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Home / News / Announcements / After 146 years, Venice Seeks a Return to Independence
Published: Wed 24 Oct 2012 at 09:38
Updated: Wed 24 Oct 2012 at 09:40
Millions of people book cheap flights to Venice each year, with the Doge’s Palace, once home to the ruling governors of the city, being one of the key attractions.
The last doge was expelled from the palace in the late 18th century and it has been a museum since 1923. However, future travellers booking cheap flights to Venice may see a doge in residence once more, as a growing number of protesters in both Venice and north-eastern Italy are pushing for the city to become an independent republic – as it was for over 1,000 years until Napoleon invaded in 1797.
Venice was ruled first by France, and then by Austria in the 19th century, finally becoming part of Italy five years after the country’s unification in 1861. Italy held its 150th Risorgimento, or unification, celebrations last year, but many Venetians feel their city was forced into the liaison, and will only celebrate when they become a separate entity. The protest groups want to create a totally new nation, the Republica Veneta, encompassing both Venice and its surrounding areas and based on the unique historical and cultural differences that these regions have to the rest of Italy.
It is fair to say that when people book cheap flights to Venice, it is the city’s medieval, renaissance and baroque treasures that they come to see. The palaces may have faded with time, but they have lost none of their magnificence and we at Jet2.com will continue to offer cheap flights to Venice for as long as the city is standing.
