Francesco Foscari was doge of
Venice at the height of the
Italian Renaissance. Foscari was elected to lead Venice in a long and protracted series of wars against
Milan, governed by the
Visconti[?], who were attempting to dominate all of Italy. Despite notable victories, the war was extremly costly to Venice and to her ally
Florence, and they were eventually overcome by the forces of Milan under the leadership of
Francesco Sforza. Sforza soon made peace with Florence, however, leaving Venice adrift.
Foscari's life is the basis for an opera by Giuseppi Verdi[?] and a poem by Lord Byron.