Author name: medici

Ferdinando II de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (1610-1670) was the son of Cosimo II de’ Medici. His father’s death marked the start of a long regency that extended beyond Ferdinando’s majority. The regency was conservative in all aspects of governance and continued to patronize Tuscan artists who had been supported by Cosimo II. From 1621 […]

Lorenzo di Ferdinando de’ Medici (1599-1648) was the son of Ferdinando I de’ Medici. In 1609, aged ten, he inherited from his father the beautiful Villa della Petraia, near Florence, which he made his country home. His private residence in Florence was the present Palazzo Corsini in the Via del Parione. Unfortunately, there is no known

Cardinal Carlo de’ Medici (1596-1666) was the son of Ferdinando I de’ Medici. His mother was Christine of Lorraine. He was created cardinal in 1615. While in Rome, he lived at the Villa Medici or the Palazzo Madama, both inherited from his father. In Florence he resided in the Casino di San Marco, which he bought

Cosimo II de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (1590-1621) was the son of Ferdinando I de’ Medici. His comparatively brief reign was a period of peace and prosperity for Tuscany, thanks largely to the political and economic policies adopted by his father and to the guidance of his mother, Christine of Lorraine. Although the family’s own

Don Giovanni de’ Medici (1567-1621) is the illegitimate son o Cosimo I de’ Medici. His mother was Leonora degli Albizzi. Although legitimized, he played no role in Florentine politics and instead embarked on a military and diplomatic career outside Tuscany. His activities as an amateur architect, however, all fell within Tuscany. He studied at the Accademia

Ferdinando I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (1548-1609) was the son of Cosimo I de’ Medici and Eleanora de’ Medici. His future career seemed uncertain until, in 1562, two of his brothers and his mother suddenly died (he was the fourth son). The older of the two, Giovanni, had been a cardinal; Cosimo arranged with Pius IV

Francesco I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany(1541-1587) was the son of Cosimo I de’ Medici and Eleonora de’ Medici. His education included instruction in science and the decorative arts, and these were to remain his abiding interests. Bronzino painted a portrait of Eleonora with Francesco. He was again painted by Bronzino in 1551, the first of a

Eleonora de’ Medici also known as Eleonora of Toledo was the first wife of Cosimo I de’ Medici. She was the second daughter of the Viceroy of Naples, Don Pedro di Toledo, Marquis of Francavilla, the Emperor Charles V’s senior lieutenant. In 1539 Cosimo I married her as part of his policy to strengthen his connections with

Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (1519 -1574) was the nephew of Ottaviano de’ Medici. His mother, Maria Salviati, was a granddaughter of Lorenzo the Magnificent; his father, the professional soldier Giovanni delle Bande Nere (1498–1526), was killed when Cosimo was seven. When, in 1537, Lorenzino de’ Medici murdered Alessandro de’ Medici, the tyrannical Duke of Florence,

Alessandro de’ Medici, Duke of Florence (1511-1537) was the illegitimate son of Clement VII but officially the illegitimate son of Lorenzo de’ Medici. He was not a liberal patron and commissioned little, his patronage guided purely by political motives. The most outstanding sculpture created during his reign, Baccio Bandinelli’s colossal marble group of Hercules and Cacus that can