Battle of Meloria: Genoa Breaks Pisan Sea Power
Pisa and Genoa had competed for control of the western Mediterranean's Tyrrhenian trade routes and the islands of Corsica and Sardinia since the 11th century, both maritime republics having grown wealthy on shipping, trade, and Crusader-era transport contracts. In August 1284, a Genoese fleet met the Pisan navy near the Meloria shoals off Livorno. The battle ended in overwhelming Genoese victory: a large portion of the Pisan fleet was sunk or captured, and thousands of Pisan sailors were taken prisoner -- so many, according to a Tuscan proverb of the time, that 'whoever wants to see Pisa must go to Genoa' where the prisoners were held for years, many dying in captivity. Pisa never rebuilt a fleet capable of contesting Genoese or Tyrrhenian naval dominance again. Weakened both militarily and economically, and increasingly squeezed by Florence's growing regional power, Pisa's independence lasted little more than a century longer before Florence purchased and then militarily secured control of the city in 1406, ending Pisa's history as an independent maritime republic.
- Year: 1284 CE
- Category: Military
