Giancarlo de' Medici (24 July 1611 – 22 January 1663) was an Italian

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

of the

House of Medici The House of Medici ( , ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici, in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the M ...

. He was the second son of Grand Duke Cosimo II of Tuscany and his wife,

Maria Maddalena of Austria Maria Maddalena of Austria (Maria Magdalena; 7 October 1589 – 1 November 1631) was Grand Duchess of Tuscany from the accession of her husband, Cosimo II, in 1609 until his death in 1621. With him, she had eight children, including a duchess of ...

, and the brother of

Ferdinando II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Ferdinando II de' Medici (14 July 1610 – 23 May 1670) was grand duke of Tuscany from 1621 to 1670. He was the eldest son of Cosimo II de' Medici and Maria Maddalena of Austria. He was remembered by his contemporaries as a man of culture ...

Biography

He was born at

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

, the second son and third child of

Cosimo II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo II de' Medici (12 May 1590 – 28 February 1621) was Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1609 until his death. He was the elder son of Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, and Christina of Lorraine. For the majority of his twelve-y ...

and

. He entered the ecclesiastical state at a young age. In 1620 he joined the

Sovereign Military Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

and was named Grand Prior of Pisa. In 1638 he was named General of the Mediterranean Sea. On 14 November 1644

Pope Innocent X Pope Innocent X ( la, Innocentius X; it, Innocenzo X; 6 May 1574 – 7 January 1655), born Giovanni Battista Pamphilj (or Pamphili), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 September 1644 to his death in Januar ...

created Giancarlo a cardinal-deacon as a token of his affection toward the

Medici The House of Medici ( , ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici, in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the Mu ...

. Thus forced to give up his military career and with it the title of "General of the Spanish Seas", Giancarlo could not reconcile himself to his new "religious" lifestyle. Cardinal de' Medici participated in the papal conclave, 1655 as one of leaders of the Spanish faction.

Pope Alexander VII Pope Alexander VII ( it, Alessandro VII; 13 February 159922 May 1667), born Fabio Chigi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death in May 1667. He began his career as a vice- papal legate, an ...

made Giancarlo responsible for welcoming

Queen Christina of Sweden Christina ( sv, Kristina, 18 December (New Style) 1626 – 19 April 1689), a member of the House of Vasa, was Monarchy of Sweden, Queen of Sweden in Queen regnant, her own right from 1632 until her abdication in 1654. She succeeded her father ...

, a new convert to Catholicism, to Rome in 1655. Upon discovering of the closeness that had formed between the two, the Pope sent Gian Carlo back to Florence, declaring him "too handsome and too young" to be "spiritual advisor" to the Queen. Here, Giancarlo led a life of dissipation, taking many mistresses; nevertheless, Ferdinando II delegated to him the management of the state's financial affairs. He was patron of science, letters and music. He founded the ''Accademia degli Immobili'' and contributed to the construction of ''Teatro della Pergola'' and the enrichment of the ''Galleria Palatina di Palazzo Pitti''. In later years, Giancarlo donated his sizeable art collection to form the

Pitti Gallery The Palazzo Pitti (), in English sometimes called the Pitti Palace, is a vast, mainly Renaissance, palace in Florence, Italy. It is situated on the south side of the River Arno, a short distance from the Ponte Vecchio. The core of the present ...

. He died at Florence, of an

apoplexy Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...

, at the age of 51, and was interred in the

Medicean The House of Medici ( , ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici, in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the M ...

necropolis, the Basilica of San Lorenzo,

.Young, ''The Medici: Volume II'', p 452. Four years after the death of Giancarlo, his younger brother Leopoldo was created a cardinal.

Ancestors

References

Sources

*Acton, Harold: ''The Last Medici'', Macmillan, London, 1980, *Young, G.F.: ''The Medici: Volume II'', John Murray, London, 1920 {{DEFAULTSORT:Medici, Giancarlo De Giancarlo 17th-century Italian cardinals 1611 births 1663 deaths Tuscan princes Burials at San Lorenzo, Florence