“The Medici” by Paul Strathern [Book Review]

“The Medici: Power, Money, and Ambition in the Italian Renaissance” by Paul Strathern is a sojourn into the elusively secret world of medieval money and politics like I’ve never quite experienced. It was eye-opening on many levels for me.

As a historian and an armchair economist I’ve always preferred the classically dispassionate writing style of academic analysis, Strathern’s work reads much more like a biography – the biography of a great banking house spanning from the 13th century down until the 18th century. His treatment of the Medici family from its origins to its height as Italy and Europe’s premier bankers to their eventual collapse is exactly what any reader needs to understand this immensely important history.

STAR RATINGS:

THE MEDICI BOOK STATS:

• Published 2017
• 431 total pages
• 411 pages of text
• 29 chapters
• 1 family genealogy
• 1 List of leaders and rulers
• 8 color picture pages inset
• 1 minimal Sources section
• 1 Index section
• Hardcover available

MIND BLOWN! COOL THINGS I LEARNED:

• The family began as merchants and parlayed that trade into a banking dynasty
• They were complicit in many revolutions of state
• The Medicis were patrons to the Renaissance
• Italian culture promulgated throughout Europe thanks to a few Medici women

THE MEDICI BOOK REVIEW:

“The Medici: Power, Money, and Ambition in the Italian Renaissance” begins with the somewhat mystical origins of this Italian family in early medieval Europe, not as bankers but as heroes dating back to the campaigns of the great Charlemagne. There are several theories as to the Medici family origins discussed in the opening chapter of the book which, without giving it away, is very compelling toward understanding the character of the paternal godfathers as those who wielded immense power.

Author Paul Strathern is a writer who can weave an incredibly complex tale where nothing is taken for granted and you feel like you are absolutely in the moment as events unfold. This is essential as the story of Italian politics from the consolidation of power to diabolical plotting is not for the faint of heart. The rise of the Medici family really begins with the great Cosimo de Medici who fought vicious allegations of corruption, attempts on his life, power struggles against his rivals in Milan, only to stand as Italy’s premier banker ready to outstretch his influence to the rest of Europe. That prestige would happen through the pope and the Medici’s connection to Rome.

Not only is this book about successive generations of Medici bankers but also about the patronage of Renaissance art and culture. The author goes to great lengths to expound upon the connection between the various family leaders over time to luminaries such as Machiavelli, Brunelleschi, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Donatello, Botticelli, and many more. It’s almost as if the Renaissance never would have happened without Cosimo de Medici!

As in all dynasties, author Paul Strathern is keenly aware that not all representatives are equal, some aloof and intellectual, some virulent and degenerate, others just plain showboats. One of the interesting facets of this jewel of a book is how the personalities of each of the Medici ‘godfathers’ is brought forth with such clarity – not only individual personalities in terms of their own predilections but in how those personalities manifested themselves in their relationships with family, the common people as well as numerous dignitaries.

For example, if we were to graph out the difference between dynastic founder Cosimo de Medici and great-grandson Piero the Unfortunate they would definitely be at opposite ends of the chart. Despite historic fluctuations in the Medici stock, so to speak, it was continually on the rise and thanks to political alliances which eventually turned into political marriages, the Medici were eventually able to secure offspring with royal blood. The oldest sons would become Dukes of Florence, the younger brothers popes, and the younger sisters married off to the royal families of France, Poland, and even Medieval Lithuania, all the while the banking contracts continued to swell the Medici coffers. Well, it didn’t turn out all that swimmingly, but you’ll have to read the book to find out.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

• Strathern, Paul. 2017. The Medici: Power, money, and ambition in the Italian Renaissance. New York: Pegasus Books.
• ISBN-13: 978-1681774084
• Amazon Link.