Provveditori All'Armar

The () were officials of the Republic of Venice responsible for the provisioning and equipment of the ships and crews of the Venetian navy.

History

Up to the mid-16th century, naval matters were supervised by the five-member board of the , but gradually a more complex and professional administration was built up.

As part of this process, already in 1497, two patricians were entrusted with supervising naval affairs, as the , whose number was raised to three in 1499. In 1545, two were established, raised in 1644 to three, to supervise the provisioning, equipment and clothing of the fleet and its crews. They had the right to appoint any officer other than patricians, and to try disputes between officers, sailors, and convict crewmen. As such, they formed part of the Venetian admiralty, the , along with the of the Venetian Arsenal and other officials.

The had to be kept abreast of the location and role of all naval personnel at all times, so that anyone required for a particular task might be mobilized at once. This lasted until the end of the 16th century. With the onset of a longer period of peace after that, the rolls of eligible personnel, supposed to be renewed every ten years, were neglected.

The were also responsible for supervising the outfitting and decommissioning of every warship in person, checking the presence of the assigned crews and material and the accounting books, and of handing over to the captains their written instructions. All senior naval commanders () had to file reports every two months to the on wages and other expenses, while the themselves were obliged to perform monthly inspections. Galley captains () were obliged to report the number of their hired crewmen and the money owed to the upon the decommissioning of their ship within 15 days.

References

Sources

*
*

{{Venetian navy

Government of the Republic of Venice
1545 establishments in Italy
16th-century establishments in the Republic of Venice
Venetian navy