Cosimo de' Medici: The Man, The Myth, The Legend

A city as old as Florence surely has marks left from those those who impacted it left. A clueless visitor could be walking down the street unaware of the monumental history behind a building, piazza, or even a café.

Perhaps no one has impacted Florence as much as Cosimo de’ Medici, and the evidence of his legacy is scattered throughout the city.

The Medici family of the fifteenth century was involved in Florence’s foremost industry at the time: banking. Cosimo inherited his assets and business acumen from his father, Giovanni, who founded his own Medici Bank in Florence.

Cosimo opened multiple branches in different parts of Western Europe, like London, Pisa, Milan, Brüges, and Avignon. As a result, dioceses could pay their fees to their nearest bank, which in turn enabled popes to order spices, relics, and other expensive goods. Through this practice, the Medici family amassed millions in modern Euros and established a good standing the Church.

He followed his family’s tradition of funding lesser guilds and contributing to the arts. Thanks to Cosimo de’ Medici, trades other than banking flourished and Florence became the cultural center of Europe.

Many of the beautiful attractions that tourists flock toward today were commissioned by Cosimo nearly 600 years ago. The wealth of his family allowed Florence to enter a rebirth of classical culture, or the Renaissance. Cosimo was a patron of the arts, libraries, and philosophy. All of the work he commissioned is available for viewing around the city.

He commissioned Michelozzo Michelozzi to be the architect of his family palace and the product was the austere Palazzo Medici. This building is still largely intact and was an embodiment of Renaissance values: rationality, order, and humanism. The edifice blends Roman architectural principles but remained, as the Medici wanted, unmistakably Florentine. Visitors can walk through the palace courtyard for free and see some of the ancient statues the Medici had on display at the time. The enormous palazzo makes it feel surreal that a family could be so wealthy that only a dozen people and their staff resided in what seems like an entire apartment building.

This building became synonymous with power; for example, Mussolini and Hitler preferred to have their meetings here during World War II.

Upon entering the palace, I met a woman named Katy who worked at the Palazzo Medici Riccardi and had lived in Florence all her life. Somewhere within the muddled translations from English to Italian and vice versa, she managed to explain to me that Cosmo had kept this building simple on purpose.

He wanted the “family activities to be kept secret” because the public did not fully understand the extent of his power. According to Katy, he believed that as long as Florence had faith in the Signoria, order would be upheld and unwanted animosity would not be placed on his family.

You have to climb 463 steps to get to the top of the dome but I promise the view is worth the cardio.

Another famous architectural endeavor he was involved with was commissioning an architect for the dome of the Santa Maria del Fiore, also known as the Duomo. Of all the contenders vying for this coveted commission, Brunelleschi was the most eccentric and Cosimo was considered a fool for believing Brunelleschi would be able to complete this architectural feat. Brunelleschi finished it using a double shell so that the inner dome could support the outer dome. The construction of this dome marked advancement in architecture and construction. The Duomo is an architectural marvel as its dome is one of the largest in the world, and is a true testament to the importance of Cosimo de’ Medici’s philanthropy.

About 16 million people visit Florence every year, and this is at the epicenter of the tourism here.

The sheer size of the crowd outside the basilica shows how people flock toward it. The huge dome is a siren call toward the middle of the city. As you walk down the street and see it in the distance, you can feel yourself gravitating toward it. The wonder that can enchant you from half a city away is the result of Cosimo de’ Medici’s ambition to do the impossible.

He also funded the work of masters like Donatello. It is theorized that Cosimo commissioned Donatello’s David, the first freestanding bronze cast statue of the Renaissance. Florentines aligned themselves with David because much like the biblical figure, Florentines saw themselves as a small force defeating a larger adversary with the help of God.

Often overshadowed by Michelangelo's David, this David provides the perfect photo op with a Renaissance masterpiece.

The statue was regarded as controversial because David is portrayed as feminine and nude, so the Signoria (the renaissance government of Florence) did not want it in the town hall; consequently, Cosimo de’ Medici provided it with a safe haven in the Palazzo Medici. This signifies that the Medici were very open-minded for their time, and since they were the informal rulers, they led the way for the acceptance of reformation in art.

This statue is among one of the most discussed topics among scholars, from the unknown date of its creation to the symbolism behind every adorning aspect.

The David can be found in the Bargello, a statue museum, on its second floor. There is always a crowd of people surrounding the masterpiece, but since the museum is one of the less popular ones, you can probably get a picture with the statue alone. Tickets are relatively cheap, so it really is worth seeing this absolute masterpiece.

Moreover, Cosimo donated to libraries and helped amass books in Florence. Having received the best education of his time, Cosimo understood the importance of having books accessible to the public, because the more well-read the people were, the better the city would do.

In 1444, he founded the Laurentian Medicean Library, which contributed to the humanist movement during the Renaissance. He supported trips in pursuit of books throughout Europe, Syria, Egypt, and Greece. He employed 45 scribes to he could not acquire and bought the collection of Niccolò de' Niccoli. Through these books, schools of thought and books from antiquity were distributed, so classical knowledge grew. The library is inside a basilica you can go in for free to admire the seemingly boundless collection of books.

The founding of this library was meant to mark the shift from the Medici as merchants to intellectuals and important members of the Church.

Moving onto another cultural realm, Medici was influenced by the work of Gestimus Pletho, who reintroduced Plato’s ideas to Western Europe. He then opened the Platonic academy in 1445, lending to a growth in classical thought and an appreciation for the sciences over superstition.

The Renaissance would not have gotten its start without Cosimo de’ Medici’s financial contributions to art, architecture, literature, and philosophy. The man was a catalyst who launched Western civilization out of the dark ages. Florence would not be the cultural capital we know today had it not been for forward thinkers like Cosimo de’ Medici and the artists and academics he employed. The remains of his impact are here for you to see.