Triadan Gritti was a 15th-century

Venetian Venetian often means from or related to: * Venice, a city in Italy * Veneto, a region of Italy * Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area Venetians might refer to: * Masters of Venetian painting in 15th-16th centuries * ...

nobleman who was the Venetian captain general and commander-in-chief of

Scutari Scutari may refer to: * Shkodër, in Albania; also known as ''Scutari'' in Italian and traditional English usage * Sanjak of Scutari, Ottoman province centred on the city * Pashalik of Scutari, a semi-independent Albanian state during Ottoman rule ...

Diplomatic and military career

In 1451 Gritti served as the Venetian ambassador to the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

. When the news of Ottoman preparations for the siege of Scutari reached Venice in early 1474, Triadan Gritti, who was 84 years old then, was appointed as the Venetian captain general instead of

Pietro Mocenigo Pietro Mocenigo (1406–1476) was doge of Venice from 1474 to 1476. Biography He was one of the greatest Venetian admirals and revived the fortunes of the Venetian navy, which had fallen very low after the defeat at the Battle of Negroponte in ...

. Gritti commanded the Venetian fleet of six galleys that sailed early in May 1474 to protect the coasts of Albania, Veneta, and especially the mouths of the Bojana River. By summer Gritti's forces were joined by the fleet commanded by Mocenigo, who left Cyprus after first installing Caterina Cornaro as queen of the island. Gritti and Mocenigo were later co-commanders of the Venetian relief forces sent to Scutari. Ottoman forces attempted to blockade the Venetian fleet in the Bojana by clogging the mouth of the river with tree trunks, just as the

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

voivode Mazarek did during the

Second Scutari War The Second Scutari War (; ) was an armed conflict in 1419–1426 between Zeta under the Balsha, Zeta (1419–1421) and then the Serbian Despotate (1421–1423) on the one side and the Venetian Republic on the other, over Shkodër and other former ...

. Gritti returned down the river with his fleet and destroyed the Ottoman forces on 15 June 1474. In Scutari, Gritti and Mocenigo ordered

Leonardo Boldù Leonardo Boldù was a member of the patrician family, who served the Republic of Venice as governor in Albania and ambassador to the Ottoman Empire during the First Ottoman–Venetian War. Boldu was one of the few Venetians of his era to learn Gre ...

to find

Ivan Crnojević Ivan Crnojević ( sr-Cyrl, Иван Црнојевић, italics=no, lit=Ivan the Black) was the lord of Zeta and Montenegrin-Serbian leader from 1465 to 1490. Having formed an alliance with the Republic of Venice, he led the resistance against the ...

and urge him to mobilize as many of his men as possible to help the Venetians during the

siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...

. Boldu was also ordered to transport Crnojević's cavalry and infantry over

Lake Scutari Lake Skadar or Lake Scutari (, ; cnr-Cyrl-Latn, Скадарско језеро, Skadarsko jezero, )also called Lake Shkodra (and ''Lake Shkodër'')lies on the border of Albania and Montenegro, and is the largest lake in Southern Europe. It is n ...

. After the discovery of the treason committed by Andreas Humoj, a member of Humoj family, during the Siege of Scutari, Gritti sentenced him to death and had him executed by a man from

Tuzi Tuzi (, ; or ''Tuzi'') is a small town in the central region of Montenegro, and the seat of Tuzi Municipality. It is located along a main road between the city of Podgorica and the Albanian border crossing, just a few kilometers north of Lake S ...

. In spite of his efforts, however, Gritti was not able to deliver to Scutari all the goods that his fleet carried because many of his ships were trapped in the shallow waters of the Bojana near Sveti Srđ.

Death

Gritti and Bembo died of

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

in 1474 in

Kotor Kotor (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Котор, ), historically known as Cattaro (from Italian language, Italian: ), is a town in Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. The city has ...

. They both contracted it during the siege of Scutari when they participated in several skirmishes with Ottoman forces near the mouth of the Bojana River.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gritti, Triadan Triadan 15th-century Venetian people 1390 births 1474 deaths Ambassadors of the Republic of Venice to the Holy See Captains General of the Sea Republic of Venice people of the Ottoman–Venetian Wars Ottoman–Venetian War (1463–1479)