Ippolito De' Medici
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Ippolito de' Medici (March 1511 – 10 August 1535) was the only son of
Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici People with the Italian name, Italian given name or surname Giuliano () have included: Origin and meaning Giuliano is an Italian form of Julian (given name), Julian, a masculine name meaning "youthful". A patronymic Italian surname derived from G ...
, born out of wedlock to his
mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a female lover of a married man ** Royal mistress * Maîtresse-en-titre, official mistress of a ...
Pacifica Brandano.


Biography

Ippolito was born in
Urbino Urbino ( , ; Romagnol: ''Urbìn'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italy, Italian region of Marche, southwest of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially und ...
. His father died when he was only five (1516), and he was subsequently raised by his uncle
Pope Leo X Pope Leo X (; born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, 11 December 14751 December 1521) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1513 to his death in December 1521. Born into the prominent political and banking Med ...
and his cousin Giulio de' Medici. When Giulio was elected pope as Clement VII in 1523, Ippolito ruled
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
on his behalf (1524–1527). After the siege of Florence (1529–1530), however, Clement favored his nephew Alessandro de' Medici as the family member to take charge of Florence. To assist and succeed him in church affairs, Clement VII created his cousin Ippolito a
cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...
on 10 January 1529, and on the same day named him first Archbishop of Avignon, a position that brought him a considerable income. Since he was only eighteen, he could not be consecrated a bishop or even be the administrator of the diocese without a papal dispensation. Ippolito was named
Cardinal Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. Ca ...
of
Santa Prassede The Basilica of Saint Praxedes (, ), commonly known in Italian as Santa Prassede, is an early medieval titulus (Roman Catholic), titular church and minor basilica located near the papal basilica of Saint Mary Major, on Via di Santa Prassede, Mont ...
, though there is no evidence that he was ever ordained a priest or consecrated as a bishop. His own preference was to be ruler of Florence, not a cleric, and he spent the rest of his life trying to renounce his clerical calling and depose his cousin Alessandro. On 3 May 1529, Cardinal Ippolito was named
Papal Legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the Pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title '' legatus'') is a personal representative of the Pope to foreign nations, to some other part of the Catho ...
in Perugia. On 12 August 1529, Cardinal Ippolito de' Medici was one of the three Cardinal Legates who met Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...
at Genoa with the purpose of conducting him in state to his coronation as Emperor in Bologna. In Bologna, he participated in the ceremonies of the coronation. On 15 February 1530, Pope Clement granted Cardinal Ippolito a ⅓ share in the annual papal income from the town and territory of
Chiusi Chiusi ( Etruscan: ''Clevsin''; Umbrian: ''Camars''; Ancient Greek: ''Klysion'', ''Κλύσιον''; Latin: ''Clusium'') is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Siena, Tuscany, Italy. History Clusium (''Clevsin or Camars'' in Etruscan) ...
for his lifetime. Ippolito was sent to Hungary in the spring of 1532 as Papal Legate, departing from Rome on 8 July, according to the diaries of the Italian literatus
Pietro Aretino Pietro Aretino (, ; 19 or 20 April 1492 – 21 October 1556) was an Italian author, playwright, poet, satire, satirist and blackmailer, who wielded influence on contemporary art and politics. He was one of the most influential writers of his ti ...
. He was in
Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...
by 12 August. There he demonstrated a talent for soldiering, leading 8000 Hungarian soldiers against the Ottoman Turks, though the Sultan
Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman I (; , ; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the Western world and as Suleiman the Lawgiver () in his own realm, was the List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman sultan between 1520 a ...
was unwilling to move forward so late in the season, and the Emperor Charles V only had sufficient forces for defense, not offence. When the Emperor returned to Italy early in the next year, Cardinal Ippolito followed him. On 3 July 1532, Cardinal Ippolito was named Vice-Chancellor of the Holy Roman Church, the most lucrative office in the
Roman Curia The Roman Curia () comprises the administrative institutions of the Holy See and the central body through which the affairs of the Catholic Church are conducted. The Roman Curia is the institution of which the Roman Pontiff ordinarily makes use ...
. Along with that post he was transferred to the
Titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church () is a Churches in Rome, church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the Holy orders in the Catholic Church, clergy who is created a Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal. These are Catholic churches in ...
of
San Lorenzo in Damaso The Minor Basilica of St. Lawrence in Damaso (Basilica Minore di San Lorenzo in Damaso) or simply San Lorenzo in Damaso is a parish and titular church in central Rome, Italy that is dedicated to St. Lawrence, deacon and martyr. It is incorporate ...
. He was a friend to, and possibly had a liaison with, Giulia Gonzaga, the Countess of Fondi. He loved
Catherine de' Medici Catherine de' Medici (, ; , ; 13 April 1519 – 5 January 1589) was an Italian Republic of Florence, Florentine noblewoman of the Medici family and Queen of France from 1547 to 1559 by marriage to Henry II of France, King Henry II. Sh ...
, but they never married. Alessandro de' Medici once caught him and Catherine de' Medici in a private embrace. However, when he was sent away as a Cardinal, they weren't allowed to see each other any longer. Some theories suggest that the reason Clement made Ippolito Cardinal was to keep him and Catherine de' Medici apart. By 24 April 1531, Catherine had been promised to Henry, the son of King
Francis I of France Francis I (; ; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once removed and father-in-law Louis&nbs ...
, in a draft contract of marriage. Catherine was 11, and Cardinal Ippolito was 21. Ippolito's cousin, Pope Clement, died on 25 September 1534. The
Conclave A conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to appoint the pope of the Catholic Church. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church. Concerns around ...
elected Cardinal Alessandro Farnese on 12 October and he chose the name
Paul III Pope Paul III (; ; born Alessandro Farnese; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death, in November 1549. He came to the papal throne in an era follo ...
. In 1535, free of his cousin's influence, Cardinal Ippolito acted as Florentine ambassador to Emperor Charles V, happily conveying complaints against the administration of Alessandro de' Medici. Suffering from a low-grade fever for eight days, Ippolito died from
malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...
in Itri, in southern
Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...
, although there were rumors that he had been poisoned either by Alessandro de' Medici, whose abuses he was intending to denounce, or by Pope Paul III, who aimed to acquire Ippolito's lucrative benefices for his own nephews. During the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
, the
Medici The House of Medici ( , ; ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first consolidated power in the Republic of Florence under Cosimo de' Medici and his grandson Lorenzo "the Magnificent" during the first half of the 15th ...
developed a large
menagerie A menagerie is a collection of captive animals, frequently exotic, kept for display; or the place where such a collection is kept, a precursor to the modern zoo or zoological garden. The term was first used in 17th-century France, referring to ...
with human zoo in the Vatican. In the 16th century, Cardinal Ippolito de' Medici had a collection of people of different races as well as exotic animals. He is reported as having a troupe of so-called Savages, speaking over twenty languages; there were also Moors, Tartars, Indians, Turks and Africans.Mullan, Bob and Marvin Garry, ''Zoo culture: The book about watching people watch animals'',
University of Illinois Press The University of Illinois Press (UIP) is an American university press and is part of the University of Illinois System. Founded in 1918, the press publishes some 120 new books each year, thirty-three scholarly journals, and several electroni ...
,
Urbana, Illinois Urbana ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 census, Urbana had a population of 38,336. It is a principal city of the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, which had 236,000 residents i ...
, Second edition, 1998, p.98.


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Medici, Ippolito De 16th-century Italian cardinals Heads of state of Florence 1511 births 1535 deaths Ippolito Ambassadors of the Republic of Florence Archbishops of Avignon Cardinal-nephews Diplomats for the Holy See Deaths from malaria 16th-century people from the Republic of Florence 16th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops 16th-century Italian nobility Infectious disease deaths in Lazio