Carlo Zeno
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Carlo Zeno (or Zen) (1333 – 8 March 1418) was an Italian admiral from Venice, who is considered a hero of the War of Chioggia against the Republic of Genoa.
Early life
Destined for an
Career
While at Patras, the city was attacked by Turkish forces. Zeno distinguished himself in battle, but later made himself a hunted man after he killed a Christian knight with whom he had had an argument.
He traveled to
Carlo Zeno had long since been ordered to return to Venice, but the slowness and difficulty of communication and movement under 14th century conditions delayed his reappearance. He returned to Venice with this fleet on 1 January 1380, just in time to save the city in the pivotal Battle of Chioggia. The battle took place in June 1380 in the lagoon off Chioggia, resulting in a victory for Venice. The Genoese surrender allowed the Venetians to regain control of the Adriatic.
In 1400, he was considered as a candidate for the office of
Later life
Charged with treason, he was called before the council of 10 which stripped him of all his offices and sentenced him to a year in prison. His career compromised, Zeno then traveled throughout the Mediterranean as a mercenary-for-hire and married again (he was thrice widowed). He returned to Venice aging and infirm and died in 1418 at the age of 85. He was given a public funeral, which was attended in large numbers by the genuinely grateful Venetian people.
In literature
Carlo Zeno is the protagonist of
References
- Crowley, Roger (2011). City of Fortune - How Venice Won and lost a Naval Empire (Hardback). London: Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-24594-9.