The conquest of power
In the 15th century, Florence asserted itself as one of the great Italian powers. Contrary to the seigniorial regime that was established in many cities, in Florence the government combined the interplay of communal institutions with the oligarchic control exercised by powerful families. The Medici were masters of this system from 1434, when Cosme the Elder returned from exile, while his enemy, Rinaldo degli Albizzi, was in turn driven out of Florence.
The Medici had grown rich during the 13th century and by the end of the following century had become one of the richest Florentine families. The power of their bank was the basis of their political power. In order to reconcile the republican regime and the pre-eminence of his house, Cosme the Elder became master of the electoral mechanisms. But the true originality of his policy lies in the broad consent he manages to arouse among the Florentines. This undeniable success explains the longevity of this regime through its successors until the 1490's. The Medici took advantage of their reputation for a popular government. Cosme takes care of his image in this sense: he displays a detachment to everything that can make visible the reality of his power. In the manner of a simple citizen, he presented himself as the great merchant and did not seem to distinguish himself from his compatriots, except by the extent of his patronage.
On the death of Cosme the Elder in 1464, his son Pierre le Goutteux, in precarious health, took up the torch, but only survived for a few years, leaving room for his own son, Laurent le Magnifique from 1469. The new master of Florence adopted a princely behaviour and was quicker than his ancestors in taking up public office. The consensus around his regime remained solid thanks to his extraordinary prestige, linked not only to his patronage (he financed Verrocchio, Botticelli, Lippi and Michelangelo), but also to his extraordinary political abilities, which gave him a reputation as a wise and shrewd man throughout Italy.
Opposition to the Medici's stranglehold on Florence, however, remained strong. Machiavelli notes it thus: "The Medici have run the risk of losing power every ten years. "Conspiracies sometimes came very close indeed to succeeding. During the Pazzi conspiracy in 1478, Lorenzo the Magnificent was wounded and his brother Julian killed at the Duomo, Florence's cathedral, during Easter mass. Paradoxically, these disturbances strengthened the popular support and power of the Medici.The Medici in the turmoil
After the death of the Magnificent in 1492, his son Peter the Unlucky proved incapable of governing and legitimizing his authority over the city. He was ousted from power after two years when the French armies led by Charles VIII passed through Italy to assert his rights over the kingdom of Naples.
Between 1494 and 1512, republican institutions were renovated. Under the influence of the Dominican preacher Savonarola, a theocratic regime was established. But the Florentine oligarchy took matters into its own hands by having Savonarola, accused of heresy, whose radicalism and conflict with the Pope had placed Florence in a deadlock, executed in the Place de la Seigneurie.Return of the Medici, end of the Republic
In 1512, the French were driven out of Italy by a coalition, the Holy League, which united the Spanish, Venetians, Swiss and English with Pope Julius II. The French debacle led to the fall of the Florentine republic, allied to France, and the return of the Medici. The family does not triumph only in Florence. In 1513, the second son of Lorenzo the Magnificent, John, was elected pope under the name of Leo X. Like his father, he became a great patron of the arts and supported, among others, Raphael. Throughout the peninsula, the advent of Pope Medici is seen as a renewal for the Church. In Florence, however, the Medici regime remains fragile. The guardianship was first assured by the third son of the Magnificent, Julian, Duke of Nemours, who was soon relieved of this role by his brother Leo X. The ambition of the Medici was then to form a dynasty. The power then fell to a nephew of the Magnificent, Cardinal Julius de Medici, who in turn ascended to the papal throne in 1523 under the name of Clement VII. But this dependence of Florence on the pontifical power led to Rome soon produced harmful effects, since it undermined the legitimacy of the Medici in the eyes of the Florentine oligarchy. Moreover, it exposed Florence to the backlash of Roman policy in Italy. In 1527, the Medici were once again driven out of Florence. The Florentine republic recovered, but it was soon weakened by internal quarrels and the rapprochement between Pope Medici and Emperor Charles V. In 1529, Florence passes into the hands of the popular faction and chooses to fight against the Papacy and the Empire. In 1530, the Medici regained power, but their problem was to decide which regime to build. The reform of the institutions in 1532 confirmed the choice of a monarchical model, which was criticised by the supporters of the republic. After obtaining the title of Duke of Florence, Alexander de Medici was assassinated in 1537 by his cousin Lorenzino (who would inspire Lorenzaccio de Musset). The Florentine Senate called upon another Medici, Cosme I, who, despite his young age, freed himself from the tutelage and imposed authoritarian power. Cosme's genius was to present his reign as a remedy for the excesses of republican freedom and the brutalities of Alexander's principality. An ideal political middle ground, whose significance is understandable in the Hall of the Five Hundred Hundred in Palazzo Vecchio. In the meantime, in 1533, Catherine de Medici, daughter of Lorenzo II, married Henry II, King of France. A great success for a family of successors!
Second Medici dynasty, glory and decline
Under the impulse of Cosme, Florence dominates all Tuscany by taking over two great rival cities, Lucca and Siena. In 1569, Cosme obtained the title of Grand Duke of Tuscany from Pope Pius V. He settled in Palazzo Pitti, built the Uffizi Gallery and surrounded himself with great artists such as Vasari, Cellini and Giambologna. His prestige was enhanced by marriages, including that of his son, Francis I de Medici, to Joan of Austria. From this union was born Marie de Medici, future Queen of France. The Grand Duchy of Tuscany will exist for nearly three centuries. The six successors of Cosme will have in common the merit of gathering a fabulous artistic heritage in the Uffizi and the Pitti Palace.
Jean-Gaston, the last Medici Grand Duke of Tuscany, died without children. When the dynasty died out in 1737, the Lorraine family took over and their dynasty reigned until 1859. Florence had dominated in the 15th century, but Rome supplanted the Florentine city in the 16th century as capital of the arts and political capital.
