Customer Reviews

The Venetian Empire: A Sea Voyage

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an excellent little book for anyone interested in travelling and the history of the Venetian Empire. Jan Morris mixes vivid descriptions of present-day places with lively accounts of the lives and ambitions of the Venetian emperialists and their various subjects. She writes with sparkling wit and a cracking pace. History in her hands is so far from dull. The Venetians spring to life in all their glorious and colourful verve and cunning. She ranges across the centuries with sensitivity, humour and insight. There is no better introduction to the subject.

This relatively short book is beautifully written, conveying the feeling of being a subject of the Serenissima. It explains exactly how Venice created its Empire, what it was like to live in many of the various elements of the Empire, the history of the area and the feeling of sailing throughout the Empire. The gradual loss of the Empire to the Turks, bit by bit, forms a large part of the story of course, but the dominant theme of the book is the strength and pride that being a part of the Empire provided. The author does not shy away from making value judgments about such varied characters as Enrico Dandolo and the martyr of Cyprus, Marco Antonio Bragadino.
We are leaving on a sea voyage of the Empire and it was therefore perfect for us, having already digested the wonderful history of Venice by John Julius Norwich, which, although providing extensive detail about Venice, doesn't provide as much information about the disparate parts of the Empire.

This very vivid presentation of ancient live of venetians all through Levant gives you a picture of live, not just historical facts of those distant times. It also presents you a present day situation on this islands. It's very easy reading and book's only defectiveness is hers shortness.

Fairly deadly. Text so tortured and pompous it interfered with the subject. I got seriously tired of it after a chapter and have not resumed reading it. Maybe some other time, but I am not hopeful.

For the first time in over 25 previous enjoyable readings of this author's many books; I just did not like this book. I have been mentally stretched by some of her other works - notably I found Trieste And The Meaning Of Nowhere a bit of a melancholy struggle, and got as lost in the historically `learned' details as I did with Patrick Leigh Fermor's work Mani, but I eventually enjoyed reading both books. Venetian Empire however, failed to engage. I am puzzled as to why this should be so, and I suspect the problem lies with me as much as with the rather dislikable Venetians, robbing, plundering, consorting with Islam while betraying and deserting their Greek populations.

As I positively devoured her other works, particularly the Pax Britannica series and her travel narratives, I was looking forward to this book and feel an almost disloyal in having to recommend that any new Morris reader start with any of the other titles before delving into this heavy tome - and even the title deceived me, this is not a travel narrative, not a journey, and certainly not a voyage.