Doge Andrea Gritti (1455-1538)

Doge Andrea Gritti and the lion of St. Mark on the façade of the Doge's Palace on Piazzetta San Marco in Venice

Doge Andrea Gritti The Gritti family in Venice was one of the "new" noble families of Venice, as opposed to the "old" great families, who had been noble since the city's foundation.

However, it belonged to the Venetian nobility from 1200.

One of its most prominent members was undoubtedly Andrea Gritti who, in addition to his many intellectual and commercial talents, was also Doge of Venice at the age of 68, from May 1523 to December 1538.

A skilled diplomat who spoke seven languages

Andrea Gritti was a particularly cultured man who spoke many languages, including English, French, Spanish, Turkish, Greek and, of course, Venetian and Latin.

Andrea Gritti's grandfather was a diplomat.

It was in this environment that the young Andrea, who accompanied his grandfather on his diplomatic missions, was able to learn not only these different languages but also all the subtleties of diplomacy.

Andrea Gritti was indeed a skilled diplomat, which enabled him not only to become Doge and successfully defend the interests of Venice, but also to save his own life on several occasions.

A warrior and a merchant

But this distinguished diplomat was also a man of war with a strong character.

Andrea Gritti learned Turkish in Constantinople while serving as Baile of the Republic of Venice, which did not prevent him from engaging in wheat trading there at the same time, albeit on a personal basis.

This intellectual, diplomat and man of war was also a skilled merchant who built much of his fortune on the wheat trade, an activity he pursued with his sons until his death, including during his dogate.

An insatiable appetite for women and good food

Andrea Gritti was quite a handsome man, and while he could be described as well-rounded in terms of his skills, he also had an equally unparalleled sexual appetite, coupled with a voracious appetite for food, which would ultimately be his downfall.

It was after eating, probably too greedily and in too large a quantity, a dish of eels on Christmas Eve in 1538 that Andrea Gritti died... of indigestion!

On the other hand, he had no female indigestion and had a reputation as a great womaniser until his death. He was certainly in remarkable health, boasting, when he was elected Doge at the age of sixty-eight, that he had never been ill.

His love of women had begun to manifest itself in Constantinople, where he had three illegitimate sons, whom he had the honesty to acknowledge, including Alvise and Zorzi Gritti, who would help him continue his wheat trade during his Dogeate.

In Venice, he had two more illegitimate children with a nun named Celestina.

This did not prevent Andrea Gritti from being particularly devout, or at least from believing that one could buy one's place in Paradise, since he was also responsible for the construction of the church of San Francesco de la Vigna in the Castello, where he is buried.

But let's return to his career.

A brilliant career that began in Constantinople

We know that he was already in Constantinople in 1501, as Baile of Venice, since that is how he managed to inform Venice that more than 260 Turkish warships were ready to set sail.

Convinced that he was spying for Venice, which was indeed the case, he was imprisoned in Constantinople by the Turks and only narrowly escaped torture thanks to his personal friendship with Vizier Ahmed and may also have benefited from some support from the female side, as it is said that several women in tears, members of the European colony in Constantinople, paraded near the prison gates during his detention...

In any case, he was eventually released and even returned to favour with the Sultan, since he subsequently succeeded, in 1503, in negotiating a new peace with the Turks.

Andrea Gritti The man | Wars | Diplomat | Freedom
Political Life Doges of Venice | Andrea Gritti
History Important dates | Politics | Navy | Love | Wars | Religion | Scuole | Ghetto | Printing

Back to Top of Page