- published: 03 Feb 2014
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Veneto (pronounced [ˈvɛneto], Latin: Venetia, Venetian: Vèneto) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fifth in Italy. The region's capital and largest city is Venice.
Veneto, as part of the Republic of Venice, had been an independent state for more than a millennium. The Republic was dissolved by Napoleon and ceded to the Austrian Empire, until it joined to the Italy in 1866, as a result of the Third Italian War of Independence. Venice ruled for centuries over one of the largest and richest maritime republics and trade empires in the world. Due to this rich cultural legacy and a unique identity, the regional statute describes Venetians as a "people".
Once the heartland of the Venetian Republic, Veneto is today among the wealthiest, most developed and industrialised regions of Italy. Having one of the country's richest historical, natural, artistic, cultural, musical and culinary heritages, it is also one of the most visited regions of Italy, with about 60 million tourists every year (2007).