The Surrogate War between the Savoys and the Medici: Sovereignty and Precedence in Early Modern Italy

Abstract

promotion of the Medici from a banking family to a princely dynasty during the sixteenth century was one of the political success stories of early modern Italy.1 On 27 August 1569, Pope Pius V Ghislieri signed the bull Pontifex Maximus in which he declared his intention to recognize Cosimo I de Medici, duke of Florence, as grand duke of Tuscany, out of gratitude for his services to the church and the defence of the Catholic faith, not least in supporting the struggle against heresy in France.2 In February 1570, after formally receiving the bull the previous December, Cosimo travelled to the papal court for his coronation. The pope's master of ceremonies recorded the splendour of Cosimo Fs entry and reception, as did the anonymous Roman avvisi. Having been met on the outskirts of the city by a series of papal representatives, Cosimo entered it at the head of a reported 122 carriages, to the amazement of the watching crowds. The Florentine community of Rome organized games at the Diocletian Baths at which Cosimo's second son, Cardinal Ferdinand de Medici, awarded the prizes to the victors.3 The ceremonies climaxed on Laetare Sunday (5 March), in the sala regia of the Vatican palace, when Cosimo was crowned by the pope. A triumphant moment in his eventful life, it also marked an upturn in his family's fortunes.4 As recently as 1527, the Medici had been exiled from Florence, during the short-lived republic, and the family's ducal title, which dated to 1532, was less than forty years