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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 extremely 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 was the subject of a play The Two Foscari by Lord Byron, which itself served as the basis of an opera I Due Foscari by Giuseppe Verdi which premiered on November 3, 1844.
