Claim: Venice was a sovereign territory.

Venice -LRB- -LSB- langˈvɛnɪs -RSB- ; Venezia -LSB- veˈnɛtsja -RSB- ; Venesia -LSB- - vecveˈnɛsja -RSB- -RRB- is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region . It is situated across a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by bridges . These are located in the shallow Venetian Lagoon , an enclosed bay that lies between the mouths of the Po and the Piave Rivers . Parts of Venice are renowned for the beauty of their settings , their architecture , and artwork . The lagoon and a part of the city are listed as a World Heritage Site .   In 2014 , 264,579 people resided in Comune di Venezia , of whom around 55,000 live in the historic city of Venice -LRB- Centro storico -RRB- . Together with Padua and Treviso , the city is included in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area -LRB- PATREVE -RRB- , with a total population of 2.6 million . PATREVE is a statistical metropolitan area without any degree of autonomy .   The name is derived from the ancient Veneti people who inhabited the region by the 10th century BC . The city was historically the capital of the Republic of Venice . Venice has been known as the `` La Dominante , '' `` Serenissima , '' `` Queen of the Adriatic , '' `` City of Water , '' `` City of Masks , '' `` City of Bridges , '' `` The Floating City , '' and `` City of Canals . ''   The Republic of Venice was a major financial and maritime power during the Middle Ages and Renaissance , and a staging area for the Crusades and the Battle of Lepanto , as well as a very important center of commerce -LRB- especially silk , grain , and spice -RRB- and art in the 13th century up to the end of the 17th century . The City State of Venice is considered to have been the first real international financial center which gradually emerged from the 9th century to its peak in the 14th century . This made Venice a wealthy city throughout most of its history .   It is also known for its several important artistic movements , especially the Renaissance period . After the Napoleonic Wars and the Congress of Vienna , the Republic was annexed by the Austrian Empire , until it became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1866 , following a referendum held as a result of the Third Italian War of Independence . Venice has played an important role in the history of symphonic and operatic music , and it is the birthplace of Antonio Vivaldi . Venice has been ranked the most beautiful city in the world as of 2016 .