Democracy versus Autocracy The Venetian Republic was a prototypical example of a dominant democracy. It grew from a series of villages in a lagoon into a sprawling Mediterranean Empire (Figure 6.1). While we often refer to Venice as a “city-state,” political scientist Daniel Nexon has argued that it would be better understood as a “city-empire.”12 Governors appointed by Venice ruled over subjected communities in far-flung Venetian colonies and trading ports.
