Francesco Foscari

Francesco Foscari (19 June 1373 – 1 November 1457) was the 65th Doge of the Republic of Venice, serving from 1423 until his death in 1457. His reign of 34 years, 6 months, and 8 days was the longest in Venetian history. His tenure coincided with the early stages of the Italian Renaissance, a period during which Venice increased its prominence in art, humanism, and diplomacy.

Foscari's dogeship marked a critical phase in the territorial expansion of Venice onto the Italian mainland—known as the Domini di Terraferma—through prolonged wars with Milan during the Wars in Lombardy.