Bindo Altoviti
Bindo Altoviti | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Rome, Italy |
| Died | January 22, 1557 (aged 65) |
| Occupation(s) | Financier, art patron |
| Known for | Leading papal banker; patron of artists such as Benvenuto Cellini, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Giorgio Vasari |
Bindo Altoviti (born 26 November 1491, died 22 January 1557) belonged to the distinguished Altoviti family and was a leading Italian financier, recognized as one of the most powerful papal bankers during his time. Renowned as an art patron, he maintained close associations with eminent artists including Benvenuto Cellini, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Giorgio Vasari.
His father, Antonio Altoviti, held the position of papal Master of the Mint, while his mother, La Papessa Dianora Altoviti, was a niece of Pope Innocent VIII. Among his lineage was Pope Clement XII.
Life and career
Bindo was born in Rome in 1491 to Antonio, a Florentine nobleman, and Dianora di Clarenza Cibo. Thanks to his family’s connections with the Cybo and Medici houses, he received mentorship from Pope Julius II. His education took place within the papal court alongside notable contemporaries such as Federico Gonzaga, where he was introduced early on to leading Renaissance artists like Bramante, Raphael, and Michelangelo.
The Altoviti family supported Republican ideals. Bindo married Fiammetta Soderini, who was the niece of Piero Soderini, the head of Florence’s government opposing Medici dominance. Nevertheless, Bindo’s professional trajectory flourished under Popes Leo X and Clemente VII.[1]
Records from the Vatican Secret Archives document his ascent to prominence as a trusted banker within the papal court. He established alliances with prominent families such as Spinelli, Ricci, Pucci, and Ruspoli, notably advancing Bartolomeo Ruspoli’s career—who was connected to cardinal Niccolò Ardinghelli and the influential Farnese faction.[2]
After the death of rival financier Agostino Chigi and the devastation caused by the 1527 Sack of Rome, only a limited number of banking institutions retained sufficient capital to stabilize the economy. Competing against Genoese financiers and German banking houses like the Fugger and Welser, the Strozzi, Salviati, and Altoviti banks emerged as dominant forces in Florentine and papal financial affairs.[3]
Designated Depository-General—the principal banker for the Papal States—Bindo oversaw tax revenue collections that primarily funded St. Peter's Basilica’s reconstruction. He broadened his banking network internationally by opening branches in France, the Netherlands, and England. His clientele included figures such as Duke Charles III of Savoy and King Henry II of France. Through his financial expertise, he amassed one of Italy’s largest private fortunes.[4] Although he spent his later years based in Rome, Bindo remained deeply involved in Florentine politics through strong alliances with the Strozzi family. Alongside Filippo Strozzi the Younger, he financed Emperor Charles V’s forces during Florence’s siege aimed at reinstating Medici authority.
Following Alessandro de' Medici’s rise to power as Duke of Florence after victory at Gavinana, Bindo served as an advisor to the duke.[5] After Alessandro was assassinated by Lorenzino de' Medici—who was Bindo’s nephew—he skillfully managed intricate family and political dynamics, ultimately aligning himself with Queen Catherine de' Medici and Pope Paul III.
As a prominent figure among Florentine exiles residing in Rome, Bindo provided financial backing for Filippo Strozzi’s rebellious army. After their defeat at Montemurlo and Filippo's subsequent death in captivity,[6] tensions with Duke Cosimo I de' Medici continued. However, through family mediation efforts, reconciliation was achieved; Cosimo appointed Bindo as Florentine consul in Rome and later senator while continuing to depend on financing from Altoviti Bank.[7]
Bindo supported factions opposing Cosimo I during conflicts such as the war of Siena by funding military forces led by his son Giambattista Altoviti. Following their defeat at Marciano,[8] Cosimo labeled Bindo a rebel and confiscated his Tuscan estates—including Raphael's Madonna dell'Impannata, which adorned his private chapel.
Shielded by Popes Paul III and Julius III,[9] Bindo expanded a sophisticated financial network centered on papal ventures. He maintained support for exiles and France's House of Valois by providing substantial loans to King Henry II of France.[10]
Bindo passed away in 1557 still hopeful for Florence's eventual freedom. Although a commemorative monument was erected at Florence’s Santi Apostoli church, he was interred in Rome’s Santa Trinità dei Monte chapel.[11]
Patronage of the arts
Similar to other Florentine financiers who extended loans to popes in return for rights to papal revenues, Bindo achieved considerable wealth, which allowed him to undertake significant restorations of his inherited estates as well as his villa by the Tiber. With ample financial means, he emerged as a distinguished supporter of the arts and maintained close relationships with renowned figures such as Cellini, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Vasari.
Bindo was immortalized in a portrait by Raphael and provided refuge to Michelangelo when the artist fled Florence for Rome. Michelangelo held Bindo in high regard—contrasting with his opinion of rival Agostino Chigi—and bestowed upon him the now-lost cartoon of Noah's Blessing from the Sistine Chapel ceiling along with a Venus drawing, colored by Vasari, which has also been lost. Furthermore, Michelangelo convinced Bindo to conserve the church of Santi Apostoli rather than reconstruct it.
Vasari contributed to Bindo’s family chapel by painting the Allegory of the Immaculate Conception. During his time in Rome, Vasari resided at Palazzo Altoviti and decorated it with the fresco Triumph of Ceres. Following the palazzo’s demolition to accommodate Tiber embankments, these frescoes were transferred to the National Museum housed in Palazzo Venezia. For Bindo’s villa, Vasari adorned a spacious loggia known as the Vineyard, embellishing it with statues and funerary marbles sourced from Emperor Hadrian’s villa.
Andrea Sansovino presented Bindo with a terracotta maquette representing his statue of St. James created for Florence Cathedral.
Legacy and descendants
Bindo’s son, Giovanni Battista Altoviti, united with Clarice Ridolfi through marriage, thereby interlinking the Altoviti, Medici, and Strozzi lineages and facilitating Archbishop Antonio Altoviti’s residence in Florence. Giovanni Battista pursued a banking career in Rome, served twice as consul of the Nazione Fiorentina, and held prominent positions under Pope Pius V.
Marietta Altoviti’s marriage to Giambattista Strozzi further cemented alliances between the Strozzi and Medici families. Their progeny included influential figures such as the Strozzi dukes of Bagnolo and princes of Forano; the Corsini princes of Sismano; dukes of Casigliano and Civitella; and notably Pope Clement XII.
Their granddaughter Lucrezia Maria Strozzi wed Prince Aleksander Ludwik Radziwiłł, a leading magnate in Poland and Lithuania. The Radziwiłł family became notable patrons of the arts during the 19th century in Berlin through Prince Anton Radziwiłł and Louise of Prussia. Among their descendants was Prince Stanisław Albrecht Radziwiłł, who married Caroline Lee Radziwill, sister to First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.