Medici, Piero de'

Medici, Piero de' (pye'rō dā me'dichē, Ital. mā'dēchē) [key], 1416–69, Italian merchant prince. He succeeded his father, Cosimo de' Medici, as head of the Medici family and as leader of the Florentine state. His ill health earned him the nickname Il Gottoso [the gouty]. In 1466, Piero put down a conspiracy of nobles headed by the Pitti family, and although it was directed at his life, he allowed the conspirators to go free. His son, Lorenzo de' Medici (Lorenzo il Magnifico), succeeded him as head of the family.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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