Popular with tourists, the beautiful city on the water Venice is located on 118 islands, connected by 150 canals and 409 bridges. During the construction of all buildings, the craftsmen used a special technique, which made it possible to firmly strengthen the foundation and successfully withstand the building daily “sea bathing”. To understand the unique way to build houses on the water will help information about how Venice was built. And information about the sewage system and its current state has shocked many visitors for centuries.
How Venice was built: history
The exact date of the founding of the city is unknown, but according to scientists, the first settlement was founded by the Venetian tribes who lived here in the XII-XI centuries. BC e. During the fall of the Roman Empire, residents fleeing it settled on the small island of Rialto, which was located in the center of the lagoon in northern Italy. The territory was completely covered with reeds and was unsuitable for agriculture.
The first settlement was formed on the islands of the lagoon, which were hundreds of shallow wetlands in shallow water. They were formed from sediments of silt and soil, which over the millennia have turned into thin strips of land between hollows with water.
Such soil became the basis for the invention of the way that houses were built in Venice in the early years. The settlers chose more elevated areas of land, then erected walls of clay and the roots of the Grollo weed, which grew right there in the swamps. The roof was built from tree branches, laying on top of them tied bundles of swamp reed and straw. Such houses turned out to be a temporary refuge, the inhabitants of which, as troops advanced, returned to the mainland to their native homes.
Refugee settlements in Venice
In the VI century, during the reign of the Langobard dynasty, wealthy Veneto families migrated to the islands, fleeing the invasion of the conquerors. Arrived immigrants are used to living in more luxurious conditions, rather than in simple huts. Therefore, they immediately began to build two-story houses, in which the first clay floor was used for storage, and the second was made of wood and was intended for residential premises.
As new refugees arrived, more and more territory was needed, for which the settlers had to drain the wetlands and strengthen the shores of the bay. It also required the construction of moorings in order to transport people and goods. The shores were strengthened by a barrier of wooden trunks to raise the level of the surface, on which stones and earth were thrown on top, and then houses were built.
Initially, immigrants settled 124 islands, erecting independent settlements. Each began to build stone residential buildings and churches. Over time, each settlement expanded, houses began to be built according to the plans that were used at that time for urban development: the central square around which public buildings were erected; on diverging streets there were residential buildings. They also built a rainwater catchment basin, which provided the population with drinking water.
With the settlement of a large number of islands and the systematic drainage of swamps, they began to build bridges between them, which helped people move and transport goods.
The capital of the Republic of Venice
The central place of Venice was the island of Rialto ("high coast"), which was the safest. In 810, he became the main one in an overgrown settlement; officials and the government moved here. In connection with such political events, this part of the city required redevelopment and new development.
The Venetian state was to have its own army, weapons, warehouses for goods and houses for wealthy citizens, as well as a residence for the Doge. Initially, the capital was called "Civitas Rivoalti" (the city of Rialto), and only in the XIII century the name was changed to Venice.
The choice of the capital in favor of the island of Rialto was made, thanks to its impregnability. Due to the fact that it was surrounded by the waters of a deep sea bay, other people's large ships could not approach him. At the time of the founding of the capital here, 14 churches were already built on the island, around which the construction of the city center continued.
The beginning of the planned development of Venice
The land on the islands consisted of several layers that were soft and loose, and therefore unsuitable for holding the weight of monumental stone buildings. Builders and architects were invited to solve the problems of ensuring the sustainability of future buildings and to figure out how to build Venice on the water.
It was decided to drive into the ground piles that were brought across the sea. According to their strength characteristics, only 2 types of wood were suitable: oak and larch, the latter has the specific property of becoming stronger when placed under water.
To drain the territory, a dam was first erected, then piles were hammered, which were previously treated with special solutions and resins. For a small residential building, 6-7 rows of piles were made, for taller buildings, a “pile field”. Trunks were driven into the soil to the level where solid earth began.
The dimensions of the piles were: thickness 20 cm, length 3 m, 2 layers of wooden beams were laid on top of them, on top of which it was already possible to lay stones for the foundation of the building. According to historians, the total number of piles installed under the buildings of Venice is about 1 million.
The conservation of wood was also promoted by the properties of local silt, which stuck around the tree in the form of a protective layer and did not let air through, blocking the path of bacteria and animals. Such amazing dirt properties helped to avoid damage to piles and their rot. It is the unique properties of the Venetian silt that provided the long life and operation of buildings in the city and allowed builders to come up with a new method how to build Venice and preserve its buildings.
Wood
There are no forest plantations on the territory of the Republic of Venice, therefore all the timber for construction had to be brought from the mountainous regions of Slovenia and Croatia. These were huge larches and oaks, which were first rafted along the rivers, and then delivered to the islands by sea. According to some information, wood was also brought from Russia in the form of Perm larch or “karagai”.
Due to the properties of local silt and the deep location of piles, the access of oxygen to the wood was blocked. Because microorganisms and fungi, which are usually destructive to trees, perished. Under the influence of sea water and mineral mud, wood has become petrified for many centuries.
Venetian builders have come up with not only a way to build Venice, but also how to increase the stability and lightness of urban buildings. Wood began to be used by analogy with brickwork, in the form of strips of wooden piles. Such parts, called “remes,” were placed horizontally, at certain intervals between the masonry. They performed the role of "bearings", that is, more evenly distributed the load on the walls and roof ceilings.
The inner walls of the Venetian buildings were also laid with beams called scorzoni, which were located vertically and reduced the weight of the structure.
Istrian stone
The next question about how to build houses on water in Venice, architects decided, choosing a stone for buildings. To build a city on swampy soil, a special stone was needed that would not be destroyed by the action of sea water. The most suitable was one of the types of limestone found on the Istrian peninsula (Croatia) in the Adriatic Sea and called the "Istrian".
Such building material possessed remarkable properties:
- had high water resistance and water resistance due to the porous surface;
- it was steady against atmospheric action;
- had sufficient strength, could withstand a large mass of the building without cracking;
- it was simply cut enough to shape bricks;
- possessed resistance to erosion and attrition;
- It looked beautiful visually, because it was painted in a beautiful color resembling marble.
90% of the buildings built in Venice are made of Istrian sandstone. The stone turned out to be an ideal material for the intermediate layer between wooden piles and the brickwork from which the walls of the building were erected. It perfectly protects the building from erosion and destruction. Nowadays, such a stone is still successfully mined in the quarries of Croatia and is used to restore the old buildings of Venice. It is also used for the construction of new buildings.
Town-planning style of Venice
Due to frequent fires, Venetian builders decided to give preference to brick and masonry when erecting buildings. To understand how the city of Venice was built and multi-storey buildings in it, we turn to the architectural principles of development of that time.
The urban planning style of the “city on the water” was formed taking into account the absence of a possible military attack, so no defenses were built. Public and residential buildings had wide openings, numerous decorations, columns and decorative elements. Each house had direct access to water, where the facade of the building went. Inside, architects planned a courtyard with a garden or a fountain.
In 1501, magistrates of reservoirs were created in the city, which are still functioning today. Their functions include providing hydraulic works, granting concessions to individuals or groups, religious societies. They indicate the working area, delivery, protective measures to remove debris from the water. The contracts imply an obligation to build bridges and foundations of buildings. If they are not fulfilled, all property was transferred to the municipality.
How Venice was Built: Sewerage
There is no centralized sewage system in the city, and its function is carried out by small channels through which the city's garbage and waste products are transported directly to the Grand Canal and further to the Adriatic Sea. However, due to regular ebbs and flows, dirty water from the canals constantly flows into the lagoon. Therefore, in Venice, you can even see fish in the canals.
The length of the Venetian lagoon is 56.5 km, width - 9.6 km. It is separated from the Adriatic Sea by a sandy spit through the Lido, Chioggia and Malomocco straits, through which a fast current clears all the water and canals in the city. Thanks to them, Venice has existed for many centuries without a centralized sewage system.
In each palazzo there are sedimentation tanks in which waste accumulates, the lightest of which goes through the openings in the walls or through pipes into the canal. Heavier fractions are pumped out by constantly running scavenger boats.
The main components of the internal sewage system in the house:
- drain receiver;
- siphons or hydraulic locks;
- networks of pipes laid inside the building and going out;
- special device for cleaning pipes and their inspection.
Pre-waste passes through filters that are installed in the basement. However, meeting floating waste in the canal of Venice is quite realistic.
Now in the houses on some islands and on the mainland zone the central sewage system is already connected, but in the historical old part of the city everything remains as before.
The threat of flooding the city on the water
In recent years, the City Council of Venice has little funding for canal maintenance, since all funds have been allocated for the construction of flood floodgates (5.4 billion euros). This is due to the plan to protect the city from constant flooding and flooding, due to which there is a gradual subsidence of buildings. Over the past 50 years, Venice has fallen by 23 cm, and the flooding process continues by 1-2 mm annually.
Venice has remained for many years a museum city, which attracts millions of tourists to admire the beautiful palazzo and canals along which romantic gondolas glide. Many of the people do not even think about how Venice was built and why the buildings have been perfectly preserved for several centuries. All this thanks to the first builders and architects of the city, who thought out the unique principle of erecting multi-story buildings.