The Social World of the Florentine Humanists, 1390-1460

Ten years ago, on an innocent first visit of mine to Florence, Gene Brucker took me in hand and introduced me to the city's archival riches. It is thanks to him that I stayed on in Florence for seven months and learnt to read that arcane script. Then and since the archivists of the Archivio di Stato have given me their patient cooperation. I am eager to express my appreciation to them and to Dr. Gino Corti, who often helped me, early in the game, to decipher difficult passages.

Lauro Martines' exhaustive search of manuscript material in the state archives of Florence is the basis for a fascinating portrayal of representative humanists of the period. The Social World of the Florentine Humanists explores the wealth, family tradition, civic prominence, and intellectual achievements of these individuals while assessing the attitudes of other Florentines towards them. Martines demonstrates that humanists tended to be wealthy educated men from important families, challenging long-held assumptions about the status of humanisits in that society.

First published in 1963, this groundbreaking study provides a detailed picture of the social structure of Florence in the Quattrocento. Martines's work influenced a generation of scholars and illuminated a complex and multifaceted world.

Acknowledgments 7 Abbreviations 8 Contents 9 I. Introduction: Program and Problems 11 II. Social Place in Florence: Assumptions and Realities 28 III. The Fortunes of the Florentine Humanists 95 IV. Public Office in the Humanist Circle 155 V. Humanist Marriages: A Study of Five Families 209 VI. The Florentine Attitude Towards the Humanist 248 VII. The Relation Between Humanism and Florentine Society: An Essay 273 Appendix I. Forty-Five Profiles of Men Connected with Florentine Humanism 313 Appendix II. Eight Tables on Wealth in Florence 361 Bibliography 389 Index 409