One of the most unfortunate members of the Medici family to rule over
Florence was Duke Alessandro, the recognized only son of Lorenzo II de‘
Medici. There has been some speculation as to his actual parentage and
the identity of his mother is not known for certain at all. In any
event, he was the recognized son and heir of Lorenzo II, Duke of Urbino
which, as far as the law was concerned, is all that matters. He was born
on July 22, 1510 but though he was the first to come to rule Florence
based on heredity, as a monarch, that did not happen immediately after
the death of his father in 1519. Rather, power effectively passed to the
Medici who held the highest office of all Pope Clement VII who
appointed Alessandro’s cousin, Ippolito de’ Medici, to rule Florence on
his behalf. It was also Pope Clement who had arranged the marriage of
Alessandro’s (legitimate) half-sister Catherine to King Henri II of
France. Many accounts describe Alessandro as unprepossessing but not in a
flattering way and he was the focus of a great deal of criticism both
from within his own family as well as the republican and overall
anti-Medici forces in Florence.
The papal representatives sent to oversee the boy were extremely
unpopular with the anti-Medici faction as well as, again, elements
within the family such as Clarice Strozzi, daughter of Piero di Lorenzo
(“the Unfortunate”), who railed against Alessandro as being unworthy of
the Medici family name and against his papal guardians as well. There
would also be tensions between the cousins, Alessandro and Ippolito,
when, later in life, Alessandro caught Ippolito in the arms of his
half-sister Catherine as the two had a forbidden romance which was ended
with her being sent to France and Ippolito into the service of the
Church. The status of Alessandro as Gran maestro of Florence was largely
nominal but wider events taking place in Italy would soon see him
raised to a higher status but not before enduring quite an ordeal. For
the time being, the power of Pope Clement VII kept him safe at home but
the threat of an alliance between the Pope and the King of France
invited the opposition of the formidable German Emperor Charles V, also
King of Spain, who dispatched a powerful Spanish-German army to invade
the Papal States and attack Rome to ‘teach the Pope a lesson he would
never forget’.
That campaign culminated in the 1527 “Sack of Rome” which must rank as
one of the most horrific acts of rampant savagery and horror in all of
human history. The accounts are numerous and often too lurid to repeat
such that the imagination itself would be overwhelmed in describing the
barbarity that occurred. The Emperor himself, who was not present of
course, was shocked but not so shocked as to fail to take advantage of
the situation and force the Pope into submission. Likewise, in the city
of Florence, the anti-Medici elements saw the sacking of Rome and the
violent destruction of the power of the Pope as their great moment of
opportunity. They took to the streets shouting slogans and singing songs
in thanks to the downfall of the Pope. The papal envoy, Cardinal Silvio
Passerini, took the Medici family and children, Alessandro as well as
Ippolito, but leaving little Catherine behind for some reason, and
quickly fled Florence for safer environs. An effigy of Pope Clement VII
was torn to pieces in the street and a republican government was
restored under a new anti-Medici leader.
This was not the first time that the effort at a Medici monarchy had
been undone by a republican restoration in Florence (Piero di Lorenzo
had presided over that dubious honor) and those with cool heads did have
reason to hope. They had only been overthrown, after all, because the
imperial troops had conquered Rome but the fact was that Pope Clement
VII was still alive and, after having been put in his place by the
Emperor, would have what amounted to German support rather than
opposition so long as he did nothing to displease the Hapsburg monarch.
Indeed, Florence was never far from the thoughts of Pope Clement VII and
as soon as he and Emperor Charles V concluded the Treaty of Bologna by
which the Pope absolved the imperial forces for their actions in Rome,
agreed to crown Charles V “Emperor of the Romans” by his own hand and,
it went without saying, promising again not to take sides with the
French against Charles. In return, the Emperor gave the Pope territory
taken from the Republic of Venice and agreed to help restore the Medici
family to power in Florence.
That was good news for Alessandro, but he looked likely to have been in
for a soft landing in any event as Emperor Charles V had entertained
another ducal throne for him. The Sforza Duke Francesco II of Milan had
been appointed to that position by the Emperor when the Emperor’s
Spanish forces had driven out the French in the Italian Wars. However,
Francesco II had turned against the Emperor in the latest
unpleasantness, allying with Florence, Papal Rome, the French and so on.
As a result, once his forces were victorious, the Emperor had
considered placing Alessandro de’ Medici on the ducal throne of Milan
but the Republic of Venice objected to the idea and, after paying the
Emperor a considerable bribe, Francesco II was allowed to return. So, it
was back to Florence after all for Alessandro but he would have an
equal rank anyway. First, of course, was the detail of actually taking
the city which was the last of the Italian states still holding out in
opposition to the Emperor.
The siege of Florence began on October 24, 1529 when the German, Spanish
and assorted Italian forces paid by the Pope all under the command of
the Prince of Orange set to work building fortifications, bringing up
artillery and shelling the city. The republican forces were considerable
but not in the best frame of mind. Many of the well-to-do citizens had
fled at the first sign of trouble and a number of the troops employed by
the Florentine government deserted rather than face the imperial
forces. After a time a relief army tried to come to the aid of Florence
but was defeated by the Prince of Orange (though he was killed in the
battle) and the fate of the city was sealed. On August 10, 1530 the city
surrendered and the restored republic was promptly dismantled. For
Alessandro de’ Medici it was his moment of glory, returning to power and
being given the title “Duke of Florence” by Emperor Charles V. His
enemies were executed or exiled, at least the most vocal and prominent
ones, and the future looked promising for the frizzy-haired
nineteen-year old. In fact, his uncle the Pope had also bought for him
the title “Duke of Penne” from Charles V and hoped that he might pull
off another advancement for the House of Medici by marrying Alessandro
to the Emperor’s illegitimate daughter Margaret.
At first, Duke Alessandro acted with the advice of elected councils,
trying to calm the nerves of the defeated republicans. However, he soon
showed that he was not about to forget all that had transpired. He
disarmed the populace, confiscating all weapons even if they were purely
ornamental, and built a large new fortress to help ensure that he would
not be chased out of town again. The large bell which had symbolized
the republic in Florence (Americans might think of it as being in the
same vein as the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia) was melted down and, you
have to love this, cast into medals showing the figures and symbols of
the House of Medici. The republican opposition, needless to say, became
increasingly furious and just exactly what sort of man Duke Alessandro
was depends almost entirely on whose side of the story you choose to
believe.
Some wanted to assassinate him but the fear of another war which might
be sparked by such a thing dissuaded the hot-heads and so the enemies of
the Duke decided to send a representative to Emperor Charles V to
implore him to give Florence justice by removing the man he had just set
over them. To carry out this mission they chose Alessandro’s own
cousin, with whom he was constantly feuding, Ippolito, by then a
cardinal. However, he had not gone far when he fell ill and died which,
of course, many attributed to poison given to him by Duke Alessandro. In
any event, other delegates were dispatched and they made their case to
Emperor Charles V. They described Alessandro de’ Medici as the most
horrible tyrant, trampling their rights, killing their men, raping their
women and just about every crime one could imagine. However, that
Charles V might hear both sides of the story, one of Alessandro’s
advisors, Francesco Guicciardini was on hand to paint a very different
picture of the Duke. He said that he would not try to make reply to
every horrific accusation made by the complainants, “but His
Excellency’s virtue, his fame, the opinion of him held throughout the
city, of his prudence, of his virtuous habits, are a sufficient reply”.
Historians have, themselves, debated which image of Alessandro is more
correct. Emperor Charles V, if deemed a sufficient judge of character,
seems to have found no merit in the accusations made by the critics of
Alessandro. Not only were their charges not accepted but the Emperor
fulfilled the wish of the late Pope Clement and agreed to have his
fourteen-year old daughter Margaret married to Duke Alessandro; an
illegitimate Hapsburg for an illegitimate Medici. The two were married
in 1536 and, based on her later life, she might have been just the sort
of woman Alessandro needed. However, the two would not have a long,
married life together. As far as his private life was concerned,
Alessandro had one mistress who gave birth to his three children, and
was allegedly lured away by the promise of a romantic rendezvous with a
famously beautiful widow, Laudomia, by her brother, Lorenzino de’ Medici
(a distant cousin of Alessandro) who then assassinated Alessandro on
January 6, 1537. He was only 26-years old but had lived quite a colorful
life. Lorenzino said he had done the deed to restore the republic but,
if genuine, it certainly did not work and he was killed in Venice
several years later.
The ducal throne passed to Cosimo I de’ Medici, son of the famous
“Giovanni of the Black Bands” who had died fighting against the imperial
invasion on behalf of Pope Clement VII and the Italian states. The
recently married and recently widowed Margaret of Austria was promptly
married to the Farnese Duke of Parma (grandson of Pope Paul III) the
following year. She was later put in nominal control of the Netherlands
by her half-brother King Philip II of Spain and had he taken her advice
might have averted rebellion there. As for Alessandro de’ Medici
himself, again, an assessment of him is difficult as the most prominent
accounts of him come from his enemies who describe him as harsh,
incompetent and licentious yet this is to be expected. Historians,
trying to take a more impartial view have argued back and forth as to
what sort of man he really was with some concluding that he was a much
better ruler than his detractors have claimed. However, he was certainly
significant as the first Medici to be Duke of Florence and though his
time in power was tumultuous the Medici would go on to solidify
themselves and ultimately unite the surrounding region into the Grand
Duchy of Tuscany.
