Which Venetian general ordered the bombardment of the Parthenon?

The story behind the answer

Francesco Morosini was the Venetian general associated with ordering the bombardment of the Parthenon.

During the Morean War, Morosini led the Venetian expedition that attacked Ottoman-held Athens in 1687. The Ottomans had turned the Parthenon into a gunpowder magazine, despite an earlier warning that storing explosives there was dangerous. On 26 September 1687, a Venetian mortar round struck the magazine and caused a massive explosion.

The blast destroyed the central portion of the temple, collapsed much of the cella, and killed about 300 people. Later, Morosini attempted to remove sculptures from the surviving structure; some fell and shattered during the effort.

The wording has a historical caveat: contemporary accounts disagree over whether Morosini deliberately targeted the Parthenon after learning it held ammunition, or whether the damaging strike was simply the result of Venetian bombardment. Nevertheless, Morosini is the canonical answer to the question because he commanded the Venetian operation.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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