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Giovanni de' Medici, also known as Giovanni dalle Bande Nere (April 5, 1498 - November 30, 1526) was an Italian condottiero.

anni was born in the Northern Italian town of Forlì
Forlì

Forl? is a comune and city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, famed as the birthplace of the great painter Melozzo da Forl?, of the Renaissance humanism historian Flavio Biondo, of the famous physicians Geronimo Mercuriali and Giovanni Battista Morgagni....
 to Giovanni de' Medici
Giovanni de' Medici il Popolano

Giovanni de' Medici, known as il Popolano was an Italian nobleman of the Medici House of Florence. He was the son of Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de' Medici, and therefore member of a secondary branch of the family....
 (also known as il Popolano) and Caterina Sforza
Caterina Sforza

Caterina Sforza, Countess of Forl? , was the illegitimate daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan and Lucrezia Landriani, the wife of the courtier Gian Piero Landriani, a close friend of the Duke....
, one of the most famous women of the Italian Renaissance
Italian Renaissance

The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the 13th century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe....
.

From an early age, he demonstrated great interest and ability in physical activity, especially the martial arts of the age: horse-back riding, sword-fighting, etc.






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Giovanni de' Medici, also known as Giovanni dalle Bande Nere (April 5, 1498 - November 30, 1526) was an Italian condottiero.

Biography

Giovanni was born in the Northern Italian town of Forlì
Forlì

Forl? is a comune and city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, famed as the birthplace of the great painter Melozzo da Forl?, of the Renaissance humanism historian Flavio Biondo, of the famous physicians Geronimo Mercuriali and Giovanni Battista Morgagni....
 to Giovanni de' Medici
Giovanni de' Medici il Popolano

Giovanni de' Medici, known as il Popolano was an Italian nobleman of the Medici House of Florence. He was the son of Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de' Medici, and therefore member of a secondary branch of the family....
 (also known as il Popolano) and Caterina Sforza
Caterina Sforza

Caterina Sforza, Countess of Forl? , was the illegitimate daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan and Lucrezia Landriani, the wife of the courtier Gian Piero Landriani, a close friend of the Duke....
, one of the most famous women of the Italian Renaissance
Italian Renaissance

The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the 13th century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe....
.

From an early age, he demonstrated great interest and ability in physical activity, especially the martial arts of the age: horse-back riding, sword-fighting, etc. He committed his first murder at the age of 12, and was twice banished from the city of Florence
Florence

Florence is the Capital city of the Italy Regions of Italy of Tuscany and of the provinces of Italy Province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany and has a population of 364,779 ....
 for his unruly behavior.

He married Maria Salviati
Maria Salviati

Maria Salviati was an Italian noblewoman, the daughter of Lucrezia di Lorenzo de' Medici and Jacopo Salviati. She married Giovanni dalle Bande Nere and was the mother of Cosimo I de Medici....
, and had a son, Cosimo (1519-1574), who go on to become Grand Duke of Florence. Giovanni became a condottiero
Condottieri

Condottieri were the mercenary soldier leaders of the professional, military Free company contracted by the Italian city-states and the Papacy, from the late Middle Ages until the mid-sixteenth century....
, or mercenary military captain, in the employ of Pope Leo X
Pope Leo X

Pope Leo X, born Giovanni de' Medici was Pope from 1513 to his death. He was the last non-priest to be elected Pope. He is known primarily for the sale of indulgences to reconstruct St....
 (Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici) and underwent his baptism by fire on March 5, 1516 in the war
War of Urbino

The War of Urbino was a secondary episode of the Italian Wars.The conflict ensued after the end of the War of the League of Cambrai , when Francesco Maria I della Rovere decided to take advantage of the situation to recover the Duchy of Urbino, from which he had been ousted in the previous year....
 against Francesco Maria della Rovere
Francesco Maria della Rovere

Francesco Maria della Rovere may refer to the following members of the Della Rovere dynasty:*Francesco Maria I della Rovere, duke of Urbino*Francesco Maria II della Rovere, duke of Urbino...
, duke of Urbino
Urbino

Urbino is a walled city in the Marche region in Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the patronage of Federico da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino from 1444 to 1482....
. Giovanni won after 22 days. He thenceforth formed a company of his own, mounted on light horses and specializing in fast but devastating skirmishing tactics and ambushes. In 1520 he defeated several rebel barons in the Marche. The following year Leo X allied with Emperor Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor

Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I of Spain, of the Spanish realms from 1516 until his abdication in 1556....
 against King Francis I of France
Francis I of France

Francis I , was crowned King of France in 1515 in the cathedral at Reims and reigned until 1547.Francis I is considered to be France's first Renaissance monarch....
 to regain Milan, Parma
Parma

Parma is a city in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna famous for its architecture and the fine countryside around it. It is the home of the University of Parma, one of the oldest universities in the world....
 and Piacenza
Piacenza

Piacenza is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza....
; Giovanni was called in under the command of Prospero Colonna
Prospero Colonna

Prospero Colonna , sometimes referred to as Prosper Colonna, was an Italian condottiero in the service of the Papal States and the Holy Roman Empire during the Italian Wars....
, defeating the French at Vaprio d'Adda
Vaprio d'Adda

Vaprio d'Adda is a comune in the Province of Milan in the Italy region Lombardy, located about 30 km northeast of Milan.Vaprio d'Adda borders the following municipalities: Trezzo sull'Adda, Capriate San Gervasio, Grezzago, Canonica d'Adda, Pozzo d'Adda, Cassano d'Adda, Fara Gera d'Adda....
 in November.

As a symbol of mourning for the death of Pope Leo X (December 1, 1521), Giovanni added black stripes to his insignia
Insignia

Insignia is a symbol or token of personal power , status or office, or of an official body of government or jurisdiction. Insignia are especially used as an emblem of a specific or general authority....
, whence comes his nick-name, Giovanni dalle Bande Nere (or Giovanni of the Black Bands). In the August 1523 he was hired by the Imperial
Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early modern Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor....
 army, and in January 1524 he defeated the French and the Swiss at Caprino Bergamasco
Caprino Bergamasco

Caprino Bergamasco is a comune in the Province of Bergamo in the Italy region of Lombardy, located about 40 km northeast of Milan and about 15 km northwest of Bergamo....
. In the same year another Medici, Giulio di Giuliano, became Pope, and took the name of Clement VII. The new Pope paid all of Giovanni's debt, but in exchange ordered him to switch to the French side of the ongoing conflict. He did not take part in the battle of Pavia
Battle of Pavia

The Battle of Pavia, fought on the morning of February 24, 1525, was the decisive engagement of the Italian War of 1521. A Spanish-Imperial army under the nominal command of Charles de Lannoy attacked the French army under the personal command of Francis I of France in the great hunting preserve of Mirabello outside the city walls....
, but was soon severely wounded in a skirmish and later had to move to Venice
Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy, the capital city of the Italian regions Veneto, a population of 271,251 . Together with Padua, Italy, the city is included in the Padua-Venice Metropolitan Area ....
 to be cured.

In 1526 the War of the League of Cognac
War of the League of Cognac

The War of the League of Cognac was fought between the Habsburg dominions of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor?primarily Spain and the Holy Roman Empire?and the League of Cognac, an alliance including France, Pope Clement VII, the Republic of Venice, England, the Duchy of Milan, and Florence....
 broke out. The League's captain general, Francesco della Rovere, abandoned Milan in the face of the overwhelming superiority of the Imperial
Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early modern Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor....
 army led by Georg von Frundsberg
Georg von Frundsberg

Georg von Frundsberg was a Southern Germany Ritter and Landsknecht leader in the service of the Holy Roman Empire Habsburg dynasty of Austrian Empire....
. Giovanni was able to defeat the Landsknecht
Landsknecht

Landsknechts were European, most often Germany, mercenary pikeman and supporting infantrys from the late 15th to the late 16th century, and achieved the reputation for being the universal mercenary of the European Renaissance....
s rearguard at the confluence of the Mincio
Mincio

Mincio is a river in the Lombardy region of northern Italy.Called the Sarca before entering Lake Garda, it flows from there about 65 km past Mantua into the Po River....
 with the Po River
Po River

The Po is a river that flows 652 km eastward across northern Italy, from Monviso to the Adriatic Sea near Venice. It has a drainage area of 71,000 km? and is the longest river in Italy....
. However, on the evening of November 25 he was woefully wounded by a falconet ball at a battle near Govérnolo and had to be carried to Mantua
Mantua

Mantua is a city in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the Province of Mantua of the same name.Mantua is surrounded on three sides by artificial lakes created during the 12th century....
.

There Giovanni de' Medici died of septicemia on November 30, 1526. Giovanni's premature death metaphorically
Metaphor

Metaphor is language that directly compares seemingly unrelated subjects. It is a figure of speech that compares two or more things without using the words "like" or "as." More generally, a metaphor describes a first subject as being or equal to a second object in some way....
 signaled the end of the age of the condottieri, as their mode of fighting (which emphasized armored knights on horseback) was rendered practically obsolete by the introduction of the mobile field cannon
Cannon

A cannon is any tubular piece of artillery, that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellants to launch a projectile over a distance....
. He is therefore now known as the last of the great Italian
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
 condottieri. His lasting reputation has been kept alive in part thanks to Pietro Aretino
Pietro Aretino

Pietro Aretino was an Italy author, playwright, poet and satirist who wielded immense influence on contemporary art and politics and invented modern literate pornography....
, the (in)famous Renaissance author, satirist, playwright and "scourge of the princes", who was Giovanni's close friend. Aretino accompanied Giovanni on some of his exploits and was present at his deathbed; in a famous letter he describes the scene and Giovanni's courage in the face of death.

Later references

  • A cruiser
    Italian cruiser Giovanni dalle Bande Nere

    Giovanni delle Bande Nere was an Italy Condottieri class cruiser light cruiser, named after the Giovanni dalle Bande Nere 16th century condottiero and member of the Medici family, that served in the Regia Marina during World War II....
     of the Regia Marina
    Regia Marina

    The Regia Marina Italiana dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 after Italian unification . In 1946, with the birth of the Italy , the Royal Navy changed its name as it was now the Navy of the Italian Republic ....
     was named after Giovanni delle Bande Nere in 1930.
  • Ermanno Olmi's
    Ermanno Olmi

    Ermanno Olmi is a renowned Italy film director....
     2001 film, Il mestiere delle armi, faithfully follows Giovanni dalle Bande Nere in his last week of life, as he engages in battle with the Imperial forces amidst the cold, damp fields of the Lombard
    Lombardy

    Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region....
     countryside.


Ancestors


Lodovico de' Medici (Giovanni dalle Bande Nere) in four generations
Giovanni dalle Bande Nere
(Lodovico de' Medici)		 Father:
Giovanni the Popolano
Giovanni de' Medici il Popolano

Giovanni de' Medici, known as il Popolano was an Italian nobleman of the Medici House of Florence. He was the son of Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de' Medici, and therefore member of a secondary branch of the family....
 Paternal Grandfather:
Pierfrancesco de' Medici
Pierfrancesco di Lorenzo de' Medici

Pierfrancesco de' Medici the Elder was an Italy banker and diplomat, a member of the House of Medici of Florence.Born in Florence, he was the son of Lorenzo di Giovanni de' Medici and Ginevra Cavalcanti, and thus nephew of Cosimo de' Medici and cousin to Piero di Cosimo de' Medici, de facto lords of the city from 1459....
 (the Elder)		 Paternal Great-grandfather:
Lorenzo di Giovanni de' Medici (the Elder)
Medici Popolani line		 Paternal Great-great-grandfather:
Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici
Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici

Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici was an Italian banker, the first historically relevant member of Medici family of Florence, and the founder of the Medici bank....

Founder of the Medici


Descendants


Descendents of Lodovico de' Medici (Giovanni dalle Bande Nere) in four generations
Lodovico de' Medici
Giovanni dalle Bande Nere
Giovanni dalle Bande Nere

Giovanni de' Medici, also known as Giovanni dalle Bande Nere was an Italian condottiero....
 Son:
Cosimo I de' Medici
Grand duke of Tuscany		 Grandson:
Francesco I de' Medici
Grand duke of Tuscany		 Great-granddaughter:
Marie de' Medici
Marie de' Medici

Marie de' Medici , was queen consort of France. She was the second wife of King Henry IV of France, of the House of Bourbon branch of the kings of France....

Queen of France		 Great-Great-granddaughter:
Henrietta Maria of France
Queen of England


See also

  • Italian Wars
    Italian Wars

    The Italian Wars, often referred to as the Great Italian Wars or the Great Wars of Italy in historical works, were a series of conflicts from 1494 to 1559 that involved, at various times, most of the Italian city-states, the Papal States, all the major states of western Europe as well as the Ottoman Empire....
  • Condottieri
    Condottieri

    Condottieri were the mercenary soldier leaders of the professional, military Free company contracted by the Italian city-states and the Papacy, from the late Middle Ages until the mid-sixteenth century....
  • Black Bands
    Black Bands

    The Black Bands , sometimes referred to as the Black Bands of Giovanni, was a company of Italy mercenaries formed and commanded by Giovanni dalle Bande Nere during the Italian Wars; their name came from their black mourning colors for the death of Pope Leo X....