Timeline Principal events in the histories of and the house of Rucellai

Neolithic period River valley first settled 9th–8th century bce Etruscans establish a settlement (Viesul, now known as ) on a hill above the valley 59 bce establishes a Roman colony for retired soldiers on the northern bank of the Arno (Florentia, now known as Florence) 2nd century ce Population: c.10,000 393 City’s first Christian , San Lorenzo, consecrated as its cathedral by Saint Ambrose 405 Siege of Florence, part of a succession of Gothic invasions of the 5th century of Santa Reparata constructed within the Roman walls on the site of the present cathedral Late 6th century City falls to the Lombards, becoming part of the Lombardic Duchy of 774 City conquered by Charlemagne; Carolingian era ushers in a period of urban revival Late 8th century City walls expanded 978 , a Benedictine Abbey, founded by Willa, widow of Uberto, of Tuscany 996 First built near the site of the Roman-era bridge 1018 Mercato Nuovo built on the site of the old Roman forum Basilica of al Monte built on highest point in Florence Population: c.5,000 1115 Florence achieves de facto self-government with the establishment of a (confirmed by the Holy Roman in 1183)

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1128 Construction finished on the Baptistery, built on the site of a sixth- or seventh-century octagonal structure, itself built on a structure dating to the Roman period c.1150 Arte di Calimala (cloth merchants’ ) established 1212 Arte della Lana (wool merchants’ guild) established Population: c.30,000 1216 Murder of Buondelmonte de’ Buondelmonti seen as inaugu- rating quarrel between the Guelph faction (supporters of the papal cause) and the Ghibellines (supporters of the ) c.1246 Construction of the church of by the Dominicans begins c.1250 Alamanno discovers Roccella tinctoria (the dye source for “poor man’s purple”) in an eastern Mediterranean market 1252 Gold florin first minted 1255 Construction begins on Palazzo del Popolo (now known as the ), the first monumental civic building, built for the com- mander of the civic militia 1261 Alamanno matriculates in the Arte della Lana 1265 Dante born in Florence 1269 Flood 1288 Ospedale di Santa Maria Nuova founded by Folco Portinari, the father of Dante’s Beatrice 1293 Ordinances of Justice institute office ofgonfaloniere 1294 Construction of the church of Santa Croce by the Franciscans begins 1296 Foundation stone of new cathedral laid on the site of Santa Reparata (rededicated to Santa Maria del Fiore in 1412) c.1299 Construction begins on Le Stinche, considered the first purpose- built prison in 1299 Palazzo della (now known as ), seat of the government, constructed on the site of the old Roman theater 1300 City walls expanded Population: c.100,000, making Florence one of the five largest cities in Europe 1302 Nardo di Giunta, first member of the family to hold public office, named prior of the Signoria (gonfalonier of justice in 1308); the family would give a total of 85 priori and 14 gonfalonieri to the city Dante exiled 1304 Fire destroys hundreds of houses

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1312 Siege of Florence, part of the Wars of the Guelphs and Ghibellines 1315–17 Famine 1318 Bingeri, a captain in the Florentine militia, suppresses the revolt of the Tolomei in ; rewarded with an addition to the family blazon: a silver lion rampant against a red background 1321 founded 1330 Ufficiali delle donne, degli ornamenti e delle vesti (Officers for Women, Ornaments and Clothes) established 1333 Flood kills more than 3,000 people 1334 appointedcapomaestro of cathedral complex; foundations of campanile laid 1345 Ponte Vecchio rebuilt Bardi and banking families declare bankruptcy 1348 results in a 60 percent decline in the population c.1349–53 Boccaccio at work on the Decameron 1355 Cenni di Nardo builds a chapel dedicated to Saint Catherine of Alexandria in the church of Santa Maria Novella 1360 Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici born in Florence 1374 Death of 1376 Construction of the begins 1378 Revolt of the Ciompi begins 1389 Cosimo “il Vecchio” de’ Medici born in Florence 1397 established 1403 Giovanni Rucellai born in Florence 1404 born in exile in 1406 Florence conquers , signaling the final defeat of the Ghibellines and giving Florence control of an important seaport 1417 rediscovers Lucretius’ De rerum natura 1421 Giovanni Rucellai occupies his father’s townhouse on Via della Vigna Nuova 1423 Giovanni Rucellai matriculates in the Arte del Cambio (bankers’ guild); made a partner in the fourth-largest bank in Florence c.1425 Brunelleschi reinvents one-point 1427 Catasto (property tax survey) begins Population: c.37,000 1428 Giovanni Rucellai marries Iacopa Strozzi; buys second house exile lifted 1432 Ufficiali di notte (Officers of the Night) established to adjudicate acts of sodomy 1433 Giovanni Rucellai buys third house Cosimo de’ Medici exiled

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1434 Cosimo de’ Medici returns from exile; becomes unofficial ruler of Florence, or Pater Patriae Palla Strozzi exiled Leon Battista Alberti re-enters Florence in the of Pope Eugenius IV 1435 Leon Battista Alberti writesOn 1436 Brunelleschi’s completed; Duomo consecrated 1439 General Council of Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches held in Florence 1440s Three Rucellai cousins commission a marble pulpit, designed by Brunelleschi, for the church of Santa Maria Novella 1440 completes his ; installed in courtyard of Palazzo Medici 1443 Leon Battista Alberti beginsOn the of Building 1445 Giovanni Rucellai at the helm of his own bank, one of the largest in Florence, with branches in Pisa, , Lyon, and Constantinople; buys fourth, fifth, and sixth houses 1449 Lorenzo “il Magnifico” de’ Medici born in Florence c.1450 Leon Battista Alberti designs facade for Giovanni Rucellai 1452 Ghiberti completes bronze casting of east doors (also known as the Gates of Paradise) for the Baptistery 1454 born in Florence 1456 Pandolfo Rucellai marries Caterina Pitti 1457 Giovanni Rucellai begins his zibaldone (commonplace book) 1458 Giovanni Rucellai becomes third-richest man in Florence; buys seventh house Leon Battista Alberti designs loggia for Giovanni Rucellai 1464 Death of Cosimo “il Vecchio” de’ Medici 1466 marries Nannina de’ Medici Leonardo enters the workshop of Florentine painter as an apprentice 1467 Leon Battista Alberti designs burial chapel, modeled after the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, for Giovanni Rucellai 1469 Lorenzo de’ Medici succeeds his father, Piero “the Gouty” Niccolò Machiavelli born in Florence 1470 Leon Battista Alberti designs facade of the church of Santa Maria Novella for Giovanni Rucellai 1474 Giovanni Rucellai declares bankruptcy 1478 Conspiracy wounds Lorenzo de’ Medici and kills his brother Giuliano (26 April)

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1480s Bernardo Rucellai begins to develop newly acquired suburban property, naming it the Orti Oricellari 1481 Death of Giovanni Rucellai Savonarola arrives in Florence c.1485 Botticelli paints theBirth of Venus 1487 Giraffe presented to Lorenzo de’ Medici by al-Ashraf Qaitbay, the Sultan of Egypt 1489 Foundation stone of laid 1492 First legal and physical division of Palazzo Rucellai Death of Lorenzo de’ Medici 1494 French Charles VIII invades city to lay claim to the Kingdom of ; Medici driven from the city 1495 Bernardo Rucellai’s De bello italico commentarius published 1496 Bernardo Rucellai’s De urbe Roma published 1497 organized by supporters of Savonarola (7 February) 1498 Savonarola burned at the stake for heresy (23 May) Machiavelli appointed secretary to the committee overseeing military matters and foreign affairs 1504 completes his David 1512 Return of the Medici 1513 Machiavelli’s The in circulation 1516 Giovanni di Bernardo Rucellai’s Rosmunda, the earliest extant Italian , first performed in the Orti Oricellari for Death of Bernardo Rucellai Giovanni de’ Medici, second son of Lorenzo “il Magnifico,” enters Florence as Pope Leo X; later excommunicates Martin Luther 1519 Niccolò Machiavelli begins The Art of War in the Orti Oricellari c.1520 The madrigal is developed in the Orti Oricellari 1523 Cardinal Clement VII (born Giulio de’ Medici) becomes Pope, two years after the death of his cousin Pope Leo X 1527 In the wake of the , Medici rule is overthrown and is established 1528 Baldassare Castiglione’s Book of the Courtier published 1529 Death of Camilla Rucellai, ardent follower of Savonarola Siege of Florence, part of the War of the League of Cognac, begins 1531 Second legal and physical division of Palazzo Rucellai 1532 Republic ends; Alessandro de’ Medici named of Florence 1536 Dissection of a “monster” takes place in the Orti Oricellari Holy Roman Emperor Charles V visits city

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1550 publishes first edition of hisLives of the Artists 1557 Flood (September) 1558 Giovanni Della Casa’s conduct book Galateo published, addressed to Annibale Rucellai 1560 Vasari begins construction on Palazzo degli to house the offices of the city magistrates 1563 Accademia delle Arti del Disegno established 1564 Death of Michelangelo 1565 Cosimo I instructs Vasari to build a private passageway (now known as the ) linking Palazzo Vecchio and the Uffizi to the new Medici residence, , on the south side of the Arno 1569 Cosimo I proclaimed of Tuscany 1571 Jewish ghetto created 1573 Orti Oricellari sold by the Rucellai 1580 Official rules ofcalcio fiorentino, an early form of played in , published 1583 Accademia della Crusca founded 1600 Wedding ceremony of Maria de’ Medici and Henry IV of takes place in the Duomo (5 October); as part of the celebration, Euridice, the earliest surviving opera, written by , is performed at Palazzo Pitti (6 October) 1604 Birth of Orazio Ricasoli Rucellai, philosopher, scientist, and leading member of the Accademia della Crusca 1610 Galileo appointed Chief Mathematician and Philosopher to Grand Duke Cosimo II 1654 Descendants of Giovanni Rucellai acquire eighth house 1656 , considered the oldest opera house in , opens as a private court theater for the Grand of Tuscany (until 1718); premieres of Donizetti’sRosamund of England (1834) and Verdi’s (1847) 1668 Cavaliere Giulio Rucellai murdered by del Benino in a duel in Via dei Tintori (17 July) 1677 Rucellai loggia bricked in (not reopened until the 1960s) Early 18th century Multiple mezzanine floors added to Palazzo Rucellai; a Rucellai daughter hurls herself into the courtyard on the eve of her wedding 1723–37 Reign of Cosimo III’s son, Gian Gastone 1737 Francis, Duke of Lorraine installed as Grand Duke 1740–86 Horace Mann serves as British envoy at Florence 1743 Under Giulio Rucellai, Minister for Ecclesiastical Affairs for the Habsburg-Lorraine , Palazzo Rucellai undergoes

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extensive renovation campaign, including the decoration of the piano nobile to celebrate Rucellai’s marriage to Teresa de’ Pazzi Death of the last Medici, Gian Gastone’s sister, Anna Maria, who bequeaths Medici treasures to the on condition that none is removed from Tuscany 1765 Death of the Grand Duke Francis; succeeded by his son, Peter Leopold 1768 Facade of Santa Maria Novella begins to crumble; Rucellai family threatened with legal action for neglecting their respon- sibility as custodians of the facade 1784 Galleria dell’Accademia established; Michelangelo’s David installed there in 1873 1790 Grand Duke Peter Leopold becomes ; appoints his second son Ferdinand III Grand Duke of Tuscany 1799 French occupation begins; Jewish ghetto abolished 1801 Tuscany becomes part of Bonaparte’s Kingdom of 1808 Antonio Meucci, inventor of the first telephone device, born in Florence Deconsecration of the church of San Pancrazio 1814 French occupation ends; Jewish ghetto reinstituted 1820 Florence Nightingale, founder of modern nursing, born in Florence 1824 Death of Ferdinand III and succession of his son Leopold II as Grand Duke 1826 Giuseppe Rucellai rents piano nobile of Palazzo Rucellai to the Layard family of England 1826 Carlo Collodi, author of The Adventures of Pinocchio, born in Florence 1827 English Cemetery established 1844 Flood 1848 Santa Maria Novella railway station opens Jewish ghetto abolished 1859 Demonstrations in Florence in support of a united Italy drive Leopold II from city, making him effectively last Grand Duke of Tuscany La Nazione newspaper first published in Florence 1860 People of Tuscany vote for unification of former Grand Duchy with constitutional of Victor Emmanuel II, King of Piedmont 1861 Death of Elizabeth Barrett Browning in Florence 1862 Teatro Comunale opens; home to the annual music festival Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (since 1933) 1865 Florence becomes capital of the recently established Population: 150,864

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1869 built on a hill on the south bank of the Arno 1871 Capital of Italy relocated to Rome Gothic-style facade added to the Duomo 1874 Construction begins on the Tempio Maggiore Israelitico (Great Synagogue of Florence) 1881 Guccio born in Florence 1884 Mercato Vecchio and part of the former Jewish ghetto demolished to make way for Piazza della Repubblica on the site of the old Roman forum 1890 Giulio Rucellai marries Elizabeth Pilar von Pilchau in a Russian Orthodox ceremony in ; occupies the piano nobile of Palazzo Rucellai in 1906 1895 Cosimo Rucellai marries Edith Bronson in in 1895; occupies the second floor of Palazzo Rucellai in 1909 1901 Population: 236,635 1914 Facade of Palazzo Rucellai stoned and fire set at rear of house during Red Week (June) Emilio Pucci born in Florence 1915 Italy enters 1920 Futurist artist Thayaht unveils the tuta on piano nobile of Palazzo Rucellai (July) 1922 Mussolini named Prime Minister of Italy by Victor Emmanuel III 1923 Film director Franco Zeffirelli born in Florence 1929 Journalist Oriana Fallaci born in Florence 1931 Population: 304,160 1932 Santa Maria Novella railway station rebuilt under Mussolini 1935 Italy invades Ethiopia 1936 Writer Dacia Maraini born in Fiesole 1938 Hitler visits Florence; spends several hours in the Uffizi (9 May) Racial laws introduced (September) 1940 Mussolini declares war on France and Great Britain (10 June) 1943 German occupation of Florence begins Allied bombing kills 215 civilians and destroys buildings (25 September) 1944 All bridges except Ponte Vecchio bombed by German forces (3 August) German occupation of Florence ends (11 August) 1946 Umberto II, last , abdicates the throne; Italy officially becomes a republic (2 June) 1954 UFO mass sighting during football match at Florence stadium (27 October)

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1961 Population: 436,516 1966 Flood (4 November) 1968–85 Monster of Florence murders seven couples in the hills of Florence 1977 Florence–Rome high-speed railway begins operating 1982 Historic center of Florence designated UNESCO World Heritage site 1986 Gran Caffé Doney closes Late 1990s Palazzo Rucellai undergoes extensive renovation campaign 1991 Population: 403,294 1993 Terrorist attack carried out by Sicilian Mafia in Via dei Georgofili kills five people, damages the Uffizi, Vasari Corridor, and Palazzo Vecchio, and destroys numerous works of art (27 May) 1997 Alvise di Robilant found murdered in Palazzo Rucellai (16 January) 2002 European Social Forum held in Florence (November) 2013 Population: 383,083 (over 1.5 million in metropolitan area) 2018 Population: 413,953 (projected)

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