The Palazzo San Giorgio or Palace of

St. George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...

(also known as the Palazzo delle Compere di San Giorgio) is a

palace A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

Genoa, Italy Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, 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 t ...

. It is situated in the

Piazza Caricamento A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

. The palace was built in 1260 by

Guglielmo Boccanegra Guglielmo Boccanegra was a Genoese statesman, the first ''capitano del popolo'' of the Republic of Genoa, from 1257 to 1262, exercising a real lordship, assisted in the government by a council of 32 elders. Biography Origin and early years Th ...

, uncle of

Simone Boccanegra Simone Boccanegra (; lij, Scimon Boccaneigra ; died 1363) was the first Doge of Genoa. He became doge in 1339, but was ousted from power six years later. He regained the position in 1356, retaining it until his death in 1363. His story was popul ...

, 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 ...

. For the construction of the new palace, materials were used from the demolition of the Venetian embassy in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

, having been obtained from

Byzantine Emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...

Michael VIII Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( el, Μιχαὴλ Δούκας Ἄγγελος Κομνηνὸς Παλαιολόγος, Mikhaēl Doukas Angelos Komnēnos Palaiologos; 1224 – 11 December 1282) reigned as the co-emperor of the Empire ...

as a reward for Genoese aid against the

Latin Empire The Latin Empire, also referred to as the Latin Empire of Constantinople, was a feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. The Latin Empire was intended to replace the Byzanti ...

. Stone lions – the emblem of Venice's patron

St Mark Mark the Evangelist ( la, Marcus; grc-gre, Μᾶρκος, Mârkos; arc, ܡܪܩܘܣ, translit=Marqōs; Ge'ez: ማርቆስ; ), also known as Saint Mark, is the person who is traditionally ascribed to be the author of the Gospel of Mark. Accor ...

– were displayed as trophies on the facade by her bitter rival, the

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 ...

. The palace was intended — through the creation of a civil-political center — to separate and elevate the temporal power of the Republic's government from the religious power of the clergy, centered on the

Cathedral of San Lorenzo Genoa Cathedral or Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Lawrence ( it, Duomo di Genova, ''Cattedrale di San Lorenzo'') is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the Italian city of Genoa. It is dedicated to Saint Lawrence (San Lorenzo), and is the seat of t ...

. In 1262, Guglielmo Boccanegra was deposed and forced into exile. The palace was used for a time as a

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...

;

Marco Polo Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...

was its most famous resident and it was there that he dictated his memoirs to

Rustichello of Pisa Rustichello da Pisa, also known as Rusticiano (fl. late 13th century), was an Italian romance writer in Franco-Italian language. He is best known for co-writing Marco Polo's autobiography, ''The Travels of Marco Polo'', while they were in prison ...

. In the 15th century, the palace became home to the

Bank of Saint George The Bank of Saint George ( it, Casa delle compere e dei banchi di San Giorgio or informally as ''Ufficio di San Giorgio'' or ''Banco'') was a financial institution of the Republic of Genoa. It was founded in 1407 to consolidate the public debt ...

Sources

*Giuseppe Felloni - Guido Laura ''Genova e la storia della finanza: una serie di primati?'' 9 November 2004,

References

External links

*
360° interactive high resolution panoramic photographs of the interiors of Palazzo San Giorgio
— photographs by Hans von Weissenfluh {{Coord, 44.409, N, 8.929, E, display=title, source:dewiki Buildings and structures completed in 1260 San Giorgio, Palazzo Defunct prisons in Italy Gothic palaces