This is an excerpt from a letter written by Lorenzo de' Medici, the ruler of Florence from 1469-1492, to his son Giovanni, who h
ad just become a cardinal. You are now devoted to God and the church: on which account you ought to aim at being a good ecclesiastic [priest], and to show that you prefer the honor and state of the church and of the apostolic see [the authority of the pope] to every other consideration . . . you should be the link to bind this city closer to the church, and our family with the city . . . you are always to prefer the interests of the church. –Lorenzo de' Medici, to his son Giovanni, 1489 Use the drop-down menu to complete the statement. Lorenzo directs Giovanni to give his first loyalty to .
We can see in the letter that Lorenzo de 'Medici advises his son to be loyal to the church, above any other consideration, including the loyalty to the state that the Medici ruled: the Duchy of Florence.
However, Lorenzo de 'Medici has an interest in keeping his son loyal to the church. He knowns that his son's loyalty to the church and the pope can link the Duchy of Florence, and the Medici Family, closer to the ecclesiastical power, which was a great political force at the time.
