On this day, the Pazzi family of Florence tried unsuccessfully to overthrow the ruling Medici family. Backed by Pope Sixtus IV, his nephew Girolamo Riario, and the archbishop of Pisa, who all had good reasons to desire the end of the Medici rule, the conspirators attempted to assassinate the Medici brothers, Lorenzo and Giuliano, during mass at the Cathedral of Florence. During the fray, Giuliano was killed, but Lorenzo managed to escape. Unfortunately for the Pazzi family, the people of Florence gathered in support of Lorenzo, pursuing and killing many of the conspirators on the spot, including the archbishop of Pisa. The failure of the conspiracy consolidated the Medici family’s power as the rulers of Florence.
The Pazzi Conspiracy
26th April 1478