Venice Lido (), commonly Lido or the Lido, is an barrier island in the Venetian Lagoon, Northern Italy; it is home to about 20,400 residents. The Venice Film Festival takes place at the Lido in late August/early September.
Geography The Lido island is the more northerly of the two barrier islands of the Lagoon of Venice; the other is Pellestrina. They form the central part of the coastline of the lagoon on the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula of Cavallino/Punta Sabbioni forms the northern part and the peninsula of Sottomarina forms the southern part. The sea has access to the lagoon through three inlets between the islands and between the islands and the peninsulas. At the northern end of Lido there is the Lido inlet which separates it from Cavallino/Punta Sabbioni and at the southern end there is the Malamocco inlet which separates it from Pellestrina. These two inlets have been dredged to a greater depth to allow big ships through. The Malamocco inlet is the deepest one and is used by container ships and oil tankers to reach the commercial and industrial port of Marghera. The Lido inlet is the widest one (c. ) and is used by cruise ships to reach Venice.
Lido is a long and narrow island which gets wider in its northern tract. At least half the seaward coast has sandy beaches. Much of the beach at the town of Lido belongs to various hotels. There are large public beaches towards the northern and southern ends.
The island is home to a town and a village. The town is in the north. It is also called Lido (population 15,128 in 2019). It has four neighbourhoods: San Nicolò and Santa Maria Elisabetta are on the lagoon side coast (the landing stage for the Venice ferry is in the former and the one for the water bus is in the latter), while La Favorita and Quattro Fontaine are on the seaward coast. It developed in the 19th century as a tourist centre, both as a leisure seaside resort and as a balneotherapy resort. It has many 19th century villas built in Liberty style (the Italian version of Art Nouveau) and many hotels. It is famous for being the seat of the Venice Film Festival and for its grand hotels, such as the Grand Hotel des Bains, the Hotel Excelsior, and the Hotel Ausonia & Hungaria which have hosted celebrities, artists and writers, major businessmen, politicians and royalty. The Gran Viale Santa Maria Elisabetta ( wide and c. long) crosses the town from coast to coast and links the water bus landing stage to the beach.
The village of Malamocco (with a population of 1030 as of 2019) is on the lagoon side coast, in the central-southern part of the island. From the 12th century to the 19th century it was the only significant settlement on the island. It was built after the settlement of Metamaucum, which had been the second capital of the Duchy of Venetia, was submerged by a storm surge.
At the southern end of the island is Alberoni, an area of sand dunes. It has Venice's golf course and the Alberoni Dune Oasis which has one of the largest and best-preserved dune systems on the coasts of the Northern Adriatic Sea, with dunes up to high, a large, c. , pine forest and unique species of flora and fauna.
History Metamaucum Metamaucum was one of the earliest settlements in the Lagoon of Venice. Its origins dated back to the Roman days. It became the second ducal seat of the duchy of Venetia (before the rise of Venice) when Teodato Ipato (742–755), the second doge, transferred it from Heraclea, to 811, when the doge Agnello Participazio (811–827) moved it to Rivoalto. It was temporarily occupied by Pepin of Italy when he tried to invade the lagoon in 810. It was destroyed by the doge Giovanni I Participazio (829–836) when he suppressed a rebellion based in Metamaucum. The settlement continued to be inhabited, but it was a shadow of its former self. Its decadence reached its peak when its priory was moved to the island of Murano (1080), the S.S. Leone e Basso nuns moved to the island of San Servolo (1109) and its diocese was moved to Chioggia between 1107 and 1110. In 1116 it was submerged as a result of an exceptional storm surge. According to the tradition, Metamaucum was on the seashore of the Lido island, rather than on its lagoon shore.
A new settlement was built on the lagoon shore of Lido, close to where Metamaucum had been. The existence of a Metamaucum Nova, which corresponds to today's Malamocco, was first attested in 1107.Lanfranchi, L., Zille, G., Il territorio del Ducato Veneziano dall'VIII al XII secolo, in Storia di Venezia, 1958, pp. 27-28
Military island Until the 19th century Lido's main role was a military one for the defence of the lagoon as it lies by the lido inlet, the widest point of entry of the lagoon and the one which is closest to Venice. It continued to have a military role until WW II. Prior to the 19th century it was also a scarcely populated island. In 1820 Lido has 814 inhabitants, 662 of whom lived in Malamocco, and 152 lived in San Nicolò.Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, p. 99
In 600 a lookout tower was built at San Nicolò, at the northern end of Lido, on its lagoon side shore, to monitor enemy ships, particularly pirate ships, approaching the lagoon at the Lido inlet. In 1100 it was strengthened and developed into a fort under the doge Vitale I Michiel (1096-1102). This fort was later called Castel Vecchio (Old Castle).Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, pp. 28
In 1229 crossbow shooting ranges were created in areas of Venice for weekly exercises by men between the ages of 16 and 35. In 1229 a shooting range was established at San Nicolò. It hosted shooting contests at Christmas and Easter to make the exercises more interesting. Infantry, cavalry, and artillery units were also stationed in the area and foundries for armaments and munitions were built where the Jewish cemetery was later set up. In 1304 a militia was instituted. The sailing to Lido was also turned into a contest. The men rowed to the island on boats (called ganzaruoli) with 30-40 oarsmen boats which competed over who would get there first. This is the origin of the word regatta. The only establishment that sold wine at San Nicolò was closed during the contests. A lighthouse was also built close to the shooting range. A permanent garrison was set up. It served as rest area for troops which needed to briefly stop by. Wells to supply freshwater to ships that left the city were built.Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, pp. 60, 64-65
In the mid-14th century tensions between Venice and the Republic of Genoa escalated due to their rivalry over supremacy of the naval routes and trading ports in the eastern Mediterranean . 1318. San Nicolò was bombed several times by a Genoese fleet.Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, p. 62
In 1335 the Gagiandra (turtle in Venetian) was built. It was a platform for artillery which was placed in the Lido channel which went from the Lido inlet to Venice. It was broad and tapered at the stern and bow. It was covered by a metal plate which acted as a shield. The canons were sticking out of this shield. This gave it the appearance of the head, tail and legs of a turtle. The platform was placed between the Castel Vecchio (Old Castle) at San Nicolò and the Castel Novo (New Castle) on the Vignole island. These two islands and the island of Certosa formed the shores of the channel. An iron chain was placed across the channel. It was supported by the Gagiandra and two rafts placed midway between the "turtle" and the two shores. The chain was kept close to the surface of the water to prevent enemy ships to pass above it.Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, pp. 64-65
In 1379 Genoa attacked the lagoon in the War of Chioggia (1379–80). Two towers were built as platforms for crossbows and cannons at the Castel Vecchio and Novo forts (on the Lido and Vignole islands) on the two sides of the Lido channel, to further protect the entrance to the lagoon. Small boats which were chained together were placed between the two towers. Between them there were three ships with archers covered with fresh hides to protect them from fire. A ditch and earthen rampart strengthened with stone were created to protect the S. Nicoló abbey. Eventually Venice won the war.Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, pp. 66-6
In 1409 an admiralty was established at S. Nicolò. 1520 The Council of Ten build a building to house its offices and barracks for its officers who were entrusted with monitoring Lido, its fortresses, its inlet and the way the sea changed its beaches. This was called the Casa Rossa (Red House).Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, pp.70, 78
In the 16th century, with the Turkish conquests in south-eastern Europe and the eastern Mediterranean, which were a threat to the Venetian dominion in that part of the Mediterranean the Turks were also considered a threat to Venice itself.
Between 1543 and 1549 Castel Novo, on the Vignole island, was developed into the Sant’Andrea fort. Between 1546 and 1574 Castel Novo at San Nicolò was developed into the San Nicolò fort. Between 1569 and 1574 the latter was strengthened with a triple ditch. Artillery was placed on the seaward side. There were no batteries on the lagoon side in case the fortress was seized and the cannons would be used against the Sant’Andrea fort. The fort became a complex with the military headquarters of the Republic of Venice. The whole area became a c. fortified citadel stretching along the lagoon coast with brick barriers and bastions, a dike and an earthen fore wall. It was later extended towards the sea with angular barriers, six gates and underground exits on the sea beach side, towards the entrance to the Lido inlet. Inside the new fortification there were the old San Nicolò church and its convent and the adjacent Palazzo dei dieci/Casa Rossa at the back. In 1572 an Istrian stone bridge that looked like a triumphal arch over the dock was built to provide access to the citadel.
Large barracks for the troops, known as Saraglio, Quartier Grando or Palazzo dei Soldati (Stronghold, Large Quarters or Building of the Soldiers) were built between 1591 and 1594. It was an imposing building which provided lodgings for 2000 soldiers. It was the first true barracks in Europe, the first instance in which troops were lodged in peacetime. It was an important step towards the creation of a modern army as opposed to a mercenary army or a militia. It was built on the location where the crusaders had gathered before setting off for the fourth crusade. From 1600 the barracks hosted the Fanti da Mar (Infantrymen of the Sea), the first amphibian troops in history, a sort of precursor of today's marines.Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, pp. 28-29, 83-84
In 1571 it was decided to build octagonal forts for artillery batteries on islets off the lagoon side shore of Lido. They were the Ottagono Campana (later called Abbandonato, abandoned octagon), between Malamocco and Alberoni (off the southern end of the Lido island) and the Ottagono Alberoni, by Alberoni and the northern end of the Malamocco inlet, the other point of access into the lagoon, where ships could turn towards Venice. The Ottagono di Poveglia (further north, on the Poveglia island, off Malamocco) acted as a reinforcement for the other two octagons further south. Two octagons were built off the Pellestrina island, the Ottagono San Pietro, at the northern end of the island and the southern end of the Malamocco inlet and the Ottagono Caroman, at the southern end of Pellestrina to guard the Chioggia inlet, the third entry point of the lagoon. In 1572, 75 artillery were supplied for the San Nicolò fort and 56 for Sant’Andrea.Distefano G., Lido di Venezia, atlante storico, 2103, pp. 83-84