Chioggia historical timeline

Origins

The settlement grew from a Roman canal and port, Fossa Clodia, and became one of the lagoon communities that took in refugees from the mainland during the invasions of late antiquity.

Turning points

Chioggia was a substantial rival to Venice before falling under its control. In 1379 a Genoese fleet captured the town in the war for Adriatic dominance; Venice blockaded and retook it by 1380, and the War of Chioggia ended Genoese ambitions in these waters for good.

Influential people

The town rebuilt in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries as a Venetian fishing and salt port. Baldassare Longhena rebuilt the cathedral after a fire in 1623.

Cultural evolution

Carlo Goldoni set Le baruffe chiozzotte (1762) here -- a comedy written in the town's own dialect, about fishermen's families quarrelling, and still the most famous portrait of the place.

Present-day significance

Chioggia remains one of Italy's most important fishing ports, and the MOSE barriers at its inlet have made it central to the argument about how the lagoon survives rising seas.