City of Fortune: How Venice Won and Lost a Naval Empire (70 page)

9 Possessions of the Stato da Mar. Rovigno (Rovinj, Croatia), a miniature replica of the mother city, held for 500 years.

10 Possessions of the Stato da Mar. the fortress of Modon (Methoni, southern Greece), the priceless ‘Eye’ of the Republic.

11 The sea fortress at Candia (Heraklion) on Crete, guarding its harbour

12 The lion of St Mark, the badge of empire, on the sea walls of Famagusta, Cyprus

13 The exotic orient: the reception of the Venetian ambassador by the Mamluk governor at Damascus

14 The battle of Zonchio: the ships of Loredan and d’Armer grapple with the huge Ottoman vessel (centre), just as flames start to engulf them all.

About the Author

Roger Crowley read English at Cambridge. He has had a varied career as a teacher and publisher and is the author of three books on the history of the Mediterranean. He lives in Gloucestershire and now writes full-time. His website address is www.rogercrowley.co.uk.

By the Same Author

CONSTANTINOPLE: THE LAST GREAT SIEGE

EMPIRES OF THE SEA

Copyright

First published in 2011
by Faber and Faber Ltd
Bloomsbury House
74–77 Great Russell Street
London WC1B 3DA

This ebook edition first published in 2011

All rights reserved
© Roger Crowley, 2011

The right of Roger Crowley to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with Section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly

ISBN 978–0–571–27923–4

Table of Contents

Title Page

Dedication

Epigraph

List of Illustrations

Maps

Place Names in this Book

PROLOGUE : Departure

PART I Opportunity: Merchant Crusaders

1 Lords of Dalmatia

2 T he Blind Doge

3 T hirty-four Thousand Marks

4 ‘A Dog Returning to its Vomit’

5 At the Walls

6 Four Emperors

7 ‘The Works of Hell’

PART II Ascent: Princes of the Sea

8 A Quarter and Half a Quarter

9 Demand and Supply

10 ‘In the Jaws of our Enemies’

11 The Flag of St Titus

12 Bridling St Mark

13 Fight to the Finish

14 Stato da Mar

15 ‘Like Water in a Fountain’

16 City of Neptune

PART III Eclipse: The Rising Moon

17 The Glass Ball

18 The Shield of Christendom

19 ‘If Negroponte Is Lost’

20 Pyramid of Fire

21 Hands on the Throat of Venice

Epilogue: Return

Sources and Bibliography

Acknowledgements

Index

Plates

About the Author

By the Same Author

Copyright