Enrico Dandolo 41st Doge of Venice Date of Birth: 01.01.1107 Country: Italy

1. Early Life and Career
2. Naval and Diplomatic Missions
3. Cause of Blindness and Election as Doge
4. Significant Influence in the Fourth Crusade
5. Conquest of Constantinople and Establishment of the Latin Empire
6. Death and Legacy

Early Life and Career

Enrico Dandolo, born into a prominent Venetian family, was the son of Vitale, an advisor to Doge Vitale Michiel II. His uncle, also named Enrico Dandolo, held a high ecclesiastical office in Venice. Until the age of sixty, Dandolo remained in the shadow of his relatives.

Naval and Diplomatic Missions

In 1171-1172, Dandolo played a significant role when the Byzantine Empire imprisoned thousands of Venetians. The Venetian Republic planned a punitive expedition, but it was canceled due to the threat of plague. Instead, Dandolo was sent to Constantinople as an envoy. He later embarked on several other diplomatic missions, including a successful negotiation to restore the Venetian quarter in Constantinople in 1183.

Cause of Blindness and Election as Doge

It is not known when Dandolo became blind, but theories suggest it occurred either during his 1171 mission to Constantinople or a head injury suffered between 1176 and 1192. Despite his blindness, in 1192, Enrico Dandolo was elected Doge of Venice.

Significant Influence in the Fourth Crusade

Dandolo's greatest historical impact came during the Fourth Crusade. In 1202, a large force of crusaders gathered in Venice, seeking passage to either Egypt or Palestine. The crusaders were unable to pay their transportation costs and owed debts in Venice. Dandolo offered them the opportunity to attack Dalmatia, a major Venetian trading rival, which they did successfully in November 1202.

Subsequently, Dandolo and the crusaders were approached by Alexius IV Angelus, son of the deposed Byzantine emperor Isaac II. Alexius convinced the crusaders to march on Constantinople, diverting the original aims of the Crusade in a way that benefited Venice.

Conquest of Constantinople and Establishment of the Latin Empire

On April 13, 1204, Constantinople was stormed and plundered by the crusaders. The Latin Empire was established, with its capital in Constantinople, and Venice gained significant colonial territories, bolstering its economy.

Death and Legacy

In May 1205, Enrico Dandolo fell ill and died in Constantinople at the age of 97. News of his death reached Venice on July 20, 1205. He was buried in the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, where his tomb remains to this day.

Dandolo's name has been immortalized through the "Enrico Dandolo" armored cruiser of the Italian navy and a quasi-historical novel by Goran Petrović, which re-imagines Dandolo as a sinister sorcerer afflicted with a mysterious eye ailment known as "frozen eyes."