The Most Serene Republic of Venice

� In OTL the Republic of Venice lasted from roughly 697 - 1797.

In this article the POD is after the Battle of Lepanto (1571).

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Strengthening the Republic
After Venice and the Holy League defeated the Ottomans at the Battle of Lepanto and still lost the island of Cyprus the Doge, The Council of Ten, and the Signoria� realized they needed to restrengthen their Republic to protect themselves against the ever expanding Ottoman Empire.

The current government looked back to their history and how new and more powerful fleets of ships, both military and merchant were constructed when Doge Ordelafo Faliero created what would become the Venetian Arsenal.� During the 1580's the government began a program of constructing new ships, inviting shipbuilders, scientists, engineers, and other intellectuals into their Republic, allowing any and all the freedom to experiment with new technologies.

By the 1590's they also recognized the danger they were in with the discovery of the New World across the Atlantic and how their place as one of the most powerful nations in Europe, which could be attributed in part to the Spice and Silk Route across Asia, would begin to wane unless they could open new trade routes with foriegn ports.� Since the richest areas of the New World were under the control of Spain, for the most part, they decided they would look south and east to seek trade and commerce.� With this open invitation came some who petitioned the government to sponsor voyages of exploration, the majority of which looking to Africa and Asia for the most part, with a small minority petitioning for America.�

Strengthening the Adriatic
For centuries, the Republic of Venice was the most powerful nation in the Adriatic Sea.� With the growing threat of the Ottoman Empire the Republic felt it had to strengthen its hold over the Adriatic.� � In the� late 1570's the Republic began negotiating with the Ottoman Empire, offering them the islands that made up the Duchy of Archipelago (knowing from sources in the Ottoman Empire that they had desires for it) in exchange for aid in conquering coastal areas held by the Kingdom of Hungary in the areas of Montenegro.� Ten years later they negotiated with the Ottomans once again offering them Crete in exchange for the coastal territories that made up Croatia and Albania.�  By the 1650's the Republic of Venice would be the major controlling force in the Adriatic Sea and took precautions to fortify their newly acquired territories.�

They encouraged the local populations to send their children to schools and universities in the Veneto, and made efforts to spread their influence and ideas into these new areas to make them part of the Republic, and not just client states.� Local leaders were given respected positions and within the Signoria a version of a Senate was created resembling the Senate of ancient Rome to see that all areas of the Republic was represented.�  The government was still oligarchic for the most part, but this Senate went towards bringing a sort of unity among the expanded Republic of Venice.