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Florence (Medici Era)

Type Object Region Europe Time 1434–1494

In the 15th century, Florence under de facto Medici rule became the political and economic center of Tuscany, famed for banking, wool trade, and Rena…

Timeline

  1. 1434–1464Florence · TuscanyCosimo de' Medici established family dominance by manipulating republican institutions and financial networks; Medici Bank branches spread across Europe, and the city became an important center of capital and art patronage in 15th-century Italy.
  2. 1469–1492Florence · TuscanyDuring Lorenzo de' Medici's rule, Florence reached the cultural summit of the Renaissance in the 1470s; the Platonic Academy was active, artists such as Botticelli were sponsored, and the city maneuvered flexibly among Naples, Milan, and the Papal States through diplomacy.
  3. 1494–1512Florence · TuscanyAfter Lorenzo's death Piero lost power, and the invasion of Charles VIII of France led to the Medici's expulsion; Savonarola briefly dominated republican politics, and the Medici did not return to Florence until 1512 with foreign assistance.

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