Catherine Sforza, the Tigress of Forli, and Grandmother to Cosimo I, part 1

Another remarkable Renaissance woman was Catherine Sforza (1463-1509), who was raised in the Court of Milan and received a humanistic education alongside her brothers.  She learned to take pride in the histories of her warrior ancestors, and to show boldness in the use of arms and military maneuvers. 

She was married at the age of ten to Girolamo Riario, but the marriage was likely not consummated until she reached the "legal age" of 14.  Girolamo was the nephew of Pope Sixtus IV, and the young couple lived in Rome in service of the pope.  Catherine gave birth to the first of many children at the age of 15.  However, the  lives of Girolamo and Catherine were to change abruptly upon the death of Sixtus IV on August 12, 1484.

As was the custom at the time, upon the death of the pope, the city of Rome erupted into chaos.  The Palazzo Orsini, in the Campo di Fiori, where Girolamo and Catherine had been living, was stormed and stripped of its furnishings.  Catherine, on behalf of her husband (and seven months pregnant at the time), rode on horseback across the Tiber, and took possession of the rocca (fortress) of Castel Sant' Angelo, and effectively prevented the conclave from forming, as the cardinals were afraid for their lives.

Caterina remained in control of Castel Sant' Angelo for almost two and a half months, sometimes in opposition to her husband.  Finally, she was persuaded to abandon her post by the enticement of 8000 ducats and the reinstatement of ownership of Forli and Imola, which had been granted Girolamo Riario when his uncle was pope.

I first encountered Caterina Sforza in the excellent book, The Tigress of Forli, by Elizabeth Lev.  Recently, I watched The Borgias (a Showtime series with mixed reviews), where the part of Caterina Sforza was played by Gina McKee, a talented English actress.  The portrait above is by Lorenzo di Credi; it hangs in the Pinoteca of Forli.

Another Influential Renaissance Woman, Alexandra Strozzi

This building, the Strozzi Palace in Florence, is getting ready to open in September a special exhibition to feature the works of Ai Wei-Wei, the Chinese activist/artist.  From "The Florentine," the English language newspaper we have this announcement:

"Flagship installation Reframe will consist of 22 large rubber inflatable lifeboats attached to the windows of Palazzo Strozzi's facade.  This powerful comment on the desperate plight of refugees who risk their lives to reach Europe by crossing the Mediterranean is representative of the overall theme of the exhibition:  the artist hopes to raise awareness about our contemporary international humanitarian crisis."

This magnificent palazzo might never have come about had it not been for the tireless activities of Alexandra Strozzi, the mother of the actual builder, Filippo Strozzi.  Alexandra married Matteo Strozzi in 1422.  They had eight children together, of whom five survived into adulthood.  Matteo was exiled from Florence in 1434 when the Medici came back to consolidate their power and Matteo died a year later in Pesaro, likely of the plague.

Alexandra then returned to Florence and began a lengthy career of her own, that of managing the family's property interests.  She oversaw the work of the tenant farmers, collected rents, and paid the taxes.  She had no male relatives of her own; her father-in-law was already gone and Matteo's other male relatives had voluntarily chosen exile in 1434.

Eventually Alexandra's sons had to be sent away also; because their father had been a legal exile, their prospects were not considered very good.  The sons, especially Filippo, learned the banking and cloth merchant business with their first cousins in Naples, eventually amassing an even greater fortune than they.

The sentence of exile was finally lifted from Filippo (and his brother Lorenzo) in 1466, and he returned to Florence, where he began to acquire the many properties needed to assemble the site for his greatest undertaking, the Palazzo Strozzi.

We know of this remarkable story because Alexandra wrote letters to her sons while they were in exile.   She was an acute observer of the political and social life in Florence in the mid 15th Century, and she was determined to preserve their property and prestige despite their adverse circumstances.

"Selected Letters of Alexandra Strozzi," bilingual edition, was translated by Heather Gregory, who has helpfully provided us with and introduction and notes.  It's available through the University of California Press.

Beatrice d' Este, sister of Isabella, and later Duchess of Milan

Beatrice d'Este (1475-1497) was the younger daughter of Ercole d` Este and Eleanora di Aragon (see post of 12/26/15), and grew up first in the court of Naples.  Only as a young teenager was she allowed to come to the court in Ferrara.

She was engaged at the age of 15 to Ludovico Sforza (il "Moro" for his dark looks), Duke of Bari at the time, and married to him a year later. 

Beatrice had the same excellent education as her male sibling and cousins (rare at the time), and proved herself excellent at diplomacy.  In 1492, as ambassador for her husband, she visited the Republic of Venice, where her primary mission was to advance her husband's scheme to become the Duke of Milan.  

This was accomplished in 1495 when il Moro usurped the role, on the somewhat mysterious death of Gian Galeazzo Sforza.  Taking advantage of her position in the wealthy court of Milan, Beatrice gathered around her the leading artists, writers, and courtiers of the day, including Niccolo` di Correggio and Leonardo di Vinci, among many others.

Sadly, Beatrice died after the birth of her third child, at the young age of 21.  She lived a short but glorious life, at the height of the Renaissance.  Had she lived on, she might not have thought her life so charmed, as her husband lost power and ended up spending his final years in the underground dungeon of a French castle.

One of my favorite books about Beatrice is "The Duchess of Milan," by Michael Ennis, published in 1992.  While Ennis does not give a bibliography (it is after all, a work of fiction), I have found no factual errors.  Ennis earned a degree in history at UC Berkeley, so perhaps that accounts for the accuracy of details.

As a reviewer on Amazon says, it is a rich book, and worth reading and re-reading (which I have done).  Highly recommended.

Isabella d' Este, Another Influential Renaissance Woman

After seeing Titian's portrait of her (above), Isabella famously said it was "so pleasing that I doubt that at the age I am represented I could have possessed all the beauty it contains."  In reality, she was in her sixties at the time, and had given Titian instruction to portray herself as a much younger woman.  This portrait now hangs in a museum in Vienna.

Isabella, born in 1474, was the daughter of Eleanora of Aragon d'Este, Duchess of Ferrara (see post of 12/26/15) and Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara. Her parents educated their daughters and sons equally (very unusual at the time).  Isabella and her sister Beatrice both studied Latin and Greek, Roman history, music and dancing.  

When Isabella was six, she was betrothed to the future fourth Marquis of Mantua, Francisco Gonzaga, and married him in 1490.   Her younger sister, Beatrice, married the Duke of Milan, and the sisters visited each other often.  Isabella is best remembered for her role as patron of Renaissance learning, arts and literature.  Over two thousand of her letters have survived, and are a valuable resource for art historians.

When I visited Mantua last year, I was somewhat surprised to see how little acknowledgement she is given in her own home town.
At the Palazzo Ducale, we visited the Camera degli Sposi, where the frescoes--done by Mantegna and his shop--were in quite good condition, obviously restored.   The frescoes were done between 1465 and 1474, and I had to content myself with just imagining Isabella being in those rooms.  

The palazzo is huge--over 500 rooms--but only the few rooms around the Camera deli Sposi were open to visitors.  In my opinion, it's quite a shame that this national treasure is such a neglected resource.

    

Meanwhile, and elsewhere in Italy, there were other interesting and influential Renaissance Women . . .

 . . . including Eleanora of Aragon d'Este, Duchess of Ferrara.  Daughter of Ferdinand I of Naples and Isabella of Clermont, Eleanora (1450-1493) was married first into the Sforza family and then, at age 23,  to Ercole I d'Este, duke of Ferrara.  She was known for her bravery and leadership skills, and in 1485 when Ercole's nephew Niccolo` attempted a coup d'etat, she escaped the besieged palace with her children Isabella, Beatrice, and Alfonso, who was only a few weeks old.

     Eleanora was also known for commissioning a number of artworks and building projects (see post of Jan 22, 2013), and as we shall see, for inspiring her daughters to become powerful women in their own rights.

     Recently I visited the Castello Estense in Ferrara, where I was gratified to see Eleanora remembered for the contributions she made to the Court.  She used her considerable dowry monies to refurbish not only her own apartments, connecting staircases and terraces, but also a hanging garden.  Through the years it was enlarged and eventually became the Garden of the Oranges, a tribute to her Neapolitan roots. (source, a placard in the Castello Estense)

Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici

Giovanni took up residence in Rome in 1500, where he lived a lavish lifestyle, surrounded by friends and relatives, including his cousin Guilio, illegitimate son of the Guiliano who had been murdered by the Pazzi, and his youngest brother, also named Guiliano.  According to Christopher Hibbert, in "The House of the Medici," Giovanni played the role of the generous host to the extent that he was frequently in debt.  The days of the great Medici Bank, established by Giovanni's great-great-grandfather were over.  Church benefices and later, the sale of indulgences, would fund the lives of the Medici cardinals and popes.

In 1503 a new pope was elected:  Cardinal Guilano della Rovere became Julius II.  Known as the "Warrior Pope" for expanding the Papal States by warfare, he was also known for his ambitious building projects and his patronage of the arts.  Julius II commissioned the destruction and reconstruction of St. Peter's Basilica, and also later commissioned the decoration by Michelangelo of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

The cardinals, including Giovanni, accompanied Julius II in battle, aided by the Spanish, and as it happened, Giovanni was taken prisoner near Bologna by the French in 1512, but later escaped and made his way to Mantua.  There a plot was in the works to bring the Medici back to power in Florence, which had been suffering a lack of leadership after the exile of the Medici.   The Spanish Army then marched on into Tuscany, where the engagement that was later called "The Sack of Prato" convinced the Florentines to lay down arms.   The Medici Family was now back in power in Florence!!

The Legacy of Lorenzo and Clarice

Why not have it all?  Control of both Church and State!  Although this may have been their plan, control of both Church and State at the same time would prove difficult for the Medici Family.

After Lorenzo's death, the head of the family was Piero, the eldest son.  Unfortunately, he was not the diplomat his father was.  In brief, he allowed the French king to march his army through Florence in 1494, after which the Florentines exiled the Medici.

The hopes of the family were then pinned on the future of Giovanni 1475-1521), second son of Lorenzo and Clarice.  From an early age, he had been destined for the Church.  He was tonsured at age seven or eight and made a cardinal at the age of 13.  He was not allowed to wear the robes until three years later, but as his father lay dying in Florence in 1492 he was already being welcomed in Rome (see Lives of the Early Medici, as told by their correspondence, translated by Janet Ross).

After being exiled from Florence, because there was a price on his head, Giovanni traveled in Germany, the Netherlands and France, returning to Rome in 1500, where he was welcomed by the Borgia Pope, Alexander VI.

The fresco above, Ghirlandaio's "Confirmation of the Franciscan Rule," in the Sassetti Chapel of Santa Trinita in Florence, is widely believed to be portraits of the young children of Lorenzo and Clarice.  According to "The Medici, the Golden Age of Collecting," by Massimo Winspeare, proceeding up the staircase is the children's tutor, Agnolo Poliziano, with Guilio (son of the murdered Guiliano, see post of 9/23/12) followed by Piero and Giovanni.  Bringing up the rear are the poet Luigi Pulci and the canon Matteo Franco.  Hint:  there are two future Medici popes in this fresco!