Francesco Cornaro

Who was Francesco Cornaro?

Francesco Cornaro or Francesco Corner was the 101st Doge of Venice. His reign as Doge was the shortest of any Doge. He was elected on May 17, 1656, and died only a few weeks later, on June 5, 1656.

Francesco Cornaro was the son of Giovanni Cornaro, who was Doge of Venice from 1625 to 1629. Francesco Cornaro was married to Andriana Priuli, the daughter of Antonio Priuli, who was Doge from 1618 to 1623.

Francesco Cornaro had a prestigious political career. Cornaro soured on politics after an incident occurred while he was serving as the Ambassador of the Republic of Venice to the Duke of Savoy. The Duke became convinced that Cornaro was plotting against him and had Cornaro expelled from the Duchy of Savoy. After that, Cornaro withdrew from politics and devoted himself to business. It was widely believed that he would never be elected as Doge. However, after the death of Carlo Contarini on May 1, 1656, Cornaro was elected Doge on May 17, 1656, only to die a few weeks later on June 5, 1656. He is buried in the Tolentini.