Most Serene Republic ( la, Serenissima Respublica) ( it, Serenissima Repubblica) is a title attached to a number of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an states through history. By custom, the appellation "Most Serene" is an indicator of

sovereignty Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...

(see also

Serene Highness His/Her Serene Highness ( abbreviation: HSH, second person address: Your Serene Highness) is a style used today by the reigning families of Liechtenstein, Monaco and Thailand. Over the past 400 years, it has also used as a style for senior members ...

or Most Serene Highness for a sovereign prince). When used in the past, the title "Most Serene Republic" emphasized the sovereignty of the republic.

Modern states

Currently, no country officially calls itself a "Most Serene Republic".

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

, officially "the Republic of San Marino" ( it, Repubblica di San Marino), is the only modern independent nation still sometimes referred to by the style, being at times unofficially called ''the Most Serene Republic of San Marino'' ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino).

Historical states

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

( en, the Most Serene Republic of Venice; vec, Serenìsima Repùblica Vèneta; it, Serenissima Repubblica di Venezia), a city-state that existed from 697 to 1797 based in the city of

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 ...

with continuously controlled territory along the eastern Adriatic and Greece at its strongest period. The phrase "La Serenissima" ("The Most Serene") was also popularly used as a specific reference to the Venetian government or state authorities. *

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Lat ...

( en, the Most Serene Republic of Genoa; it, Serenissima Repubblica di Genova), an independent state based in present-day

Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...

on the northwestern Italian coast from ca. 1100 to 1805. After using the plain title of "Republic" for a long time, the honorific "Most Serene" was added after the election of the first

Doge of Genoa The Doge of Genoa ( lij, Dûxe, ; la, Januensium dux et populi defensor, "Commander of the Genoese and Defender of the People") was the ruler of the Republic of Genoa, a city-state and soon afterwards a maritime republic, from 1339 until the s ...

(1339). Even so, to distinguish their government from its ancient rival to the east, the Genoese rarely used the "Most Serene" designation, opting more frequently for the appellation "Superb Republic" ( it, La Superba Repubblica), a nickname allegedly coined by

Petrarch Francesco Petrarca (; 20 July 1304 – 18/19 July 1374), commonly anglicized as Petrarch (), was a scholar and poet of early Renaissance Italy, and one of the earliest humanists. Petrarch's rediscovery of Cicero's letters is often credited w ...

in 1358. *

Republic of Lucca The Republic of Lucca ( it, Repubblica di Lucca) was a medieval and early modern state that was centered on the Italian city of Lucca in Tuscany, which lasted from 1160 to 1805. Its territory extended beyond the city of Lucca, reaching the surr ...

( en, the Most Serene Republic of Lucca; it, Serenissima Repubblica di Lucca), a

city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...

that existed from 1119 to 1799 based in the city of

Lucca Lucca ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its province has a population of 383,957. Lucca is known as one o ...

, in northern

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Lucca was the third largest Italian city state (after

and

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

) with a republican constitution ("comune") to remain independent over the centuries. *

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

( en, the Most Serene Commonwealth of Poland; pl, Najjaśniejsza

Rzeczpospolita () is the official name of Poland and a traditional name for some of its predecessor states. It is a compound of "thing, matter" and "common", a calque of Latin ''rés pública'' ( "thing" + "public, common"), i.e. ''republic'', in Engli ...

Polska, lat, Serenissima Res Publica Poloniae), an

elective monarchy An elective monarchy is a monarchy ruled by an elected monarch, in contrast to a hereditary monarchy in which the office is automatically passed down as a family inheritance. The manner of election, the nature of candidate qualifications, and the ...

in Central and Eastern Europe, existing from 1569 until 1795.

References

{{Imperial, royal, and noble styles History of Europe Former republics Superlatives

Modern states

Historical states

See also

References