Piero (or Pietro) Strozzi (c. 1510 – 21 June 1558) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

military leader. He was a member of the rich Florentine family of the

Strozzi Strozzi is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Numerous members of the Strozzi family, an ancient later ennobled family from Florence ** Alessandra Macinghi Strozzi (c. 1408–1471), an Italian businesswoman and aristocr ...

Biography

left, Portrait of Piero Strozzi Born in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, Piero Strozzi was the son of

Filippo Strozzi the Younger Filippo Strozzi the Younger (January 4, 1489 – December 18, 1538) was a Florentine banker, and the most famous member of the Strozzi family in the Renaissance. He is best remembered as a tragic hero and defender of the lost Florentine republi ...

and

Clarice de' Medici Clarice di Piero de' Medici (1489–1528) was the daughter of Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici and Alfonsina Orsini. Born in Florence, she was the granddaughter of Lorenzo de' Medici, niece of Pope Leo X and sister to Lorenzo II de' Medici. After h ...

. Although in 1539 he married another Medici, Laudomia di Pierfrancesco, he was a fierce opponent of the main line of that family. He fought in the army led by his father and other Florentine exiles from France to oust the Medici from Florence, but, after their defeat at the

Battle of Montemurlo On 1 or 2 August 1537 (both dates are given in sources), near the Tuscan village of Montemurlo, the forces of the newly installed Duke Cosimo I of Florence defeated a hastily organized army of those who wished to overthrow the Medici and restor ...

, Piero fled to France at the court of

Catherine de' Medici Catherine de' Medici ( it, Caterina de' Medici, ; french: Catherine de Médicis, ; 13 April 1519 – 5 January 1589) was an Florentine noblewoman born into the Medici family. She was Queen of France from 1547 to 1559 by marriage to King ...

. He was in French service during the

Italian War of 1542 Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

. Having raised an army of Italian mercenaries, he was confronted by the

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

forces at the Battle of Serravalle, where he was defeated. In 1548 he was in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

supporting

Mary of Guise Mary of Guise (french: Marie de Guise; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France. She ...

of behalf of Henry II of France, during the war of the

Rough Wooing The Rough Wooing (December 1543 – March 1551), also known as the Eight Years' War, was part of the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the 16th century. Following its break with the Roman Catholic Church, England attacked Scotland, partly to break the ...

. There he designed fortifications against the English at

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

and Haddington. After he was shot in the thigh by an

arquebus An arquebus ( ) is a form of long gun that appeared in Europe and the Ottoman Empire during the 15th century. An infantryman armed with an arquebus is called an arquebusier. Although the term ''arquebus'', derived from the Dutch word ''Haakbus ...

at Haddington, Strozzi supervised the works at Leith from a chair carried by four workmen. Strozzi also designed works at

Dunbar Castle Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest fortresses in Scotland, situated in a prominent position overlooking the harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian. Several fortifications were built successively on the site, near the English-Scotti ...

with the assistance of

Migliorino Ubaldini Ubaldini Migliorino (active 1548), known also as "Captain Mellerin," was an Italian military engineer working in Scotland. He designed new fortifications at the entrances of Edinburgh Castle, Dunbar Castle, and possibly the walled town of Leith. ...

. In 1551 he successfully defended Mirandola against papal troops during the

War of Parma War is an intense armed conflict between State (polity), states, governments, Society, societies, or paramilitary groups such as Mercenary, mercenaries, Insurgency, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violenc ...

. He was named

Marshal of France Marshal of France (french: Maréchal de France, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1 ...

in 1554. Later he fought in the defence of the

Republic of Siena The Republic of Siena ( it, Repubblica di Siena, la, Respublica Senensis) was a historic state consisting of the city of Siena and its surrounding territory in Tuscany, central Italy. It existed for over 400 years, from 1125 to 1555. During its e ...

against

Cosimo de' Medici Cosimo di Giovanni de' Medici (27 September 1389 – 1 August 1464) was an Italian banker and politician who established the Medici family as effective rulers of Florence during much of the Italian Renaissance. His power derived from his wealth ...

, leading a French army. He obtained a

pyrrhic victory A Pyrrhic victory ( ) is a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat. Such a victory negates any true sense of achievement or damages long-term progress. The phrase originates from a quote from P ...

Pontedera Pontedera (; la, Pons Herae) is an italian comune with a population of 29.270 inhabitants, located in the province of Pisa, Tuscany, Central Italy, central Italy. The town is located 20 km (12 miles) from Pisa and 50 km (31 miles) from Florenc ...

on 11 June 1554, but his army could not receive help from the ships of his brother Leone (who had been killed by an

shot near

Castiglione della Pescaia Castiglione della Pescaia (), regionally simply abbreviated as Castiglione, is an ancient seaside town in the province of Grosseto, in Tuscany, central Italy. The modern city grew around a medieval 12th century fortress ( it, castello) and a large ...

) and he was forced to retreat to

Pistoia Pistoia (, is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of a province of the same name, located about west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno. It is a typi ...

. On 2 August his defeat at the

Battle of Marciano The Battle of Marciano (also known as the Battle of Scannagallo) occurred in the countryside of Marciano della Chiana, near Arezzo, Tuscany, on August 2, 1554, during the Italian War of 1551. The battle marked the defeat of the Republic of Sie ...

meant the end of the Sienese independence. In 1556 he was appointed as superintendent of the

Papal The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

army and lord of

Épernay Épernay () is a commune in the Marne department of northern France, 130 km north-east of Paris on the mainline railway to Strasbourg. The town sits on the left bank of the Marne at the extremity of the Cubry valley which crosses it. Ép ...

. In 1558, under the command of

Francis, Duke of Guise Francis de Lorraine II, the first Prince of Joinville, also Duke of Guise and Duke of Aumale (french: François de Lorraine; 17 February 1519 – 24 February 1563), was a French general and statesman. A prominent leader during the Italian War of ...

, he participated in the

siege of Thionville (1558) The siege of Thionville was the siege of the town of Thionville during the Italian War of 1551–59. It was held by the Spanish against a French force under Francis, Duke of Guise and others. It lasted from 17 April to 23 June 1558 and resulted ...

, near

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...

Lorraine Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...

. He died there from wounds received on 21 June 1558. He is generally credited as the inventor of the

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...

military speciality (arquebusiers à cheval or horse arquebusiers).p.102, Fortescue His son

Filippo Filippo is an Italian male given name, which is the equivalent of the English name Philip, from the Greek ''Philippos'', meaning "amante dei cavalli".''Behind the Name''"Given Name Philip" Retrieved on 23 January 2016. The female variant is Fil ...

was also a military commander, as was his brother

Leone Strozzi Leone Strozzi (15 October 1515 – 28 June 1554) was an Italian condottiero belonging to the famous Strozzi family of Florence. Biography He was the son of Filippo Strozzi the Younger and Clarice de' Medici, and brother to Piero, Roberto and Lore ...

, a Knight of Malta, known as the Prior of Capua.

Ancestry

Notes and references

References

* Fortescue, John William, ''A History of the British Army'', volume I, chapter 2, Macmillan, 1899

Biography

Ancestry

Notes and references

References

Further reading