The Medici: Citizens and Masters

The name Medici is almost inextricably interlinked with the city of Florence and the idea of the Renaissance in both popular and scholarly imagination. The family dominated the Florentine republic politically for the better part of the 15th century and became, first, dukes of Florence and, then, grand dukes of Tuscany in the 16th. As patrons of art, architecture, and literature they left a rich, material legacy and imprint on the city. Their political legacy, however, has remained disputed and far less clear. In particular, their dominance of, and role within, the Florentine republic during the 15th century has been a matter of historical contestation ever since. The essays collected in this volume, first presented at a conference at Villa I Tatti, the Harvard University Center for Italian Renaissance Studies in Florence, in October 2011, explore this issue in detail.