History of the Republic of Venice a powerful fleet sailed from Venice, to resolve the problem of the Narentine pirates. The fleet visited all the main Istrian and Dalmatian cities, whose citizen, exhausted by the wars between the Croatian king Svetislav and his brother Cresimir, swore an oath of fidelity to Venice. the Main Narentine harbours (Lagosta, Lissa and Curzola) tried to resist, but they were conquered and destroyed (see: battle of Lastovo). The Narentine pirates were suppressed permanently and disappeared. Dalmatia formally remained under Byzantine rule, but Orseolo became "Dux Dalmatie" (Duke of Dalmatia"), establishing the prominence of Venice over the Adriatic Sea. The "Marriage
Captain of the Gulf appointment of a Captain of the Gulf and the galley captains ("sopracomiti") for the galleys to be outfitted in Venice. The commanders of the galleys equipped by Venetian colonies were decided by the local colonists. In the 16th century, the Captain of the Gulf, at the head of a squadron that in peacetime numbered 7 to 12 galleys, patrolled the seas around the Venetian Ionian Islands. In wartime, the Great Council authorized the creation of a fleet under the Captain-General of the Sea, who led the fleet on overseas campaigns, e.g. in the Aegean Sea or the Levant; the Captain