Genoa

Lore & Background

Genoa was the capital of one of the most powerful maritime republics for over seven centuries, from the 11th century to 1797. Particularly from the 12th to the 15th century, the city played a leading role in European commerce and trade, becoming one of the largest naval powers and among the wealthiest cities in the world. It was nicknamed 'la Superba' by Petrarch. The Bank of Saint George, founded in 1407, is the oldest known state deposit bank in the world. Genoa's historical centre is one of the largest and most-densely populated in Europe, and part of it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006. The city is the birthplace of Christopher Columbus, Andrea Doria, Niccolò Paganini, Giuseppe Mazzini, Pope Benedict XV, Renzo Piano, and Grimaldo Canella, founder of the House of Grimaldi.

In Their Own Story

The salt air off the Ligurian coast tasted of tar and copper. Marco Doria stood on the quay at the old port, watching his galleys load bales of silk from the Levant while a Venetian factor across the water pretended not to count the crates. Behind him, the great banking house of his family kept its ledgers open through the night, the quill-scratch of clerks a sound as familiar as the bells of San Lorenzo. The Doge had asked for a loan to fund another war against the Aragonese. Marco had already declined. Gold was for lending to those who could repay it, and the Aragonese had not repaid the last. He turned from the water, walked the narrow cobbled street past the spice merchants, and climbed the stairs to the counting-house. There was a letter from a factor in Caffa, and the price of pepper had shifted. In Genoa, a man did not need an army to move the world. He needed a ledger and a fleet that could deliver the goods.

Reader's Guide

In the game's timeframe, Genoa is depicted as a playable maritime republic, reflecting its historical status from the 11th century to 1797. The city's wealth and naval power were at their height from the 12th to the 15th century. Its port is the busiest in Italy and the Mediterranean Sea, and twelfth-busiest in the European Union. The city forms the southern corner of the Milan-Turin-Genoa industrial triangle and is a major economic centre, hosting companies such as Fincantieri, Leonardo, Ansaldo Energia, Mediterranean Shipping Company, and Costa Cruises.

Did You Know?

• Genoa's modern name may derive from the Latin word for 'knees', because it was deemed to be on the 'knee region' of a 'booted leg'.
• The city's name may also come from the theonym of Janus, a Roman deity with two faces, used as a metaphor for the city's sea-facing and mountain-facing sides.
• Genoa was credited with the invention of blue jeans around the 14th century; its navy equipped sailors with jeans as a fabric that could be worn wet or dry.
• The Bank of Saint George, founded in 1407, is the oldest known state deposit bank in the world.