Cosimo I de Medici

Home > ... > People > History > Italian History: Biographies > ...

Essential reading Compare
side-by-side World Encyclopedia The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

Cosimo I de' Medici

Cosimo I de' Medici 1519-74, duke of Florence (1537-69), grand duke of Tuscany (1569-74); son of Giovanni de' Medici (Giovanni delle Bande Nere). In 1537, Lorenzino de' Medici murdered Cosimo's predecessor, Alessandro de' Medici, and fled from Florence, leaving the succession to Cosimo. Cosimo, despite promises to the contrary, assumed absolute authority as soon as he was installed. A group of exiles who tried to restore the republic were defeated and were either imprisoned or beheaded. In 1539, Cosimo married a Spanish noblewoman, Eleonora de Toledo, whose enormous dowry replenished his empty coffers. Under Cosimo's able, though ruthless, rule Florence reached its highest political importance and material prosperity and almost doubled its territories—notably by the acquisition (1555) of the republic of Siena . In 1569, Pope Pius V bestowed the title grand duke of Tuscany on Cosimo. Cosimo centralized his state. His son, Francesco de' Medici, succeeded him.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-MedicC1" title="Facts and information about Cosimo I de Medici">Cosimo I de Medici</a>

Give this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"Cosimo I de' Medici." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Cosimo I de' Medici." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (November 11, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-MedicC1.html

"Cosimo I de' Medici." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved November 11, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-MedicC1.html

Learn more about citation styles

Medici, Cosimo I de

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Â© World Encyclopedia 2005, originally published by Oxford University Press 2005. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Medici, Cosimo I de' ( the Great) (1519–74) Duke of Florence (1537–74), Grand Duke of Tuscany (1569–74). Under Cosimo's authoritarian rule, Florence flourished and its territory swelled with the acquisition of Siena. He was given the title of Grand Duke by the Pope.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O142-MediciCosimoIde" title="Facts and information about Cosimo I de Medici">Cosimo I de Medici</a>

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"Medici, Cosimo I de'." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Medici, Cosimo I de'." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (November 11, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-MediciCosimoIde.html

"Medici, Cosimo I de'." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved November 11, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-MediciCosimoIde.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Filippo in Florence.(Art)("Filippo Napoletano alla Corte di Cosimo II de' Medici," Palazzo Pitti, Florence) Magazine article from: New Criterion; 5/1/2008
	Medici Women: Portraits of Power, Love and Betrayal from the Court of Duke Cosimo I.(Book review) Magazine article from: The Historian; 12/22/2008
	The Medici, Michelangelo, and the art of Florence. (Museums Today). Magazine article from: USA Today (Magazine); 1/1/2003

Facts and information from other sites

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

	Pater Patriae: COSIMO DE MEDICI. Magazine article from: Calliope; 4/1/2001; ; 700+ words ; WHEN COSIMO DE' MEDICI (1389-1464) APPEARED ON THE...reason, he carefully trained Cosimo to run the Medici banking business. When Giovanni...Signoria, the banishment of the Medici was revoked. Cosimo returned from Venice to cheering...
	Art and humanity in Medici Florence; Cosimo de Medici and the Florentine Renaissance by Dale Kent (Yale pounds 40). Reviewed by Richard Edmonds.(Books) Newspaper article from: The Birmingham Post (England); 12/16/2000; 700+ words ; ...structure to uphold. Cosimo de Medici (1389-1464) a...excuse to put half the Medici family into the composition. Cosimo himself is mounted...fallen on deaf ears in Cosimo's case - either...fresco went into the Medici chapel people did...
	Cosimo I de' Medici and His Self-Presentation in Florentine Art and Culture.(Book review) Magazine article from: Renaissance Quarterly; 6/22/2007; ; 700+ words ; Henk Van Veen. Cosimo I de' Medici and His Self-Presentation...521-83722-7. Duke Cosimo de' Medici's commissions at critical...to by Vasari and many Medici scholars, are questionable...apparato, each vaunting Cosimo's Apollonian autocracy...
	How the Medici Bank became the world's most powerful business: the challenges faced by Cosimo and his managers would horrify most modern managers.(Sounding Board)(Company Profile) Magazine article from: European Business Forum; 12/22/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...with different solutions. Cosimo dei Medici: entrepreneurial genius By...was under Giovanni's son, Cosimo dei Medici, that the Bank reached the...the entire business. Under Cosimo's management, the Medici Bank expanded first into northern...
	The Cultural Politics of Duke Cosimo I de' Medici.(Book Review) Magazine article from: Canadian Journal of History; 4/1/2003; ; 700+ words ; ...fifteen articles on Duke Cosimo I de' Medici (1519-72) and his use...foreign policy of the earlier Medici, Cosimo subjugated Siena but failed...ways in which the Palazzo Medici served as a model for Cosimo. Mary Weitzel Gibbons argues...
	Medici Women: Portraits of Power, Love, and Betrayal from the Court of Duke Cosimo I.(Renaissance Woman)(Book review) Magazine article from: Canadian Journal of History; 3/22/2007; ; 700+ words ; ...sixteenth-century Florentine court of Cosimo I de' Medici. In chapters on Cosimo's mother, wife, various daughters...as Maria Salviati with Giulia de' Medici, painted shortly after Maria Salviati, Cosimo's mother, was widowed. Langdon...
	The Cultural Politics of Duke Cosimo I de' Medici and The Spinelli of Florence: Fortunes of a Renaissance Merchant Family. (Reviews).(Book Review) Magazine article from: Renaissance Quarterly; 9/22/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...Cultural Politics of Duke Cosimo I de' Medici Burlington, Vermont...quiet emulation of Cosimo -- for example, portraits...Vecchio's namesake, Cosimo I Duke of Florence and...Duke of Tuscany, took Medici power to heights undreamed...
	Medici women; portraits of power, love, and betrayal from the court of Duke Cosimo I.(Brief Article)(Book Review) Magazine article from: Reference & Research Book News; 11/1/2006; 464 words ; 9780802038258 Medici women; portraits of power...from the court of Duke Cosimo I. Langdon, Gabrielle...how the powerful Italian Medici family used portraits...during the reign of Duke Cosimo de' Medici and Duchess Eleonora di...
	Bentleyissimo! LABOUR OF LOVE: Lucinda and Bentley outside the Villa Cetinale which was so painstakingly restored by her late father PASSAGE OF TIME: The Ponte Vecchio, where Cosimo de Medici, above, had a secret corridor built. Below: A participant in the Palio race DOMED ELEGANCE: Lucindas bathroom at the Villa Mangiacane. Newspaper article from: The Mail on Sunday (London, England); 4/27/2008; 700+ words ; ...purpose by the thenruler of Florence, Cosimo de Medici, to enable him to go from the GovernmentPalace...on the crowds today, through 'Cosimo's Eyes', the little,round...Church of SantaFelicita, where Cosimo would make his daily devotions...
	Cosimo I de' Medici and his self-representation in Florentine art and culture.(Brief Article)(Book Review) Magazine article from: Reference & Research Book News; 11/1/2006; 471 words ; 0521837227 Cosimo I de' Medici and his self-representation in Florentine...perspective on Grand-Duke of Tuscany Cosimo's (1519-74) patronage of art...powerful absolutist prince. He argues that Cosimo achieved this by using his official...