Venice

Venice, also called Venezia or La Serenissima, was a city in Italy on the Adriatic coast.

As well as controlling a huge sea empire, Venice was a major centre of trade and commerce in the Middle Ages, becoming a leader in both economic and political affairs within Europe. However, by the 17th century Venice's naval importance was reduced and its trade taken over by other countries such as Portugal. (PROSE: A History of Humankind) As much of its architecture was at or below sea level, the city was gradually sinking over time. (TV: The Vampires of Venice)

River Song referred to a ride on a gondola in Venice as something which came to mind when thinking of a trip to Northern Italy. (PROSE: The Ruby's Curse)

History
Originally a collection of huts built on marshland by people running from Attila the Hun, it grew into, according to the Eleventh Doctor, "one of the most powerful cities in the world". Influenced by a variety of cultures, it was the hub of a trading empire, its islands famously separated by an intricate series of canals. By 1580, it already had a population of some two hundred thousand people. Because of its improbable architecture at or below sea level, it was gradually sinking over time. (TV: The Vampires of Venice)

In 1087, the Second Doctor was accused of being a Venetian spy by other Italian sailors from Bari. (PROSE: Saint Nicholas's Bones)

Marco Polo was born in St Mark's Square in Venice in 1252. (TV: "The Roof of the World", PROSE: The Empire of Glass) Polo's travels led him to become a part of the court of Kublai Khan. He hoped to obtain leave to return to Venice by gifting the Doctor's TARDIS to the Khan. (TV: Marco Polo)

River Song visited Venice many times during the 15th century, 20th century, and 21st century for research during her employment with DreamInc for the construction of New Venice. (PROSE: Death in New Venice)

A colony of Saturnyn refugees had made it to Venice by 1580, led by Rosanna Calvierri. However, only the males survived, though there were ten thousand of them. To rectify this problem and save their species, Rosanna lied about an outbreak of the plague, quarantining the city. She took in young girls under the pretence of providing them with a better education, and converted them into Saturnyns. Rosanna also intended to create a tidal wave that would sink the city of Venice, providing her race with a habitat to live in. The Saturnyns unwittingly attracted the attention of the Eleventh Doctor, Amy Pond and Rory Williams after they took in Isabella and almost killed a flower seller. The Doctor, Amy and Rory, along with Isabella's father, Guido, investigated Rosanna, forcing her to accelerate her plan. However, the Doctor disabled her weather device, stopping Venice from being flooded. (TV: The Vampires of Venice)

The First Doctor, Steven Taylor and Vicki Pallister visited Venice in 1609, where the Doctor told his companions that it had disappeared into the ocean "centuries before either of [them] were born". (PROSE: The Empire of Glass)

The Eighth Doctor and Charley Pollard later visited Venice in 2294. It was expected to finally sink into the sea as a result of a curse 100 years previously. However, this was reversed by Duchess Estella and Duke Orsino, and the city was returned to its former state, albeit suffering much damage. (AUDIO: The Stones of Venice)

The Thirteenth Doctor posed as a museum curator in Venice. visited her to ask for the location of items that had been stolen from her in the 14th century. Missy took an old map from her and left. Later, she saved Antonia from being left behind in 14th century Venice, returning her to the present. She left Antonia with a note chastising Missy for her actions and telling that she would have to try harder next time. She then cleared out her office and told her assistant to tell anyone who asked that "the Doctor doesn’t work here any more". (PROSE: The Liar, the Glitch and the War Zone)

Reputation
At least three incarnations of the Doctor found it an incredibly attractive city to visit. The First Doctor once told Steven and Vicki that the marshes surrounding the city was a "wonderful place", based on the quality of the air and shoreline. (PROSE: The Empire of Glass) The Eighth Doctor told Charlotte Pollard it was "magnificent and charming and often quite silent and sinister", and a city with a desolate look in the morning that was reborn by its own lights every night. (AUDIO: The Stones of Venice) The Eleventh Doctor took Rory Williams and Amy Pond to the city as a wedding present. He described it as an "impossible" and "preposterous" city "constantly being invaded, constantly flooding, constantly . . . just, beautiful". He was confident Amy and Rory would love it because many famous humans before them — including Byron, Napoléon Bonaparte, and Casanova — had. (TV: The Vampires of Venice)

Behind the scenes

 * A standalone panel by comic artist Lee Sullivan shows Casanova, as played by David Tennant in the, meeting the Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler amidst an invasion of Venice's St Mark's Square by bronze Daleks.