Tiepolo doge family rises in Venice

1272

Lorenzo Tiepolo was elected doge of Venice after decades of maritime success against Genoa. The election marked a generational shift in the ruling families of the Republic and set the stage for a formal closing of the Great Council a generation later. The Serrata of 1297 would freeze Venetian aristocracy into a closed caste, transforming the Republic from a merchant democracy into an oligarchy of ancient lineages.