“With several sub-departments and a distinct division of work, the Venetian secret service was different to other, more rudimentary espionage networks created by rulers (and their rivals) in other parts of Italy and early modern Europe.” -Dr Ioanna Iordanou Giacomo Casanova–as is well known–was fiercely independent, possessing an untempered passion for high adventure, self-promotion, and…
“David Lazzaretti…his doctrines were a strange medley of Christianity and Socialism. He proclaimed the advent of the Divine Republic, the death of tyrants, and the triumph of eternal justice.” -From “Death of a Fanatic”, in The Cincinnati Evening Star, 26 November 1878 It’s been said that a prophet never achieves fame in his own homeland,…
“This valorous woman, with sword in hand…commanded troops of soldiers like a captain…” -from Gynevera de le clare donne by Giovanni Sabadino degli Arienti, eds. C. Ricci and A. Bacchi della Lega (1888). “From her earliest years she hunted wild beasts, and almost like another Diana, she led many companions with her, running through the countryside and…