Show Notes
The voice of Giovanni Battista di Montesecco has us relive the darkest hours of Medici Florence. When most of the conspirators have been found and punished, Montesecco, despite having refused the assignment to kill the Magnifico, still fears for his life. Devoured by guilt, the soldier takes refuge in a monastery. In this episode, we will retrace the last 9 days of Montesecco's life: the 9 days that preceded the precious confession that allowed us to discover the rawest background of the Congiura dei Pazzi.
More from The Pazzi Conspiracy
Following his trip to Naples, Lorenzo de' Medici is welcomed by the Florentines as a hero. The dark years of the Florentine Republic have allowed the Medici to show off his resolve.Lorenzo de' Medici, also known as "the needle of the scales," knew how to juggle the maze of Italian politics and did not hesitate to compromise in order to promise his Firenza a better future. In this final episode we retrace Lorenzo de' Medici's last years before his untimely death.
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The New Athens: so is the Florence of the Medici, a hub for intellectuals, artists, poets and architects. Giovanni Battista da Montesecco, the man who decided to spare Lorenzo de' Medici's life, recounts his encounters with the Magnifico and 15th-century Florence. A journey among the majestic churches and the small streets that innervate the Florentine city: in this installment, we will discover how the Medici family, and Lorenzo in particular, worked to make their Florence the jewel in the crown of all Italy.
Thanks to the confession of the soldier Giovanni Battista di Montesecco, it is possible to trace the dynamics and diplomatic conflicts that acted as a precursor to the tragedy of April 26, 1478. The Medici family was often the center of political disputes and violent battles over contested territories between the Florentine Republic and the Holy See. The bloody Pope Sixtus IV had unfinished business with Lorenzo the Magnificent and for this very reason decided to eliminate him once and for all.
Who is the man who caused the failure of the conspiracy hatched by the Church and the Pazzi family against Lorenzo and Giuliano de' Medici? Giovanni Battista da Montesecco, this is his name: a soldier of the papal army, hired as the Magnifico's killer.Assigned the task of telling us about Florence's darkest years, Montesecco now recounts the struggles and promises that led him to be a key player within the political games of the Italian Renaissance.