Overview
Among the events of Venetian tradition stands out the Festa della Sensa, which more than any other appointment brings to life the millennial history of the Serenissima, its intimate relationship with the Sea, and with the practice of Venetian rowing.
The history of the Festa della Sensa
The Festa della Sensa (Feast of the Ascension) is celebrated on the occasion of the day of Christ's Ascension (called Sensa in Venetian) and commemorates two important events for the Republic: the first, when on May 9th of the year 1000, Doge Pietro II Orseolo rescued the populations of Dalmatia threatened by the Slavs; the second, when in the year 1177, under Doge Sebastiano Ziani, Pope Alexander III and Emperor Frederick Barbarossa concluded the peace treaty in Venice that ended the centuries-old dispute between the Papacy and the Empire. Initially, the rite was celebratory, religious, and superstitious together, only to ensure the tranquility of the sea, and it involved a simple ceremony, with the Doge's visit to the sea and the blessing of the waters of the Adriatic. Onto this pre-existing rite, the marriage with the sea was then grafted, and since then Venice celebrates its dominion over the sea by throwing a golden ring into the waters in a mystical marriage renewed every year with the words "Desponsamus te mare. In signum veri perpetuique dominii." For the occasion, the Doge wore the golden mantle with the ermine collar, the blue skirt, the red stockings, the horn, and the golden shoes. With a ceremony - which saw a retinue of rowers, escorts, musicians, and boats following - he brought to life the annual marriage with the sea, the greatest celebration of the Republic, a rite that Venice still renews today with the same spirit and sense of belonging as before. The ceremony, according to historical reconstructions, began with a mass in the monastery of Sant'Elena, after which the Bishop of Castello climbed aboard the splendid Bucintoro with a container filled with holy water, a pot of salt, and an olive branch serving as a sprinkler. The blessed water was poured into the sea, and only then did the Serenissimo Doge throw the ring into the waves. The bishop and the doge disembarked at the Lido, where a religious procession formed, heading towards the church of San Nicolò. Today, the Sensa is brought back to the city by the Festa della Sensa Committee, which celebrates the event with a water parade organized for more than 25 years by the Coordination of Venetian Rowing Associations, starting from San Marco and arriving at the Lido, composed of traditional rowing boats, with the "Serenissima" at the head, the boat on which the mayor and other city authorities take place, and from which the suggestive launch of a symbolic ring takes place.
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