Proclaiming power in the city: the archbishops of Ravenna and the doges of Venice

As the two main Byzantine heirs in northern and central Italy, Ravenna and Venice had continuing links with one another between 750 and 1000 1 . Th is paper does not intend to trace the links between the two cities, but to see how each city developed after the end of the Exarchate in 751. I want to examine in what way the archbishop and the doge displayed their power in the city, and see if it was diff erent between the two cities. I should like to focus on a few key factors, which are, respectively, the role of the patron saint in the city; the building and restoration of the urban fabric; the involvement of the families of the two rulers and that of the aristocratic factions, their wealth and infl uence; and the rulers’ control over ecclesiastical appointments and over monasteries, as well as their links with external powers, especially the papacy and the western empire.