Domenico Selvo

Domenico Selvo ( † around 1087) Venice was the 31st Doge of Venice. He ruled from 1071 until he was deposed in 1084.

Domenico Selvo was elected to the church of San Nicolò di Lido to the Doge and brought in a solemn procession to coronation into the still unfinished church of San Marco. Prior to his election he was consigliere of the Doge, and ambassador to the Emperor Henry III. He was married to Princess Theodora, daughter of the Byzantine emperor Constantine Dukas, who brought Byzantine splendor and luxury to Venice. Theodora was the last Byzantine princess who has been married to a Venetian Doge. During his tenure began to equip the interior of the now- completed St. Mark's Basilica with mosaics and the elaborate marble floor.

The marriage between Selvo and Theodora led to closer political ties between Venice and Byzantium. In the conflicts between the German Emperor and Pope Gregory VII Selvo supported the imperial party, while Gregor new allies in the Normans of Sicily, competitors of Byzantium for supremacy in the eastern Mediterranean and rival of Venice in the Mediterranean trade found. In the battle of Durazzo Venice contributed by its effective naval blockade significantly to the defeat of the Normans. Then, Venice was in the bolla d' oro privileged rights in the sphere of influence of Byzantium, exemption from taxes on the merchandise and its own trading post on the Golden Horn. This agreement forms the basis of Venice 's rise to leading power in the eastern Mediterranean.

Durazzo fell, however, two years later the Normans, and Selvos son, who commanded the Venetian fleet, was taken prisoner. For Vitale Falier, whose ambition aimed at the Dogenamt, was the occasion to agitate against the Doge. In 1084 it was forced to abdicate. He retired to a monastery. His exact date of death is unknown. He was buried in the atrium of San Marco.