When he was active, the Republic of Venice had a Golden Age, and was well-off economically. Aged nine, Titian went to Venice. The brothers Gentile and Giovanni Bellini taught him how to paint. In 1513, he opened his own shop, and developed into a successful painter, known all over Europe. In 1533, Charles V made him a nobleman. He also obtained a job as a painter at the court of Charles V. In 1545, Pope Paul III invited him to come to Rome, in 1548 and 1550, Titian accompanied Charles V and his son, Philip II to the Diet of Augsburg. When Titian died of the Plague in the year 1576, he was an old man. He was also one of the most famous painters of Venetian history.