Machiavelli (1469-1527): Olympian Theologian

Niccoló Machiavelli was born on May 3, 1469, in Florence. His father was a lawyer. As a youth he learned Latin and especially appreciated The History of Rome written by Livy (58 BC-AD 17).

On May 3, 1498, Niccoló turned 29. On May 23, Girolamo Savonarola was executed. Amidst the changes in the Florentine government which followed, Niccoló was elected secretary of the council responsible for the diplomacy and defense of the Republic of Florence.

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452, in the village of Vinci, about 19 miles (30 km) west of Florence. His father was a lawyer; his mother, a peasant. Leonardo was their illegitimate son. That meant he wouldn’t be able to work as a lawyer like his father. That also meant he could study what he wanted which, in Leonardo’s case, was best. Because of his limitless curiosity and great skill in many areas, Leonardo became widely regarded in his time and since as the quintessential Renaissance Man.

Lorenzo de’ Medici (1449-1492)

Cosimo de’ Medici was almost 75 years old when he died in 1464. When Cosimo’s son died only five years later, his grandson Lorenzo (b. 1449) became ruler of both the Medici Bank and the Republic of Florence at the age of 20. He would die at the young age of 43 in 1492.