Piero or Pietro Contarini (1578–1632) was a Venetian aristocrat and ambassador to Turin, Paris, London, Madrid and Rome. Elizabeth Cary playwright c 1620

Life

Pietro Contarini was born in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

on 12 November 1578 to the noble Contarini family. He made a rapid diplomatic career at the service of the Republic of Venice, been sent from 1606 to 1608 to rapresent the Republic in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. Th ...

at the court of

Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy Charles Emmanuel I ( it, Carlo Emanuele di Savoia; 12 January 1562 – 26 July 1630), known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy from 1580 to 1630. He was nicknamed (, in context "the Hot-Headed") for his rashness and military aggression. Being ...

, and from 13 December 1613 to 11 September 1616 in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

at the court of

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

. Back to Venice, on 30 August 1617 he was sent to London for an extraordinary diplomatic mission, in order to obtain the support of England to Venice who considered itself threaten by the

Habsburg Empire The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

. After this mission, Contarini was sent as ambassador in Spain and on 24 January 1619 he entered in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), an ...

, where he remained for two years. Returned to Venice for some months he was incharged of the rule of

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Ise ...

. Contarini was consedered a conservative catholic near to the position of papacy, and on 9 June 1623 he was appointed Venetian ambassador in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Returned to Venice, he married a distant relative on 23 September 1627. Partially paralyzed, he died in Venice on 19 October 1632.

Diplomatic mission to London

Contarini arrived in London in November 1617, and had audiences with King

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

and

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

. He met

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and En ...

, who had been unwell, a few days later, and she joked about Spanish policy towards Venice. Later in December, he went with his chaplain Horatio or Orazio Busino to see the queen at

Somerset House Somerset House is a large Neoclassical complex situated on the south side of the Strand in central London, overlooking the River Thames, just east of Waterloo Bridge. The Georgian era quadrangle was built on the site of a Tudor palace ( ...

, then known as Denmark House. Busino wrote that Anne of Denmark was dressed in pink and gold, with "a

farthingale A farthingale is one of several structures used under Western European women's clothing in the 16th and 17th centuries to support the skirts in the desired shape and enlarge the lower half of the body. It originated in Spain in the fifteenth c ...

that was four feet wide at the hips". Her hair was dressed in rays or petals, ''sparsi in giro'', so that she resembled a sunflower. Busino described another audience at Somerset House on 28 December, to which Contarini was led through private corridors from the apartments of a lady in waiting to the queen. The lady in waiting carried a candle to light the way in these dark passages. Her gold costume was both "lascivious and ornate". Busino was left behind during Contarini's adventure. Busino also briefly described Audley End,

Theobalds Theobalds House (also known as Theobalds Palace) in the parish of Cheshunt in the English county of Hertfordshire, was a significant stately home and (later) royal palace of the 16th and early 17th centuries. Set in extensive parkland, it was a ...

Greenwich Palace Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

noting the bird house, and

Wanstead House Wanstead House was a mansion built to replace the earlier Wanstead Hall. It was commissioned in 1715, completed in 1722 and demolished in 1825. Its gardens now form the municipal Wanstead Park in the London Borough of Redbridge. History Construct ...

. He also composed descriptive essays on life in England, including a short discourse on blood sports. As shown by his description of visiting Somerset House, Orazio Busino had a keen interest in drama and theatre. In September 1618 Contarini went to Oatlands to see Anne of Denmark. Hunting was rained off. At dinner, Contarini was seated with Alethea Howard, Countess of Arundel, an enthusiast for all things Italian Contarini wrote a ''

relazione Relazioni (Italian for reports or accounts; ''singular'' relazione) were the final reports presented by Venetian ambassadors of their service in foreign states. Relazioni contained descriptions of the current political, military, economic, and ...

'', a description of English affairs in 1618 after returning to Venice. He noted the growing English trade with the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and aroun ...

for pepper, cloves, indigo, and silk, commodities which previously were supplied by Venetian merchants. Contarini heard that Anne of Denmark was unhappy because King James spent less time with her. Although it was often said she was a Catholic, her religion was unknown to him.Allen B. Hinds, ''Calendar State Papers Venice, 1617-1619'', vol. 15 (London, 1909), pp. 414-422 no. 679.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Contarini, Piero 1578 births 1632 deaths 16th-century Venetian people 17th-century Venetian people Ambassadors of the Republic of Venice to the Kingdom of England Court of James VI and I House of Contarini