Britain and Venice

This is the front cover of a commission, a formal document issued by the Doge, the head of state of the Republic of Venice. It appoints Bertuccio Contarini as Governor of nearby Cittadella.

The figure of a winged woman is shown holding a staff and a scroll with the words 'Soli deo honor e[t] gloria', meaning 'To God alone be honour and glory'. Below the figure are the Contarini family arms and a view of Venice. This is unusual, as most commission landscapes depicted the area where the official was being sent.

It is part of a collection of Venetian papers made by Rawdon Brown, an English scholar resident in Venice for 50 years from 1833.

While working for the Public Record Office, Brown scoured the archives of Venice for material casting light on British history. He was also an avid collector of manuscripts, and donated part of his collection to the Public Record Office in his will.

This small book records the population totals calculated during the census of Venice of 1587, which counted nearly 170,000 people. It breaks down the inhabitants of each district of Venice and the islands of the lagoon by social status, gender and adults and children ('putti' and 'putte').

Numbers of friars, priests and nuns are documented as well and, in the Cannaregio district, the total number of residents of the ghetto – a walled area in which all Jewish people were forced to live – is also recorded. Jewish people comprised 1,896 of the district's total population of 34,531.

This document probably came into the possession of the Keeper of the State Paper Office in England, Sir Joseph Williamson, during the 17th century. He was known for collecting historic books and manuscripts, especially where these related to foreign affairs.

This vellum cover contains the register Francesco Contarini kept of his outgoing letters while he was ambassador at Constantinople. The register forms part of Rawdon Brown's donation to the Public Record Office, along with a significant collection of Contarini family papers.

A striking image of the winged lion of St Mark appears on the front cover, standing half on land and half on water, symbolising the power of the Republic of Venice over both. Equally colourfully, the arms of the Contarini family are displayed on the back of the register.

One of the documents included in Rawdon Brown's donation to the Public Record Office was this leaflet from the early 18th century. It explains how the election of the Doge took place.

In an effort to make a highly complex process as memorable as possible, the explanation is given in multiple formats – with an illustration, in text, as a diagram, and even expressed through poetry.

This short document lists the value of exports and imports between England and Venice between the years 1728 and 1732.

Imports into England were valued at over £230,000 over the five years, whereas exports to Venice came to the much smaller sum of £83,000.

Venice provided more luxurious goods than England. Whereas England exported durable woollen textiles, as well as lead and shot (ammunition for firearms and cannon), Venice supplied currants, silk, stiffs (probably stiffened articles of female attire), liquorice and oil.

This is one of many letters from John Watson, British Consul, to the Foreign Office in London, reporting on the surrender of the Republic to the forces of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1797.

Caught in the middle of the conflict between France and Austria, Venice had attempted to remain neutral, but eventually its government was forced to relinquish its powers and the 1,100-year-old Republic was no more. The city was ceded to Austria in the ensuing peace treaty.

Dated 17 May, this letter reports that 'The late Government finished like a flash of lightning…' and riots ensued, after which 'a large body of French came peaceably into town, and took possession of St Mark's Place, the Arsenal...'

This printed ode to freedom and to the Civic Guard – collected by Rawdon Brown – was written by Marco Lanza, one of many political prisoners freed on the ‘glorious day’ of 17 March 1848.

It commemorates the start of the revolution in Venice and across Italy, and the temporary ousting of the Austrian authorities.

The 1848 revolution, although initially unsuccessful, finally saw Venice taking part in the unification of Italy in 1866.

This letter from Consul William Perry to the Foreign Office records the preparations for the French to receive the keys of Venice from Austrian authorities, prior to passing them to Italy.

Perry writes, ‘The Venetians are well satisfied to be free from Austrian rule and to be permitted to form part of Italy.’

The floods that hit northern Italy on 4 November 1966 brought devastation to Florence and Venice in particular. In the UK, they led to the establishment of the Italian Art and Archives Rescue Fund (IAARF), a charity that raised funds to rescue and restore works of art, architecture and archives damaged by the floods.

Once the urgency had subsided, it became apparent that Venice's need was even greater than that of Florence. To quote Sir Ashley Clarke, the Fund’s chairman, ‘The event of 4th November has no recorded precedent in the past thousand years. It administered a fearful shock to the entire city, already undermined and eroded by centuries of damp and with a formidable backlog of conservation work awaiting action. As one prominent Venetian put it, the city aged 50 years in one night.’

When the Fund was wound up, its papers were presented to the Public Record Office as a private gift.

As part of an extensive fundraising campaign, the IAARF arranged a performance entitled 'Italy, My Italy' at the Theatre Royal Haymarket on 29 January 1967, attended by HRH Princess Marina.

The most exceptional actors and musicians of the day stepped forward to support the cause, performing scenes, reading extracts or playing pieces which celebrated Italy. The stellar cast included Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench and Ralph Richardson.

Michael Redgrave read this extract from Lord Byron's letter of 1816, in which he commented on his wish to stay in Venice over the winter, firstly because 'it has always been (next to the East) the greenest island of my imagination' and because '...I have fallen in love'. The object of his affections was the 22-year-old wife of his landlord, 'a Merchant of Venice'.