House of Pazzi
|
Ezio, my friend! How may I be of service? This article is in desperate need of a revamp. Please improve it in any way necessary in order for it to achieve a higher standard of quality in accordance with our Manual of Style. |
- "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.
The House of Pazzi was a group of Tuscan nobles, who owned banks in Florence in the 15th century. Affiliated with the Templars, the Pazzi family was most infamously known for their attempt to gain control of Florence through the Pazzi Conspiracy.
History
The Pazzi family was one of the most powerful families in 15th century Florence. However, they had no chance of ruling the city as long as the Medici family still held it.
The Conspriracy
Less powerful, and rivals of the Medici, the Pazzi family, along with Rodrigo Borgia, the Grand Master of the Templar Order, planned a conspiracy to overthrow the Medici by killing its head: Lorenzo de' Medici.
Start of the conspiracy
In 1476, Giovanni Auditore, Lorenzo's close friend and member of the Assassin order, discovered the involvement of the Pazzi family in a conspiracy against the Medici. He managed to put Francesco de' Pazzi in jail. However, the plot had already reached members of the Medici government itself. Uberto Alberti, the gonfaloniere of justice, freed Francesco, and executed Giovanni alongside his sons Federico and Petruccio for treason, removing the Auditore family from Florence.
With Giovanni dead, there was nothing stopping the Pazzi, until Ezio, Giovanni's only surviving son, decided to avenge his family's murder. Joining with his uncle Mario, Ezio infiltrated San Gimignano. There, he witnessed a meeting between the Pazzi family and Rodrigo Borgia. Ezio then killed Vieri de' Pazzi, the youngest of the Pazzi conspirators.
The Battle at the Duomo
In 1478, Ezio returned to Florence to spy on the Pazzi as they were meeting with other Templars (excluding the Venetian and Forlì branches) 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. Among the conspirators were Stefano da Bagnone, Bernardo Baroncelli, Francesco Salviati, Antonio Maffei, the two members of the Pazzi family: Jacopo and Francesco. Rodrigo Borgia led the meeting. He also told the conspirators that they had been given "spiritual" and military support from His Holiness Pope Sixtus IV.
The next day, they executed their plan. In front of the Santa Maria del Fiore, they publicly attacked the Medici brothers. Francesco and Bernardo brutally stabbed 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 intervened. Lorenzo was forced to retreat to his Palazzo, while Pazzi forces engaged Medici loyalists in earnest.
Francesco gained control of the Palazzo della Signoria, but Medici forces continued to resist. Meanwhile, Ezio had fought his way to the roof of the palazzo and confronted Francesco. Francesco fled immediately, but was pursued, hunted down, and killed by Ezio.
The Conspiracy's Failure
When Jacopo arrived at the Palazzo with the support of many citizens, it was far too late: Francesco's corpse had already been hung from the roof. After their plot failed, the Pazzi fled Florence to hide in the city of San Gimignano. Despite this, Ezio (again with Mario's help) hunted down and slew all of the co-conspirators. Jacopo went to plead his case with Borgia, but was instead fatally wounded and used as bait to trap Ezio. Ezio fought his way out of the trap and ended Jacopo's life, and the Pazzi family with it. With its ruling family gone, San Gimignano (and presumably what was left of the faction) was taken over by the Medici.
With the rule of the Medici, Lorenzo stripped the pazzi family from everything and threw them into prison, even those who played no part in the conspiracy.
Trivia
- The Pazzi's personal guards are the only guards to patrol Florence, until Sequence 4. This is odd, since the Medici guards do not appear in Florence from 1476 (the beginning of the game), until 1478 (the end of Sequence 4) even though the Medici were in power.
- Francesco de' Pazzi is the only non-Assassin to have performed the Leap of Faith in Assassin's Creed II, and can be difficult to pursue due to his exceptional free-running ability.
- There is also another unnamed member of the Pazzi Family, Francesco de Pazzi's cousin who Ezio assassinates for one of the assassination contract missions. It is unknown whether this family member was involved in the Pazzi Conspiracy or if he was even a Templar.
- The Pazzi family had members fight during the Crusades. In the First Crusade, during the Siege of Jerusalem, the first Christian soldier to climb over the walls of Jerusalem was Pazzo Pazzi, an ancestor to the Pazzi of the 15th century.
- The term pazzi, roughly translated, means "crazy".
- In the Assassin's Creed Renaissance Novel, it is stated that the Pazzi emblem is two dolphins on a blue background, yet in the Assassin's Creed II game, it is shown as two dolphins on a red background.
- Like the Barbarigi, the Pazzi seem to wear uniform colored clothes, grey and white clothes with gold embroidery.
Gallery
-
Francesco de'Pazzi
-
Vieri de'Pazzi
-
Jacopo de'Pazzi and the Pazzi Conspirators
-
Francesco attacking Giuliano, with Ezio trying to stop him.
-
Jacopo's Death -
Francesco's Death
