The Genoese navy was the naval contingent of the Republic of Genoa's military. From the 11th century onward the Genoese navy protected the interests of the republic and projected its power throughout the Mediterranean and Black Seas. It played a crucial role in the history of the republic as a thalassocracy and a maritime trading power.
Through the 17th and 18th century the power of the Genoese navy and fleet declined, thanks to bankers and no longer merchants being the strongest economic force in the Republic. The Genoese navy was disbanded following the annexation of Genoa by the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont in 1815.
History
Establishment A center of trade since antiquity, the city of Genoa relied heavily on income from merchant shipping and trade. As such, piracy posed a substantial threat to the city's merchants, who were forced to pay for the defense of their ships. The city was likewise vulnerable to attack, a fact made apparent when in 935 a fleet led by Ya'qub ibn Ishaq al-Tamimi of the Fatimids sacked the city.Lev, Yaacov (1984). "The Fatimid Navy, Byzantium and the Mediterranean Sea, 909–1036 CE/297–427 AH". Byzantion. 54: 220–252. OCLC 1188035. pg. 232 The Muslim incursion spurred the city to build strong harbor defenses, and renewed interest in an armed merchant marine to patrol the Ligurian Sea.
In 1005 the Republic of Genoa was established; The new government was headed by a consul who would be elected every few years by the wealthiest merchants and landowners in the city. The young republic was as such dominated by the needs and desires of the merchant houses, and the navy was given a place of high importance in the new thalassocracy. A High Admiral was appointed, and with the government coordinating the navy, Genoese traders and merchants came to dominate the Ligurian Sea in the 11th century. The city-state was considered one of the four Repubbliche Marinare in Italy alongside Venice, Pisa, and Amalfi. However, the early fleet was composed of ships levied from private merchants, fishermen, and lacked dedicated warships. As such, the 11th century fleet was relegated to protecting the trade of the great merchant houses of Genoa, which continued to dominate the politics and economy of the republic. In an effort to suppress piracy, the fleet was occasionally deployed to fight against Muslim corsairs from Aghlabid in North Africa.H. E. J. Cowdrey (1977), "The Mahdia campaign of 1087" The English Historical Review 92, pp. 1–29. After decades of disorder caused by the Norman conquest of southern Italy, the Genoese navy assisted in the capture of the city of Mahdia in 1087.Erdmann, Carl. The Origin of the Idea of Crusade, tr. Marshall W. Baldwin and Walter Goffart. Princeton University Press, 1977.Cowdrey, H. E. J. "The Mahdia Campaign of 1087." The English Historical Review, 92:362 (January, 1977), 1–29.
The beginning of the Crusades in 1095 resulted in a great period of prosperity for Genoa. As new crusaders were constantly needed to secure the Holy Land (and later to reinforce the Crusader states), Genoa was able to profit by assisting in the transport of military forces from Europe.Housley 2006, pp. 152–154 To better support the crusaders, a squadron of 12 Genoese galleys were deployed to the Holy Land during the First Crusade. The ships served to counter the threat posed by the Fatimid navy and saw some successes, with the fleet succeeding in trapping a Fatimid fleet in Beirut Harbor during the First Crusade. The Genoese Embriaco family became famous for their exploits in the Holy Land during this time, most notably for their leading of a Genoese seaborne attack during the Siege of Tripoli. In addition to receiving large amounts of loot from crusader commanders, the republic established a number of Genoese trading colonies in the Mediterranean and Black Seas during the Crusades. The Lebanese town of Byblos came completely under Genoese control, and the republic was entitled to 1/3 of the crusader-controlled city of Acre's income. The Genoese fleet sheltered in these ports and defended them from pirates. In the early 12th century the Genoese navy participated in the Pisan-led 1113–15 Balearic Islands expedition to suppress Majorcan piracy.
At this time the fleet relied principally on two types of galleys, heavy Byzantine-style dromon (dromone), and lighter Italian-style galleys. This fleet was supplemented by armed merchant cogs. The Genoese fleet was effective in converting merchant galleys into warships during wartime, and so made extensive use of such converted vessels.Sicking, Louis. “Naval Warfare in Europe, c. 1330–c. 1680.” European Warfare, 1350–1750, 2009, 236–63. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511806278.013.
Mercantile conflicts
In addition to supporting the wars in the Holy Land, the navy played a vital role in the Genoese rivalry with the nearby Republic of Pisa, which competed with Genoa for influence in Corsica and Sardinia. It was common for the Italian maritime states to prey on their rival's merchant shipping, and the Genoese navy was known to both suppress and participate in this practice. In 1119 a Genoese squadron raided a Pisan merchant convoy, beginning the first of the Genoese-Pisan Wars. The first of the wars ended inconclusively, but resulted in a century of raiding and piracy as both cities fought over Corsica and Sardinia. In the 1230s a second, undeclared war erupted between Genoa and Pisa as part of the wider Guelphs-Ghibellines Conflict. The Holy Roman Emperor sided with Pisa when the war broke out, forcing Genoa to find allies abroad. The republic sided with the Pope (who was at the time in a dispute with the Holy Roman Emperor), and sent a fleet to transport a Guelph army to Rome in a show of support for the papal cause. The Ghibellines discovered the plan and, along with a Pisan fleet, intercepted the Genoese navy at the Battle of Giglio in 1241. Weighted down with passengers and baggage, the Genoese navy lost 3 galleys sunk and 27 captured.Milman, Henry (1857). History of Latin Christianity Vol.IV. London. The second war with Pisa ended in a white peace in 1243.
In the eastern Mediterranean, conflicts between Genoese and Venetian merchants in Acre resulted in the War of Saint Sabas being fought from 1256 to 1270.Lane (1973), p. 73-78 During the conflict the Genoese navy was defeated in a series of pitched battles against Venice, and so it resorted to attacking merchant convoys instead of warships. This strategy proved highly effective and would become known as "War of the Chase" to the Genonese, in which faster Genoese galleys would outrun slower, better organized Venetian squadrons.
The disastrous defeats at the hands of Pisa and Venice hindered Genoese ambitions, but also led to the creation of a dedicated naval force in Genoa. Larger galleys were built, the office of High Admiral was granted more powers, and the formidable Genoese crossbowmen were added to the crews of Genoese warships. When a third war broke out between Pisa and Genoa, the rebuilt Genoese fleet won a major victory at the 1284 Battle of Meloria, in which the Genoese captured 37 Pisan galleys and 9000 sailors. The battle left Genoa the strongest naval power in the Western Mediterranean.
With Pisa in a state of decline, Genoa expanded into Corsica and northern Sardinia. In 1266 Genoese merchants purchased the city of Kaffa from the Golden Horde and went on to establish further trading colonies in the Black Sea and Byzantine Empire. This expansion brought Genoa into further conflict with the powerful city-state of Venice, which also had trade relations in the area. The bitter rivalry escalated into the first of the Venetian–Genoese wars in 1296, at which point Genoa's fleet consisted of 125 galleys. Despite outnumbering the Venetian navy, the Genoese fleet was unable to catch them, and Genoa's merchants suffered greatly during the war. A change came in 1298 when a major engagement was fought in the Adriatic Sea off the coast of Korčula. At the Battle of Curzola, a fleet of 75 Genoese galleys decisively defeated a force of 95 Venetian galleys, destroying or capturing 83 of the enemy ships. However, Genoese casualties were heavy and the city's shipyards were unable to quickly replace the ships lost at Curzola. The conflict ended in a relative stalemate in 1299. Following the war, Genoa dominated the Mediterranean slave trade and the Genoese navy employed thousands of galley slaves as oarsmen. This new policy decreased the cost of maintaining the navy, as rowers no longer had to be paid (as opposed to Venice, which only employed paid rowers), but also decreased the number of men available for boarding parties, as Genoese captains did not trust armed slaves.William Ledyard Rodgers (1967). Naval warfare under oars, 4th to 16th centuries: a study of strategy, tactics and ship design. Naval Institute Press. pp. 132–34. .Steven A. Epstein, Speaking of Slavery: Color, Ethnicity, and Human Bondage in Italy (Conjunctions of Religion and Power in the Medieval Past.
In 1340 a contingent of 15 Genoese galleys under the command of Pietro Barbavera fought for the French fleet against the English fleet at the pivotal Battle of Sluys.Rogers, Clifford J (editor) (2010). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology: Volume 3. Oxford University Press. p. 16. .
As Genoa continued to expand its trade network during the 14th century, the navy was increasingly employed to defend trade routes. While these naval trade routes greatly benefited the city, they also left it vulnerable to disease. In 1347 the Black Death was introduced to Kaffa during a Mongol siege and soon spread aboard fleeing Genoese ships."Channel 4 – History – The Black Death". Channel 4. Archived from the original on 25 June 2008. Retrieved 3 November 2008. A Genoese merchant fleet sailing from Kaffa spread the disease to Messina, from which city the plague spread to the rest of Europe."At the beginning of October, in the year of the incarnation of the Son of God 1347, twelve Genoese galleys were fleeing from the vengeance which our Lord was taking on account of their nefarious deeds and entered the harbour of Messina. In their bones they bore so virulent a disease that anyone who only spoke to them was seized by a mortal illness and in no manner could evade death. ...Not only all those who had speech with them died, but also those who had touched or used any of their things. When the inhabitants of Messina discovered that this sudden death emanated from the Genoese ships they hurriedly ordered them out of the harbor and town. But the evil remained and caused a fearful outbreak of death." Michael Platiensis (1357), quoted in Johannes Nohl (1926). The Black Death, trans. C.H. Clarke. London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd., pp. 18–20. Over 40,000 people in the city of Genoa died in the pandemic, a disaster that reduced the amount of money available to finance the fleet. Many sailors were also killed by the Black Death, leaving the navy undermanned.Michael of Piazza (Platiensis) Bibliotheca scriptorum qui res in Sicilia gestas retulere Vol 1, p. 562, cited in Ziegler, 1998, p. 40.