Francesco Erizzo

Francesco Erizzo (

Mediterranean

.

Background, 1566–1631

Francesco Erizzo was born into the Erizzo family, a patrician family from Istria. Although he was not particularly rich (in no small part because he had to cover for the debts of his brother), he nevertheless had a successful career in the service of Venice. He acted as Venetian ambassador to both Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor and Pope Urban VIII. He also served as provveditore of various Venetian possessions. Erizzo never married.

Doge, 1631–1646

Erizzo was elected Doge of Venice on 10 April 1631 in the midst of the

Italian plague of 1629–1631, which killed one third of the population of Venice, including Erizzo's predecessor Nicolò Contarini. He was elected by a vote of 40–1, although historian Claudio Rendina has pronounced this election fraudulent. (The only dissenting vote was cast for Renier Zen, the opponent of Giovanni I Cornaro

known for his incorruptibility.)

In light of the

sestiere Dorsoduro

for a service in gratitude for deliverance from the plague. This tradition is still observed in Venice to this day.

The 1630s were a time of relative tranquility for the Republic of Venice. The Procuratie were expanded (with gambling becoming a popular pastime there), and the Teatro San Cassiano, Europe's first public opera house opened in 1637, with the Teatro San Moisè following in 1640.

The tranquility of the era was interrupted briefly by the

Duchy of Parma

. Venice intervened on Parma's side, and in 1644 a peace treaty was signed that saw Castro remain with Parma.

In September 1644, the

Ottoman Sultan Ibrahim I blamed Venice for the attack and determined to conquer Crete from Venice. The war originally went poorly for Venice, which led Erizzo to ask the Senate of Venice to appoint him captain-general, which they did, over the objection of future doge Giovanni Pesaro

.

Death and legacy

Erizzo began assembling a fleet to sail against the Turks, but, at age 78, his health failed him, and he died only one month after his military appointment, on 3 January 1646.

The Sala Erizzo in the Ducal Apartment at the Doge's Palace in Venice is named after Doge Francesco Erizzo, and his coat of arms appears on the fastigium.^[1]

References

Most of this article was based on this article on Italian Wikipedia.

Citations

^ Knezevich, Michela (1994). The Doge's palace in Venice. Milan: Electa – via Internet Archive.

Political offices
Preceded by Nicolò Contarini	Doge of Venice 1631–1646	Succeeded by Francesco Molin

[1] Knezevich, Michela (1994). The Doge's palace in Venice. Milan: Electa – via Internet Archive.

[1]

Authority control databases
International	VIAF
National	Germany
People	Italian People Deutsche Biographie
Other	SNAC IdRef