18
were enabled to attain supremacy in the name of freedom, and with the
support of the
popolo
and the populace.”
5
Indeed, under Cosimo and his
descendants, the Medicis became the virtual rulers of Florence, although
the city-state was nominally administered by its
Signoria
.
The Titled Class
e Medicis did eventually enter the ranks of the titled class when in
1515 Cosimo’s grandson, Giuliano, married Filiberta, the daughter of
Phillip II, duke of the French region Savoy. Following the marriage
the French king Francis I invested Giuliano with the title of duke of
Nemours, a region in France.
Still, ascension of a patrician to the titled class was rare. For the most
part the nobles of the era received their titles through birthright. e
titled classes of the era included (in descending order) kings, princes,
grand dukes, dukes, counts, marquises, and knights. e Holy Roman
emperor—regarded as the supreme ruler over Italy and other European
lands—actually reigned from Germany. By the era of the Italian Re-
naissance, when Italian city-states had raised their own armies and were
homes to vast fortunes such as those possessed by the Medicis, it was
not unusual for the
Signori
to ignore the dictates of the Holy Roman
emperor and make their own laws.
Usually the titles of the Italian nobility were granted to the first-born
males in the family. However, most families held a number of titles, so it
was generally guaranteed that all sons would receive at least one title. If a
daughter was born into a family that lacked male heirs, she inherited the
title but passed it on to her male offspring. e wives of the title holders
were known as queens, princesses, duchesses, countesses, and so on. ey
were respected as members of the titled classes; however, their husbands
wielded the true authority in their families.
The Borgias
While the Medicis best reflected the wealth and power of the patrician
class in Renaissance Italy, it was the Borgias, particularly the nobleman
