BookFronter
The House of Medici by Christopher Hibbert

The House of Medici

Its Rise and Fall

Christopher Hibbert

HarperCollins · Print & ebook · May 19, 1999

It was a dynasty with more wealth, passion, and power than the houses of Windsor, Kennedy, and Rockefeller combined.

Royal LivesRenaissance HistoryItalian History
Buy on Amazon

We earn from qualifying purchases.

Who it’s for
A long view of Medici ambition, artistic patronage, and the costs of holding power.
Themes
Dynastic power and decline, Renaissance patronage, Family self-destruction
Genres
Renaissance History, Italian History, Royal Lives

Nearest books

Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved.

  1. The Artist, the Philosopher, and the WarriorPaul Strathern55% matchShares Renaissance History and Italian History
  2. Autobiography of Benvenuto CelliniBenvenuto Cellini50% matchShares Renaissance History and Italian History
  3. Mortal RepublicEdward J. Watts44% match
  4. The History of the Medieval WorldSusan Wise Bauer43% match
  5. The PlantagenetsDan Jones48% matchShares Royal Lives
  6. A Distant MirrorBarbara Wertheim Tuchman, Barbara W. Tuchman45% match
  7. The Renaissance: a Very Short IntroductionJerry Brotton53% matchShares Renaissance History
  8. The Marriage Portrait: Reese's Book ClubMaggie O'Farrell44% match

For younger readers: What Was the Renaissance?, The Smile, The Renaissance in Europe

Start with three books, and this one can be the first.

Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.

Start with this book

About this book

It was a dynasty with more wealth, passion, and power than the houses of Windsor, Kennedy, and Rockefeller combined. It shaped all of Europe and controlled politics, scientists, artists, and even popes, for three hundred years. It was the house of Medici, patrons of Botticelli, Michelangelo and Galileo, benefactors who turned Florence into a global power center, and then lost it all.

Continue reading

The House of Medici picks up where Barbara Tuchman's Hibbert delves into the lives of the Medici family, whose legacy of increasing self-indulgence and sexual dalliance eventually led to its self-destruction. With twenty-four pages of black-and-white illustrations, this timeless saga is one of Quill's strongest-selling paperbacks.

Power and Patronage

A long view of Medici ambition, artistic patronage, and the costs of holding power.

Come here for

  • Florence’s rise as a center of European power
  • The Medici ties to Botticelli, Michelangelo, and Galileo

Expect

  • A family saga spanning three centuries
  • A focus on wealth, influence, indulgence, and decline

Where it sits

Italian History81%
Renaissance History67%
Royal Lives56%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Italian History
  • Medieval History
  • Renaissance History
Authors
Christopher Hibbert
Publisher
HarperCollins
Published
May 19, 1999
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
Dynastic power and decline · Renaissance patronage · Family self-destruction
Reading lane
Italian History