Biography
The "magnificent" Lorenzo Medici lived in the era of the heyday of the Italian Renaissance. Politician, diplomat and patron scholars, artists and poets stood at the head of the Florentine Republic, de facto being its sole monarch. The descendant of the state leader Kozimo Old was famous for the fact that in a difficult political and economic situation, he managed to preserve the world in a small state and took care of the peace of mind and well-being of citizens.Childhood and youth
Lorenzo di Piero de Medici, who later received the nickname magnificent, was born on January 1, 1449. His grandfather Kozimo's old was the founder of the Dynasty of Florentine rulers, which accumulated one of the largest states in Europe. Happing by charity and support of elegant arts, the patron and banker departed to children a sense of justice and love for the beautiful.
Father Lorenzo, Piero Di Kozimo, inherited power and was in the center of public life of the republic. He was a collector and patron saint of creative natures, while Uncle Giovanni Di Kozimo represented finances and cared for the business interests of the Medici family.
The mother of the continuer of the Florentine rulers Lucretia Tornabouoni came from the family supporters of the Medici and was a friend of philosophers and writers of the Platonic Academy in Rosji. The educated woman, writing sonnets and poetic poems, after the death of the spouse became an adviser to the Son and supported him and other children in the desire to patronize art and support the world and financial well-being in a small North-Thalian state.
Both parents have continuously thought about the future of the Republic of Florence and, raising five children, considered Lorenzo the most talented and promising. They organized the teaching of the Son from diplomats, bishops and philosophers and welcomed the interest in knightly tournaments and other elements of military and physical training.
Along with the general subjects, Piero Di Kozimo was engaged in the political formation of the Son and from 19 years he instructed him with the responsible diplomatic missions, which included business trips to neighboring states and meetings with Pope and other high-ranking person.
Governing body
In 1469, after the death of his father, the young Lorenzo adopted the Board of Florence, exhausted by mismanagement, wars and political expenses. The heir to the richest European dynasty began to lead the state through surrogates, who met in urban councils, and sought the desired by threats, payments and strategic marriages.
In such a situation, citizens of the republic, who had little political freedom, reigned about the despotism and the rule of the ruling. As a result, the family of Pazzi, one of whose members was the husband of Lorenzo, Bianci Medici, organized a conspiracy against the existing power.
In Easter Sunday, April 26, 1478, the group headed by Francesco Pazzi made an attempt on Lorenzo and his brother Juliano in the Cathedral and tried to seize power in the republic. Attempting the coup, blessed by the Pope of the Roman Sequust IV, was successful only half. The Florentine ruler miraculously escaped death and fled, leaving a dying relative to the confusion of criminals.
The proceedings were followed, during which the participants in the conspiracy, including the nephew of Pontifica and the Archbishop of Pisa, were caught, Lynch's trial and executed. These preventive measures called the Anger of the Holy See, who confiscated most of the Medici property as an answer, left Lorenzo and the republican government from the church and imposed an arrest on the territory of the Florentine state.
Seeing that these actions did not have the effect, Sikst IV united with the King of Naples and organized a military invasion of the Republic. The people rods around the lord, but could not resist the precipitating armies, and the war began to delay. The crisis was allowed only thanks to the politics and diplomatic efforts of Lorenzo, who went to a hostile king and several months later concluded a peace treaty.
This success led to constitutional reforms aimed at strengthening the power of the ruling dynasty, and allowed to support relations with neighboring Italian states, as well as with France and the Sacred Roman Empire.
Without noticeing the beggars, the Florentine people loved his own ruler, which began trading with the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II and stabilized the financial situation in the republic.
The only dark stain with a reputation of Lorenzo Medici was the incident at the mining mine in Volterre, when local industrialists wanted to make a profit from the alum deposit. Not wanting to give the lion's share of income from the sale of natural materials, the government suppressed the uprising of the population and ultimately looped the city.
Otherwise, the head of Florence deserved respect to the subjects and acquired many friends, continuing the family traditions of patrons of the beautiful. Lorenzo surrounded himself by masters, among whom were Antonio del Pollyoliolo, Sandro Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo Buonarot. And although the ruler rarely ordered his own portraits and sculptures, he provided the painters with high-paying work from other high-ranking specials.
However, art not only delivered the aesthetic pleasure of the grandchildren of Kozimo old, but also helped strengthen political and diplomatic relations. For example, through artists sent to create the frescoes of the Sicstinian Chapel, Lorenzo strengthened the world with the Roman Empire and the head of the Catholic Church Pontiff Sicstom IV.
Collecting rare publications and valuable items, the head of the republic looked away the family condition and after the collapse of the part of the family bank branches resorted to the criminal assignment of trust and public funds.
Personal life
In 1467, Lucretia Tornaboui agreed on the marriage of his own son with the Roman aristocrat of Claric Orsini. The wedding took place in February 1469 at the Florentine Cathedral of St. Peter, and a year after the ceremony in young spouses, the daughter of Lucretia Maria Romola was born, subsequently became the mother of Italian political and religious figures.
However, Lorenzo required the heir, and the wife submissively continued to "produce" offspring. In total, the third rulers of the Medici dynasty had 10 children, three of whom died in infancy.
The place of the actual ruler of Florence received Piero II di Lorenzo, born on February 15, 1472. And the next son Giovanni di Lorenzo took the post of chapter of the Roman Catholic Church and received the name of Lion X.
Lucretia and Lorenzo were not happy in her personal life. The ruler of the republic spent most of the time surrounded by the subjects and the gentle feelings for the Florentine girl of Lucretia Donati. And his wife periodically visited Rome and, without sharing the humanistic her husband's views, remained for a long time in relatives.
Death
According to biographers, all men kinds of physici with varying degrees of gravity suffered gout, and Lorenzo magnificent did not exceed.
Despite the fact that the descendant of Pierrot Di Kozimo regularly participated in Knight's tournaments, the illness made itself felt. The ruler stopped conducting public affairs and preferred to retire in the country castle in the road.
According to the testimony of contemporaries, in the spring of 1492, the state of health of the head of the republic has deteriorated, and on April 8, he quietly died under the blows of a lightning, struck the dome of the Florentine Cathedral. There were rumors that the cause of the death of Lorenzo magnificent became a curse sent by the monk - the reformer Dzhirolamo Savonarol, however, it is more likely that the case was in a fever attacked by the already sick organism.
The glorious representative of the Medici dynasty was buried in the tomb of Donatello, located in the Basilica of St. Lawrence in Florence. In 1559, the body of the national ruler and his brother Juliano moved to a new sacristia on the other side of the transpetuity and placed under the nameless tombstone, decorated with the Madonna statue made by Michelangelo.
Memory
Biography Lorenzo Medici did not differ in great political acts and glorified military exploits. However, the image of the Florentine ruler was preserved in history and subsequently was repeatedly used in artwork, films and TV shows, such as "Da Vinci Demons" and "Medici: Florence Lords".
At the beginning of the XVI century, the name of the grandson of Kozimo of the Old Man was mentioned in the book "Sovereign" Niccolo Makiavelli, and now, it was assigned to the character of the iconic video game "Assassin's Creed II".