Tag: Venetian republic
-
Paolo Sarpi: Venetian hero, Roman heretic
Sally MetzlerChicago, Illinois, United States Though an obscure figure today, for many years Fra Paolo Sarpi (1552–1623) loomed large in the ecclesiastical, scientific, and political arenas of Europe. Macaulay praised him as his “favorite modern historian,”1 Boswell called him a genius, and Samuel Johnson considered translating him to the English-speaking world. A venerable polymath, he…
-
Science and medicine in Venice
Historical background The history of the Venetian republic begins with the plunder of Rome in 410 AD by the Visigoths and the destruction of Aquileia in 452 AD by the Huns precipitating a flight to safety to the largely uninhabited islands of the Venetian lagoon. The refugees formed a republic that lasted more than one…