Introduction
The Medici family controlled Florence for over three centuries. Cosimo de’ Medici or Cosimo the Elder (1389-1464) was mainly responsible for this family’s rise to power. “The Medican manipulations of electoral processes and the cliental structure of the Florentine structure throughout the Quattrocento are the two prevalent explanations to assess the Medici had on the politics of their city” (Mohlo, 7). The Medici bank provided an immense amount of wealth to Cosimo and was primarily where he gained his ability to have a strong influence over Florence. The funds supported Cosimo and provided stability throughout his career to pursue opportunities in Florence in his business and personal endeavors and continue to expand his influence, power and control.…show more content… Cosimo was the first of great rules in Florence in his long family line. Although his control was indirect, he acted as the unofficial head of the government. Besides his role as a businessman and politician, Cosimo remained popular with the Florentine citizens for other reasons such as his personality. Mainly, his character and personal interests of the Florentine people fully made him the great ruler that he was considered. Cosimo was a people’s leader, “there was no challenge within the family to the role in which Cosimo’s friends like to cast him, that of a kindly patriarch” (Hale, 25). His passions and interests ranged from philosophy to arts to humanism and was constantly looking to learn with no specific end goal. With all of the knowledge Cosimo had and who he was perceived by the public, “he was the astute political leader of a government which encompassed and dominated all of society” (Molho, 9). He was noted as being “very lively and quick intelligence and one well adapted for every subject” (Hale, 137) with a memory concerning nearly