Antonio de Magianis (1443 - 1510) was the leader of the Venetian Thieves' Guild in Venice, Italy during the late 15th century. Magianis was known for his advocacy for class struggle against wealthy nobles such as Emilio Barbarigo and Carlo Grimaldi, redistributing their money to the poor.
Biography[]
Thieving career[]
Antonio performing surgery on Rosa, 1481
Antonio de Magianis was born in 1443 at the very bottom of Venetian society, the son of a cobbler and a scullery maid for the Bellini family. Teaching himself to read and write between apprenticeship sessions with his father, Antonio applied to the University of Padua, but was denied due to his low social rank. Documents found in several Italian archives indicated he applied to other schools around Italy as well, and was denied at all of them. Around 1465, he dropped out of the record books, only to re-emerge four years later in connection with a robbery of a notable Venetian estate that happened to be owned by the rector of the University of Padua. In a statement recorded by the city guard, before Antonio mysteriously escaped from prison, he said: "Hard work is not enough to gain superiority in Venetian society. If one truly wants more, one has to take it!"
War with the Barbarigos[]
Antonio with two courtesans, 1485
Antonio de Magianis and his guild of thieves targeted the wealthy and gave the money back to the poor, and he was a Robin Hood-esque figure. In 1481, Magianis decided to partner with Ezio Auditore da Firenze to take down the House of Barbarigo, which was plotting to seize power in Venice through illicit means. He first helped Ezio with taking down the tyrannical merchant guild leader Emilio Barbarigo, who sought to consolidate all merchants into one guild to ensure order in the city. Ezio saved Antonio's comrade Rosa from Barbarigo's guards, and Magianis managed to successfully remove an arrow from Rosa and save her. A grateful Magianis helped Ezio with slaying Barbarigo at the Palazzo della Seta, and Magianis made Seta the new headquarters for his guild.
In 1485, Magianis assisted Auditore with his plan to stop Carlo Grimaldi from assassinating Doge Giovanni Mocenigo, helping him with scouting out the Palazzo Ducale. He also introduced Auditore to Teodora Contanto, a nun who ran her own bordello, and he helped him with tracking down Silvio Barbarigo and Dante Moro to the Arsenal (before referring him to the mercenary leader Bartolomeo d'Alviano to pursue the matter further). Antonio and his guards assisted Ezio with stealing the Apple of Eden from Rodrigo Borgia, and he attended Auditore's initiation into the Hashshashin. In 1491, he helped Luis de Santangel by introducing him to Auditore, and Magianis helped Auditore one last time in 1499, when he helped create distractions across Rome in order to weaken the defenses of the Sistine Chapel. Magianis remained the admired and respected leader of the guild for years, continuing the struggle against the wealthy.