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!
No comments:
Post a Comment