Summary
Highlights
On April 26, 1478, the Pazzi family initiated an unsuccessful plot in Florence to overthrow the dominant Medici family through an assassination attempt on brothers Lorenzo and Giuliano de' Medici.
The Pazzi family, powerful since the 13th century with a successful banking network, found their influence overshadowed by the Medici family, who had come to dominate Florentine political and economic life by the 1400s.
The Pazzi family conspired with other Medici opponents, including Pope Sixtus IV's nephew, Girolamo Riario, and Archbishop Francesco Salviati of Pisa. Although Pope Sixtus IV supported the plot, he was careful not to sanction any killings.
The assassination attempt occurred during high mass on April 26, 1478, at the Duomo. Bernardo Bandini Baroncelli and Francesco de Pazzi stabbed Giuliano de Medici 19 times, killing him. Lorenzo de Medici was wounded but managed to escape with the help of his friend, Angelo Poliziano.
In the following months, the people of Florence pursued and killed at least 80 individuals associated with the plot. By October 20, Francesco de Pazzi and Salviati were hanged, and other plotters were thrown from windows to angry crowds below.
The conspiracy's failure had the opposite effect of what was intended: Lorenzo de Medici strengthened his hold on Florentine politics, despite Pope Sixtus IV placing the city under interdict. The Pazzi family was banished, and their lands and property were confiscated.