Doge of Venice | |
---|---|
Style | His Serenity |
Residence | Palazzo Ducale |
Appointer | Serenissima Signoria |
Formation | 697 |
First holder | Paolo L. Anafesto |
Final holder | Ludovico Manin |
Abolished | 12 May 1797 |
The following is a list of all 120 of the Doges of Venice ordered by the dates of their reigns.
For more than 1,000 years, the chief magistrate and leader of the city of Venice and later of the Most Serene Republic of Venice was styled the Doge, a rare but not unique Italian title derived from the Latin Dux. Doges of Venice were elected for life by the city-state's aristocracy. The Venetian combination of elaborate monarchic pomp and a republican (though "aristocratic") constitution with intricate checks and balances makes "La serenissima" (Venice) a textbook example of a crowned republic.
Despite the great power given to them, the Venetian Doges were restricted by law (unlike the Doges of the Republic of Genoa) to spend the rest of their lives inside the Doge's Palace complex and St Mark's Basilica, occasionally leaving for diplomatic reasons.