Leonardo Bruni

Timeline

1. c. 1370–1405Florence · FlorenceBruni was born in Arezzo and later moved to Florence, where he studied under the chancellor Coluccio Salutati and learned Greek under Manuel Chrysoloras. Around 1403–1404 he wrote the Laudatio urbis Florentinae, arguing in Ciceronian Latin for the superiority of republican government; it became an early text of civic humanism.
2. 1405–1415Roman Curia · RomeFrom 1405 he served as apostolic secretary under Innocent VII and other popes, holding the post until 1415 save for a brief interruption, through the papal turmoil surrounding Pisa, John XXIII, and the Council of Constance. During this period he translated large quantities of Plato, Plutarch, Xenophon, and Demosthenes, and participated by letter in Italian humanist networks.
3. 1410–1427Florence · FlorenceIn 1410–1411 Bruni briefly served as chancellor of Florence, then maintained contacts with both the Curia and Florentine political circles. Around 1415 he began writing the History of the Florentine People (Historiarum Florentini populi libri XII), applying classical historiographical methods to material from the city's origins to 1404, and also wrote lives of Dante and Petrarch and a Dialogue.
4. 1427–1444Florence · FlorenceFrom 1427 Bruni again became and long remained chancellor of the Republic until his death, one of the most important official men of letters after Cosimo's return. In 1440–1441 he completed the Commentarius rerum suo tempore gestarum. He died in Florence on 9 March 1444 and was buried in Santa Croce, his tombstone made by Bernardo Rossellino.