Character Profile: Lorenzo de Medici, Medici: Masters of Florence

This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS for all eight episodes of the first season.

Stuart Martin as Lorenzo de Medici. Image from Medici: Masters of Florence.

I just finished the eighth and final episode of the first season of Medici: Masters of Florence, and of course I cannot sleep. I thought I would work on character profiles after I finished writing the recaps of all eight episodes but, if you have seen the eighth episode (and you should, before you read this), then you would understand why I felt compelled to write this.

Final warning. THIS POST CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS. 

This is the Wikipedia article on Lorenzo de Medici, also known as Lorenzo the Elder. He died young, at 45 years old. He founded what was known as the dei Popolani line of the Medici clan and was ancestor to all the Grand Dukes of Tuscany and even to Kings of France. 

In I Medici, Lorenzo was the younger son who, in his youth, comfortably wore Medici wealth. Where Cosimo was introspective, Lorenzo was a skilled negotiator. Where Cosimo favoured stealth tactics, Lorenzo constantly advocated for the direct approach. Loyal to his family, Lorenzo raised an army when Cosimo was jailed by his political opponents. It was no wonder that Cosimo's accusation that he murdered their father hurt him so much he declared he might never be able to forgive his brother.

Lorenzo lived to see his nephew Piero's wife become pregnant; it is safe to assume he was in his 40s at the time of his death. He never married. He fell in love with a peasant woman named Rosa, who was deemed an inappropriate bride by his father Giovanni, and sent away. It was much later that he learnt the heartbreaking truth. Rosa was pregnant; she and her unborn child died in what was supposed to be a sanctuary where Giovanni sent her.

If the success of a man's life could be measured through his legacy, then the real Lorenzo was a very successful Medici. In I Medici, however, he was a tragic character, a good man who died in the service of a family that did not fully appreciate his value. I want to emotionally protest against killing off a good character (I will so miss Lorenzo, and Stuart Martin) but the truth is, this is a valid creative decision. It also paves the way for the introduction of Lorenzo the Magnificent in the second season. 

Missing you already, Lorenzo. Now, please excuse me as I need to look up the third season of Crossing Lines so I can see more of Stuart Martin. 

#MediciSeason1