- Lorenzo il Vecchio
Lorenzo di Giovanni de' Medici (c. 1395 –
September 23 1440 ) was an Italian banker of theHouse of Medici ofFlorence , the younger brother ofCosimo de' Medici the Elder and the founder of the so-called "dei Popolani" line of the family.Lorenzo was the son of
Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici and Piccarda Bueri, and was educated byCarlo Marsuppini . In 1416 he married Ginevra Cavalcanti, from whom he had two sons: Francesco, who was childless, and Pierfrancesco, who originated the Popolani line.Lorenzo followed his brother Cosimo in his moves at
Ferrara ,Verona andVicenza . In 1433 he tried to muster an army to free Cosimo when the latter was arrested under the charge of tyranny. Later he joined him at Venice and returned with him in Florence triumphantly after Cosimo's rehabilitation.Though dedicating himself much to banking activity, Lorenzo held several charges in the Florentine Republic, and was ambassador to Pope
Eugene IV and theRepublic of Venice . In 1435 he moved to Rome to oversee the affairs of the Medici Bank at the Papal court.He died in 1440 in the Villa of Careggi and was buried in the Basilica of San Lorenzo.
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