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== The Pazzi ==
{{Era|Organizations|Templars}}{{WP-REAL|Pazzi}}
the '''Pazzi family''' were Tuscan nobles who were [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank bankers] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence Florence] in the 15th century. They are now best known for the "Pazzi conspiracy" to murder [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorenzo_de%27_Medici Lorenzo de' Medici] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuliano_di_Piero_de%27_Medici Giuliano de' Medici] on April 26, 1478. Andrea de' Pazzi was also the patron for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filippo_Brunelleschi Filippo Brunelleschi]'s [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapter_house chapter house] for the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franciscan Franciscan] community at Florence's Santa Croce church, often known as the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pazzi_Chapel Pazzi Chapel]. After the conspiracy, the remaining Pazzi were rehabilitated and returned to Florence.
{{Quote|The Pazzi were a potent and venerable family, reduced to rubble by one young Assassin.|Rodrigo Borgia, reflecting on the collapse of the Pazzi family, 1485.|Assassin's Creed II|Birds of a Feather}}
{{Faction infobox
|name = House of Pazzi
|image = Pazziingame.png
|founder =  
|leader = [[Jacopo de' Pazzi]]
|headquarters = Palazzo Pazzi, [[Florence]]
|locations = [[Tuscany]], [[Italy]]
|related = [[Templars]]
|religion = Roman Catholic
|formed =
|collapsed =  
}}
The '''House of Pazzi ''' was a familial group of [[Tuscany|Tuscan]] nobles who owned [[Banks|banks]] throughout the [[Italy|Italian]] city of [[Florence]] during the 15th century. Affiliated with the [[Templars]], the Pazzi family became infamous for their failed attempt to gain control of the city through [[Pazzi conspiracy|a conspiracy]] to murder its rulers, the [[House of Medici]].


The family stemmed from Pazzo ("the madman"), one of the first soldiers over the walls in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Jerusalem_%281099%29 Siege of Jerusalem] during the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Crusade First Crusade], who brought away with him and returned to Florence a stone from the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_the_Holy_Sepulchre Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre]. A member of the Pazzi family was accorded the privilege of striking a light from this stone on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Saturday Holy Saturday] when all fires in the city were extinguished, from which the altar light of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Maria_del_Fiore Duomo] would be annually rekindled, and from it all the hearth fires of Florence. The following day, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easter Easter], a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dove dove]-shaped rocket would slide on a wire from above the high altar to an oxcart loaded with fireworks in the piazza. From the fireworks' explosion (the ''scoppio del carro''), sparks would be carried to the city's hearths.
==History==
===Conflict with Giovanni Auditore===
Less powerful rivals of the Medici family, the Pazzis, along with [[Rodrigo Borgia]], the [[Grand Master of the Templar Order|Grand Master]] of the Templar Order, planned a conspiracy to overthrow the [[House of Medici|Medici]] by killing the family's most prominent members, [[Lorenzo de' Medici|Lorenzo]] and [[Giuliano de' Medici|Giuliano]].<ref name="AC2">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>


== The Conspiracy (Factual) ==
In 1476, [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze]], Lorenzo's close friend and a member of the [[Assassins|Assassin Brotherhood]], discovered the involvement of the Pazzi family in a conspiracy against the Medici. Moving to forestall this, Giovanni managed to have [[Francesco de' Pazzi]] put in jail.<ref>''Assassin's Creed II'' – [[Paperboy]]</ref>However, the plot had already reached members of the Medici government itself. [[Uberto Alberti]], the Gonfaloniere of Justice and secretly a Templar, freed Francesco, and executed Giovanni for treason alongside his sons [[Federico Auditore da Firenze|Federico]] and [[Petruccio Auditore da Firenze|Petruccio]], removing the [[House of Auditore|Auditore family]] from Florence.<ref>''Assassin's Creed II'' – [[Last Man Standing]]</ref>
Less powerful and rivals of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medici Medici], the Pazzi were caught up in a conspiracy to replace the Medici as ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_facto de facto]'' rulers of Tuscany with [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girolamo_Riario Girolamo Riario], a nephew of Francesco della Rovere, who was reigning as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Sixtus_IV Pope Sixtus IV]. Power politics, often ruthless in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Renaissance Italian Renaissance], was the main motive.


The Pazzi family were not the instigators. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salviati Salviati], Papal bankers in Florence, were at the center of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conspiracy_%28political%29 conspiracy]. Sixtus was an enemy of the Medici. He had purchased the lordship of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imola Imola], a stronghold on the border between Papal and Tuscan territory that Lorenzo wanted for Florence. The purchase was financed by the Pazzi bank, even though Francesco dei Pazzi had promised Lorenzo they would not aid the Pope. As a reward, Sixtus granted the Pazzi [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly monopoly] at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alum alum] mines at Tolfa — alum being an essential [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordant mordant] in dyeing in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textile textile] trade that was central to the Florentine economy — and he assigned to the Pazzi bank lucrative rights to manage Papal revenues. Sixtus appointed his nephew [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girolamo_Riario Girolamo Riario] as the new governor of Imola, and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesco_Salviati_%28archbishop%29 Francesco Salviati] as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archbishop_of_Pisa archbishop of Pisa], a city that was a former commercial rival but now subject to Florence. Lorenzo ordered Pisa to exclude Salviati from his [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_See See].
With Giovanni dead, there was no barrier between the Pazzi and control of the city,<ref name="AC2" /> until [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze|Ezio]], Giovanni's only surviving son, planned his revenge. On 14 April 1478, Ezio joined his uncle [[Mario Auditore|Mario]] and his [[mercenaries]], and infiltrated [[San Gimignano]], he witnessed a meeting between the Pazzis and Rodrigo Borgia. During the ensuing battle between the mercenaries and Pazzi forces, Ezio killed his brash and aggressive rival [[Vieri de' Pazzi]], the youngest of the Pazzi family.<ref>''Assassin's Creed II'' – [[What Goes Around]]</ref>


Salviati and Francesco de' Pazzi put together a plan to assassinate Lorenzo and Giuliano de' Medici. Riario himself remained in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome Rome]. The plan was widely known: the Pope was reported to have said, "I support it — as long as no one is killed." In 2004, an encrypted letter in the archives of the Ubaldini family was discovered by [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Marcello_Simonetta&action=edit&redlink=1 Marcello Simonetta], a historian then teaching at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wesleyan_University Wesleyan University] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut Connecticut], and decoded. It revealed that [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federico_da_Montefeltro Federico da Montefeltro], Duke of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urbino Urbino], a renowned humanist and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condottiere condottiere] for the Papacy, was deeply embroiled in the conspiracy and had committed himself to position 600 troops outside Florence, waiting for the moment. Marcello Simonetta recast the story of the conspiracy in light of the decoded letter and of other original documents in his ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Montefeltro_Conspiracy:_A_Renaissance_Mystery_Decoded&action=edit&redlink=1 The Montefeltro Conspiracy: A Renaissance Mystery Decoded]'', published by Doubleday in 2008.
===The Pazzi Conspiracy===
[[File:Novella's Secret 3.png|thumb|250px|left|Jacopo de' Pazzi and the Pazzi Conspirators]]
In 1478, Ezio returned to Florence to spy on the Pazzi as they attended a meeting with other Templars in the catacombs under the [[Basilica di Santa Maria Novella|Santa Maria Novella]] church. It was in this meeting that they planned the assassinations of both Lorenzo de' Medici and his brother Giuliano de' Medici. Among the conspirators were [[Stefano da Bagnone]], [[Bernardo Baroncelli]], [[Francesco Salviati]], [[Antonio Maffei]], [[Jacopo de' Pazzi]] and Francesco de' Pazzi. Rodrigo Borgia led the meeting and informed the conspirators that they had been given "spiritual" and military support from Pope [[Sixtus IV]].


On Sunday, April 26, 1478, during [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Mass High Mass] at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Maria_del_Fiore Duomo] before a crowd of 10,000, Giuliano de' Medici was stabbed 19 times by a gang that included a priest. As he bled to death on the cathedral floor, his brother Lorenzo escaped with serious, but non life-threatening wounds. Lorenzo appeared shortly after, locked safely in the sacristy by the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance_Humanism humanist] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poliziano Poliziano]. A coordinated attempt to capture the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonfaloniere_of_Justice Gonfaloniere] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Signoria_of_Florence Signoria] was thwarted when the archbishop and head of the Salviati clan were trapped in a room whose doors had a hidden latch. The ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coup_d%27%C3%A9tat coup d'état]'' failed, and the enraged Florentines seized and killed the conspirators. Jacopo de' Pazzi was tossed from a window. To finish him off, the mob dragged him naked through the streets, then threw him into the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arno_River Arno River]. The Pazzi family were stripped of their possessions in Florence, every vestige of their name effaced. Salviati was [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanging hanged] on the walls of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palazzo_della_Signoria Palazzo della Signoria]. Although Lorenzo appealed to the crowd not to exact summary justice, many of the conspirators, as well as many people accused of being conspirators, were killed. Lorenzo did manage to save the nephew of Sixtus IV, Cardinal [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raffaele_Riario Raffaele Riario], who was almost certainly an innocent dupe of the conspirators, as well as two relatives of the conspirators. The main conspirators were hunted down throughout [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italy Italy]; however, the story of a wider retribution by Lorenzo, including hundreds of killings, is a myth.
The next day, the conspirators executed their plan. They publicly attacked the Medici brothers in front of the Duomo with Francesco and Bernardo brutally stabbing Giuliano to death. At the same time, Stefano and Antonio severely wounded Lorenzo, but fled when he drew his sword. Francesco and others continued to attack Lorenzo, but withdrew when Ezio Auditore da Firenze intervened. Lorenzo was forced to retreat to his [[Palazzo Medici|Palazzo]], while Pazzi forces engaged Medici loyalists in earnest. As Ezio escorted Lorenzo back to his Palazzo, the latter loudly declared that Francesco de Pazzi would die and that his entire family would be erased.<ref>''[[Assassin's Creed II]]'' – [[Wolves in Sheep's Clothing]]</ref>


In the actual aftermath of the so-called "Pazzi" conspiracy, the Della Rovere Pope placed Florence under interdict, forbidding [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_%28liturgy%29 Mass] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communion communion], for the execution of the Salviati archbishop. Sixtus enlisted the traditional Papal military arm, the King of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naples Naples], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_I_of_Naples Ferdinand I], to attack Florence. With no help coming from Florence's traditional allies in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bologna Bologna] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milan Milan], only Lorenzo's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplomacy diplomacy] saved the day. He sailed to Naples and put himself in the hands of Don Ferrante, who held him captive for three months before releasing him with gifts. Lorenzo's courage and his [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli Machiavellian] ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik realpolitik]'' convinced [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_I_of_Naples Don Ferrante] that the Pope would turn against him if he were too successful in the North.
Francesco gained control of the [[Palazzo della Signoria]], but Medici forces continued to resist. Meanwhile, Ezio fought his way to the roof of the palazzo and confronted Francesco. Francesco fled immediately, but was pursued over the city's rooftops, hunted down, and killed by Ezio.<ref name="Farewell Francesco">''Assassin's Creed II'' – [[Farewell Francesco]]</ref>


===Downfall===
[[File:With Friends 15 v.png|thumb|250px|Jacopo assassinated by Ezio]]
When Jacopo arrived at the Palazzo with the support of many Florentine [[civilians|citizens]], it was far too late; Francesco's naked corpse had already been hung from the roof, causing the panicked Jacopo to flee the city on [[Horses|horseback]].<ref name="Farewell Francesco" /> After their plot failed, the conspirators fled Florence to hide in the city of San Gimignano and in the surrounding Tuscan countryside. Despite this, Ezio hunted down and slew all of the conspirators.<ref name="AC2" /> Jacopo went to plead his case to Rodrigo Borgia, meeting him covertly in an [[Antico Teatro Romano|ancient Roman theatre]], but was instead fatally wounded and used as bait to trap Ezio. Ezio fought his way out of the trap and ended Jacopo's suffering, and the Pazzi family with it.<ref>''Assassin's Creed II'' – [[With Friends Like These]]</ref> With its ruling family gone, San Gimignano was taken over by the Medici.<ref name="AC2" />


With the rule of the Medici, Lorenzo honored his promise and stripped the Pazzi family of everything, wiped their names from the tombstones, and threw them into prison, even those who played no part in the conspiracy.<ref name="AC2" />


== The Conspiracy (Game Canon) ==
=== Legacy ===
It is a basic substitution of the simple trappings of power of man, like money, respect, and titles, with the overarching evil that the Templars represent. Within the game, the Pazzi were in league with Borgia against the Medici and the Auditore for the main reason of the knowledge of the lineages of both families. Firenze stayed true to the people and its leaders were not only aware of the Templars but combating their influences within Firenze. The Templar Alberti publicly ruined the Auditore name with his damnation and execution of Lorenzo Di Medici's close friend and ally Giovanni Auditore Da Firenze. This served as a symbolic message to Lorenzo, as his closest friend and advisor had been painted as the mastermind of the plots in public and had been executed in Lorenzo's name, no less. Knowing this would shake Lorenzo the Templars saw Giovanni and the males of the House of Auditore as their only obstacle in securing the state, support, leadership, and power of Firenze.
After the downfall of the family, they lost much of their political power, influence, and social standing. During Ezio Auditore’s confrontation with Lucrezia Borgia at the Castello Sant'Angelo, it was revealed that Lorenzo de’ Medici, driven by a desire for revenge following the Pazzi Conspiracy, went to great lengths to strip the family of all its assets. He had them imprisoned, including individuals who had no involvement in the conspiracy. The women of the family were forbidden to marry, and the family tombs were dismantled, effectively erasing their legacy from historical records.<ref name="The Burdens We Carry">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'' – [[The Burdens We Carry]]'''</ref>


By modern times, the Templars regarded the Borgias and the Pazzi as a dark chapter in the history of the Order, as both families were more obsessed with acquiring power and wealth for personal gain rather than advancing the Templar agenda of world domination.<ref name="ACRevelationsMD">''[[Assassin's Creed: Revelations]]''</ref>


From September to October of 2012, [[Desmond Miles]] relived Ezio Auditore's [[Genetic memory|genetic memories]] in order to learn his ancestor’s skills and locate Ezio’s Apple of Eden. Through his ancestor, he witnessed the downfall of the Pazzi conspiracy.<ref name="AC2" /><ref name="ACBrotherhoodMD">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''</ref>


==Family tree==
{{familytree/start|style=background:#666666;}}
{{familytree| | | | | | | | | | AND | |AND = Andrea de' Pazzi}}
{{familytree| | | | | |,|-|-|-|-|^|-|-|-|.| | |}}
{{familytree| | | | | JAC | | | | | | | ANT | JAC = [[Jacopo de' Pazzi]] | ANT = Antonio de' Pazzi}}
{{familytree| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |!| | | }}
{{familytree| | | | | | | | | | | | | | FRA | FRA = [[Francesco de' Pazzi]]}}
{{familytree| | | | | | | | | | |,|-|-|-|^|-|-|-|.| | |}}
{{familytree| | | | | | | | | | VIE | | | | | | VIO | VIE = [[Vieri de' Pazzi]] | VIO = [[Viola de' Pazzi]] }}
{{familytree/end}}


==Trivia==
*The term ''pazzi'' is the masculine plural of Italian ''pazzo'', which translates to 'crazy, fool, madman' in English. However, the adjective predates the family name of the House of Pazzi.
*Historically, the Pazzi family had members fight in the First Crusade during the Siege of [[Jerusalem]], the first [[Christianity|Christian]] soldier to climb over the walls of Jerusalem was Pazzino Pazzi, an ancestor of the 15th century family members.
*The Pazzi's personal guards were the only guards to patrol Florence until Sequence 4. However, Medici guards did not appear in Florence from 1476 until 1478 even though the Medici were in power.
*Francesco de' Pazzi was the only non-Assassin to perform a [[Leap of Faith]] in ''[[Assassin's Creed II]]'', and can be difficult to pursue due to his exceptional [[freerunning]] abilities.
*There was also an unnamed member of the Pazzi family, Francesco de' Pazzi's cousin, whom Ezio assassinated during a [[Crash a Party|contract]] in Venice. It is unknown whether he was involved in the conspiracy or a member of the Templar Order. This man, however, might be a reference to Renato de Pazzi, an actual Pazzi conspirator who was executed along with Jacopo and Francesco.
*The Pazzi's favored colors seems to be gray with white stripes, since Vieri, Jacopo, and Francesco as well as their supporters had this color scheme in their clothes.
*In ''[[Assassin's Creed: Renaissance]]'' it was stated that the Pazzi emblem was two [[Bottlenose dolphin|dolphins]] on a blue background, as historically accurate, whereas in ''Assassin's Creed II'', it is shown as two dolphins on a red background.
*In ''[[Assassin's Creed: Revelations]]'', Ezio briefly sung a song about Vieri and Francesco de' Pazzi's deaths while masquerading as a minstrel.
*Historically, the Pazzi owned the {{Wiki|Villa di Maiano}}, the probable inspiration for the [[Villa Auditore]].
*Historically, the Pazzi returned to Florence after [[Piero de' Medici]] was overthrown and supported Girolamo Savonarola's rule, only to be banished by the Medici again when they returned to power after the friar's execution.


{{stub}}
==Gallery==
[[Category:Assassin's Creed II Characters]]
<gallery widths="180" position="center" spacing="small" captionalign="center">
AC2_Jacopo_de_Pazzi_render.png|Jacopo de' Pazzi
FrancescoTP3.png|Francesco de' Pazzi
Vieri_de_Pazzi.png|Vieri de' Pazzi
WiSC 8.png|Francesco and Bernardo Baroncelli attacking Giuliano de' Medici
WGA 14 v.png|Ezio assassinating Vieri
Farewell Francesco 4.png|Ezio assassinating Francesco
ACI Insignia House Pazzi.png|The Insignia of the House of Pazzi from ''[[Assassin's Creed: Identity]]''
</gallery>
 
==Appearances==
*''[[Assassin's Creed II]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Revelations]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Identity]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Echoes of History]] – Renaissance'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Shadows]]'' {{Imo}}
 
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{ACII}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pazzi, House of}}
[[Category:Royal houses]]
[[Category:Templar lineages]]

Latest revision as of 17:04, 28 May 2026

"The Pazzi were a potent and venerable family, reduced to rubble by one young Assassin."
―Rodrigo Borgia, reflecting on the collapse of the Pazzi family, 1485.[src]-[m]

The House of Pazzi was a familial group of Tuscan nobles who owned banks throughout the Italian city of Florence during the 15th century. Affiliated with the Templars, the Pazzi family became infamous for their failed attempt to gain control of the city through a conspiracy to murder its rulers, the House of Medici.

History[edit | edit source]

Conflict with Giovanni Auditore[edit | edit source]

Less powerful rivals of the Medici family, the Pazzis, along with Rodrigo Borgia, the Grand Master of the Templar Order, planned a conspiracy to overthrow the Medici by killing the family's most prominent members, Lorenzo and Giuliano.[1]

In 1476, Giovanni Auditore da Firenze, Lorenzo's close friend and a member of the Assassin Brotherhood, discovered the involvement of the Pazzi family in a conspiracy against the Medici. Moving to forestall this, Giovanni managed to have Francesco de' Pazzi put in jail.[2]However, the plot had already reached members of the Medici government itself. Uberto Alberti, the Gonfaloniere of Justice and secretly a Templar, freed Francesco, and executed Giovanni for treason alongside his sons Federico and Petruccio, removing the Auditore family from Florence.[3]

With Giovanni dead, there was no barrier between the Pazzi and control of the city,[1] until Ezio, Giovanni's only surviving son, planned his revenge. On 14 April 1478, Ezio joined his uncle Mario and his mercenaries, and infiltrated San Gimignano, he witnessed a meeting between the Pazzis and Rodrigo Borgia. During the ensuing battle between the mercenaries and Pazzi forces, Ezio killed his brash and aggressive rival Vieri de' Pazzi, the youngest of the Pazzi family.[4]

The Pazzi Conspiracy[edit | edit source]

Jacopo de' Pazzi and the Pazzi Conspirators

In 1478, Ezio returned to Florence to spy on the Pazzi as they attended a meeting with other Templars in the catacombs under the Santa Maria Novella church. It was in this meeting that they planned the assassinations of both Lorenzo de' Medici and his brother Giuliano de' Medici. Among the conspirators were Stefano da Bagnone, Bernardo Baroncelli, Francesco Salviati, Antonio Maffei, Jacopo de' Pazzi and Francesco de' Pazzi. Rodrigo Borgia led the meeting and informed the conspirators that they had been given "spiritual" and military support from Pope Sixtus IV.

The next day, the conspirators executed their plan. They publicly attacked the Medici brothers in front of the Duomo with Francesco and Bernardo brutally stabbing Giuliano to death. At the same time, Stefano and Antonio severely wounded Lorenzo, but fled when he drew his sword. Francesco and others continued to attack Lorenzo, but withdrew when Ezio Auditore da Firenze intervened. Lorenzo was forced to retreat to his Palazzo, while Pazzi forces engaged Medici loyalists in earnest. As Ezio escorted Lorenzo back to his Palazzo, the latter loudly declared that Francesco de Pazzi would die and that his entire family would be erased.[5]

Francesco gained control of the Palazzo della Signoria, but Medici forces continued to resist. Meanwhile, Ezio fought his way to the roof of the palazzo and confronted Francesco. Francesco fled immediately, but was pursued over the city's rooftops, hunted down, and killed by Ezio.[6]

Downfall[edit | edit source]

Jacopo assassinated by Ezio

When Jacopo arrived at the Palazzo with the support of many Florentine citizens, it was far too late; Francesco's naked corpse had already been hung from the roof, causing the panicked Jacopo to flee the city on horseback.[6] After their plot failed, the conspirators fled Florence to hide in the city of San Gimignano and in the surrounding Tuscan countryside. Despite this, Ezio hunted down and slew all of the conspirators.[1] Jacopo went to plead his case to Rodrigo Borgia, meeting him covertly in an ancient Roman theatre, but was instead fatally wounded and used as bait to trap Ezio. Ezio fought his way out of the trap and ended Jacopo's suffering, and the Pazzi family with it.[7] With its ruling family gone, San Gimignano was taken over by the Medici.[1]

With the rule of the Medici, Lorenzo honored his promise and stripped the Pazzi family of everything, wiped their names from the tombstones, and threw them into prison, even those who played no part in the conspiracy.[1]

Legacy[edit | edit source]

After the downfall of the family, they lost much of their political power, influence, and social standing. During Ezio Auditore’s confrontation with Lucrezia Borgia at the Castello Sant'Angelo, it was revealed that Lorenzo de’ Medici, driven by a desire for revenge following the Pazzi Conspiracy, went to great lengths to strip the family of all its assets. He had them imprisoned, including individuals who had no involvement in the conspiracy. The women of the family were forbidden to marry, and the family tombs were dismantled, effectively erasing their legacy from historical records.[8]

By modern times, the Templars regarded the Borgias and the Pazzi as a dark chapter in the history of the Order, as both families were more obsessed with acquiring power and wealth for personal gain rather than advancing the Templar agenda of world domination.[9]

From September to October of 2012, Desmond Miles relived Ezio Auditore's genetic memories in order to learn his ancestor’s skills and locate Ezio’s Apple of Eden. Through his ancestor, he witnessed the downfall of the Pazzi conspiracy.[1][10]

Family tree[edit | edit source]

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Andrea de' Pazzi
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Jacopo de' Pazzi
 
 
 
 
 
 
Antonio de' Pazzi
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Francesco de' Pazzi
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Vieri de' Pazzi
 
 
 
 
 
Viola de' Pazzi

Trivia[edit | edit source]

  • The term pazzi is the masculine plural of Italian pazzo, which translates to 'crazy, fool, madman' in English. However, the adjective predates the family name of the House of Pazzi.
  • Historically, the Pazzi family had members fight in the First Crusade during the Siege of Jerusalem, the first Christian soldier to climb over the walls of Jerusalem was Pazzino Pazzi, an ancestor of the 15th century family members.
  • The Pazzi's personal guards were the only guards to patrol Florence until Sequence 4. However, Medici guards did not appear in Florence from 1476 until 1478 even though the Medici were in power.
  • Francesco de' Pazzi was the only non-Assassin to perform a Leap of Faith in Assassin's Creed II, and can be difficult to pursue due to his exceptional freerunning abilities.
  • There was also an unnamed member of the Pazzi family, Francesco de' Pazzi's cousin, whom Ezio assassinated during a contract in Venice. It is unknown whether he was involved in the conspiracy or a member of the Templar Order. This man, however, might be a reference to Renato de Pazzi, an actual Pazzi conspirator who was executed along with Jacopo and Francesco.
  • The Pazzi's favored colors seems to be gray with white stripes, since Vieri, Jacopo, and Francesco as well as their supporters had this color scheme in their clothes.
  • In Assassin's Creed: Renaissance it was stated that the Pazzi emblem was two dolphins on a blue background, as historically accurate, whereas in Assassin's Creed II, it is shown as two dolphins on a red background.
  • In Assassin's Creed: Revelations, Ezio briefly sung a song about Vieri and Francesco de' Pazzi's deaths while masquerading as a minstrel.
  • Historically, the Pazzi owned the Villa di Maiano, the probable inspiration for the Villa Auditore.
  • Historically, the Pazzi returned to Florence after Piero de' Medici was overthrown and supported Girolamo Savonarola's rule, only to be banished by the Medici again when they returned to power after the friar's execution.

Gallery[edit | edit source]

  • Jacopo de' Pazzi
    Jacopo de' Pazzi
  • Francesco de' Pazzi
    Francesco de' Pazzi
  • Vieri de' Pazzi
    Vieri de' Pazzi
  • Francesco and Bernardo Baroncelli attacking Giuliano de' Medici
    Francesco and Bernardo Baroncelli attacking Giuliano de' Medici
  • Ezio assassinating Vieri
    Ezio assassinating Vieri
  • Ezio assassinating Francesco
    Ezio assassinating Francesco
  • The Insignia of the House of Pazzi from Assassin's Creed: Identity
    The Insignia of the House of Pazzi from Assassin's Creed: Identity

Appearances[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Assassin's Creed II
  2. ↑ Assassin's Creed II – Paperboy
  3. ↑ Assassin's Creed II – Last Man Standing
  4. ↑ Assassin's Creed II – What Goes Around
  5. ↑ Assassin's Creed II – Wolves in Sheep's Clothing
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Assassin's Creed II – Farewell Francesco
  7. ↑ Assassin's Creed II – With Friends Like These
  8. ↑ Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood – The Burdens We Carry
  9. ↑ Assassin's Creed: Revelations
  10. ↑ Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

Characters
Claudia • Ezio • Federico • Giovanni • Maria • Mario • Petruccio | Domenico • Isabetta • Renato
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