by Ugo Foscolo

Born on the Greek isle of Zante in 1778, Niccolò (later known as Ugo) Foscolo was the eldest son of Andrea Foscolo, a Venetian doctor, and Diamantina Spathis, the Greek daughter of a tailor. His father’s death in 1788 plunged the mother and children into poverty, forcing them to leave Spalato, where Andrea had worked as director of the hospital, and return to Zante. For a time, the children were sent to different relatives, but the family finally reunited in Venice, where they established a home in 1792. Ugo was educated at the school of San Cipriano in the area of Venice known as Murano, where he studied philosophy and literature and began to write poetry. His talents attracted the attentions of the cultured and influential Countess Isabella Teotochi Albrizzi, who invited him to join her literary...