The Medici Family
The Early Medici
The first member of the Medici family to hold high public office was Ardingo de Medici, elected
Gonfaloniere in 1296. The Gonfaloniere was a highly prestigious post in medieval and Renaissance Italy,
notably in Florence. In Florence the post was known as Gonfaloniere of Justice, being held by one of the
nine citizens selected by drawing lots every two months, who formed the government. Its nine
members, the Priori, were chosen from the ranks of the guilds of the city: six of them from the major
guilds, and two from the minor guilds. Two more members of the family held the office again within the
next 30 years. The family went through a short period of decline afterward until Salvestro de Medici
returned the Medici to prominence, holding the office of Gonfaloniere in 1370 and 1378. But Salvestro
rose to power on the backs of a popular mob, the ciompi. As the ciompi fell, so did Salvestro’s political
fortunes . But Giovanni increased the family's economic status, and in the Florentine Republic, economic
power was equivalent to political power. Giovanni was returned to the office of Gonfaliere in 1421. He
would actually be the last of the Medici to hold such a high office until the 16th century. From that point
forward most of the Medici family leaders ruled from behind the scenes.
Cosimo the Elder
Cosimo de Medici, or Cosimo the Elder, was born in 1389. Growing up, Cosimo had the best education
available in 14th century Florence, and grew up with a sense of respect for classical knowledge and
ideals. He became a humanist. Florence during Cosimo's early years was split between two factions - the
faction of the upper class, captained by the Albizzi family, and the middle class supported by a few
important families such as the Medici. When Giovanni died of natural causes in 1429 Cosimo took over
the family business. In 1433 Cosimo moved to the outskirts of Tuscany, letting matters cool off between
the partisan battles of the upper and middle classes. Rinaldo degli Albizzi arranged for the arrest and
detention of Cosimo, and eventually, his banishment to Venice. Popular unrest in Florence led to a new
Signory, and Cosimo was brought back to Florence and given numerous powers. He consolidated all
power in his hands in dealings with the rest of Italy. Under the rule of humanism, Florence increased
both its wealth and its cultural prestige. Among the most lasting impacts of Cosimo's reign are his large
library (including a large classical collection) and his patronage of artists such as Donatello and
Fra Angelico. Cosimo's successor Piero, was less successful than Cosimo, but generally followed his
policies and5t survived his term leaving Florence much the same as he found it.
Lorenzo the Magnificent
Following the rule of Piero came the tyranny of his sons, Lorenzo and Giuliano. Giuliano died young.
Lorenzo, who became known as Lorenzo the Magnificent, did not have the economic ability of his
predecessors, and was a tyrant and hedonist. But he also patronized the arts and presided over Florence's
Golden Age. Such noted artists as Boticelli and Michaelangelo flourished during this height of the
Renaissance. Lorenzo's political ineptitude would hurt him in foreign affairs, and his tyranny deprived
him of what had always been the Medici’s strongest base of support, the populo minute.
After 1492, as notable for the death of Lorenzo de Medici to some as the Spanish defeat of the Moors and
the voyages of Columbus.
The Monk Who Would Be King
Girolamo Savonarola was born in 1452. One feast day in 1475, Savonarola left home to seek admittance
to the monastery of San Domenico at Bologna. Savonarola was sent out by the monks to preach
everywhere in Italy. In 1489 he settled at the monastery of San Marco. His preaching was famed within
Florence for its sincerity and fervour and he attracted huge crowds. Lorenzo respected him greatly, even
though Savonarola preached against the Medici Tyranny. After Lorenzo's death, Savonarola's warnings of
disaster and criticisms of the Medici increased in magnitude.
In 1494, Charles VIII of France invaded Italy. Without the support of the cadet branches of the family,
and with the populace aroused against him by Savonarola, Piero (the successor to Lorenzo) had no
chance. Florence now belonged to Charles. As Charles continued his march south, Florence was now
under the control of Savonarola. He made changes in Florence: unbecoming dress was outlawed; fasting
was continuous. Savonarola was not listening to the Pope very well however. In 1495, he was forbidden
to give any more sermons. In February 1496, he returned to the pulpit, and in 1497, Savonarola was
excommunicated. In 1498 the Franciscan monks of the area challenged Savonarola. Eventually, the
challenge was resolved in a 'duel', where a Franciscan monk and a Dominican would walk through fire.
But when their challenge failed to materialize, the pent-up energy of the mob turned against Savonarola.
He was tortured and burned to death.
The Return of the Medici
In December 1503, Piero de Medici drowned. His son Lorenzo was 12. Therefore his uncle, Cardinal
Giovanni de Medici, was the head of the family. Under the steady approach of the Spanish army to the
city of Florence, the pro-Medicean partisans skillfully encouraged by Giovanni, regained control of
Florence in 1512. In the purge of the previous officials, Machiavelli was replaced by a Medicean. He then
went to his country house in Percussina and wrote The Prince. Despite this turmoil Lorenzo managed to
have his daughter Catherine married to the French Prince Henry who later became Henry II of France.
Cosimo I was the next truly important duke within the Medici family. Cosimo purged the House of
Medici and the city of Florence from the foreign entanglements, and from the interference of his
ministers, two areas of control which had been strong since the Savanarolan era. He became the 'Grand
Duke' after conquest of neighbouring areas in 1569. Cosimo was not however an extremely popular
figure. While he brought Florence stability, he took away its freedom. The heirs of Cosimo lacked even
his heavy-handed ability to promote stability and pursue business interests.
Decadence and Decline
The next hundred years saw many lurid tales of murders, intrigues, and affairs, but little of actual political
or economic consequence. It was yet another Grand Duke Cosimo who saw the end of the Medici line.
His oldest son, Ferdinandino, had a barren wife. His younger son was having an affair with a groom
named Giuliano Dami, and showed absolutely no interest at all in his wife. Since none of his children
were going to produce heirs, his brother Francesco Maria was reluctant to give up the privilege of a
Cardinalship, and his wife was not interested in copulating in part due to his interest in members of the
other sex. He died two years later, ending the prospect of an heir. The state was nearly bankrupt and so
were most of the noble families. On July 1, 1737, the second son Gian, then Grand Duke, died. The
remaining Medici was Anna Maria, Cosimo’s daughter, and control of Tuscany now passed to the
Austrians. She died in February 1743, thus ending the Medici line. She bequeathed all the Medici
treasures to the next Grand Duke, with the condition that nothing ever be removed from Florence.
Sources: Cleough, James. The Medici: A Tale of Fifteen Generations. Robert Hale & Co., London, 1975.
Hibbert, Christopher. The Rise and Fall of the Medici. Allen Lane, London. 1974.