Search results
The main challengers to the Albizzi family were the Medici, first under Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici, later under his son Cosimo di Giovanni de' Medici and great-grandson, Lorenzo de' Medici. The Medici controlled the Medici Bank—then Europe's largest bank—and an array of other enterprises in Florence and elsewhere.
Jun 20, 2024 · Medici family, Italian bourgeois family that ruled Florence and, later, Tuscany during most of the period from 1434 to 1737, except for two brief intervals. It provided the Roman Catholic Church with four popes (Leo X, Clement VII, Pius IV, and Leon XI) and married into the royal families of Europe.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Nov 9, 2009 · Learn about the Medici family, a powerful Florentine dynasty that ruled Italy and influenced the Renaissance. Discover their rise, fall, achievements and legacy in politics, culture and religion.
- 9 min
- The founding of the Medici dynasty. The Medici family originated in the agricultural Mugello region of Tuscany. The name Medici means “doctors”. The dynasty began when Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici (1360–1429) emigrated to Florence to found the Medici Bank in 1397, which would become Europe’s largest and most respected bank.
- The three branches of the Medici family. There were three branches of Medicis that successfully gained power – the line of Chiarissimo II, the line of Cosimo (known as Cosimo the Elder) and the descendants of his brother, who went on to rule as grand dukes.
- Cosimo the Elder and his descendants. During Cosimo’s reign, the Medicis gained fame and prestige first in Florence and then across Italy and Europe. Florence prospered.
- The Pazzi conspiracy. In 1478, the Pazzi and Salviati families attempted a plot to displace the Medicis with the approval of Pope Sixtus IV, who was an enemy of the Florentine family.
Medici family, Italian bourgeois family that ruled Florence and later Tuscany from c. 1430 to 1737. The family, noted for its often tyrannical rulers and its beneficent patrons of the arts, also provided the church with four popes ( Leo X , Clement VII , Pius IV, and Leo XI) and married into the royal families of Europe, notably in France ...
Aug 19, 2021 · Learn how the Medici rose from humble beginnings as merchants and bankers to become Grand Dukes of Tuscany and influential patrons of the arts. Discover their triumphs, scandals, exiles and famous members, from Cosimo the Elder to Catherine de' Medici.
Jul 28, 2020 · Learn how the Medici family rose to become the most influential and wealthy group in Europe, from banking to politics to patronage. Discover their contributions to the High Renaissance, from Michelangelo to the Sistine Chapel, and their lasting impact on culture and history.
