Florence is one of the largest cities in Europe in 1300: some hundred thousand people within three successively expanded walls, split by the Arno, governed by guild priors without nobility, and divided between White and Black Guelphs on the edge of civil war.
| Type | Place (city) |
| Date | 1300 (disputed) |
| Gonfalonier | Salvestro de’ Medici |
| Language | Tuscan (the vulgar tongue) |
| Spanish entry | Florencia |
Description
The city is seen whole from the hills of Fiesole. Bridges, among them the Ponte Vecchio, join the banks of the Arno. Around the main square stand the Palazzo Vecchio, the Signoria, the main churches and the hospices. The plan is read by towers: there is room for six great towers, the chief ones held by the magnates, and one can be confined in one of them. Around a half-empty, partly burned cathedral lies an abandoned quarter. Since Lorenzo shut himself away, the city has grown darker.
The Signoria’s gate rises like a great castle, with wrought-iron doors, yellow and green stained-glass domes, frescoed glass ceilings, golden tapestries and two large suits of armor. Its Hall of Justice displays crossed swords and shields dented by the jousts once held there. The Duomo was raised with the Pantheon of Rome as its axis.
Government
Six priors, chosen by the masters of their guilds and the district colleges, serve two or three months and answer to their guilds; each wears his trade’s mantle. The gonfalonier of justice ratifies agreements, authorizes military missions and appoints vicars to take possession of castles.
The guilds are major, middle and minor. The minor include vintners, innkeepers, salt, oil and cheese sellers, tanners, armorers, locksmiths, copper-tool makers, carpenters and timber sellers, bakers (among the most rebellious), secondhand dealers, masons, butchers, shoemakers, furriers, physicians and spice importers.
The Ordinances excluded the magnates (knights and nobles) and, over thirty years ago, the Ghibelline families defeated at Campaldino. The magnates keep wealth and towers but politics belongs to merchants. Laws pass by vote; an East Council makes rules within the city; votes may be postponed when priors disagree.
Economy
The gold florin is 24 carats and 3.5 grams, with Saint John the Baptist and the fleur-de-lis, a sign of the Holy Trinity. Florentine promissory notes pass as cash, backed even by Union. Cutting the city’s timber supply, as the Donati did, is an act of war. Yet the city goes hungry, still attacked by outside forces.
Politics
The stake of every intrigue is the peace of Florence, counted in days (“20 days without incidents”). White Guelphs, the Cerchi, face Black Guelphs; the leaders of both were exiled to avert civil war. Dante, a prior, is accused of corruption, armed bands and extortion; he has one more year before he can no longer abort his mission. Lorenzo is said to have led Florence to a false republic and unbridled vanity. Savonarola lit the bonfires of the vanities and sought a theocratic republic.
Night guard and margins
The Night Officer draws a circle with two fingers and the image of a saint, the Founders of Florence, appears over the city. Bells ring at six or seven in the morning like an untimely call to Mass. Bohemians with ties to a lower plane camp on the river islets; the countryside speaks of witches and a flying devil. Beside the customs houses, where Florentine law begins, stands the murky tavern Nobis Krug, where a certain Casemiro “Pepsico” sold his Pepsi “in Free Florence”.
Surroundings
Mugello lies about 30 km north; Arezzo and the Casentino two days away. The Conti Guidi deal well with Florence, as does Ghibelline Milan despite past wars. Cyprus is ten days by sea. Campos Verde is the homeland of Luca de’ Medici. Summers bring storms and sun showers; snow is very rare.
Conflicting accounts
- The records fix the year at exactly 1300, with Dante a prior, yet place Lorenzo, Salvestro de’ Medici and Savonarola in the same Florence.
- The regime is called the closest thing to a democracy; others deny it is democratic; one voice called it a “Theocratic Republic”.
Open questions
- Whether the six towers are the magnates’ towers; how many gates and districts the city has.
- Which guilds form the major and middle tiers.
- What the “Conferente di Giustizia delle Arti” is, and how it differs from the gonfalonier.
- The scope of the Night Officer, including over the customs the Germans called Florenzen.
- Why the cathedral quarter burned, and who the outside attackers are.
- What “Florence, where you have fallen” means.