Francesco Morosini
Doge of Venice and commander in the Great Turkish War.
Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons
Francesco Morosini (26 February 1619 – 16 January 1694) served as Doge of Venice from 1688 until his death, during the peak of the Great Turkish War. He came from the noble Morosini family, which produced many doges and generals.
His early career took off when he became Captain-General of Venetian forces on Crete during the Ottoman siege of Candia. After being forced to surrender the city, he faced accusations of cowardice and treason upon returning to Venice, but a brief trial cleared him. In 1685, as the Morean War began, Morosini took command of a fleet against the Ottomans. Over the following years, with help from Otto Wilhelm Königsmarck, he captured the Morea, along with Lefkada and parts of western Greece. He briefly took Athens but could not hold it, and his siege of the former Venetian fortress of Negroponte failed. His reputation grew so much that he received the victory title Peloponnesiacus, and the Senate placed a bronze bust of him in the Great Hall while he was still alive—the first such honor for a Venetian citizen. The bust bore the inscription "Francisco Morosini Peloponnesiaco, adhuc viventi, Senatus."
During the Morean War, the Ottoman Army used the Parthenon as a gunpowder magazine. On September 26, 1687, a Venetian mortar scored a direct hit during the bombardment of Athens, igniting the stored powder and causing the worst destruction in the Parthenon’s history. An attaché of General Königsmarck wrote that the general was dismayed to destroy the ancient temple. Morosini, however, described the hit in his report to the Venetian government as a "fortunate shot." After conquering the Acropolis in early 1688, he tried to loot the horses and chariots of Athena and Poseidon from the western pediment, but the sculptures fell and smashed—the first documented attempt to remove sculptures from the pediments. The Ottomans regained the monument the next year. Morosini also took the Piraeus Lion as a war trophy to the Venetian Arsenal.
In the summer of 1688, after being proclaimed Doge, Morosini attacked Negropont again but failed to capture it. Plague broke out among his troops, forcing him back to Venice. He launched a final campaign in 1693, but once more could not take Negropont, and returned after sacking a few minor coastal towns. After his death in 1694, a large marble arch was placed in his honor at the Doge’s Palace. His beloved cat, Nin
- born
- 26 February 1619
- died
- 16 January 1694
- field
- Military commander, Doge of Venice
- nationality
- Venetian
- known_for
- Capture of the Morea, destruction of the Parthenon, first Venetian citizen to have a bronze bust placed during his lifetime
Lore & Background
In summer 1688, Morosini was proclaimed Doge of Venice. He attacked Negropont but failed to capture it and returned to Venice when plague broke out among his troops. He embarked on a final campaign in 1693, again unsuccessful at Negropont, and returned after sacking minor coastal towns. After his death in 1694, a large marble arch was placed in his honor at the Doge's Palace. His cat Nini was embalmed with a mouse between her paws; both are exhibits at the Museo Correr in Venice.
Reader's Guide
Francesco Morosini's significance lies in his dual role as a military commander and Doge during a critical period of Venetian-Ottoman conflict. His campaigns in the Morean War expanded Venetian territory in Greece, earning him the rare honor of a bronze bust placed in the Great Hall during his lifetime. However, his legacy is deeply tied to the destruction of the Parthenon in 1687, when a Venetian mortar ignited Ottoman gunpowder stored inside, causing catastrophic damage. His description of the event as a 'fortunate shot' contrasts with contemporary dismay. His subsequent attempt to loot sculptures from the Parthenon's pediment, which ended in their destruction, marks an early episode in the removal of antiquities from the site. Morosini's military achievements were tempered by failures at Negropont, and his final campaigns were cut short by plague. His commemoration includes a naval school and two warships named after him, as well as the preserved remains of his cat Nini, reflecting both his public and personal life.
Did You Know?
- Morosini was the first Venetian citizen to have a bronze bust placed in the Great Hall during his own lifetime.
- He described the mortar hit that destroyed the Parthenon as a 'fortunate shot' in his report to the Venetian government.
- His cat Nini was embalmed with a mouse between her paws and is exhibited at the Museo Correr in Venice.
- He looted the Piraeus Lion as a war trophy for the Venetian Arsenal.
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