The Medici: The Renaissance's Most Powerful Family - See U in History - YouTube

This video is sponsored by Squarespace. The cultural renaissance is fascinating for the artistic productions developed during this period. But behind Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Donatello, among other artists, there were great families vying for hegemony in cities, duchies, or countries. We already have talked here about the Borgias, who during the 15th and 16th centuries dominated Rome and the papacy. In today's video, we'll talk about the Medici. The Medici were a family from the city-state of Florence, with humble origins as merchants and bankers, later becoming Randukes of Tuscany. But, how did they achieve this? And how important were they to the Renaissance? That's what we'll see in today's video. Creating a website has never been easier. With Squarespace, you will have access to amazing templates for all tastes and purposes. And you can create your blog, personal website, or the website of your business. If you create content like I do, then Squarespace offers exclusive areas for their community members, where you can interact easily and efficiently. They also allow you to contribute with your projects via PayPal, Apple Pay, Stripe, and Venmo. The Squarespace blogging platform allows your content to reach further and further, thanks to customizable buttons that allow you to easily share your content on the most popular social media platforms. Squarespace also provides all the tools to create your online store and advertise all your products easily and securely. Check out Squarespace.com for a free trial. Click the link in the description, or go to squarespace.com slash see you in history to save 10% off of your first purchase of a website or domain. Be sure to share your stories, creations, or products with the world and increase your online presence with Squarespace.

本视频由Squarespace赞助。文艺复兴时期的文化复兴是令人着迷的，因为在这一时期发展起来的艺术作品。但在伦勃朗，米开朗基罗，多纳泰罗等艺术家的背后，是伟大的家族在城市、公国或国家争夺霸权。我们已经在这里谈到了博尔吉亚家族，他们在15世纪和16世纪统治了罗马和教皇。在今天的视频中，我们将讨论美第奇家族。美第奇家族是来自佛罗伦萨城邦的一个家族，起初是作为商人和银行家，后来成为托斯卡纳的兰德霍克斯。但是，他们是如何实现这一点的？他们对文艺复兴有多重要？这就是我们在今天的视频中将要看到的。创建网站从未如此简单。使用Squarespace，您将可以访问各种风格和用途的精美模板。您可以创建自己的博客、个人网站或企业网站。如果您像我一样创建内容，那么Squarespace为他们的社区成员提供了专属区域，您可以轻松高效地进行互动。他们还允许您通过PayPal、Apple Pay、Stripe和Venmo为您的项目做出贡献。Squarespace博客平台可以让您的内容远远传播开来，多亏了可定制的按钮，让您可以轻松在最流行的社交媒体平台上分享您的内容。Squarespace还提供所有工具，让您轻松安全地创建您的在线商店，并宣传所有产品。访问Squarespace.com，免费试用。点击描述中的链接，或前往squarespace.com/see-you-in-history，立即享受网站或域名首次购买10%的折扣。务必与世界分享您的故事、创造或产品，并通过Squarespace增加您的在线存在。

In the 15th century, the Medici of Florence made a banking fortune and survived the business crisis and exile. They also managed to conquer the papacy. The medieval popes ruled for almost 20 years and managed to establish themselves as dukes of their hometown. In addition, two women of the family became queens of France. It was a stellar, but sometimes brutal, rise. But how? Well, it all started with Cosimo de Medici, later known as Cosimo the Elder. According to Popeyes II, he, apart from the name, was the king of everything in Florence. This was not entirely a compliment. Florence was a republic, and as such, should not have a king. Cosimo did not come from the nobility. He was a bourgeois who made his fortune as a banker. Cosimo's father, Giovanni, had made money from the wool trade and from banking. In the late Middle Ages, the Italian peninsula was very important for trade between East and West. Commercial activity took place at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, connecting the Silk Roads in the East with the routes in Northern Europe. The Medici were bankers to the popes of lucrative business. In their hometown, they built an alliance with a group of prominent families, often cemented by intermarriage that gave them control of the authorities. Although pioneers in this political and ideological articulation, the Medici were not an isolated case in Renaissance Italy. The phenomenon was common at that time. What set the Medici apart was perhaps the relatively non-violent method of their rise to power, by which they very slowly and steadily eroded Florence's republican institutions. The Medici did not always get what they wanted. In 1433, opponents planned Cosimo's arrest. But as a banker to the Republic of Venice and Duke of Ferrara, he had influential friends. He managed not to be executed, but was exiled, though not for long. When his supporters won elections the following year, Cosimo returned to power. He returned with a different idea to show the size of his power. He used his wealth to sponsor art, architecture, and cultural products, commissioning a new palace for the family, bronze sculptures by Donatello, and allowing the completion of the dome of the city's cathedral to Felipe Gruneleci's design. He transformed the city of Florence into the capital of the Renaissance.

在15世纪，佛罗伦萨的美第奇家族积累了银行财富，并在商业危机和流亡中幸存下来。他们还成功征服了教皇。中世纪的教皇统治了近20年，并设法将自己确立为家乡的公爵。此外，该家族的两位女性成为了法国的女王。这是一段辉煌而有时残酷的崛起。但是，这是如何发生的呢？嗯，一切都始于科西莫·德·美第奇，后来被称为科西莫·老爷子。据教皇比约二世称，他除了名字外，在佛罗伦萨几乎是万事皆王。这并不完全是一种赞美。佛罗伦萨是一个共和国，因此不应有国王。科西莫并非出身贵族。他是一位作为银行家发迹的资产阶级人士。科西莫的父亲乔瓦尼曾从羊毛贸易和银行业中赚钱。在中世纪后期，意大利半岛在东西方之间的贸易中非常重要。商业活动在地中海交汇处进行，连接着东方的丝绸之路和北欧的航路。美第奇家族是赚钱生意的教皇的银行家。在他们的家乡，他们与一群杰出家族建立了联盟，常常通过联姻加强，使他们控制了当局。虽然在政治和意识形态方面是开创者，但美第奇家并非文艺复兴时期意大利的个案。当时这种现象很常见。美第奇家之所以与众不同，或许是他们相对非暴力的崛起方式，他们通过非常缓慢而稳定地侵蚀佛罗伦萨的共和制度来夺取权力。美第奇家并不总是得偿所愿。在1433年，反对者计划逮捕科西莫。但作为威尼斯共和国的银行家和费拉拉公爵，他有有影响力的朋友。他设法避免被处决，但被流放，不过时间不长。当他的支持者在接下来的一年赢得选举时，科西莫重返权力之位。他带着一个展示自己权力的不同想法回归。他利用自己的财富赞助艺术、建筑和文化产品，委托为家族建造新宫殿，邀请多纳泰罗铸造青铜雕塑，并允许费利佩·格鲁内奇设计完成城市大教堂的穹顶。他将佛罗伦萨这座城市变成了文艺复兴的中心。

After Cosimo's death in 1464, his son, Bierro Demedici, became head of the family. He survived a coup attempt, but died in 1469, leaving his son in charge, Lorenzo Demedici, who was only 20 years old. This young man became known in history as the Magnificent. Lorenzo brought the first phase of Demedici rule in Florence to its peak in 1469, cultured, citizen in philosophy, poetry, and the other arts. He was also a born diplomat. He brought the best artists of the time to Florence and strengthened the local economy.

在1464年科西莫去世后，他的儿子比耶罗·德·美第奇成为家族的负责人。他在一次政变中幸存，但在1469年去世，留下自己20岁的儿子洛伦佐·德·美第奇负责。这位年轻人后来被历史称为"伟大的洛伦佐"。洛伦佐在1469年将美第奇家族在佛罗伦萨的统治引向巅峰，在哲学、诗歌和其他艺术领域都很有文化修养。他还是一位天生的外交家。他将当时最优秀的艺术家们带到佛罗伦萨，并加强了当地经济。

The family fortune had become so legendary in Europe that everyone expected the most extravagant expenditures from them, including Florence's allies, who had become accustomed to taking out loans, many of which were never repaid. In order not to lose prestige, Lorenzo kept spending high. The bank eventually went bust in 1494, two years after the Magnificent's death. Lorenzo was succeeded by a second Bierro in 1492. He proved to be a weaker ruler. In 1494, when war broke out on the Italian peninsula and French troops marched south to claim Naples, the Bierici were again driven out of Florence and Bierro was named the Unfortunate.

这个家族在欧洲变得如此传奇，以至于每个人都期待着他们最奢侈的支出，包括佛罗伦萨的盟友，他们已经习惯了借贷，其中许多从未偿还。为了不失去声誉，洛伦佐保持高消费水平。银行最终于1494年破产，即壮丽者去世两年后。同样为第二个比耶罗继承了洛伦佐的权力。他证明是一位较弱的统治者。1494年，当意大利半岛爆发战争，法国军队向南进军要夺取那不勒斯时，比耶罗再次被赶出佛罗伦萨，被称为不幸者。

The family became dependent on its power base in Rome, where during 18 years of exile, Pierro's brother, Cardinal Giovanni Demedici rebuilt alliances. Lorenzo the Magnificent had another son named Giuliano, who became a Cardinal in Rome. Giuliano, Lorenzo's brother, who had been assassinated in a coup attempt in 1478, had a son named Giulio, who also became a Cardinal in Rome.

这个家族在罗马建立了权力基础，他们在18年的流亡期间，皮耶罗的兄弟、基督教人乡主教乔凡尼·德梅迪奇重建了同盟关系。洛伦佐大帝还有另一个儿子名叫朱利亚诺，在罗马成为一名枢机主教。洛伦佐的兄弟、在1478年一次政变中遇刺身亡的朱利亚诺有一个儿子名叫朱利奥，他也成为了罗马的一名枢机主教。

With Pierro's expulsion from Florence, the Cardinals began to move the church's vast arsenal of money and allies against the restored Republic, represented by the old aristocracy of the guild, and, to a lesser extent, the middle class. In 1512, Florence was defeated by a papal army and had to accept Giovanni, the Magnificent Son, as informal head estate. A year later, he was elected Pope Leo X.

随着皮耶罗被逐出佛罗伦萨，枢机主教们开始动用教会庞大的金钱和盟友来对抗被恢复的共和国，即由旧贵族联盟代表的，以及在较小程度上还包括中产阶级。在1512年，佛罗伦萨被教皇军队击败，不得不接受乔凡尼，这位辉煌的王子，作为非正式的领导人。一年后，他当选为教皇利奥十世。

The retaking was not a pretty show. The troops of the future Pope sacked Brato, the neighboring town, torturing, raping women, and murdering not only rifle soldiers, but also women, children, and priests, without any remorse. Fearing the same treatments, the Florentine surrendered. In 1513, Cardinal Giovanni was elected Pope, assuming the name Pope Leo X. Suddenly, the papal states and Florence had become an unofficial Medici fiefdom. To be Pope was to be at the head of one of the strongest states in Italy, a source of more power and also an instrument to maintain the lordship status of Florence.

这次夺回并不美观。未来教皇的军队劫掠了邻近的布拉托镇，折磨、强奸妇女，并残忍地杀害了不仅是步枪士兵，还有妇女、儿童和神父，毫不留情。由于害怕受到同样的对待，佛罗伦萨投降了。1513年，红衣主教乔瓦尼被选为教皇，取名教皇利奥十世。突然间，教皇国和佛罗伦萨成为一个非正式的美第奇领地。成为教皇意味着成为意大利最强大国家之一的元首，这是更大权力的源泉，也是维持佛罗伦萨封建地位的一种工具。

The Pope was an important patron of the arts. Raphael painted a triple portrait of Pope Leo with his cousin, Cardinal Giulio, and another relative, Luigi Dirocie. The Pope commissioned Michelangelo to design a funeral chapel for the family. It was necessary to show the greatness of the family. However, the following years were not easy at all. The Medici quickly lost two heirs, first Pope Leo's brother Giuliano, and then his nephew, Lorenzo.

教皇是艺术的重要赞助人。拉斐尔为教皇利奥与他的堂兄、红衣主教朱利奥以及另一位亲戚路易吉•迪洛西的三人合影作画。教皇委托米开朗基罗为家族设计了一座墓地教堂。有必要展示家族的伟大。然而，接下来的几年并不容易。麦地基家族很快失去了两位继承人，首先是教皇利奥的兄弟朱利亚诺，然后是他的侄子洛伦佐。

Leo quickly acted to strengthen his power in Rome, but no maneuver at the papal court could solve the problem the Medici faced in 1519. They had no legitimate heir in the main line. Only two illegitimate boys, Ipolito and Alessandro, both under the age of ten, and a girl, Catherine, who was excluded from the political structures of the Florentine Republic because she was a woman. In 1521, Pope Leo X died after eight years of papacy.

在罗马，里奥迅速采取行动加强自己的权力，但是1519年在教皇宫廷无法解决梅地奇家族面临的问题。他们在正宗血脉中没有合法继承人，只有两个非嫡出子，伊波利托和亚历山德罗，都不满十岁，以及一个女孩凯瑟琳，由于她是女性而被排除在佛罗伦萨共和国政治结构之外。1521年，教皇列奥十世在担任教皇八年之后去世。

The family would wait another two years before Giulio was elected Pope, taking the name Clement VII. In Florence, the bastard Ipolito was legitimized and promoted as future ruler. The Pope by then had an agreement with Charles V, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, but eventually betrayed him by marrying his niece Catherine de Medici to the son of Charles V's greatest enemy, King Francis I of France. Catherine became the first of the two queens of France.

这个家庭等待了另外两年，直到朱利奥当选为教皇，以克雷芒七世之名为人熟知。在佛罗伦萨，私生子依波里托被合法化，并被提拔为未来统治者。当时的教皇已经与神圣罗马帝国的查理五世达成了协议，但最终背叛了他，将自己的侄女凯瑟琳·德·梅迪奇嫁给查理五世最大的敌人法国国王弗朗西斯一世的儿子。凯瑟琳成为法国的两位女王之一。

The breaking the alliance between the Pope and Charles V led to the capture and sacking of Rome by Imperial forces. In 1527, this was the cue that allowed the Republicans of Florence to recapture the city and end Medici control. With the loss of the city, Pope Clement VII made Ipolito cardinal. It wasn't for long before the family returned to their hometown.

教皇与查理五世之间的同盟破裂导致帝国军队攻占和劫掠了罗马。1527年，这一事件让佛罗伦萨的共和派重新夺回了这座城市，结束了美第奇家族的控制。随着失去这座城市，教皇克雷芒七世任命侯爵侯爵为主教。不久后，家族就返回了他们的家乡。

In 1532, they regained power and Alessandro became the first member of the family to rule the city with the noble title as the Duke of Florence. Clement VII died in 1534 after ten years of the papacy. Alessandro was the illegitimate son of Lorenzo II de Medici, who in turn was the grandson of Lorenzo de Medici the Magnificent. Today, many scholars believe he was the illegitimate son of Julio de Medici, who became Pope Clement VII.

1532年，他们重新获得了权力，亚历山德罗成为了家族中第一个以贵族称号统治佛罗伦萨的人，成为了佛罗伦萨公爵。克雷芒七世在担任教皇十年后于1534年去世。亚历山德罗是洛伦佐二世·德·美第奇的私生子，而洛伦佐二世则是洛伦佐大帝的孙子。今天，许多学者认为他实际上是尤利乌斯·德·美第奇的私生子，后者成为了克雷芒七世教皇。

Alessandro's mother was described as a slave and half-black, who had probably worked in the Medici household. Alessandro was also black and became known by the nickname the Moore. He was widely considered unsuitable to rule, but became a friend of Charles V. More than that, he took the hand of the Empress' daughter, Margaret of Parma. They were married in 1536. However, the union was never consummated due to the murder of the groom in 1537. Alessandro was murdered by a distant cousin, Lorenzo, who claimed to want to restore a republic in Florence. But this did not happen. Another cousin, Cosimo, became the Duke of Florence.

亚历山德罗的母亲被描述为一个奴隶和半黑人，很可能曾在美第奇家族中工作。亚历山德罗也是黑人，被称为“摩尔人”昵称广泛被认为不适合统治，但成为查理五世的朋友。更重要的是，他与皇后的女儿帕尔马的玛格丽特结为伉俪。他们于1536年结婚。然而，这段婚姻因新郎在1537年被谋杀而未能完成。亚历山德罗被一个远房堂兄劳伦佐谋杀，他声称想要在佛罗伦萨恢复共和国。但这并没有发生。另一个堂兄科西莫成为佛罗伦萨公爵。

In power, Cosimo proved to be tough and an excellent administrator, conquering the city of Sienna and unifying the entire region around Florence into the so-called Grand Duchy of Tuscany. He remained in power for 37 years. Like his predecessors, Cosimo ran a spectacular and cultured court. He sponsored artists, had portraits of the family made, as well as renovating the Palazzo Vecchio, all to glorify Medici history. Cosimo's successors also welcomed several important artists and thinkers, including Galileo Galilei, whom Fernando de Medici protected to the fullest from the Inquisition. As well as Artemisia Gintileschi, who, during Cosimo the Second's reign, became the first woman to enter the Florentine Academy.

在权力下，科西莫表现出色，是一位出色的行政长官，征服了锡耶纳市，并将整个环绕佛罗伦萨的地区统一为所谓的托斯卡纳大公国。他统治了37年。像他的前任一样，科西莫经营了令人瞩目和文化的宫廷。他赞助艺术家，制作了家族肖像，以及整修了维奇奥堡，一切都是为了美誉美第奇家族的历史。科西莫的继任者还欢迎了几位重要的艺术家和思想家，包括伽利略，费尔南多·德·美第奇全力保护他免受宗教审判会的迫害。以及阿尔忒弥斯·金蒂莱斯基，在科西莫二世统治时期成为第一个进入佛罗伦萨学院的女性。

By the Italian peninsula, two women stood out as Queens of France. The first was Catherine de Medici, considered the most powerful relative in her lineage. She married in 1533, Henry, Duke of Orlion, second son of French King Francis I. When Francis's heir died unexpectedly, Henry inherited the crown in 1547 as Henry II, and Catherine became queen consort. When Henry died in 1559, after an accident at a joust, she became an important advisor to his sons, having influence and power in the political decisions of three sons who would become kings.

意大利半岛上，有两位被视为法国王后的女人脱颖而出。第一位是凯瑟琳·德·梅迪奇，被认为是她家族中最有权势的亲戚。1533年，她嫁给了奥尔良公爵亨利，他是法国国王弗朗西斯一世的次子。当弗朗西斯的继承人意外去世后，亨利在1547年以亨利二世的名义继承了王位，凯瑟琳成为王后。当亨利在1559年在一场比武中因事故去世后，她成为他的儿子们的重要顾问，对这三位将成为国王的儿子的政治决策产生了影响和权力。

Contrary to what we might imagine, being a Medici was not an asset for Catherine. She was attacked for her mercantile origins. She was blamed for the Saint Bartholomew's Day massacre in 1572, when important Protestants were killed, generating a wave of religious violence throughout France. Still, she was not the only Medici queen in France. Marie de Medici, wife of Henry IV, also held this title and ruled the kingdom as regent after her husband's assassination. She was the harsh mother of Louis XIII.

与我们想象的相反，成为一个梅地奇家族的成员并不是凯瑟琳的优势。她因为商业背景遭受攻击。1572年的圣巴托洛缪日大屠杀中，重要的新教徒被杀害，引发了法国全境的宗教暴力浪潮，她被指责为罪魁祸首。然而，她不是唯一一位在法国担任梅地奇王后的女性。亨利四世的妻子玛丽·德·梅地奇也担任过这个称号，并在丈夫遇刺后作为摄政王执掌王国。她是路易十三的苛刻母亲。

The Medici grand dukes of the 17th century continued to patronize arts and sciences, just as her ancestors did. But the economic center of Europe shifted to the Atlantic ports and the family became less influential. The main line of the dynasty ended in 1739, with the death of Jean-Gastone. His sister, Ana Maria Luisa, left the family's art collection to the city of Florence, remaining intact while other collections were divided and sold. But, what happened to the Medici? Do the Medici still exist?

17世纪的美第奇大公族继续赞助艺术和科学，就像他们的祖先一样。但是，欧洲的经济中心转移到了大西洋港口，这个家族变得影响力减弱。这个王朝的主要血统在1739年以让-加斯松的死亡而终结。他的姐姐安娜-玛丽亚-路易莎将家族的艺术收藏留给了佛罗伦萨市，而其他收藏品被分割和出售。但是，美第奇家族发生了什么？美第奇家族是否还存在？

The Medici continued to rule in Florence until they ran out of legitimate heirs in the two main lineages of the family. At the time, in 1737, a third line of the family tried to claim rights, but they were not considered legitimate enough to take control. This branch of the Medici still exists today. One of the last descendants, if not the last, is Lorenzo de Medici, a 76-year-old writer. He bears the same name as the Magnificent. But the guy looks like a carbon copy of the ancestor who lived 500 years ago. Tell me if he is or is not a clone. Lorenzo believes that what turned the Medici into one of the most powerful clans in history was marketing. Other families, such as the Rockefeller and Fuger, have tried to imitate them without as much success.

麦地奇家族一直统治佛罗伦萨，直到两大家族的合法继承人用尽为止。在1737年，家族的第三支系试图声称权利，但被认为不够合法以接管控制权。这支麦地奇家族至今仍然存在。最后的后裔之一，如果不是最后一个，就是76岁的作家洛伦佐·德·麦地奇。他和伟大的同名祖先一样。但这家伙看起来就像是500年前的先祖的翻版。告诉我他是不是克隆体。洛伦佐相信，将麦地奇家族变成历史上最强大的家族之一的是市场营销。其他家族，如洛克菲勒和富哥家族，曾试图模仿他们，但不成功。