Francesco Bocchi (1548 – 31 March 1613 or 1618) was an Italian writer of the late Renaissance, active in

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

Biography

Bocchi was born and died in Florence. He was the son of Lisabetta Papi and Bartolomeo Bocchi, a moderately well-off couple. Francesco's father died when he was eleven years old, and he was left to be educated in literature and rhetoric by his uncle Donato Bocchi, vicar general of the Bishop of

Fiesole Fiesole () is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, on a scenic height above Florence, 5 km (3 miles) northeast of that city. It has structures dating to Etruscan and Roman times. ...

. He moves in 1572 to Rome for some years. He returns to Florence, where he finds employment as a tutor for aristocratic children, for example Ulisse Bentivoglio, and the children of Benedetto Vivaldi and Piero Antonio

Strozzi Strozzi is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Numerous members of the Strozzi family, an ancient later ennobled family from Florence ** Alessandra Macinghi Strozzi (c. 1408–1471), an Italian businesswoman and aristoc ...

. He also found employment in the composition of speeches (such as funeral orations) and treatises targeted to for prominent patrons. Among his patrons was Lorenzo Salviati and his family, Filippo Valori, Piero Vettori, and other members of the Curia in the circle of cardinal and later Grand-Duke, Ferdinando de' Medici. As a writer, he often elaborated works with courtly erudition, more style than reasoned content, although deep in facts. Among his works was a guide to artwork in Florence: ''Le bellezze della citta' di Firenze'', original 1594. It was the first of its type for an Italian city, and can be compared to Filippo Titi's 1674 version for Rome. He also wrote a History of the Flemish Rebellions for Giovan Vincenzo Vitelli who wished the celebrate the role of father

Chiappino Vitelli Giovan Luigi "Chiappino" Vitelli (1519 – July 1575) was an Italian nobleman and military leader who was Marquis of Cetona. He became a general and diplomat for Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and stayed in the service of his son, Philip II of Spai ...

, who had fought there as a mercenary. He also wrote a guide to the works of art and architecture in the city of Florence. He was buried in the church of San Pier Maggiore, which was since razed.

References

Entry in Treccani Encyclopedia
by Silvana Menchi. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bocchi, Francesco 1548 births 1610s deaths Italian male non-fiction writers 16th-century Italian historians 16th-century Italian male writers Italian art historians Year of death uncertain 16th-century Italian writers 17th-century Italian writers Writers from Florence Writers from the Grand Duchy of Tuscany