In the 5th century AD, people fled to the swampy lagoon to get away from foreign invaders. This is how Venice got its shape as a city built on water.
They used the pond to stay safe and found safety among the poor fishers who lived there. Settlers dug canals and used wooden pilings to shore up the banks and build platforms for their houses.
This gave them more room and better foundations. The wooden pilings were driven into the mud, and there was so much water around them that they couldn't rot. Over time, the silt and salt in the water turned the wood into something that looks like stone. But the city has sunk because digging wells in the 1960s caused problems that made the wood less stable.
How was Venice built??
Venice in Italy is one of the most amazing towns in the world. It was built on 118 islands in the middle of the Venetian Lagoon, which is at the head of the Adriatic Sea in northern Italy.
Venice is still a beautiful secret to both tourists who have been there and those who haven't. Venice is still a well-known secret for tourists who come there to understand. Such a big city can float on water, grass, swamp. You have to see this place to believe it.
The most interesting thing about Venice is how it was built. Around the year 402 A.D., when the first people came to the islands, they needed more room and a better base to live on.
They had to find ways to protect the fragile environment while making the islands stronger, draining them, and making them bigger. So, they dug a lot of ditches and put wood pilings along the sides to make the walls stronger. They also built their buildings on the same kind of wood pilings.
A lot of wooden piles were pounded into the mud by the settlers. Some of the piles were so close to each other that they touched. Then, they cut off the tops and used the stable pieces to build the bases of their houses. There was water around the wood, so it didn't rot. It's hard to believe, but many houses in Venice are still standing on wood piles that are over 1,000 years old.
Some people today say Venice shouldn't be called the floating city, but the sinking city. But Venice began to sink as soon as it was built.
From the start, the city's weight pressed down on the mud and dirt it was built on, squeezed out water and making the land harder. Together, this event and the natural movement of high waves (called "acqua alta") cause the city to flood from time to time, making it feel like it's sinking.
The city has sunk nine inches in the last 100 years. Some scientists say that because of global warming, the sea level will rise and finally cover the coast of the Adriatic Sea and the city of Venice by the year 2100.
