Felice Cornicola (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: ''Felix Cornicula''), also Felicius, was a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

magister militum (Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...

per Venetiae'' of Venice in 739. Following the murder of the doge

Orso Ipato Orso Ipato (Latin: ''Ursus Hypatus''; died 737) was the third traditional Doge of Venice (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 Ravenn ...

in 737, the

Exarch of Ravenna The Exarchate of Ravenna ( la, Exarchatus Ravennatis; el, Εξαρχάτο της Ραβέννας) or of Italy was a lordship of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire) in Italy, from 584 to 751, when the last exarch was put to death by the ...

imposed administration by annual magistri militum on Venice who replaced the

doge A doge ( , ; plural dogi or doges) was an elected lord and head of state in several Italian city-states, notably Venice and Genoa, during the medieval and renaissance periods. Such states are referred to as " crowned republics". Etymology The ...

. Cornicola was the second magister militum. Its first incumbent was

Domenico Leoni Domenico Leoni (Latin: ''Dominicus Leo Abrogatis''; life dates unknown) was a Byzantine ''magister militum per Venetiae'' in charge of Venice in 738. Following the murder of the doge Orso Ipato in 737, the Exarch of Ravenna imposed administration b ...

. Cornicola was succeeded by

Teodato Ipato Teodato Ipato (also Diodato or Deusdedit; la, Theodatus Hypatus) was Doge of Venice from 742 to 755. With his election came the restoration of the dogato, which had been defunct since the assassination of his father, Orso Ipato. Before his ele ...

. This period of government by magistri militum lasted until 742, when the fifth and last of such officials was deposed and the dogeship was restored. Originally a citizen of Malamocco, he was described as being a mild and unassuming man whose tenure as ''magister militum'' was marked by justness and moderation.Hazlitt, pp. 44-45 He is said to have become so popular with his subjects that he was able to freely and without challenge rescind the sentence of exile against

, which had been issued soon after the assassination of his father Orso Ipato. Once his twelve-month term had reached its end, Felicius was succeeded as ''magister militum'' by Teodato himself, he having gained the favour of the electors since being recalled from exile.

Notes

References

William Carew Hazlitt William Carew Hazlitt (22 August 18348 September 1913), known professionally as W. Carew Hazlitt, was an English lawyer, bibliographer, editor and writer. He was the son of the barrister and registrar William Hazlitt, a grandson of the essayist ...

, ''History of the Venetian Republic: Her Rise, Her Greatness, and Her Civilization''. Elder, Smith and Co.:

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, 1860. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cornicola, Felice Republic of Venice people Magistri militum 8th-century Doges of Venice