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The Golden Age of The Renaissance

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Posted by Your Guide on May 4, 2006 7:08 PM

What Cosimo il Vecchio instituted, his grandson Lorenzo de Medici (Lorenzo the Magnificent, as he came to be known) followed through to completion. His reign over Florence was during a time of peace, allowing him to concentrate on arts, architecture, and literature over political interests. He was the original Renaissance Man, enjoying ancient texts, music, and even penning sonnets himself, along with his skills in the more traditionally manly pursuits of jousting and hunting. His time in power marked the Golden Age of the Renaissance.

The Renaissance came about as the warring powers of the Pope to the south and the Holy Roman Emperor to the north found need to focus their attentions on more pressing enemies. With their concentration elsewhere, the local spirit in Florence and the surrounding area was peaceful and free. Ancient Greek and Latin texts had been rediscovered, prompting thought and debate about the arts in a new and fresh way.

The magical combination of Florence’s free spirit, lack of war concerns, immense wealth, and leadership who favored the arts came together to enable the largest flowering of art and architecture ever in history. Lorenzo the Magnificent lent his support to artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Donatello, Sandro Botticelli, Andrea del Verrocchio and Michelangelo Buonarroti, to name a few. His financial position allowed him to commission art for himself, and Michelangelo actually lived with the Medicis for many years, dining at the family table and considered a part of the clan. Lorenzo the Magnificent’s greater accomplishment, however, was convincing other patrons to commission art as well. The support and financial backing of other prominent Florentines allowed talented artists to work full-time creating the masterpieces we enjoy today.

The Medici’s commitment to the arts cannot be overstated; it was their contribution and patronage that made the city what it is today. The Florence as we know it, full of great sculpture, painting, and architecture, would not exist had it not been for the Medicis, and Lorenzo the Magnificent in particular. In fact, the artists’ starts in Florence fueled their later careers, when some of the world’s most treasured creations were fashioned (Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling, for instance).

If Lorenzo the Magnificent had a weakness, however, it was in his business dealings. The banking business his family was founded upon faltered during his reign, and eventually he fell into some shady business deals. His son Piero took over but proved inept at leading the city. This allowed the famously dogged friar Girolamo Savonarola to exercise control over the city and preach against what he considered the artistic excesses of the day.

In 1497 Savonarola and his followers carried out the famous Bonfire of the Vanities. They sent boys from door to door to collect mirrors, cosmetics, and fine clothing, as well as pictures, books, and poetry they considered lewd or immoral, burning everything in a large fire in the Piazza della Signoria. Treasured pieces of renaissance art, including paintings by Botticelli, were lost in the fires. Savonarola’s actions angered the pope to the point he was eventually hanged, allowing the Medicis to return to power.



Next Page: Post-Medici Florence

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