It was late 1606 and Sir Henry Wotton – England’s ambassador in Venice – was in the middle of a crisis. For some months past, the Republic of Venice had been embroiled in a dispute with the Pope. At its heart was the question of who had the greatest authority. The previous year, Venice had arrested two priests accused of ‘parricide, slander, and rape’ on the grounds that, in its own territory, the republic should have the final say over law and order. The Pope was furious. He demanded that Venice hand over the miscreants. When it refused, he placed the republic under interdict. Storm clouds gathered over the lagoon. War beckoned – and Wotton believed he was the man to win it.  

England had a clear interest in the affair. A few weeks after the two priests had been arrested, Guy Fawkes and a group of English Catholics had tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill the Protestant King James I. Now here was the Pope attempting to derail the government of another temporal state. The causes of Venice and England weren’t just similar; they were intertwined. 

As Wotton saw it, England had to offer its support. Already, Venice’s struggle was threatening to become a European conflict. Spain had thrown its weight behind the Pope and France was wavering. If England didn’t come to its aid, Venice would struggle to hold its own. It wouldn’t be an