A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels - Volume 18 / Historical Sketch of the Progress of Discovery, Navigation, and / Commerce, from the Earliest Records to the Beginning of the Nineteenth / Century, By William Stevenson

by Robert Kerr; William Stevenson

A quarrel which took place between the Venetians and the Greek Emperor Manuel, in 1171, is worthy of notice, as being connected with the origin of the bank of Venice. The republic not being able to supply, from its own sources, the means of carrying on the war, was obliged to raise money from her citizens. To regulate this the chamber of loans was established: the contributors to the loan were made creditors to the chamber, and an annual interest of 4 per cent. was allotted to them. If this rate of interest was not compulsive, it is a sure criterion of a most flourishing state of trade, and of very great abundance of money; but there is every reason to believe if was compulsive.

At the beginning of the 13th century, Constantinople was conquered by the Venetians, and the leaders of the fourth crusade: this event enabled them to supply Europe more abundantly with all the productions of the East. In the partition of the Greek empire which followed this success, the Venetians obtained part of the Peloponnesus, where, at that period, silk was manufactured to a great extent. By this accession, to which was added several of the largest islands in the Archipelago, their sea coast extended from Venice to Constantinople: they likewise purchased the isle of Crete. The whole trade of the eastern Roman empire was thus at once transferred to the Venetians; two branches of which particularly attracted their attention,--the silk trade and that with India. The richest and most rare kinds of silk were manufactured at Constantinople; and to carry on this trade, many Venetians settled themselves in the city, and they soon extended it very considerably, and introduced the manufacture itself into Venice, with so much success, that the silks of Venice equalled those of Greece and Sicily. The monopoly of the trade of the Black Sea was also obtained by them, after the capture of Constantinople; and thus some of the most valuable articles of India and China were obtained by them, either exclusively, or in greater abundance, and at a cheaper rate than they could be procured by any other route. In consequence of all these advantages, Venice was almost the sole channel of commerce in this part of Europe, during the period of the Latin empire in Constantinople. This empire, however, was of very short continuance, not lasting more than 57 years.

In the interval, the merchants of Florence became distinguished for their commercial transactions, and particularly by becoming dealers in money by exchange, and by borrowing and lending on interest. In order to carry on this new branch of traffic, they had agents and correspondents in different cities of Europe; and thus the remittance of money by bills of exchange was chiefly conducted by them. Other Italian states followed their example; and a new branch of commerce, and consequently a new source of wealth, was thus struck out.

In the year 1261, the Greek emperor regained Constantinople through the assistance of the Genoese; and the latter, as usual, were amply repaid for their services on this occasion. Pera, the chief suburb of Constantinople, was allotted to them: here they had their own laws, administered by their own magistrates; and they were exempted from the accustomed duties on goods imported and exported. These privileges raised their commerce in this part of the world above that of the Venetians and Pisans; who, however, were still permitted to retain their factories. The Genoese soon began to aim at more extensive power and trade; and under the pretext that the Venetians were going to attack their new settlement, they obtained permission to surround it, and their factories in the neighbouring coasts, with fortifications. The trade of the Black Sea was under the dominion of the Greek emperor, who, by the possession of Constantinople, commanded its narrow entrance: even the sultan of Egypt solicited liberty to send a vessel annually to purchase slaves in Circassia and Lesser Tartary. The Genoese eagerly looked to participating in the valuable commerce of this sea; and this object they soon obtained. In return they supplied the Greeks with fish and corn. "The waters of the Don, the Oxus, the Caspian, and the Wolga, opened a rare and laborious passage for the gems and spices of India; and after three months march, the caravans of Carizme met the Italian vessels in the harbours of the Crimea." These various branches of trade were monopolized by the diligence and power of the Genoese; and their rivals of Venice and Pisa were forcibly expelled. The Greek emperor, alarmed at their power and encroachments, was at length engaged in a maritime war with them; but though he was assisted by the Venetians, the Genoese were victorious.

The Venetians, who were thus driven from a most lucrative commerce, endeavoured to compensate for their loss by extending their power and commerce in other quarters: they claimed and received a toll on all vessels navigating the Adriatic, especially from those sailing between the south-point of Istria and Venice. But their commerce and power on the Adriatic could be of little avail, unless they regained at least a portion of that traffic in Indian merchandize, which at this period formed the grand source of wealth. Constantinople, and consequently the Black Sea, was shut up from them: on the latter the Genoese were extending their traffic; they had seized on Caffa from the Tartars, and made it the principal station of their commerce. The Venetians in this emergency looked towards the ancient route to India, or rather the ancient depôt for Indian goods,-- Alexandria: this city had been shut against Christians for six centuries; but it was now in the possession of the sultan of the Mamalukes, and he was more favourable to them. Under the sanction of the Pope, the Venetians entered into a treaty of commerce with the sultans of Egypt; by which they were permitted to have one consul in Alexandria, and another in Damascus. Venetian merchants and manufacturers were settled in both these cities. If we may believe Sir John de Mandeville, their merchants frequently went to the island of Ormus and the Persian Gulf, and sometimes even to Cambalu. By their enterprize the Indian trade was almost entirely in their possession; and they distributed the merchandize of the East among the nations of the north of Europe, through Bruges and the Hanseatic League, and traded even directly in their own vessels to England.

In the beginning of the fifteenth century, the annual value of the goods exported from Venice amounted to ten millions of ducats; and the profits on the home and outward voyages, were about four millions. Their shipping consisted of 3000 vessels, of from 10 to 200 amphoras burden, carrying 17,000 sailors; 300 ships with 8000 seamen; and 45 gallies of various sizes, manned by 11,000 seamen. In the dock-yard, 16,000 carpenters were usually employed. Their trade to Syria and Egypt seems to have been conducted entirely, or chiefly, by ready money; for 500,000 ducats were sent into those countries annually: 100,000 ducats were sent to England. From the Florentines they received annually 16,000 pieces of cloth: these they exported to different ports of the Mediterranean; they also received from the Florentines 7000 ducats weekly, which seems to have been the balance between the cloth they sold to the Venetians, and the French and Catalan wool, crimson grain, silk, gold and silver thread, wax, sugar, violins, &c., which they bought at Venice. Their commerce, especially the oriental branch of it, increased; and by the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks, the consequence of which was the expulsion of the Genoese, they were enabled, almost without a rival, to supply the encreasing demand of Europe for the productions of the East. Their vessels visited every port of the Mediterranean, and every coast of Europe; and their maritime commerce, about the end of the fifteenth century, was probably greater than that of all the rest of Europe. Their manufactures were also a great source of wealth; the principal were silk, cloth of gold and silver, vessels of gold and silver, and glass. The discovery of a passage to the East Indies by the Cape of Good Hope, the powerful league of Cambray, and other circumstances, weakened and gradually destroyed their commerce and power.

We have said that they supplied almost, without a rival, the demand in Europe for the produce of the East. That rival was Florence: the success of her merchants in a new branch of commerce has been already noticed. The profits they derived from lending money on interest, and from negociating bills of exchange, aided by their profits on their manufactures, for which, particularly those of silk and woollen, they were celebrated so early as the beginning of the fourteenth century, had rendered Florence one of the first cities of Europe, and many of its merchants extremely rich. In the year 1425, having purchased the port of Leghorn, they resolved, if possible, to partake in the commerce of Alexandria. A negociation was accordingly opened with the sultan: the result of which was, that the Florentines obtained some share in the Indian trade; and soon afterwards it appears that they imported spices into England. It is supposed, that the famous family of the Medici were extensively concerned in the Indian trade of Florence. Cosmo de Medici was the greatest merchant of the age: he had agents and money transactions in every part of Europe; and his immense wealth not only enabled him to gratify his love for literature and the fine arts, but also to influence the politics of Italy, and occasionally of the more remote parts of Europe. In the time of Lorenzo de Medici, about the close of the fifteenth century, the commercial intercourse between Florence and Egypt was greatly extended. Florence, indeed, was now in the zenith of her prosperity; after this period her commerce declined, principally from the discovery of the Cape of Good Hope.

In these brief notices of the commerce of the principal Italian states, Venice, Genoa, and Florence, in the days of their greatest glory, we have purposely omitted any reference to the other states, except stating a fact or two relating to Amalfi and Pisa, during that period, when they nearly rivalled the three great states. It will be proper, however, to subjoin to this account of Italian commerce, as it existed prior to the discovery of the Cape of Good Hope, some important facts respecting Amalfi, Pisa, Milan, Modena, &c., in order that our sketch, though necessarily brief, may not be deficient.

A great rivalship existed between Pisa and Amalfi in the twelfth century, arising chiefly from commercial jealousy; and this rivalship leading to war, Amalfi was twice taken and pillaged by the Pisans, who, indeed, during the zenith of their power, had repeatedly triumphed over the Saracens of Africa and Spain. Amalfi, however, soon recovered; but we possess no memorials of her commerce after this period, which deserve insertion here. Her maritime laws, the date of which is uncertain, seem to have been generally adopted by the Italian states.

Towards the end of the twelfth century, the power and commerce of Pisa were at their height: it partook, with Genoa and Venice, of the advantages derived from the trade of Constantinople. In the beginning of the next century, however, we find it became a mere auxiliary of Venice. Its subsequent wars with Genoa, and the factions which arose within its walls, reduced its commerce so low, about the middle of the fourteenth century, that nothing respecting it worthy of notice occurs after this period.