5. Poor Replacements
Venice
September 10, 1379: Humidity 70%
Presiding over the first Collegio (cabinet) meeting since the Battle Of Venice, the new Doge Michele Morosini observed that the Patricians were in a state of chaos the likes of which he could not recall in his 71 years in Venice. The battle had cut vast swaths into the ranks of the Patricians as well as the civil servants of the city and many offices lay vacant. Normally, the offices would be replaced with all due process and yet the pressing demands of an ongoing war and the recovery efforts after the battle had demanded everything the reduced Venetian government had. Even if they had the time to appoint new replacements they would still have needed to train them and its currently unknown whose dead, wounded, missing, or still working. Under such exceptional circumstances Morosini invoked the ancient executive powers of the ducal office to appoint new ministers. Normally, the doge was a figurehead position but Venice was anything but normal at this time. [1]
If it had been the Collegi of times past they would have been done by the afternoon and yet, here they are burning the midnight oil still "debating". Unlike the old Collegio, composed of men of eloquence, the new Collegio had the stain of l'arte Marcànte (merchants) and even one rumored to have engaged in filthy menial labour. The previous Collegio ministers were all wealthy and honourable men of office and wealth, in contrast a third of the new ministers had sullied themselves with bargaining and penny-pinching. Of the remaining two thirds another third was raised from the more eloquent stock of Patricians but their venerated houses carried with them ancient feuds dating back to time immemorial and it had not helped. [2]
Still Morosini reminded himself, there was a war going on and while it was not procedure it was necessary to fill the positions.
Assembled to discuss the war's end, there remained many issues to contest on all theatres of Venetian interest. The first issue was that of peace proposals to Genoa over the war, the contested island of Tenedos. This was the cause of the war—a key fortress guarding trade with the Black Sea, and trade interests in Crete and Cyprus. Two ministers and their families were unwilling to compromise on Crete and Cyprus dependent them for their wealth. Another three were unwilling to come to any decision on Tenedos and opposing the other's ideas out of spite. Half of the new Patricians opposed any perceived admission of loss, and most of the old patricians dismissed or mocked the comments of the new members they considered beneath them. [3]
Despite all the rancor, progress was made at a snail's pace who would eventually finish the race. At a painful crawl, the policy for peace was finalized but every step required some concession, threat, or promise of a future favor. Unwilling to give the Genoese the contested island of Tenedos, it was decided instead to ask the Papacy to resettle the island and raze the fortress. It was decided to wait until the Genoese army at Chioggia starved out to begin negotiations. [4]
Moving onto the mainland and Dalmatia, which was occupied by Francesco I da Carrara Of Padua and Sigismund of Hungary, respectively, it was decided to concede losses in in a way to reduce the impact. Dalmatia was to be conceded to Sigismund along with an annuity (bribe) but Treviso was too important to Venice for its trade routes, food supplies, and security in the fact that it was half a day’s ride from Venice. Instead, it was decided to offer the city to Padua’s stronger rival Albert of Austria. [4]
Leaving the meeting, Morosini felt a pang of hunger and realized that he had not eaten since noon. Asking his aide to fetch some squid jerky, Morosini was set upon by a group of insistent Patricians angered that Morosini had not gone through the due process of nominating and electing new Collegio ministers (and that they were not selected). Tired, unwilling to explain and hungry, Morosini flew into a rage, shoving a Patrician into the dirty canal before storming off. [5]
Normally chosen from a pool nominated by the previous holders of office, the Collegio was one of the most vital and conservative organs of government. In his haste to conduct the ongoing war Morosini broke the nomination procedure that restricted anyone but the elites from gaining meaningful power. This was the popular narrative, but it should be taken with a grain of salt, as the recently discovered secret ledgers of Morosini showed that most of them were connected to the Morosini family's numerous real-estate transactions. Despite his greed, Morosini had irreparably damaged the insular aristocratic circles of Venice.[6]
Suffrage By Aristocratic Means. 1880, Negro Press. Verona.
[1]So due to the fact that I'm not a Venetian speaker (and sometimes I wonder about English as well), that Venetian references are quite rare, and that a good deal of the historiography on Venice is done in Italian by Italians I'll be switching a lot between Venetian and Italian. I prefer it to be in Venetian to be more authentic but Italian will come in at parts.
[2]By the late 14th century few Patricians were involved in industry or commerce and those professions became disdained in Patrician circles as the taint of inferiors. In an self-serving twist it was believed that large scale wholesale trade which was restricted to the Patricians was virtuous and small scale trade and bargaining was dirty and unscrupulous. (While normal citizens did engage in long-distance trade in the 13th century by the 15th their names had all but disappeared from the great galley registries). This was a gradual process that accelerated IOTL with the influence of landed aristocrats from the conquered mainland, the relative decline of maritime trade, all which allowed the elitist notions to became an accepted fact by the 17th century. Still outside the inner circle of Patricians there were plenty of poorer Patricians willing to marry, sell votes, and work for money.
[3]Similar to OTL the Venetian Patricians were divided among many lines, between old and new, rich and poor, influential and not, and finally ancient feuds. Still this was considered relatively cordial during the times, especially compared to their mainland aristocrats that exiled or killed their opponents.
[4]Same as OTL, just more pain getting to the consensus.
[5]Don't mess with a hangry man.
[6]IOTL Michele Morosini was seen both a greedy man enriching himself on land speculation during the war as well as a patriot. Time would've revealed which trait was stronger in Morosini but he died IOTL shortly after taking office due to illness, ITTL he's in office two years earlier than OTL.