The Medici; Heroes of the Rennaissance - 988 Words

The Medici; Heroes of the Renaissance In the year 2004, PBS broadcasted the series, â€Å"Medici; Godfathers of the Renaissance†. This four-part documentary, in attempt to gain viewer interest, compared the Medici to the mobsters found in Francis Ford’s â€Å"The Godfather†. The relation of the Medici to Italian mobsters in the PBS Medici series is in no way accurate, for they were not villains of the renaissance, but heroes. The Medici were very connected with the church, and used their extensive wealth to promote religion. The Medici became powerful as a result of being the official Papal bankers. They used a lot of their power and wealth to give back to the church throughout their lives. Throughout the Medici timeline there were a†¦show more content†¦By supporting a questioning society, proving their power through patronizing, and discovering their own ways of gaining power, the Medici changed the political ways of the renaissance. Before the ren aissance, the church was the most powerful and controlling leader. However, it only had power as long as their followers remained loyal. The Medici were household members with, and big supporters of ,the very intelligent, church-defying Galileo Galilei. Galileo’s completely valid discovery that the Earth travels around the Sun defied the teachings of the Old Testament. Galileo published a book of his discoveries disguised as a fiction novel. This was not the first scientific discovery to defy Bible teachings, however it was the most publicised. This caused society to begin to question the teachings of the Bible, and everything they had been taught. This theme of questioning lead to less loyal followers of the church, and more loyal followers of non-religion based rulers. The Medici also introduced power through patronage. Rather than fighting to prove power like in the past, the Medici found creating the most beautiful city was just as rewarding. Their rise to the very top a fter completing the dome of the Sistine Chapel proved this theory completely. Most of the Medici valued public involvement, modesty, and connections, for that was how they gained power. According to Pope Puis II Cosimo di