The Interplay between the Imperial Court and the Western Maritime Powers: The Impact on the Economy of Late Byzantine Constantinople

The economic policy implemented by Emperor Michael VIII after his recovery of Constantinople in 1261 pursued three goals: revitalize the city's economy by attracting population, craftsmen and traders, the latter both Byzantine and foreign; ensure a stable supply of basic commodities; and provide the imperial treasury with a sizeable revenue. The grant of privileges to Genoa and Venice, far broader than before 1204, proved unavoidable and opened the way for an ever increasing encroachment of imperial rights and revenues by the two maritime powers. In this framework the issue of Venetian or Genoese status granted to Byzantine subjects was of primary importance, since this status enabled them to evade imperial jurisdiction and taxation. In addition, the respective quarters of Venice and Genoa turned into exterritorial enclaves, a process already achieved by the 1320s. The expansion of Venetian retail trade in wine beyond the boundaries of the Venetian quarter also created tension between the imperial court and Venice. In the fourteenth and first half of the fifteenth century the emperors sought to limit the effects of these developments, with very limited success.

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