Venice: A New History

Thomas F. Madden

Penguin, Oct 29, 2013 - History - 480 pages

A spellbinding new portrait of one of the world’s most beloved cities, from the author of Istanbul

La Serenissima. Its breathtaking architecture, art, and opera ensure that Venice remains a perennially popular destination for tourists and armchair travelers alike. Yet most of the available books about this magical city are either facile travel guides or fusty academic tomes. In Venice, renowned historian Thomas F. Madden draws on new research to explore the city’s many astonishing achievements and to set 1,500 years of Venetian history and the endless Venetian-led Crusades in the context of the ever-shifting Eurasian world. Filled with compelling insights and famous figures, Venice is a monumental work of popular history that’s as opulent and entertaining as the great city itself.

What people are saying

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - Iudita - LibraryThing

Aside from a few small, dry patches, this book was excellent. It's a very detailed historical account of Venice and boy did I learn a lot. The history is complex and fascinating

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - Hiromatsuo - LibraryThing

Venice is a city that I would love to visit someday. However, before I get around to doing that (if ever), I want to take some time and really study the history of it. We see Venice all the time in ...

About the author

Thomas F. Madden is Professor of History and Director of the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies at Saint Louis University. He has written and lectured extensively on the ancient and medieval Mediterranean as well as the history of Christianity and Islam. Awards for his scholarship include the Medieval Academy of America's Haskins Medal and the Medieval Institute's Otto Grundler Prize. He is a Fellow of the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the Medieval Academy of America. His books include Venice: A New History and Istanbul: City of Majesty at the Crossroads of the World.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Venice: A New History
• Author: Thomas F. Madden
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: Penguin, 2013
• ISBN: 0147509807, 9780147509802
• Length: 480 pages
• Subjects: History / Europe / Italy; History / Middle East / Turkey & Ottoman Empire; History / World