Orso Ipato (; died 737) was, by tradition, the third

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 ...

(726–737) and the first historically known. During his eleven-year reign, he brought great change to the Venetian navy, aided in the recapture of

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

from Lombard invaders, and cultivated harmonious relations with the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

. He was murdered in 737 during a civil conflict.

History

Perhaps a native of Eraclea, Orso was elected Doge in 726 following the death of Marcello Tegalliano. The Venetian people had elected him against the will of the Byzantine Empire, a consequence of the Byzantines' unwelcome attempts to institute

iconoclasm Iconoclasm ()From . ''Iconoclasm'' may also be considered as a back-formation from ''iconoclast'' (Greek: εἰκοκλάστης). The corresponding Greek word for iconoclasm is εἰκονοκλασία, ''eikonoklasia''. is the social belie ...

in the West. Virtually nothing is known of his life before his accession, though it is reasonable to assume that he was born in the latter part of the seventh century. Doge Orso Ipato

Described by one historian as being a 'warlike man',Knight, p. 234 his reign saw much innovation in the way of martial and naval matters. He focused especially on strengthening the navy against the

Lombards The Lombards () or Longobards () were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who conquered most of the Italian Peninsula between 568 and 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written betwee ...

and other like-minded invaders active at the time. Additionally he strove to highlight the importance of military exercises, and to this end established schools in Eraclea where the town's youth were coached in bow and

crossbow A crossbow is a ranged weapon using an Elasticity (physics), elastic launching device consisting of a Bow and arrow, bow-like assembly called a ''prod'', mounted horizontally on a main frame called a ''tiller'', which is hand-held in a similar f ...

shooting.Wiel, p. 6 Of note was Orso's involvement in the recovery of

following its capture by the Lombard king Liutprand. It is said that, at the request of Exarch Eutychius, Orso sent a fleet of eighty ships to the fore, successfully relieving the city of Lombard control. This feat served to ease relations with the Byzantine Empire, and while Venice by no means accepted its supremacy, the two co-existed in relative concord. For his efforts Orso was awarded the prestigious title '' hypatos'' by Emperor Leo the Isaurian. The surname ''Ipato'' is thought to be derived from this imperial honorific. His reign came to an end in 737 in the midst of mounting conflict between Eraclea and Equilio, described by some as being a full-blown civil war. It is said that the Doge, rather than attempt to calm the situation, sided with the Eracleans and partook in the war – leading a number of his disgruntled subjects to take matters into their own hands and violently kill him. In the years following his death there was an interregnum filled by five '' magistri militum'', the first of these being Domenico Leoni. The office of doge was later restored with the election of Orso's son, Teodato, in 742.

Notes

Sources

* Norwich, John Julius. ''A History of Venice''. Alfred A. Knopf: New York, 1982. *''The Penny Cyclopaedia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge: Volume 26''. Charles Knight:

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, 1843. *Wiel, Alethea. ''The Navy of Venice''. E. P. Dutton: New York, 1910. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ipato, Orso 8th-century Doges of Venice Assassinated Italian politicians Byzantine Empire–Republic of Venice relations Year of birth unknown 737 deaths 8th-century murdered monarchs Medieval assassinated people Hypatoi