How the Medici Shaped the Renaissance | Cosimo I de' Medici: Grand Duke of Tuscany (Lecture 12)

Lecture 12: This lesson looks at the legacy of Cosimo I de’ Medici and subsequent Medici rule, starting with Francesco de’ Medici. Born in 1541, Francesco was the eldest of Cosimo’s sons and received a wide-ranging humanistic education. Like his father, Francesco exhibited autocratic tendencies, but he did not possess the personal vigor or intellectual and political acuity that guided Cosimo’s time in power.

Conclude with a view of some of the later Medici luminaries. Among them, assess the accomplishments of Cosimo de’ Medici, granted the title of Grand Duke; the judicious Ferdinando de’ Medici, whose civic and social policies attended a new era of prosperity; and Catherine de Medici, who imported Florentine culture to France as the French queen. Finally, learn about the Medici dynasty’s decline.