The Crusades, the Genoese and the Latin East - DSpace at ...

also appointed a consul orfundacarius to lead the Pisan community in Alexandria. 326 Both the
Pisan and the Venetians had citizens in residence in Alexandria between 1215 and 1245.327 The
evolution of Venice's power in Alexandria is followed in details in Jacoby's article throughout
the first half of the thirteenth century. This is made possible due to a series of concessions which
were granted by the sultan, which remain in the Venetian archives. The first privilege was granted
in 1208 and it was followed by others 328 By the middle of the century, the Venetians had two
fondachi, a church which was dedicated to St Michael as well as a bath-house. From later treaties
Jacoby inferred that from 1208 the Venetians were allowed to sell merchandise everywhere in
Alexandria and not just the harbour area. 329 Like the Pisans, from 1208 the Venetians had a
consul representing the commune, who also had prerogative over the Venetian merchants and
residents. When conflicts occurred among the Venetians or with other Latin residents, the consul
applied the Venetian legal system 330
The discussion of the relationship between Genoa and Egypt is especially interesting due
to the variety of sources available for the analysis. It was already demonstrated that one of the
major consequences of the Fourth Crusade was Genoa's search for new markets as an alternative
to Constantinople. Aleppo was a recent addition to their commercial web, but trade with
Alexandria had gained prominence. Unfortunately, none of the privileges which were granted to
the Genoese in Alexandria can be traced in the archives of Genoa. This is an extraordinary and
rather confusing situation because the annals from the beginning of the thirteenth century mention
several diplomatic missions of prominent personnel to Alexandria, and many such concessions
have remained in the rival Italian cities of Pisa and Venice. Interestingly, despite this gap in the
Genoese sources Adolf Schaube wrote that `fir den genuesisch-ägyptischen Ilandelsverkehr
haben wir eine ziemlich große Anzahl einzelner Nachrichten, die seine rasche Wiederaufnahme
and ungeschwächte Fortdauer beweisen. 9331 Schaube concentrated in his research on the Genoese
annals but only rarely mentioned notarial evidence nor did he examined the implications of trade
relations on the relationship between Genoa and Egypt.
In 1204, the annals mention the return of two consuls from Alexandria, Ogerio de Insulis
and Belmosto Lercario junior, as well as two other consuls, Lamberto Fornario and Belmosto
Lercario the elder. The latter two were mentioned in Chapter Two as the consuls who, in 1203,
326 David Jacoby, `Les Italiens en Egypte', pp. 84-5. On Pisans concessions in Egypt see also Schaube,
Handelsgeschichte, pp. 179-180, and Allmendinger, Die Beziehungen, pp. 84-6.
327 Ibid, p. 79.
328 On the treaties with Venice see 7Th, vol. 2, docs. 188,338,485; David Jacoby, `The Supply of War
Materials', p. 105.
329
Jacoby, `The Supply of War Materials', p. 114.
330
Jacoby, `Les Italiens en Egypte' pp. 82-3.
331
Schaube, Handelsgeschichte, p. 180.
97