Leopoldo de’ Medici

Leopoldo de’ Medici was born on 6 November 1617 at the Palazzo Pitti in Florence as the youngest son of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo II de’ Medici, and his wife, Maria Magdalena of Austria. His grandparents included Ferdinando I de’ Medici and Christina of Lorraine, as well as Archduke Charles II of Austria and Maria Anna of Bavaria. Leopoldo had four brothers and three sisters. His eldest brother, Ferdinando II, became Grand Duke of Tuscany in 1621, while his brother Giovanni Carlo became a cardinal and his brother Matthias served in the military and was governor of Siena on several occasions. His sister Margherita married the Duke of Parma and Piacenza, while Anna became Archduchess of Further Austria through her marriage. When Leopoldo was three years old, his father died. Together with his siblings, he was raised by his mother and his grandmother, Christina of Lorraine. He received a comprehensive education. His teachers included the jurist and writer Jacopo Soldani, the painter and architect Sigismondo Coccapani, the mathematician and astronomer Flaviano Michelini, and the mathematician and physicist Evangelista Torricelli. Leopoldo became an important adviser to his brother Ferdinando II, supporting him particularly on economic and foreign-policy matters. He presided several times over the Supreme Magistracy and the Council of Two Hundred. He also promoted manufacturing, agriculture, and trade. He rarely left the Grand Duchy. In 1639, he travelled to Venice and Parma, and in 1646 to Tyrol, where he accompanied his sister Anna to her future husband. During the Jubilee Year of 1650, he made a pilgrimage to Rome with his brother Matthias. Leopoldo served as governor of Siena from 1636 to 1641 and again from 1643 to 1644. Even before his elevation to the cardinalate, Leopoldo was regarded as a religious and reserved man. From an early age, he avoided the company of women and devoted himself intensely to science. He corresponded with Christian Huygens and Galileo Galilei, whom he knew personally. In 1638, he revived the Platonic Academy. In 1657, together with the Grand Duke, he founded the Experimental Academy, where scientific knowledge was to be established through direct observation. It is regarded as the first experimental academy in Europe. Leopoldo conducted experiments with telescope lenses and numerous scientific instruments. His rooms in the Palazzo Pitti contained thermometers, astrolabes, calorimeters, sextants, hygrometers, and other mechanical devices. His efforts to preserve Galileo’s scientific legacy were especially important. At Leopoldo’s invitation, the scholar visited his villa in Arcetri during the summer. Leopoldo also devoted considerable attention to literature. He supported the librarian Antonio Magliabechi in acquiring rare books and read for several hours every day. He wrote poetry and was admitted in 1641 to the Accademia della Crusca, which was devoted to the Tuscan language and literature. There he worked on articles about art for the third edition of the Crusca Dictionary, which was published only after his death, in 1691. Leopoldo was also a talented artist. His surviving works include paintings, drawings, caricatures, and sketches of scientific instruments. His “Portrait of the Singer Martelli” is preserved in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. As a collector, he assembled an important collection of rare books, paintings, drawings, miniatures, statues, coins, and self-portraits. His collection of Venetian painting was particularly extensive. His large correspondence with artists and art collectors reflects the central role that art and research played in his life. On 12 December 1667, Pope Clement IX elevated Leopoldo to the cardinalate. In 1668, he received the title of Cardinal Deacon of Santi Cosma e Damiano. From then on, he travelled to Rome more frequently. During the conclave of 1669–1670, as a member of the pro-Spanish party, he played a decisive mediating role between the groups led by Fabio Chigi and Antonio Barberini the Younger. Through his efforts, a consensus was reached around the election of Cardinal Emilio Altieri, who became pope as Clement X. In 1670, Leopoldo changed to the title of Cardinal Deacon of Santa Maria in Cosmedin. In 1674, he was ordained a priest. On 21 December of the same year, he celebrated his first Mass in the church of Santa Trinità in Florence, which he supported. Until his death, he celebrated Mass three times a week. Leopoldo de’ Medici died suddenly in Florence on 11 November 1675, at the age of 58. He was buried in the Medici Chapel of the Basilica of San Lorenzo and remembered as a humane and highly educated man. His legacy included around 700 paintings, as well as numerous books, works of art, and scientific instruments. These holdings became part of the Medici family heritage and are now distributed among various Florentine museums and collections, including the Uffizi, the Vasari Corridor, the Galileo Museum, and the National Library of Florence.