Venice had a long history of interaction with the Morea, dating back to the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade (1203–1204), when the Republic acquired control of the coastal fortresses of Modon and Coron, Nauplia and Argos.

Under the leadership of Francesco Morosini, who had led the defence of Candia, the capital of Crete, the Venetians took advantage of the Ottoman weakness and rapidly took over the island of Lefkada (Santa Maura) in 1684.

Thereafter the conflict degenerated into a stalemate, with raids and counter-raids on both sides, until the signature of the Treaty of Karlowitz between the Ottomans and the Holy League, which in Greece left the Morea, Leucas and the island of Aegina in Venetian hands.

[9] Under Corner's oversight, a committee of three senators (Jeronimo Renier, Domenico Gritti, Marino Michiel) was sent to the Morea to reorganize the provincial administration, revive local authorities, compile a cadaster and settle land disputes.

Thus the settler families were given 60 stremmata each, while the elders of the local communities were allocated 100; new grape cultures were introduced from France and Italy and import tax was levied on foreign wine, laying the foundations for the revival of viticulture and the raisin trade with Western Europe; measures were taken to develop forestry; and the indigenous silk industry was promoted.

Trade links established both with the rest of Ottoman Greece as well as with the North African coast, which exported the Morea's main produce, raisins, cereals, cotton, olive oil, leather, silk and wax.

[26] This demonstrates a deepening gulf in Moreot society: when the Turks returned in 1715, the bulk of the population remained unaffected, and only the better-off such as the contea possessors actively supported Venice, and in many cases abandoned the peninsula for Italy following the Venetian defeat.

[28] The Venetians left the local Greek Orthodox Church largely to its own devices to avoid alienating the population, but regarded it with distrust due to its dependency on the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople, under the close supervision of the Sultan.

[35] Almost the only major work undertaken by the Venetians during their rule in the Morea was the new citadel for Nauplia, on the height of Palamidi overlooking the city, whose construction began under the supervision of Morosini during the Morean War.

A large army, reportedly 70,000 men under the command of Grand Vizier Silahdar Damat Ali Pasha, left Constantinople for the Morea, which it entered in late June.

The Venetian forces, barely 5,000 strong under the provveditore generale Alessandro Bon and the captain-general Geronimo Delphino, were scattered among the various fortresses and unable to impede the Ottoman advance.

The Venetians abandoned Navarino and Coron, hoping to hold out in Modon, but the rebellion of the Greek and mercenary soldiers allowed the Ottomans to take possession of the fortress with ease.