The Medici Family
Their Patronage of the Arts and the
Rise of Florence
Pre-Medici Florence - Territory
At the end of the 14th century,
Florence was ruled by a
merchantile elite.
Costly, continuous wars enlarged
the territory of the city-state by
conquering Arezzo, Cortona,
Prate, Pistoia and Pisa.
Pisa’s ports made the Republic of
Florence a sea power and major
economic power of the West
Pre-Medici Florence - Economy
• Banking was a major source of
power and income, and the
Florentine gold coin, the florin was
so reliable that it was the standard
coinage in Europe
The Florin
• Much of Florence's wealth was
dependent on the manufacture
and trade of cloth, primarily wool.
Pre-Medici Florence – Ruling Families
Florence was controlled by the Albizzi and Pazzi families until
about 1438.
(see
http://www.pbs.org/empires/medici/medici/index.html
- The Albizzi family had controlled the republican
government for two generations, but they led a lot of
costly wars, so the people switched allegiances to the
Medici.
- The Pazzi family were wealthy bankers that were in a
semi-friendly competition with the Medici family.
Eventually, they tried to depose the Medicis, failed,
and their lineage ended.
Pre-Medici Florence – The Arts
• Churches and public buildings, and
houses constructed with Romanesque
or Gothic architecture, reminiscent of
northern Italian influence.
• Most of the architecture tried to
combine utilitarian and aesthetic
purposes, because these mercantile
elite needed to rebuilt the city from
disasters (a flood in the late 1300s) but
they wanted to be impressive as well
The Palazzo Davanzati is a
good example of the transition
from the medieval tower house
to the Renaissance palace.
• The Albizzi family supported a lot of
artists and cultural icons
Family Tree
Beginnings of Medici Power
• Giovanni di Bicci de’Medici
– First of the famous ruling Medici’s
and considered founder of Medici
family fortune
– Giovanni is considered to be the
first prominent patron of the arts
– Giovanni was a leader not
concerned with politics, but rather
the family fortune and the arts
– Giovanni died in 1429 and his son
Cosimo became head of the Medici
family
Church of San Lorenzo
• In the 1420’s Giovanni di
Bicci and Cosimo
commissioned
Brunelleschi to do
extensive renovation, and
it became the first church
since Roman times to use
the classical style.
• Attached to the church is
the Laurentain Library
which houses the Medici
library.
• The Church also houses
Michelangelo's famous
Medici tomb
Rise of Cosimo de’Medici
• Became head of powerful family bank, and amassed a fortune
because he became banker to the pope, and his bank also spread
to all the important financial markets throughout Europe.
• Cosimo was very interested in a rebirth of classical ideas and
even went so far as to recreate Plato’s ancient academy in
Carregi.
• Cosimo was also a very religious man and much of his patronage
of the arts was rooted in his religious fervor.
• Cosimo spent a considerable portion of his wealth on the arts
– Amassed the largest library in Europe
– Supported artists such as Ghiberti, Brunellechi, Donatello,
Alberti, Fra Angelico, and Ucello
• Florence became cultural center of Europe
Artists Commissioned by Cosimo
The Rout of San Romano, Ucello
The Nativity, Fra
Angelico
Santa Maria Novella, Leon Baptista Alberti
St. Mark, Donatello
Fall of Cosimo de’Medici
• Political career in shambles after Florence’s
unsuccessful campaign against Lucca
– Campaign engineered by Brunelleschi to flood city of
Lucca, containing water with giant dam
– Plan backfired when dam broke and flooded camps of
Florence as well
• In September 1433, Cosimo was imprisoned on
charges of plotting to overthrow the government
• Cosimo was then banished to Venice, resulting in
the loss of Brunelleschi’s most powerful patron
Lorenzo de’Medici
• Grandson of Cosimo
• Lorenzo, know also as Lorenzo the Magnificent, was is
said to be the most brilliant of the Medici
• Lorenzo was also respected as a very talented Latin poet,
and like his family members was very interested in texts
of antiquity
• Lorenzo is considered to be the greatest patron of the arts
– Commissioned such artists and musicians as
Michelangelo,Botticelli and Verrocchio
– Reasons for this patronage included genuine interest,
continuing family tradition, and political motives
– Lorenzo even discovered the talented Michelangelo
when the artist was only 15 years old
Lorenzo de Medici, Andrea
del Verrocchio
Tomb of the Medici,
Michelangelo
Political Ties to Art
• Lorenzo commissioned several French musicians
for papal music
• Although did have genuine interest in music,
reason for gaining the services of French
musicians mainly a political move to enhance
relations with France
• His influence encouraging experimentation in
music led to the development of the early madrigal
Decline of the Patronage
• Lorenzo died in 1492, at the moment that a
new historical era was beginning (King
Charles VIII was about to great chaos on the
Italian peninsula)
• Lorenzo was succeeded by the fervent
leader, Savonarola who was a strong
believer in aestheticism
Post-Medici – The Initial Fall From Power
Girolamo Savonarola was a
preacher who settled in Florence in
1489.
He attacked the tyranny of the
Medici family in his sermons, and
when in 1494, Charles VIII of
France invaded Italy, the Medici’s
lost power, and Savonarola took
control, putting Florence under
extremely rigid control.
Girolamo Savonarola
Eventually, Savonarola’s followers
turned on him, and he was killed.
More on Savonarola: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13490a.htm
Post- Medici - Art and Science
At this point, most of the artistic products of Florence
were in music, and the numerous academies of
literature. The Accademia della Crusca compliled the
Dictionary.
History of the Accademia della Crusca:
http://italian.about.com/library/weekly/aa071900a.htm
When the Lorraine family took over Florence, they
revived the town's economy, but they also turned
Florence more provincial, so it didn’t participate in a
thriving international cultural expansion. So Florence’s
culture remain unchanged at staid for quite sometime.
Post-Medici – The Final Fall…
Cardinal Giovanni de Medici (Pisaro’s uncle)
regained control of Florence in 1512 for the lineage.
In 1569, Cosimo III became the “Grand Duke” of
Tuscany, after taking over many of the surrounding
areas. He ruled with a heavy hand, not very
popular.His heirs were far weaker.
In 1737, Cosimo III dies, and both of his children
Gian Gastone and Anna Maria Luisa die childless.
The Medici line has died out, and Florence is
inherited by the Lorraine Dynasty.