of Charles of Anjou and Manfred of Sicily. Manfred's defeat and death resulted in the capture of the Kingdom of Sicily by Charles....
and the signature of the Treaty of Viterbo
Treaty of Viterbo
The Treaty of Viterbo was a pair of agreements made by Charles I of Sicily with Baldwin II of Constantinople and William II Villehardouin, Prince of Achaea, on 27 May 1267, which transferred much of the rights to the Latin Empire from Baldwin to Charles.-Background:The recapture of Constantinople...
on 27 May 1267, Corfu became a possession of the Angevin
Capetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
. Meanwhile the rest of the islands continued to form part of the County palatine, which throughout its existence was governed by three families: the Orsini family
Orsini family
Orsini: the origin of learning.We love Mrs. Orsini forever! ~8F Social Studies 2011The Orsini family is an Italian noble family; it was one of the most influential princely families in medieval Italy and renaissance Rome...
, the House of Anjou
Capetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
and the Tocco family
Tocco family
The family of Tocco was a noble house from Benevento of Longobard origins, which in the late 14th and 15th centuries came to prominence in western Greece as rulers of the Ionian Islands and the Despotate of Epirus.-History:...
. The rule of the family of Tocco lasted for 122 years, up until 1479, when Ottomans captured Cephalonia, Zante, Lefkada and Ithaca.
The Venetian conquest
On 13 February 1386 Corfu became once more a Venetian possession and this time Venetian rule would last until the end of the Republic. This was accomplished voluntary by the people of Corfu. On 10 May, the Corfiotes appointed five ambassadors to submit to the Venetian senate. The Ottomans made several attempts to capture Corfu, the first of which was in 1537. This attack led Venice to an alliance with the Pope and Emperor Charles V.Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
, known as the Holy League
Holy League (1538)
The Holy League of 1538 was a short-lived alliance of Christian states arranged by Pope Paul III at the urging of the Republic of Venice.In 1537 the Ottoman corsair and admiral Barbarossa Hayreddin, Pasha of Algiers, had nearly captured the Venetian stronghold of Corfu and ravaged the coasts of...
, against the Ottoman Empire. Another major unsuccessful Ottoman attack was that of July 1716.
After the partition of the Byzantine Empire in 1204, Cythera fell into Venetian hands; Venice sent there Marco Venier
Marco Venieri
The Marchese Marco Venieri was given command of the Greek island of Kythera in 1204, during the Fourth Crusade. He claimed a family descent from Aphrodite under her other name, Venus....
in 1207. Cythera and Anticythera constituted part of the Stato da Mar
Stato da Màr
The Stato da Màr or Domini da Màr was the name given to the Republic of Venice's maritime and overseas possessions, including Istria, Dalmatia, Negroponte, the Morea , the Aegean islands of the Duchy of the Archipelago, and the islands of Crete and Cyprus...
for the first time in 1363 followed by an interruption of a three-year Turkish rule, between 1715 and 1718. With the Treaty of Passarowitz
Treaty of Passarowitz
The Treaty of Passarowitz or Treaty of Požarevac was the peace treaty signed in Požarevac , a town in Ottoman Empire , on 21 July 1718 between the Ottoman Empire on one side and the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria and the Republic of Venice on the other.During the years 1714-1718, the Ottomans had...
Cythera and Anticythera passed to the Venetian Republic and remained under its control until its fall, in 1797.
The Turkish rule in the three islands of Cephalonia, Zante and Ithaca was short-lived. In 1481, two years after the beginning of the Turkish rule, Antonio Tocco invaded and briefly occupied Cephalonia and Zante but he was soon driven out by the Venetians. Zante was officially recovered by the Venetians in 1485. Then, Cephalonia, after sixteen years of Turkish occupation (1484–1500), became part of the Stato da Mar on 24 December 1500, with the Siege of Saint George
Reconquest of Cephalonia
The Reconquest of Cephalonia or less common, the Siege of Saint George occurred on 8 November 1500 until 24 December 1500, when following a series of Venetian disasters in hands of the Turks, the Spanish-Venetian army under Captain Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, succeeded in capturing the Turkish...
. Finally, Ithaca, following the fate of Cephalonia, was conquered by Venice in 1503.
Lefkada, part of the Despotate of Epirus
Despotate of Epirus
The Despotate or Principality of Epirus was one of the Byzantine Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire that emerged in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. It claimed to be the legitimate successor of the Byzantine Empire, along with the Empire of Nicaea, and the Empire of Trebizond...
since the latter's foundation in 1205, was incorporated by Leonardo I Tocco
Leonardo I Tocco
Leonardo I Tocco was the Count palatine of the islands of Cephalonia and Zakynthos from 1357 until his death, and later lord of Ithaca, Lefkada, and the port of Vonitsa as well....
into the County of Cephalonia in 1362. The Despotate of Epirus was one of the three Byzantine Empires in exile created after the Fourth Crusade in 1204. Following the fate of the other central Ionian Islands, it was captured by the Turks in 1479 and then by the Venetians in 1502. However, Venetian rule did not last, as Lefkada was given back to the Ottoman Empire one year later. Turkish rule over Lefkada lasted for over 200 years, from 1479 to 1684, when Francesco Morosini
Francesco Morosini
Francesco Morosini was the Doge of Venice from 1688 to 1694, at the height of the Great Turkish War...
attacked and subdued the island during the Morean War
Morean War
The Morean War is the better known name for the Sixth Ottoman–Venetian War. The war was fought between 1684–1699, as part of the wider conflict known as the "Great Turkish War", between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire...
. Lefkada, however, did not become officially Venetian until 1718, with the signature of the Treaty of Passarowitz.
Dissolution of the Republic and aftermath
Napoleon Bonaparte declared war against Venice on the 3rd of May. The signing of the Treaty of Campo FormioTreaty of Campo Formio
The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed on 18 October 1797 by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of revolutionary France and the Austrian monarchy...
, on the 17th October 1797, marked the dissolution of the Republic of Venice and the sharing of its territories between France and Austria. The lands of the Terraferma up to the River Adige
Adige
The Adige is a river with its source in the Alpine province of South Tyrol near the Italian border with Austria and Switzerland. At in length, it is the second longest river in Italy, after the River Po with ....
, the city itself and the possessions of the Balkan peninsula of Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
and Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
were yielded to Austria. The Ionian Islands, part of Venetian maritime territories, were ceded to France. Napoleon organized the islands into three departments
French departments of Greece
The French departments of Greece designate the three former departments created under the First French Republic in 1797 with the annexation of the Ionian Islands after the signing of the Treaty of Campo Formio by Napoleon Bonaparte.The departments were:* Corcyre ;* Ithaque The French departments...
: Corcyre
Corcyre
Corcyre was one of three short-lived French départements in present Greece. It came into existence after Napoleon's conquest in 1797 of the Republic of Venice, when Venetian possessions such as the Ionian islands fell to the French Directory. It consisted of the island of Kerkyra , and its...
, Ithaque
Ithaque
Ithaque was one of three short-lived French départements in present Greece. It came into existence after Napoleon's conquest in 1797 of the Republic of Venice, when Venetian possessions such as the Ionian islands fell to the French Directory...
, and Mer-Égée
Mer-Égée
Mer-Égée was a one of three short-lived French départements in present Greece. It came into existence after Napoleon's conquest in 1797 of the Republic of Venice, when Venetian Greek possessions such as the Ionian islands fell to the French Directory.It included the islands of Zante , Kythira and...
. The first included the islands of Corfu and Paxos, as well as the former Venetian settlements of Butrint
Butrint
Butrint was an ancient Greek and later Roman city in Epirus. In modern times it is an archeological site in Sarandë District, Albania, some 14 kilometres south of Sarandë and close to the Greek border. It was known in antiquity as Βουθρωτόν Bouthroton or Βουθρώτιος Bouthrotios in Ancient Greek...
and Parga
Parga
Parga, , is a town and municipality located in the northwestern part of the regional unit of Preveza in Epirus, northwestern Greece. The seat of the municipality is the village Kanallaki. Parga lies on the Ionian coast between the cities of Preveza and Igoumenitsa...
situated in Epirus
Epirus
The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
. The second department was formed by the islands of Cephalonia, Ithaca and Lefkada whereas Zante and Cerigo were part of the third department. The French rule, however, did not last as Russia
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
allied with the Ottoman Empire in September 1798 and in 1799 a Russo-Ottoman naval expedition captured the islands. With the signing of a treaty between Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and the Porte on 21 March 1800, an independent island republic under the protection of both the empires was established. The name of the new state was agreed to be the "Septinsular Republic
Septinsular Republic
The Septinsular Republic was an island republic that existed from 1800 to 1807 under nominal Ottoman sovereignty in the Ionian Islands. It was the first time Greeks had been granted even limited self-government since the fall of the last remnants of the Byzantine Empire to the Ottomans in the...
" and included all the territories of the three former French departments except for the continental possessions of Parga, Preveza
Preveza
Preveza is a town in the region of Epirus, northwestern Greece, located at the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf. It is the capital of the regional unit of Preveza, which is part of the region of Epirus. An immersed tunnel, completed in 2002 which runs between Preveza and Actium, connects the town...
, Vonitsa
Vonitsa
Vonitsa is a town in the northwestern part of Aetolia-Acarnania in Greece, seat of the municipality of Aktio-Vonitsa. Population 4,081 . The town is situated in the bay overlooking the Ambracian Gulf and has a small forested peninsula, the peninsula and its narrow strait is in the northwest of...
and Butrint. With the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807, the seven islands were given back to France by Russia. In October 1809, Great Britain took possession of all the islands with the exception of Corfu, which was only surrendered in 1814. In 1815, the Ionian Islands became a British protectorate under the name United States of the Ionian Islands
United States of the Ionian Islands
The United States of the Ionian Islands was a state and amical protectorate of the United Kingdom between 1815 and 1864. It was the successor state of the Septinsular Republic...
.
Administration
The civil and military governor of the Ionian Islands was the Provveditore generale da Mar, who lived on Corfu and had the supreme command of the armed Venetian fleet. In the early days he was elected only in case of need and on several occasions in peacetime, the Provveditore generale da Mar was appointed as Provveditore generale delle tre Isole, "Provveditore generale of the three Islands".Authorities in the islands were divided into two types: the Venetian ones, occupied by Venetians and represented the sovereign state and its political and military power over the Islands, and the domestic authorities, which were appointed by the Communal Council (Consiglio della Comunità). The Venetians were appointed by the Great Council of Venice
Great Council of Venice
The Great Council of Venice , originally the Consilium Sapientis was a political organ of the Republic of Venice between 1172 and 1797 and met in a special large hall of the Palazzo Ducale....
. There were three officials constituting the reggimento ("regime") of each island. The head of the reggimento had the title of Provveditore
Provveditore
The Italian title provveditore or proveditore , "he who sees to things", was the style of various local district governors in the extensive, mainly maritime empire of the Venetian dogal republic...
in all the islands except for Corfu, where he was called Bailo
Bailo
Bailo is a municipality located in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 256 inhabitants.-Villages:*Bailo*Larués*Arrés*Alastuey*Arbués*Paternoy*Especiello*Gabás*Huértalo...
. The title could only be held by a nobleman. The subordinate Venetian officials were the consiglieri
Consigliere
Consigliere is a position within the leadership structure of Sicilian and American Mafia crime families. The word was popularized by Mario Puzo's novel The Godfather , and its film adaptation...
, two on each island, who performed administrative and judicial functions along with the Provveditore of each island. The Provveditore 's responsibilities also included security from hostile raids, taxation, religious and other issues.
In Corfu the Venetian officials included a Bailo, a Provveditore and a Capitano, two Consiglieri, a Capitano della cittadella and a Castellano della fortezza. In Cephalonia and Zante there were only one Provveditore and two Consiglieri. When Lefkada was incorporated a Provveditore ordinario and a Provveditore straordinario became the respresentatives of Venice on the island, although, in 1595, another provveditore was appointed to the Fortress of Asso. In Cythera the reggimento included both a Provveditore and a castellano. The domestic authorities comprised both a Consiglio Maggiore and a Consiglio Minore composed of members of the local aristocracy.
There were ten fortresses throughout the islands, with one on each island serving as its capital. On Corfu, however, there were three fortresses; two in the town of Corfu and the Angelokastro
Angelokastro (Corfu)
Angelokastro is one of the most important Byzantine castles of Greece. It is located on the island of Corfu at the top of the highest peak of the island's shoreline in the northwest coast near Palaiokastritsa and built on particularly precipitous and rocky terrain...
. On Cephalonia there were two, the castle of St. George or the Fortress of Cefalonia and the Fortress of Asso in the northern part.
Economy
The Ionian economy during the Venetian period was largely based on exporting local products. The most important of the agricultural products of Corfu was olive oilOlive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
. On the islands of Cephallonia and Zante the main exports were raisins, olive oil and wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
. One of the most significant exports was olive oil. Groves of olive trees were planted throughout the islands during the Venetian period as olive oil was important to Venice's economy. Although the production of it was successful, the Republic only allowed exportation to Venice. Statistics for the years 1766-1770 indicate 1,905,917 olive trees on Corfu, 113,161 on Zante, 38,516 on Cephalonia, 44,146 on Lefkada and 31,884 on Cythera.
Nevertheless, raisin exports were the most important export of the islands during the Venetian rule. By the early 18th century Zante, Cephalonia, and part of Ithaca had become a major centre of the currant trade. Because of the fierce competition in the raisin trade between Venice and the United Kingdom, Venice prohibited the free export of raisins from the islands. Another measure was the nuova imposta, a heavy export tax for foreign ships.
The currency of the islands during Venetian rule was the Venetian lira
Venetian lira
The lira was the distinct currency of the Venice until 1807. It was subdivided into 20 soldi, each of 12 denari. The ducato was equal to 124 soldi, whilst the tallero was equal to 7 lire...
, as in Venice. There was a special issue for the Islands; the observe side of it has the complete or shertened inscription CORFU/CEFALONIA/ZANTE in three lines. The reserve depicts the winged and haloed lion of Saint Marc in a front view, holding the book of the Gospel in his fore-paws. The Ionian Islands formed part of the Venetian maritime trade route to the Orient.
Demographics
When the central Ionian Islands were captured by Venice their population was very low and Ithaca was completely uninhabited. To address this problem, a small colonisation to the islands took place. CatholicCatholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
Italians from Terraferma and Orthodox
Orthodoxy
The word orthodox, from Greek orthos + doxa , is generally used to mean the adherence to accepted norms, more specifically to creeds, especially in religion...
Greeks
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
from the Stato da Mar were transferred to the islands as part of the colonisation. Τhe population eventually increased: in 1765-1766 it had reached 111,439; in 1780, the population was 150,908. Forteen years later, there were 155,770 inhabitants throughout the islands.
These are some figures concerning the population of each island during the Venetian period:
| Island | 1470 | 1500 | 1528 | 1532 | 1568 | 1583 | 1675 | 1684 | 1760 | 1766 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corfu | 14,246 | 19,221 | 20,000 | 44,333 | ||||||
| Paxos | 4,150 | |||||||||
| Lefkada | 9,000 | 12,000 | 11,760 | |||||||
| Ithaca | 300 | 2,500 | ||||||||
| Cephalonia | 14,000 | 25,543 | 21,659 | |||||||
| Zante | 17,255 | 14,054 | 25,000 | 25,325 | ||||||
| Cythera | 500 | 6,000 | 6,183 |
Language and education
During the Venetian period all public acts were drawn up in the Venetian languageVenetian language
Venetian or Venetan is a Romance language spoken as a native language by over two million people, mostly in the Veneto region of Italy, where of five million inhabitants almost all can understand it. It is sometimes spoken and often well understood outside Veneto, in Trentino, Friuli, Venezia...
, the official language of the Government. Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
remained spoken by the peasantry whereas Venetian was adopted by the upper class and it was generally preferred within the towns. Thus, the Venetian language became, if not the dominant language of the Ionians, at least the most common one. The Venetians did little in the area of education, mainly due to the fact that schooling was not a responsibility of the state at that time in Europe but a private matter. Some authors believe that this was done intentionally by Venice, as part of its colonial policy. People belonging to the upper classes were more likely to be educated and to have studied in an Italian university, usually that of Padua.
Religion
Venetians, being Catholics, retained the privileges enjoyed by the Latin bishopric of the islands under the Count Palatine Dynasties. The Catholics were not numerous, and during the Venetian period, they were mainly concentrated in Corfu and Cephalonia. Most of them were descendants of Italian settlers but there were some conversions by Greeks to Catholicism. According to the law, Greek Orthodox priests and monks had to accept the Catholics as their superiors, though the Venetians placed the interests of the Republic ahead of those of the Papacy. Mixed marriagesExogamy
Exogamy is a social arrangement where marriage is allowed only outside of a social group. The social groups define the scope and extent of exogamy, and the rules and enforcement mechanisms that ensure its continuity. In social studies, exogamy is viewed as a combination of two related aspects:...
between Catholic and Orthodox Christians were allowed. These two were the main factors in the decline of Roman Catholicism in the Islands.
Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
were also a native religious group to the Islands during the Venetian period. They were even fewer in number than the Catholics; in 1797 the number of Jews in Corfu appears to have been only two thousand. Jewish presence in Corfu can be traced since the times of the Principality of Taranto
Principality of Taranto
The Principality of Taranto was a state in southern Italy created in 1088 for Bohemond I, eldest son of Robert Guiscard, as part of the peace between him and his younger brother Roger Borsa after a dispute over the succession to the Duchy of Apulia....
. In Cephalonia, there is evidence of Jewish habitation in the old capital, the Castle of St. George, since the early 17th century. When the capital of the island was transferred to Argostoli
Argostoli
Argostoli is a town and a former municipality on the island of Kefalonia, Ionian Islands, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Kefalonia, of which it is a municipal unit...
the Jews resettled there.
Social structure
The social structure of the islands followed that of Venice. The whole population was divided into three classes: the nobles (nobili), the bourgeoisieBourgeoisie
In sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
(citadini) and the common people
Common People
"Common People" is a song by English alternative rock band Pulp. It was released as a single in 1995, reaching number two on the UK singles chart. It also appears on the band's 1995 album Different Class. The song is about those who were perceived by the songwriter as wanting to be "like common...
(populari).
Legacy
Throughout Venice's old possessions, but above all in the Ionian islands, the memory of the Republic is deeply rooted in the population, who recall it with a shade of nostalgia even after so much time and so many events. Because of the long Venetian period, the manners and traditions of the inhabitants of the Ionian Islands are a mixture of Greek and Italian. The Venetian influence is illustrated in all aspects of culture and everyday life. In 1800 the Septinsular RepublicSeptinsular Republic
The Septinsular Republic was an island republic that existed from 1800 to 1807 under nominal Ottoman sovereignty in the Ionian Islands. It was the first time Greeks had been granted even limited self-government since the fall of the last remnants of the Byzantine Empire to the Ottomans in the...
was established; its flag design was based on the flag of the Republic of Venice. In addition, Italian was the co-official language of both the Septinsular Republic and the United States of the Ionian Islands
United States of the Ionian Islands
The United States of the Ionian Islands was a state and amical protectorate of the United Kingdom between 1815 and 1864. It was the successor state of the Septinsular Republic...
. Because of its status, Italian was also taught at schools along with Greek and English (Ionian Islands were a protectorate
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
from 1815 until 1864). In the First Year of the secondary education, for instance, Greek was taught four times a week, Italian three times and English twice. In the Greek Census of 1907, 4,675 people from the Ionian Islands stated Italian as their mother tongue. The Italian language remains popular on the islands. The Hellenic Union of Eptanisians, a civil non-profit company working for the promotion of the Heptanesian Culture, objected to the decision of the Ministry to abolish the teaching of Italian in schools, saying that "especially for the Ionian Islands the selection of the Italian language has become a tradition for their schools, but also a necessary language because of the many tourists from Italy and other relations e.g. cultural, commercial, etc., of the islands with the country" and they propose "respect for the choice of the children and recognition of their right to learn the language they want and especially the Italian as it's the language with the greatest preference on the Ionian Islands".
See also
- Corfiot ItaliansCorfiot ItaliansCorfiot Italians are a population from the Greek island of Corfu with ethnic and linguistic ties to the Republic of Venice. Their name was specifically established by Niccolò Tommaseo during the Italian Risorgimento...
- History of the Republic of VeniceHistory of the Republic of VeniceThe history of the Republic of Venice traditionally begins with its foundation at noon on Friday March 25, 421 by authorities from Padua who hoped to establish a trading-post in the region. This event was marked by the founding of the Venitian church of St. James...
- Timeline of the Republic of Venice
- Coinage of the Republic of VeniceCoinage of the Republic of VeniceThe Coinage of the Republic of Venice include the coins produced by the Republic of Venice from the late 12th century to 1866. After this date, the mint of Venice.-History:...
- Ionian School (disambiguation)
- Ottoman wars in EuropeOttoman wars in EuropeThe wars of the Ottoman Empire in Europe are also sometimes referred to as the Ottoman Wars or as Turkish Wars, particularly in older, European texts.- Rise :...