Palazzo del Doge, Genova

Luigi Speranza

Situated in the very heart of the city stands the palace of Genoa's Doges. . an enormous building whose exterior affords but the vaguest hint of its size,1 and whose modern appearance strives to deny that for five hundred years it has been the seat of government; that it was captured a score of times by Genoese from Genoese, amid scenes of wanton riot and destruction; that it was set on fire by French guns; and that in the strenuous days of 1528 it served as a lazar-house.

Yet it must be admitted that the Palazzo Ducale is the most disappointing building in Genoa. The immense vaulted hall on the ground floor has nothing to boast of beyond its great size; the marble staircases are in no way remarkable, unless it be for the endless number of the steps . . the Sala del Gran Consiglio and that of the Minor Consiglio were robbed of their pictures by the fire of 1777, and twenty years later lost their statues in the revolution . . the chapel is irv state of progressive decay.

1 Some idea of its extent will be gathered from the following facts. It houses the Post and Telegraph Offices; the Criminal and Police Courts (in the Doge's apartments), the Law Courts and Police Station. In it there are besides five or six Government Departments, a regiment of infantry, and a complete corps of Guardie di Finanza. Exclusive of the military, judges and officials, there are 1soomen employed in different parts of the buildings. The basement contains stabling for two hundred horses.

It may be that under the dreary expanse of whitewashed walls there still lurk the remains of frescoes, for there is one to be seen over the staircase, and two years ago a second was discovered when the walls were being cleaned for re-colouring.

In 1291 the Capitani del Popolo, Corrado D' Oria and Oberto Spinola purchased the land lying between San Lorenzo and San Matteo for the sum of 2500 lire, and built the Palazzo Pubblico as an official residence, the architect being Marino Boccanegra. It was evidently a small building, for after the form of government had been changed to that of a Dogate Antoniotto Adorno added a salone in order to bring it up to the new requirements, in 1388. Thus enlarged the Palazzo stood undisturbed until 1432, when —Genoa being under the seignory of Milan—Opizzino D'Alzate, the Ducal Governor, enlarged the Piazza, and added many rooms to the building. Previous to this date the Palazzo had not afforded accommodation for the men at arms, and as we read that they had formerly been billetted in different parts of the town, it is probable that the additions took the form of barracks.

In 1476, after the murder of the hated Duke Galeazzo Visconti, the Genoese rose to throw off the Milanese yoke; and the Governor and his bodyguard fled precipitately to take refuge in the Castelletto, rushing up the steep and narrow alleys which led to the fortress while the populace hurled boulders at them from the windows, and turned their flight into a mad stampede. The streets were littered with the lances, shields, and accoutrements which had been dropped; and when it was known that the palace was deserted the people marched up to sack it "as was the

custom in those days." They took not only what the guards had dropped, but also all that was portable within, including even the doors and windows. The subsequent repairs involved an outlay of 3000 lire.

Before many years had passed the increasing magnificence of the Dogate afforded an excuse for complete rebuilding, and in 1591, exactly three hundred years after its foundation, the old Palazzo was pulled down and the present one commenced under the direction of Andrea Vannone, an architect born at Lancio on the Lake of Como. Of this erection, however, little remains except the general arrangement, for the facade and internal decorations are the work of later days.

Not only have the best Genoese artists of the time contributed towards decorating the walls, but many foreigners were invited to undertake portions of the work. On the staircase to the left is the painting, already mentioned, by Domenico Fiasella, still in tolerable preservation, representing the dead Christ in the arms of the Eternal. Round it are the four patron saints of Genoa, and underneath is the city itself. The coat of arms at the top of the flight of steps to the right has only recently been discovered, and was then so generously restored that the little St. George above it is all that can claim to be original.

The first disaster to overtake Vannone's Palazzo was brought about in 1684 by the French bombardment under Seignelai; and the subsequent repairs were not completed, apparently, till the end of the century, when it was decided to paint the ceiling of the Sala Grande. This announcement gave rise to much speculation among the foremost painters as to who would obtain the commission; and both G. B. Gaulli and Domenico Parodi submitted designs which, however, were rejected, the former chiefly because he asked too high a price. The latter, by way of consolation, was employed in the Sala del Minor Consiglio, where he painted statues in imitation of marble. The great work was ultimately given to Marcantonio Franceschini, of Bologna, who decorated the whole ceiling between 1702 and 1704.


The commission for which Gaulli and Parodi had sighed in vain was destined to bring little fame even to Franceschini, for a fire broke out in 1777 and destroyed the whole roof.1 Gaggiero, who was an eyewitness of the conflagration, has left an interesting account of it. He says that at daybreak smoke was seen to be rising above the roof, but that the passersby " supposing that the Signori had made a great fire to warm themselves at, gave little heed to it"; but when as the day wore on, the smoke increasing in volume finally changed to flames " they began to grow suspicious (!) and concluded that the place was a-fire." Both the news and the fire spread quickly; the soldiery were called out to protect the public safety, the "buonavoglia "2 porters, masons, and carpenters were hastily summoned to come and put it out, while every architect in the city was sent for to give his opinion. The fact that the powder magazines were

1 Those who wish to form an opinion of Franceschini's methods may still do so in Genoa, at the church of S. Filippo Neri, where the artist painted the Glory of S. Filippo in the vault, and eight panels on the walls with incidents from the life of the saint. The latter are executed in tempera.

a The " buonavoglia" were men who for a wage took the place of the galley slaves at the rowing benches. The galley slaves proper were called

forzate." Sometimes, too, a person who had been mulcted in a fine v ild elect to work off the sum by becoming a "buonavoglia" for a p iod varying with the amount of the fine.

known to be underneath the burning portion seems to have prevented the gathering of a crowd.

However, the fire was overcome before the magazines were reached. Simone Cantone, a Swiss architect, was called in to repair the damage, and the present facade is part of his work, as are also the decorations in the Sala del Gran Consiglio and in that of the Minor Consiglio.

In the former the picture over the doorway is by Giovanni David, representing the Battle of Meloria, and replacing the one by Franceschini of the same subject. That over the place where the Doge's throne formerly stood is by Emanuele Tagliafico, and depicts Lionardo Montaldo, Doge in 1384, releasing Giacomo Lusignano from prison on his accession to the throne of Cyprus.1 The present picture in the ceiling is by I sola, a crude and glaring Commerce of Liguria. Domenico Tiepolo of Venice had already painted a picture in this panel after the fire, but it is not clear why it was obliterated, and it could have scarcely been worse than the present one. He also painted the two panels which are now blank, and his works remained as late as the year 1848 when Alizeri mentions them as still existing. In the niches along the walls once stood four statues by Domenico Parodi, which escaped the fire only to be hurled from the windows and smashed to atoms on the pavement below by the rioters who, in 1797, sacked the Palazzo and at the same time wreaked a vandal vengeance on the two magnificent statues of Andrea D* Oria, and his

1 It will be remembered that when Genoa conquered Cypres in 1372, Giacomo and his sons had been sent to Genoa as hostages. When Pierino died Giacomo succeeded, and was immediately released by the Republic.

kinsman Gianandrea which stood on the pedestals at the foot of the steps in the Piazza. The remnants of these two statues are now under the quiet arches of the cloister of San Matteo.

The Sala del Minor Consiglio opens out of the Sala Grande, and tells the same story of relays of artists steadily decreasing in merit. Two pictures by Solimbene, the Landing of Columbus in America and the Arrival of the Ashes of the Baptist in Genoa, were destroyed by fire, and the present ones —of the same subjects—are the work of C. G. Ratti, better known as the historian who did for Genoa what Vasari did for Florence and other cities in recording the lives of their artists. There is a curious anachronism in the second picture, for the relics which were brought here in 1097 are shown as being carried in the casket which was not made until the fifteenth century.

Franceschini's paintings in the ceiling have gone, and those by Ratti, had they been allowed to remain would have afforded an opportunity of forming some idea of Parodi's rejected designs for the Sala Grande; for Ratti copied them so faithfully as to bring down on his head the accusation of plagiarism. At the present time the ceiling has two small panels in chiaroscuro which may be the work of Ratti; while the central panel contains a picture of the Glory of Columbus. It has been said of this that the only portion worth notice is the banner.1 There is no

1 It may be noticed that Genoese painters always represent Columbus as flying the banner of St. George, forgetting that the Senate refused to finance his expedition, and that his discoveries were made in the name of Ferdinand and Isabella. More startling still is the Resurrection in the lunette of the north-east chapel of San Matteo, painted by Giuseppe Palmieri, in which Christ is seen bursting from the tomb with the Genoese Sag in his hand.

reliable information available concerning the framed paintings on the walls.

Quite near to the two sale lie the apartments of the Doge, in which, in order to enjoy the highest office in the state, he voluntarily submitted to two years confinement under the strictest supervision. They consist of a suite of eight rooms built round a private quadrangle, and are rather less rich, and smaller, than those in many another palace in Genoa. The largest of these rooms contains four pictures; one of Force, by G. A. Ansaldo; Prudence, by Dom. Fiasella; and Justice and Temperance, by G. A. de' Ferrari. The Prudence, a figure of a young girl, has been barbarously spoilt by the addition of a second face—that of an old man—to symbolise the two-faced Janus.1

If the other portions of the Palazzo are disappointing, at least there is consolation to be found in the chapel. It has only been opened to the public in the last three years; and contains a fine group of the Virgin and Child which ranks high among the marbles in Genoa and is fit to stand beside the Zacchariah of Civitali and the Baptist of Montorsoli, both of which are in San Lorenzo. It was carved by Francesco Schiaffino, one of the last and best of Genoese sculptors. All the frescoes save two are by G. B. Carlone and are remarkable for the cleverness of the perspectives and lighting. The point of sight is the centre of the chapel, and without the aid of glasses it is difficult to believe that none of the work, especially the full length seated

1 Alizeri, writing in 1848 (Guida Artistica, voL i. p. 98) merely speaks of this as representing Prudence. It is unlikely that such an authority would have failed to notice the second face, and on these grounds it may be presumed that it is a modern addition. No other local representation of Janus exists showing more than the head.

figures of the Genoese protector saints, is in relief. In the ceiling there are angels presenting the keys of the city to the Virgin, accompanied by the four protectors. On the walls, Guglielmo Embriaco at the Siege of Jerusalem, Columbus planting the Cross on landing in America, and the Arrival of the Ashes of St. John the Baptist in Genoa. The two panels not by Carlone are the Massacre of the Innocents, attributed to Pellegro Piola1; but evidently by a prentice hand, and that near the left hand window. They are probably both by Carlone's pupils.

As the visitor leaves the Palazzo he should by no means omit to go down the narrow street beside it, in which the proud Torre del Comune rears its hoary head; for in it hangs the Campana Grossa which was cast by Guglielmo di Montaldo in 1289, and which for centuries called the Genoese together on all occasions of importance, whether it were to repel an enemy, hunt down an outlawed noble, welcome a foreign lord or to rejoice at his overthrow. It was somewhere here, perhaps at the window about twenty feet up and protected by forbidding bars, that the heads of traitors to the state were exposed, while a lasting record of their shame was graven upon the very walls themselves. Two of these stones of infamy still remain; one—put up to perpetuate the crimes of Gianpaolo Balbi, who, dazzled by the prospect of becoming Arch-Duke of Liguria and Corsica, plotted to hand over the city to the French; and being taken was beheaded—is framed in sentences

1 There are a great many pictures in Genoa attributed without the slightest probability to this gifted but unfortunate youth. Knowing the esteem in which his works are held, every church and palace seems to have set aside an on-named daub and called it "an early work of Pellegro Piola."

which must have soothed even the most vindictive soul..—

"To Gian Paolo Balbi, vilest of men and soaked in iniquity, a foul murderer and assassin, a clipper of good coin and an utterer of false. . a notorious thief and plunderer of the revenues; who was found guilty of a villainous plot against the majesty of the Republic and his own country. His goods were sold by the State, and all his children made outlaws. He himself was hung as a felon. This stone is erected in the year 1650 to the eternal ignominy of his execrable memory."1

The stone raised to Giulio Cesare Vacchero, it will be remembered, is placed on the spot where his house once stood; and that which was decreed by the Senate after the death of Stefano Raggio, whose conspiracy followed immediately after that of Balbi, has disappeared.

It was a period of plottings and unrest, and twenty years after the death of Balbi Rafaelle della Torre offered his services to the Duke of Savoy and began to conspire against the Republic. His machinations were revealed by an accomplice, and della Torre only escaped death by immediate flight. The second stone of infamy on the Tower is that which was placed to commemorate his treachery; and translated into English, runs ..—

"Rafaelle della Torre, who by every art stole other

1 lOANNI PAOLO BALBI HOMINUM PESSIMO, FLAGITIIS OMNIBUS IMBUTO IMPURO, SICARIO, MONETAE PROBATVE, ADULTERINE, TONSORI, CONFLATORI INSIGNI FURI, KT VECTIGALIUM FAMOSO EXPILATORI OB NEFARIAM IN REMP. CONSPIRATIONEM PERDUELLI MAIESTATIS PUBLICATO, FISCO BONIS VENDICATIS; FILIIS PROSCRIPTIS, INFAMI POENA LAQUEI DAMNATO, AD iETERNAM IGNOMINIAM NEFAND/E SUI MEMORISE LAPIS HIC EKECTUS ANNO MDCL.


men's property; that shameless scoundrel, homicide, friend of robbers, and pirate in the home seas; a traitor and a secret enemy planning the downfall of the Republic. He was condemned to punishments only less great than his evil deeds; to be twice hanged from the gallows, to have his goods confiscated to the State, his sons banished and his houses torn stone from stone. Through this monument of eternal shame, raised by order of the Senate in the year 1672, let him be hated."1

Although the Dogate in Genoa never rose to the same picturesque magnificence that it did in Venice, it may claim to have passed through more startling vicissitudes. Beginning with Simone Boccanegra as already related, in 1339, it continued with many interruptions until the year 1805 when Gerolamo Durazzo, Doge, was succeeded by Michelangelo Cambiaso, mayor.

Simone Boccanegra, an earnest and farseeing patriot, was probably the only man of his day capable of saving the Republic from self-ruin. As soon as he found himself unable to do his duty he resigned (1344); but when the Milanese yoke grew intolerable he was the first to offer his services against them and became Doge again in 1356. He was poisoned in 1363, and elaborate machinery was developed for the election of his successor. The general parliament elected twenty

1 Rafael De Turr1q vn. Al1ens, Substant1e, Cunct1s Art1bus

EXPILAT0R, IMPR0BUS, H0MICIDA, PRED0NUM C0NSoRS, ET IN PATRIo MARI PIRATA, PRoDIT0R, ET IN MAIESTATEM PERDUELLIS MACHINAT0 REIP..CR EXCIDI0, SUPPLICIIS EN0RMITATE SCELERUM SUFERATIS, FURCARUM SUSPENDI0 ITERATo DAMNATUS, ADSCRIPTIS FISC0 BoNIS, PR0SCRIPTIS FILIIS, DIRUTIS IMM0BILIBUS, H0C PERENNI IGNoMINIE MONUMENT0 EX S. C. DRTBSTIBILIS ESTo. ANN0 MDCLXXII.

men, who in their turn elected a committee of sixty. The sixty then chose, not necessarily from among themselves, a smaller body of forty members, and these elected a further body of twenty-one, whose duty it was to select ten men from among whom the actual Doge was chosen by lot.1

Out of this bewildering piece of jugglery Gabrielle Adorno emerged as Doge of Genoa, and remained in office until, in 1378, Domenico Fregoso marched up with a strong force, burnt down the doors of the palace, turned out Adorno and became Doge.

The elective process was, in fact, nearly always honoured in the breach, and from 1383 till 1396 there followed such a delirious succession of Doges as almost to defy description. The four families who regarded the office as their peculiar prerogative left no stone unturned in order to win it; and the mere fact that Nicolo Guarchi was in possession in 1383 was sufficient reason why the Adorni, Fregosi and Montaldi should plot his downfall. Accordingly a band of 3000 men under Antoniotto Adorno attacked the Palace and

1 This elaborate system was evidently modelled on that of Venice. In 1268 the Doge of Venice was selected as follows. The Gran Consiglio, consisting of every male over the age of thirty, was called upon to elect a committee of thirty, who weeded out their number (by vote) until it was reduced to nine. The nine then proceeded to elect, with at least seven votes each, a further group of forty. The forty reduced their number to twelve; who, with nine votes per head, elected a group of twenty-five. The twenty-five, having in the same manner reduced themselves to nine, then elected a fresh group of forty-five new electors with at least seven votes apiece. Afterwards the forty-five were pared down until only eleven remained; and these had to elect another group of fortyone with nine votes each. The forty-one finally elected the Doge, who had to receive at least twenty-five votes. See Daru, Histoire de la Ripublique de Venise, vol. i. p. 430. If the system broke down at any stage it had to begin all over again. It must have been a stimulating amusement for all concerned.

having chased the Doge to San Lorenzo, whence he escaped from the city by sea, held an informal meeting in the Palazzo Ducale, and elected Federico Pagana as his successor. But when Antoniotto joined the revolt against Guarchi, he had done so to secure his own election; and, to make assurance doubly sure, gathered his friends in an upper chamber, and was duly elected by them. He then marched downstairs, ejected the other Doge, and turned his supporters into the street. Adorno reigned twenty-four hours . . for on the following day Lionardo Montaldo called a council of forty electors in San Siro and in turn became Doge. Thenceforward Doge succeeded to Doge with the ease and frequency of dissolving views, until in 1393 there came a climax which would vie with the broadest farce of the pantomime stage.

Antoniotto Adorno had become Doge for the second time,1 and in due course was driven from the throne by Giacomo Fregoso. This was in 1389, and three years later Antoniotto again appeared at the head of 7000 men. He marched to the Palazzo Ducale, and after supping with Fregoso on the most friendly terms, thanked him for the able manner in which he had "acted as his deputy " during his own unavoidable absence from Genoa, escorted him to the door, and showed him out. Thus began Antoniotto's third tenure of office, which, however, was rudely interrupted by Antonio Montaldo, who with only 500 met. drove him into renewed exile. For this service Montaldo was elected Doge for life, and might have * held his position for an unusual length of time had it not been for the energetic measures of Adorno.

1 He was four times Doge of Genoa between 1378 and 1398, in which latter year the plague mercifully removed him from the scene.

Clemente Promontorio marched up on his behalf with a thousand men, and vigorously attacked the palace. The Fregoso faction, seeing Montaldo's approaching downfall, had joined forces with him, and when he fled, pursued by the Adorni, Pietro Fregoso rushed into the great hall, and frantically bade his followers proclaim him Doge of Genoa. At this moment Clemente Promontorio broke down the doors, and bursting into the hall, drove out Fregoso. Hitherto he had posed as the friend of Adorno, but to the astonishment even of his own adherents Promontorio snatched up the insignia of office, put on the robes of state, and whispered to those near him . . "Cry out that I am Doge of Genoa!" "Thereupon great consternation spread among the other Adorni, while new hopes sprang up in the hearts of the Montaldi, and a still greater agitation seized the Fregosi . . . and in fine there broke out such a hubbub, such an abusing of each other, such a beating and a hustling of one another, as no pen may ever describe. At length, and with much difficulty, all the electors were brought together in Santa Maria delle Vigne, and there they elected as Doge Francesco Giustiniano, a citizen of a gentle nature, and a friend of peace and concord."1

Even the Genoese were scandalised by such doings, and in 1413 a new mode of election was tried. The twelve Anziani elected forty men by vote from among the merchants and artisans, and these meeting in secret had to elect twenty-one citizens from the same classes. The result of this election was not divulged, and not only were the elect summoned to council, but another twenty-nine were added, so that nobody might know outside the Palazzo which of the fifty thus assembled

1 Varese, Sloria di Geneva, sub anno.

had been chosen. Once inside, the Chancellor called out the names of the twenty-one, and when they had been shut up in a private room the original forty and the other twenty-nine were liberated. The twentynine then elected ten men with fourteen votes each, and called up another thirty-one so as to preserve the mystery. In the same manner as before the twentyone and the thirty-one were dismissed as soon as the remaining ten were secured; and each of these whispered to the Chancellor in turn his nomination for the Dogate. The names thus obtained were placed in a box, drawn out by hazard, and announced. Each candidate, as his name was read, was then discussed and voted upon . . if he secured seven out of the ten votes he was declared elected, but if not, another name was drawn in the same manner. Any of the ten might be nominated, but had to withdraw during the discussion as to his suitability, and had still to secure seven votes. If no Doge was elected another ten had to go through the same process.1

It may be thought that this elaborate arrangement produced good results and a satisfactory Doge; but as a matter of fact it simply brought about a civil war, and before the end of the next year 120 nobles—to say nothing of meaner folk—had been killed, and 146 houses and palaces destroyed. As before, the strongest candidate seized the office, and ruled till a stronger than he arose. Only one Doge, Tommaso Fregoso (1416), seems to have shown any patriotism. He was elected by acclamation, and was even freed from the control of the laws; he enlarged the harbour, and paid off all the public debts from his own purse, among them the debt on salt which alone amounted

1 Olivieri, Monete, etc., della Spinola, p. 204.

to 6o,ooo ducats. Four years later, when the city was hard pressed by Milan, he sold his plate, hangings and jewels, so as to fit out a fleet.

But most of the Doges were of another sort, and the palm for sheer villainy goes to Paolo Fregoso. He was Archbishop of Genoa; but, more of a soldier than a priest, had fought with his own hands against both the French and the Turks. He had been the chief instrument in turning out the former in 1461, and had made his cousin Luigi Doge of Genoa. In the following year he seized the office for himself, relying on the protection of cut-throats and robbers. His rule lasted fifteen days, and then the Genoese again placed Luigi on the throne. The Archbishop was by no means disheartened, and inveigling the Doge into his own palace offered him the choice of being hanged or giving up the keys of the Castelletto. Luigi surrendered without hesitation, and Paolo, once more Doge of Genoa, wrote to the Pope to crave his sanction. The Pope's reply is too long to be quoted, but it showed that the Holy Father had a pretty turn for sarcasm.

Paolo Fregoso's tenure of office was, perhaps, the most disgraceful period in the history of the city. Murders were of terrible frequency; he disregarded the laws, and introduced a reign of terror by keeping all his paid assassins fully employed. Violence and robbery were every day occurrences. This state of affairs could not go on long, and in 1464 his enemies, aided by the Milanese, rose against him. The Archbishop-Doge incontinently fled, seized four ships which were lying in the harbour, and having provisioned and manned them, set out on an entirely new career as a pirate. How he employed the next eighteen years

does not concern this history, but by 1482 he had become a Cardinal, and was admiral commanding a fleet against the Turks. In 1483 he again became Doge, and was turned out in 1488. In 1495 he was fighting for France against the Republic, and had command of the operations on the Bisagno side of the city. He died in Rome in 1498.

Between 1339 and 1528 only four of the Doges had been legally elected.

The great reforms introduced in 1528 have already been referred to in general terms, but so far as they concern the Dogate require to be considered more fully. The Doge was to hold office for two years only, and had to be elected in the following manner. Every member of the two Consigli had to make out a list of twenty-eight names, one for each of the Alberghi, and these names were then voted on until one member of each Albergo had been selected to form an auxiliary council; which together with the two Consigli undertook the second stage of the election. This consisted of choosing by ballot four citizens as candidates for the Dogate, and when this had been done another twenty-eight citizens were elected in the same manner as before, and added to the original twenty-eight. The fifty-six persons thus nominated then reduced their own number to twenty-eight by ballot, still one for each Albergo; and it was their duty to accept or alter the candidatures put forward in the first instance, arriving at their conclusions by vote. The final four names were then submitted to the Gran Consiglio, who elected the actual Doge by ballot.

This clumsy machinery continued in use until 1573, when it was slightly modified.

It has been abundantly shown that the earlier changes in the Dogate were almost invariably accompanied by scenes of violence and strife; and it would have been unwise for a Doge to make any attempt at ceremonial display, when the proceedings might be disturbed by the irruption of the opposite party. But when untoward events ceased to occur the style and title of the Doge made rapid advances, while a cut and dried ritual called the " Acceptation of the Doge" was drawn up. Simone Boccanegra had simply been called "Signore," but succeeding Doges were addressed as " Messer lo Duxe." At a later date the style of address became " Eccellenza" and "Eminenza "; and from 1579 ne was called "Serenissimo." In 1702 Philip V. of Spain conferred the title of " Altezza "; though long before—in 1637—the Doge had assumed regal honours on the strength of possessing Corsica, and long vanished rights over Cyprus and Jerusalem. The excuse was deemed sufficient, however, and in 1638 it was decreed that the Doge should have a suitable crown, sceptre, and royal mantle. As the Archbishop utterly refused to perform the ceremony of coronation, the Abbot of Sta. Caterina was pressed into service, and the Doge received his crown in the church of that name.

The ceremony of " Acceptation," introduced in 1531, had to take place within eight days from the election. The clanging of the Campana Grossa announced the coming event, and proclamations bade the townsfolk close their booths and keep high festival until night . Preceded by gaily dressed trumpeters, and followed by the various magistrates of the city in their robes, the Signoria went in solemn procession to the loggia of the Albergo to which the Doge-elect belonged, where he was waiting surrounded by his friends. Having gravely saluted each other the whole party proceeded to San Lorenzo, visited the High Altar and the Chapel of St. John the Baptist, and then repaired to the Palazzo Ducale, where the Gran Consiglio had assembled to receive them. As the elect walked up the council chamber the members present raised their caps to him, but remained seated. The throne, meanwhile, had been turned with its back to the audience, as a token that at the moment there was no Doge. The Doge-elect then took a seat beside the " Prior of the Governors,1" who, with the sceptre in his hands, made a short speech, followed by a much longer and more ornate one from the Public Orator. This ceremony concluded, one of the cancellieri read over the oath, and the Doge-elect repeated it to the Prior, swearing to observe all the statutes. As he pronounced the closing words the whole company arose and acclaimed him, while the Prior placed the sceptre in his hands. Outside the Great Bell swung joyfully, and every church and steeple took up the refrain. Trumpets blared and artillery boomed, carrying the news of the acceptation to the people.2

Yet with all this the Doge was but a prisoner in a gilded cage. He might not write a letter of even a private nature unless it were dictated to a cancelliere, sealed with the Great Seal of the Republic, and its contents approved by the Senate; and similarly all letters received were first read to the Senators, and then handed over to the Doge. He was only allowed to leave the Palazzo on certain specified days, and probably was heartily glad when the time

1 The " Prior of the Governors" was the senior member of the Senate.

2 See Archivia Storico Italians, 3rd. series, vol. xiii. p. 194.

came for him to go through the ceremony of renunciation.

The proceedings began with Mass in the private chapel, after which he repaired to the council chamber, and with his back to the throne made a speech to those assembled. The Prior replied on behalf of his associates, and the retiring Doge was accompanied by all the council to the great entrance. Here he paused while the Decano said with a courtly bow ..—

"Your lordship is going early."

Bells sounded his retirement as they had rung for his acceptation; and in full state he was accompanied to his private dwelling, once more a free man.