The fall of Venice on May 12th, 1797, was the result of a war that the Republic of Venice formally wasn’t even party to.
The Consiglio Maggiore – or the Great Council – was the highest authority of the Venetian Republic. It was not, however, an elected body. It was the entire electorate.
Venice was a republic from the beginning, but in a time when hereditary power was the norm, why did Venice become a republic and not a monarchy?