The Early Life of Casanova

The life of Casanova until his imprisonment in Il Piombi at the age of thirty.
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The World of Casanova
an old map of the city of london, england in 1565 by anonymous unknown
Map of Padua. On Casanova's ninth birthday, his mother packed him off to a miserable lodging house in nearby Padua (a city that was part of the Venetian empire) where the air was regarded as healthier than that of Venice. In his memoirs, written in old age, he comments, ‘In this way did my family get rid of me’, indicative, even after all those years, of the bitterness he felt towards his mother over the way he had been treated.
an old portrait of a man with white hair
The Early Life of Casanova
Giacomo Casanova was born in Venice, 2nd April, 1725. Just over a year earlier, his then 16-year-old mother, Zanetta Farusi, had eloped with, and married, a penniless actor-dancer called Gaetan-Joseph-Jacques Casanova (her shoe-maker father subsequently dying of a broken heart). According to the official family version, Giacomo was the product of this union. In reality, the origins of his paternity were somewhat less clear-cut: the beautiful Zanetta was known to have had various admirers.
an old map of the middle east
Turcici Imperii Ottoman map Mercator Cloppenburgh 1630
Map of the Ottoman Empire, 1630. The Ottoman Empire was the great Mediterranean rival of Venice.
a painting of ships in the water with flags flying from them and people on boats
From the sixteenth century the superior galleons of the nations of the Atlantic and northern Europe began to displace the oared galleys of Venice and undermine its dominance as a political, military and commercial power.
the wheel of fortune is depicted in this black and white drawing, with an eagle holding a
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'Wheel of Fortune' by Kev Butters, artist of 'Casanova in Paris: The Shadows of the King' - an online graphic novel created by Kev Butters and Dave Thompson.
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Interior of the San Samuele playhouse where Casanova's mother performed. Theatre very much shaped who Casanova was and his perspective of the world and the people in it.
an old map with people standing around it
Casanova was born at a time when the thousand-year-old, sea-borne empire that was Venice was no longer the political, military and commercial powerhouse that it had once been. By the end of the seventeenth-century it was managing to hold its own against the existential threats of the Ottoman Turks and the Austrian Empire but the current of history was running against it.
an oil painting of ships in the ocean with people on them and other boats nearby
Battle of Lepanto - Wikipedia
Battle of Lepanto, 1571. This was the last great naval battle involving entirely oared vessels, when the Christian west defeated the Ottoman Empire.
an image of a room with paintings on the walls
The mid-1600s to the mid-1800s witnessed the era of the Grand Tour whereby rich aristocrats travelled Europe in search of art, culture and the origins of western civilisation. Venice was amongst the most favoured destinations and benefitted considerably from the profits it generated.
an old painting of a man with a book in his hand, sitting on a rock
St-Jerome (Titian). Whether it be music, art, theatre, books, churches, sculpture, gambling or the pleasures of the flesh, Venice catered for the most demanding of tastes. If you had money, Venice would help you to spend it. The state was politically stable and the population as a whole was broadly content.
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Casanova grew up surrounded by women in a tiny house in the Calle della Comedia, not far from the bustle and noise of the Grand Canal and part of the fashionable district of San Marco or, when his mother was abroad, the squalid Corte della Munghe where his grandmother lived, in the shadow of San Samuele theatre.
an old black and white drawing of a city on the water with boats in it
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The Venetian island of Murano where an eight-year-old Casanova was taken by his grandmother to have a severe nosebleed cured by a witch. He was a sickly, introverted child whose parents, it would seem, had little to do with him. Apparently, they were of the view that he was an imbecile destined for an early grave. His closest relationship was with his grandmother.
an old book with some writing on it
University of Padua - Wikipedia
University of Padua diploma, 1582. The quiet imbecile turned into a quick-witted boy with a thirst thirst for knowledge. At 12 he enrolled at Padua University to study Law. Casanova claims to have graduated at 16 but this is disputed. Historian Federico di Trocchio argues that it is certain that he never graduated whereas Ian Kelly, a more recent biographer, supports Casanova: ‘The Paduan records make clear that he graduated in 1741’ (‘Casanova: Actor, Spy, Lover, Priest’).
an old man standing with his back turned to the camera, vintage line drawing or engraving illustration
The dress of an abate. In 1740, dividing his time between Padua and Venice, Casanova became an abate. This was the first rung on the ladder towards the priesthood and gave him an enhanced status which allowed him access to more elevated social circles, including seventy-year-old Senator Alvise Malipiero.