Republic of Pisa

Republic of Pisa
Repubblica di Pisa
Client state of the Duchy of Milan (1399-1406)
11th century–1406
Flag Coat of arms
Map of Pisa in the 11th century
Capital		Pisa
Languages		Tuscan, Latin, Italian
Government		Elective parliamentary crowned republic
•	1402–06 (last)	Gabriele Maria Visconti
History
•	Established	11th century
•	Disestablished	1406
Preceded by Succeeded by Kingdom of Italy (Holy Roman Empire) March of Tuscany Republic of Florence
Today part of		Italy  France  Spain

The Republic of Pisa (Italian: Repubblica di Pisa) was a de facto independent state centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa during the late 10th and 11th centuries. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italian trade for a century before being surpassed and superseded by the Republic of Genoa. The power of Pisa as a mighty maritime nation began to grow and reached its apex in the 11th century when it acquired traditional fame as one of the four main historical Maritime Republics of Italy.

During the High Middle Ages the city grew into a very important commercial and naval center and controlled a significant Mediterranean merchant fleet and navy. It expanded its influence through the sack of Reggio di Calabria in the south of Italy in 1005. Pisa was in continuous conflict with the Saracens, whose bases were in the Italian astersa, for control of the Mediterranean. In alliance with Genoa, Sardinia was captured in 1016 with the defeat of the Saracen leader Mujāhid al-‘Āmirī (Latin: Mogehidus). This victory gave Pisa supremacy in the Tyrrhenian Sea. When the Pisans subsequently ousted the Genoese from Sardinia, a new conflict and rivalry was born between the two maritime republics. Between 1030 and 1035 Pisa went on to successfully defeat several rival towns in the Emirate of Sicily and conquer Carthage in North Africa. In 1051-1052 Admiral Jacopo Ciurini conquered Corsica, provoking more resentment from the Genoese. In 1063, the Pisans approached the Norman Roger I of Sicily, who was conducting a campaign to conquer Sicily that would last over three decades, with the prospect of a joint attack against Palermo. Roger declined due to other commitments. With no land support, the Pisan attack against Palermo failed.