Lorenzo the Elder (12 October 1394 – 23 September 1440) was an Italian banker of the

House of 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 de' Medici, Lorenzo "the Magnificent" during the first h ...

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 ...

, the younger brother of

Cosimo de' Medici the Elder 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 ...

and progenitor of the so-called "Popolani" ("populist, i.e. for the people") line of the family, named for a later generation whose members were supporters of the Florentine political activist

Girolamo Savonarola Girolamo Savonarola, OP (, ; ; 21 September 1452 – 23 May 1498), also referred to as Jerome Savonarola, was an ascetic Dominican friar from Ferrara and a preacher active in Renaissance Florence. He became known for his prophecies of civic ...

History

Lorenzo was the son of

Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici ( – February 1429) was an Italian banker and founder of the Medici Bank. While other members of the Medici family, such as Chiarissimo di Giambuono de' Medici, who served in the Signoria of Florence in 1401, and ...

and Piccarda Bueri. He was educated by

Carlo Marsuppini Carlo Marsuppini (1399–1453), also known as Carlo Aretino and Carolus Arretinus, was an Italian Renaissance humanist and chancellor of the Florentine Republic. Biography Marsuppini was born in Genoa into a family from Arezzo, but grew up and ...

. In 1416, he married Ginevra Cavalcanti. To celebrate their marriage, the Venetian

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humanism" ha ...

Francesco Barbaro wrote his

treatise A treatise is a Formality, formal and systematic written discourse on some subject concerned with investigating or exposing the main principles of the subject and its conclusions."mwod:treatise, Treatise." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Acc ...

''De Re Uxoria'', an analysis of marriage that continued to be published for centuries. Lorenzo and Ginevra had two sons: Francesco, who was childless, and Pierfrancesco, who originated the Popolani line. Ginevra Cavalcanti was an aunt of the wife of the famous Italian merchant

Giovanni Arnolfini Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini ( – after 1452) was a merchant from Lucca, a city in Tuscany, Italy. He spent most of his life in Flanders, then part of the Duchy of Burgundy, probably always based in Bruges, a wealthy trading city and one of t ...

. Lorenzo followed his brother Cosimo in his military maneuvers at

Ferrara Ferrara (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, capital of the province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main ...

Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...

and

Vicenza Vicenza ( , ; or , archaically ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, where it straddles the Bacchiglione, River Bacchiglione. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and e ...

. In 1433 he tried to muster an army to free Cosimo from imprisonment when the latter was arrested under the charge of tyranny. Later, he joined him at Venice and returned with him in Florence triumphantly after Cosimo's rehabilitation. Though dedicating himself much to banking activity, Lorenzo held several positions in the Florentine Republic and was ambassador to

Pope Eugene IV Pope Eugene IV (; ; 1383 – 23 February 1447), born Gabriele Condulmer, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 March 1431 to his death, in February 1447. Condulmer was a Republic of Venice, Venetian, and a nephew ...

and the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

. In 1435, he moved to Rome to oversee the affairs of the Medici Bank at the papal court. Lorenzo the Elder was ancestor to all the

Grand Dukes of Tuscany This is a list of grand dukes of Tuscany. The title was created on 27 August 1569 by a papal bull of Pope Pius V to Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo I de' Medici, member of the illustrious House of Medici. His coronation took pl ...

through his direct descendant

Cosimo I de' Medici Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was the second and last duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first grand duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Cosimo I succeeded his cousin to the duchy. ...

. He is also the ancestor to seven kings of France beginning with

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...

as a result of the marriage of

Marie de' Medici Marie de' Medici (; ; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV. Marie served as regent of France between 1610 and 1617 during the minority of her son Louis XIII. Her mandate as rege ...

King Henry IV of France Henry IV (; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry (''le Bon Roi Henri'') or Henry the Great (''Henri le Grand''), was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 16 ...

. He died in the Medici Villa of Careggi in 1440 and was buried in the Basilica of San Lorenzo.

Fictional depictions

A young Lorenzo is portrayed by

Stuart Martin Stuart Martin (born 8 January 1986) is a Scottish actor. He is known for his roles in the Channel 4 comedy-drama ''Babylon'' (2014), as well as the historical dramas '' Medici: Masters of Florence'' (2016), '' Jamestown'' (2017–2019), and '' ...

in the 2016 television series '' Medici: Masters of Florence''. Although the television production has him assassinated, these events did not take place in real life. The show appears to be using elements from a later attack on his great nephew,

Giuliano de' Medici Giuliano de' Medici (28 October 1453 – 26 April 1478) was the second son of Piero de' Medici (the Gouty) and Lucrezia Tornabuoni. As co-ruler of the Florentine Republic, with his brother Lorenzo the Magnificent, he complemented his broth ...

, for dramatic effect.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Medici, Lorenzo the Elder 1390s births 1440 deaths Year of birth uncertain

Lorenzo the Elder Lorenzo the Elder (12 October 1394 – 23 September 1440) was an Italian banker of the House of Medici of Florence, the younger brother of Cosimo de' Medici the Elder and progenitor of the so-called "Popolani" ("populist, i.e. for the people" ...

Italian bankers Ambassadors to the Republic of Venice Ambassadors to the Holy See 15th-century people from the Republic of Florence 15th-century Italian nobility Ambassadors of the Republic of Florence 15th-century Italian diplomats