Genoese colony

The colonies of the Republic of Genoa were a series of economic and trade posts in the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Some of them had been established directly under the patronage of the republican authorities to support the economy of the local merchants (especially after privileges obtained during the Crusades), while others originated as feudal possessions of Genoese nobles, or had been founded by powerful private institutions, such as the Bank of Saint George.

Genoa, a small, poor fishing village of 4,000 inhabitants, started to become independent from the Holy Roman Empire around 1096, as a free commune. The participation of the Genoese Fleet in the Crusades (particularly the conquests of Antiochia and Acre) enriched it enormously. During the First Crusade, Genoa obtained one third of Byblos (which become a familiar possession of the Embriaco family) and Acre (one third of the port's incomes). Other small colonies were formed in Tartous (Syria), Tripoli (Lebanon) and Beirut. However, the Muslim reconquest in the following century removed Genoese presence from the Holy Land. Genoa also established colonies on the Spanish Mediterranean coast from Valencia to Gibraltar, but these were also short-lived. These colonies consisted usually of a city quarter (or even a single square) with wooden single- or double-floor houses with workshops in the lower floor.

Direct territorial expansion of Genoa began in the 13th century with the occupation of Corsica (annexed in 1284 and kept until the 18th century) and northern Sardinia. Genoa remained dominant in the Tyrrhenian Sea after the decisive naval victory against Pisa in the Battle of Meloria (1284). Genoa had also started to form colonies of Ligurians in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea in second half of the 13th century. The Genoese presence was not based on military occupation, but on economic "concessions" of Genoese and Ligurian families associated with the local traders and dominant classes.

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