Doge's Palace

ENG

title	Doge's Palace
category	palace
description
For more than a thousand years, the Doge’s Palace has been the heart and symbol of the political life and public administration within the Venetian Republic. Therefore, when that Republic fell in 1797, its role inevitably changed. Though it is not certain what the old palace looked like, it is probable that it was an aggregation of different buildings destined to serve various purposes, protected by a canal, solid walls and massive corner towers. The buildings within these walls have housed public offices, courtrooms, prisons, the Doge’s apartments, stables, armouries and other necessary facilities. Over this period the Palace was occupied by various administrative offices as well as housing the Biblioteca Marciana and other important cultural institutions within the city. In 1923 the Italian State, the owner of the building, appointed the Venice City Council to manage it as a museum open to the public. Since 1996 the Doge’s Palace has been part of the network of museums that comes under the management of the Venice Museum Authority.
link	Venice Tourist Board