Wednesday 12 July 2017

Genoa's seafaring past (Italy, Turkey)

Genoa was in the Middle Ages the capital of the Republic of Genoa, a powerful maritime republic and colonial power. In 1451 Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa. The Republic of Genoa was an independent state until it was replaced by the Ligurian Republic in 1797, when it became a client state of the Napoleonic France. 

Via Garibaldi (Strade Nuove) and the Palazzo Doria-Tursi

Palazzo Doria Tursi - Palazzo Reale -
 Palazzo Pantaleo Spinola - Palazzo Rosso

In the middle of 13th century the Republic of Genoa was actively trading all over the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. It was one of the most important trading nations in the Middle Ages and made its fortunes by maritime trade. The Treaty of Nymphaeum, signed with the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus in 1261, helped the Genoese to virtually monopolize the trade in the Black Sea. 

The communities of Genoese merchants were located at key points of trade and communication in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. One of their trading posts was the Galata Tower in Istanbul, their main hub in Anatolia. The Trading Posts and Fortifications on Genoese Trade Routes from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea are currently on Turkey's Tentative List, as they are considered to be exceptional structures which reflect trading and international relationships of the medieval era.


20.05.2016

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