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The (), also known as the ('great sages'), were senior magistrates of the
Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...
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History

The magistracy was created in 1380 to assist the councils comprising the government of the Republic. The duty of the was to "prepare he government'sagenda, frame resolutions, defend them, and supervise their execution". Their number was not fixed in the beginning, but was eventually set at six. They were chosen from the members of the Venetian Senate, or , whence their name. As with other higher magistracies of Venice, restrictions were placed on the eligibility to the office: the members served a term of six months and could not be re-elected to the same office for six months thereafter. To ensure continuity, the appointments to the office were staggered: three took office on 1 October, three on 1 January, three on 1 April, and three on 1 July. They rotated through their duties, with holding office for a week. Like all boards of , the office did not carry a salary, but could be held in tandem with other public offices. The were always present in, and in charge of the agenda of, the daily deliberations of the Full College (the Venetian cabinet). They were also obliged to be present in all sessions of the
Council of Ten The Council of Ten (; ), or simply the Ten, was from 1310 to 1797 one of the major governing bodies of the Republic of Venice. Elections took place annually and the Council of Ten had the power to impose punishments upon Venetian nobility, patric ...
that had to do with foreign affairs. Consequently, and since no proposal could appear for vote before the Senate without having first been reviewed by the College, the came to be part of a small core of officials who exercised the most control over the governance of the Republic, alongside the
Doge of Venice The Doge of Venice ( ) – in Italian, was the doge or highest role of authority within the Republic of Venice (697–1797). The word derives from the Latin , meaning 'leader', and Venetian Italian dialect for 'duke', highest official of the ...
, the six ducal councillors, and the heads of the Ten. The post was accordingly given exclusively to the most highly regarded members of the Venetian patriciate.


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* * * * {{Republic of Venice topics Government of the Republic of Venice 1380 establishments 14th-century establishments in the Republic of Venice