Lorenzo's other buildings; but neither the convent nor the others
were finished, by reason of the death of Lorenzo. And even the
completed part of this structure of S. Gallo did not long remain
standing, because in 1530, on account of the siege of Florence, it
was destroyed and thrown to the ground, together with the whole
suburb, the piazza of which was completely surrounded by very
beautiful buildings; and at the present day there is no trace to be
seen there of house, church, or convent.
At this time there took place the death of the King of Naples,
whereupon Giuliano Gondi, a very rich Florentine merchant, returned
from that city to Florence, and commissioned Giuliano da San Gallo,
with whom he had become very intimate on account of his visit to
Naples, to build him a palace in rustic work, opposite to S.
Firenze, above the place where the lions used to be. This palace was
to form the angle of the piazza and to face the old Mercatanzia; but
the death of Giuliano Gondi put a stop to the work. In it, among
other things, Giuliano made a chimney-piece, very rich in carvings,
and so varied and beautiful in composition, that up to that time
there had never been seen the like, nor one with such a wealth of
figures. The same master made a palace for a Venetian in Camerata,
without the Porta a Pinti, and many houses for private citizens, of
which there is no need to make mention.
Lorenzo the Magnificent, in order to benefit the commonwealth and
adorn the State, and at the same time to leave behind him some
splendid monument, in addition to the endless number that he had
already erected, wished to execute the fortification of the Poggio
Imperiale, above Poggibonsi, on the road to Rome, with a view to
founding a city there; and he would not lay it out without the
advice and design of Giuliano. Wherefore that master began that most
famous structure, in which he made the well-designed and beautiful
range of fortifications that we see at the present day.
These works brought him such fame, that he was then summoned to
Milan, through the mediation of Lorenzo, by the Duke of Milan, to
the end that he might make for him the model of a palace; and there
Giuliano was no less honoured by the Duke than he had previously
been honoured by the King of Naples, when that Sovereign had invited
him to that city. For when he had presented the model to him, on
the part of the Magnificent Lorenzo, the Duke was filled with
astonishment and marvel at seeing the vast number of beautiful
adornments in it, so well arranged and distributed, and all
accommodated in their places with art and grace; for which reason
all the materials necessary for the work were got together, and they
began to put it into execution. In the same city, together with
Giuliano, was Leonardo da Vinci, who was working for the Duke; and
Leonardo, speaking with Giuliano about the casting of the horse that
he was proposing to make, received from him some excellent
suggestions. This work was broken to pieces on the arrival of the
French, so that the horse was never finished; nor could the palace
be brought to completion.
Having returned to Florence, Giuliano found that his brother
Antonio, who worked for him on his models, had become so excellent,
that there was no one in his day who was a better master in carving,
particularly for large Crucifixes of wood; to which witness is borne
by the one over the high-altar of the Nunziata in Florence, by
another that is kept by the Friars of S. Gallo in S. Jacopo tra
Fossi, and by a third in the Company of the Scalzo, which are all
held to be very good. But Giuliano removed him from that profession
and caused him to give his attention to architecture, in company
with himself, since he had many works to execute, both public and
private.
Now it happened, as it is always happening, that Fortune, the enemy
of talent, robbed the followers of the arts of their hope and
support by the death of Lorenzo de' Medici, which was a heavy loss
not only to all able craftsmen and to his country, but also to all
Italy. Wherefore Giuliano, together with all the other lofty
spirits, was left wholly inconsolable; and in his grief he betook
himself to Prato, near Florence, in order to build the Temple of the
Madonna delle Carcere, since all building in Florence, both public
and private, was at a standstill. He lived in Prato, therefore,
three whole years, supporting the expense, discomfort, and sorrow as
best he could.
At the end of that time, it being proposed to roof the Church of the
Madonna at Loreto, and to raise the cupola, which had been formerly
begun but not finished by Giuliano da Maiano, and those who had
charge of the matter doubting that the piers were too weak to bear
such a weight, they wrote, therefore, to Giuliano, that if he
desired such a work, he should go and see it for himself. And having
gone, like the bold and able man that he was, he showed them that
the cupola could be raised with ease, and that he had courage enough
for the task; and so many, and of such a kind, were the reasons that
he put before them, that the work was allotted to him. After
receiving this commission, he caused the work in Prato to be
despatched, and made his way, with the same master-builders and
stone-cutters, to Loreto. And to the end that this structure,
besides beauty of form, might be firm, solid, stable, and well bound
in the stonework, he sent to Rome for pozzolana[22]; nor was any
lime used that was not mixed with it, nor any stone built in without
it; and thus, within the space of three years, it was brought to
perfect completion, ready for use.
Giuliano then went to Rome, where, for Pope Alexander VI, he
restored the roof of S. Maria Maggiore, which was falling into ruin;
and he made there the ceiling that is to be seen at the present day.
While he was thus employed about the Court, Bishop della Rovere, who
had been the friend of Giuliano from the time when he was Castellan
of Ostia, and who had been created Cardinal of S. Pietro in Vincula,
caused him to make a model for the Palace of S. Pietro in Vincula.
And a little time after, desiring to build a palace in his own city
of Savona, he wished to have it erected likewise from the design and
under the eye of Giuliano. But such a journey was difficult for
Giuliano, for the reason that his ceiling was not yet finished, and
Pope Alexander would not let him go. He entrusted the finishing of
it, therefore, to his brother Antonio, who, having a good and
versatile intelligence, and coming thus into contact with the Court,
entered into the service of the Pope, who conceived a very great
affection for him; and this he proved when he resolved to restore,
with new foundations and with defences after the manner of a castle,
the Mausoleum of Hadrian, now called the Castello di S. Angelo, for
Antonio was made overseer of this undertaking, and under his
direction were made the great towers below, the ditches, and the
rest of the fortifications that we see at the present day. This work
brought him great credit with the Pope, and with his son, Duke
Valentino; and it led to his building the fortress that is now to be
seen at Cività Castellana. Thus, then, while that Pontiff was alive,
he was continually employed in building; and while working for him,
he was rewarded by him no less than he was esteemed.
Giuliano had already carried well forward the work at Savona, when
the Cardinal returned to Rome on some business of his own, leaving
many workmen to bring the building to completion after the
directions and design of Giuliano, whom he took with him to Rome.
Giuliano made that journey willingly, wishing to see Antonio and his
works; and he stayed there some months. During that time, however,
the Cardinal fell into disgrace with the Pope, and departed from
Rome, in order not to be taken prisoner, and Giuliano, as before,
went in his company. On arriving at Savona, they set a much greater
number of master-builders and other artificers to work on the
building. But the threats of the Pope against the Cardinal becoming
every day louder, it was not long before he made his way to Avignon.
From there he sent as a present to the King of France a model for a
palace that Giuliano had made for him, which was marvellous, very
rich in ornament, and spacious enough for the accommodation of his
whole Court. The royal Court was at Lyons when Giuliano presented
his model; and the gift was so welcome and acceptable to the King,
that he rewarded Giuliano liberally and gave him infinite praise,
besides rendering many thanks for it to the Cardinal, who was at
Avignon.
Meanwhile they received news that the palace at Savona was already
nearly finished; whereupon the Cardinal determined that Giuliano
should once more see the work, and Giuliano, having gone for this
purpose to Savona, had not been there long when it was completely
finished. Then, desiring to return to Florence, where he had not
been for a long time, Giuliano took the road for that city together
with his master-builders. Now at that time the King of France had
restored Pisa her liberty, and the war between the Florentines and
the Pisans was still raging; and Giuliano, wishing to pass through
Pisan territory, had a safe-conduct made out for his company at
Lucca, for they had no small apprehension about the Pisan soldiers.
Nevertheless, while passing near Altopascio, they were captured by
the Pisans, who cared nothing for safe-conducts or for any other
warrant that they might have. And for six months Giuliano was
detained in Pisa, his ransom being fixed at three hundred ducats;
nor was he able to return to Florence until he had paid it.
Antonio had heard this news in Rome, and, desiring to see his native
city and his brother again, obtained leave to depart from Rome; and
on his way he designed for Duke Valentino the fortress of
Montefiascone. Finally, in the year 1503, he reached Florence, where
the two brothers and their friends took joyful pleasure in each
other's company.
There now ensued the death of Alexander VI, and the election of Pius
III, who lived but a short time; whereupon the Cardinal of S. Pietro
in Vincula was created Pontiff, under the name of Pope Julius II;
which brought great joy to Giuliano, on account of his having been
so long in his service, and he determined, therefore, to go to kiss
the Pope's foot. Having then arrived in Rome, he was warmly received
and welcomed lovingly, and was straightway commissioned to execute
the first buildings undertaken by that Pope before the coming of
Bramante.
Antonio, who had remained in Florence, continued, in the absence of
Giuliano (Piero Soderini being Gonfalonier), the building of the
Poggio Imperiale, to which all the Pisan prisoners were sent to
labour, in order to finish the work the quicker. After this, by
reason of the troubles at Arezzo, the old fortress was destroyed,
and Antonio made the model for the new one, with the consent of
Giuliano, who had come from Rome for this purpose, but soon returned
thither; and this work was the reason that Antonio was appointed
architect to the Commune of Florence for all the fortifications.
On the return of Giuliano to Rome, the question was being debated as
to whether the divine Michelagnolo Buonarroti should make the tomb
of Pope Julius; whereupon Giuliano exhorted the Pope to pursue that
undertaking, adding that it seemed to him that it was necessary to
build a special chapel for such a monument, and that it should not
be placed in the old S. Pietro, in which there was no space for it,
whereas a new chapel would bring out all the perfection of the work.
After many architects, then, had made designs, the matter little by
little became one of such importance, that, in place of erecting a
chapel, a beginning was made with the great fabric of the new S.
Pietro. There had arrived in Rome, about that time, the architect
Bramante of Castel Durante, who had been in Lombardy; and he went to
work in such a manner, with various extraordinary means and methods
of his own, and with his fantastic ideas, having on his side
Baldassarre Peruzzi, Raffaello da Urbino, and other architects, that
he put the whole undertaking into confusion; whereby much time was
consumed in discussions. Finally--so well did he know how to set
about the matter--the work was entrusted to him, as the man who had
shown the finest judgment, the best intelligence, and the greatest
invention.
Giuliano, resenting this, for it appeared to him that he had
received an affront from the Pope, in view of the faithful service
that he had rendered to him when his rank was not so high, and of
the promise made to him by the Pope that he should have that
building, sought leave to go; and so, notwithstanding that he was
appointed companion to Bramante for other edifices that were being
erected in Rome, he departed, and returned, with many gifts received
from that Pontiff, to Florence.
This was a great joy to Piero Soderini, who straightway set him to
work. Nor had six months gone by, when Messer Bartolommeo della
Rovere, the nephew of the Pope, and a friend of Giuliano, wrote to
him in the name of his Holiness that he should return for his own
advantage to Rome; but neither terms nor promises availed to move
Giuliano, who considered that he had been put to shame by the Pope.
Finally, however, a letter was written to Piero Soderini, urging him
in one way or another to send Giuliano to Rome, since his Holiness
wished to finish the fortifications of the Great Round Tower, which
had been begun by Nicholas V, and likewise those of the Borgo and
the Belvedere, with other works; and Giuliano allowed himself to be
persuaded by Soderini, and therefore went to Rome, where he received
a gracious welcome and many gifts from the Pope.
Having afterwards gone to Bologna, from which the Bentivogli had
just been driven out, the Pope resolved, by the advice of Giuliano,
to have a figure of himself in bronze made by Michelagnolo
Buonarroti; and this was carried out, as will be related in the Life
of Michelagnolo himself. Giuliano also followed the Pope to
Mirandola, and after it was taken, having endured much fatigue and
many discomforts, he returned with the Court to Rome. But the
furious desire to drive the French out of Italy not having yet got
out of the head of the Pope, he strove to wrest the government of
Florence out of the hands of Piero Soderini, whose power was no
small hindrance to him in the project that he had in mind.
Whereupon, since the Pontiff, for these reasons, had turned aside
from building and had embroiled himself in wars, Giuliano, by this
time weary, and perceiving that attention was being given only to
the construction of S. Pietro, and not much even to that, sought
leave from him to depart. But the Pope answered him in anger, "Do
you believe that you are the only Giuliano da San Gallo to be
found?" To which he replied that none could be found equal to him in
faithful service, while he himself would easily find Princes truer
to their promises than the Pope had been towards him. However, the
Pontiff would by no means give him leave to go, saying that he would
speak to him about it another time.
Meanwhile Bramante, having brought Raffaello da Urbino to Rome, set
him to work at painting the Papal apartments; whereupon Giuliano,
perceiving that the Pope took great delight in those pictures, and
knowing that he wished to have the ceiling of the chapel of his
uncle Sixtus painted, spoke to him of Michelagnolo, adding that he
had already executed the bronze statue in Bologna. Which news
pleased the Pope so much that he sent for Michelagnolo, who, on
arriving in Rome, received the commission for the ceiling of that
chapel.
A little time after this, Giuliano coming back once more to seek
leave from the Pope to depart, his Holiness, seeing him determined
on this, was content that he should return to Florence, without
forfeiting his favour; and, after having blessed him, he gave him a
purse of red satin containing five hundred crowns, telling him that
he might return home to rest, but that he would always be his
friend. Giuliano, then, having kissed the sacred foot, returned to
Florence, at the very time when Pisa was surrounded and besieged by
the army of Florence. No sooner had he arrived, therefore, than
Piero Soderini, after the due greetings, sent him to the camp to
help the military commissaries, who had found themselves unable to
prevent the Pisans from passing provisions into Pisa by way of the
Arno. Giuliano made a design for a bridge of boats to be built at
some better season, and then went back to Florence; and when spring
had come, taking with him his brother Antonio, he made his way to
Pisa, where they constructed a bridge, which was a very ingenious
piece of work, since, besides the fact that, rising or falling with
the water, and being well bound with chains, it stood safe and sound
against floods, it carried out the desires of the commissaries in
such a manner, cutting off Pisa from access to the sea by way of the
Arno, that the Pisans, having no other expedient in their sore
straits, were forced to come to terms with the Florentines; and so
they surrendered. Nor was it long before the same Piero Soderini
again sent Giuliano, with a vast number of master-builders, to Pisa,
where with extraordinary swiftness he erected the fortress that
still stands at the Porta a S. Marco, and also the gate itself,
which he built in the Doric Order. And the while that Giuliano was
engaged on this work, which was until the year 1512, Antonio went
through the whole dominion, inspecting and restoring the fortresses
and other public buildings.
After this, by the favour of the same Pope Julius, the house of
Medici was reinstated in the government of Florence, from which they
had been driven out on the invasion of Italy by Charles VIII, King
of France, and Piero Soderini was expelled from the Palace; and the
Medici showed their gratitude to Giuliano and Antonio for the
services that they had rendered in the past to their illustrious
family. Now Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici having been elected Pope a
short time after the death of Julius II, Giuliano was forced once
again to betake himself to Rome; where, Bramante dying not long
after his arrival, it was proposed to give to Giuliano the charge of
the building of S. Pietro. But he, being worn out by his labours,
and crushed down by old age and by the stone, which made his life a
burden, returned by leave of his Holiness to Florence; and that
commission was given to the most gracious Raffaello da Urbino. And
Giuliano, after two years, was pressed so sorely by his malady, that
he died at the age of seventy-four in the year 1517, leaving his
name to the world, his body to the earth, and his soul to God.
By his departure he left a heavy burden of sorrow to his brother
Antonio, who loved him tenderly, and to a son of his own named
Francesco, who was engaged in sculpture, although he was still quite
young. This Francesco, who has preserved up to our own day all the
treasures of his elders, and holds them in veneration, executed many
works at Florence and elsewhere, both in sculpture and in
architecture, and by his hand is the Madonna of marble, with the
Child in her arms, and lying in the lap of S. Anne, that is in
Orsanmichele; which work, with the figures carved in the round out
of one single block, was held, as it still is, to be very beautiful.
He has also executed the tomb that Pope Clement caused to be made
for Piero de' Medici at Monte Cassino, besides many other works, of
which no mention is here made because the said Francesco is still
alive.
After the death of Giuliano, Antonio, being a man who was not
willing to stay idle, made two large Crucifixes of wood, one of
which was sent into Spain, while the other, by order of the
Vice-Chancellor, Cardinal Giulio de' Medici, was taken by Domenico
Buoninsegni into France. It being then proposed to build the
fortress of Livorno, Antonio was sent thither by Cardinal de' Medici
to make the design for it; which he did, although it was afterwards
not carried completely into execution, nor even after the method
suggested by Antonio. After this, the men of Montepulciano
determining, by reason of the miracles wrought by an image of Our
Lady, to build a temple for it at very great cost, Antonio made the
model for this, and became head of the undertaking; on which account
he visited that building twice a year. At the present day it is to
be seen carried to perfect completion, having been executed with
supreme grace, and with truly marvellous beauty and variety of
composition, by the genius of Antonio, and all the masonry is of a
certain stone that has a tinge of white, after the manner of
travertine. It stands without the Porta di S. Biagio, on the right
hand, half-way up the slope of the hill. At this time, he made a
beginning with a palace in the township of Monte San Sovino, for
Antonio di Monte, Cardinal of Santa Prassedia; and he built another
for the same man at Montepulciano, both being executed and finished
with extraordinary grace.
He made the design for the side of the buildings of the Servite
Friars (in Florence), on their Piazza, following the order of the
Loggia of the Innocenti; and at Arezzo he made models for the aisles
of the Madonna delle Lacrime, although that work was very badly
conceived, because it is out of harmony with the original part of
the building, and the arches at the ends are not in true line with
the centre. He also made a model for the Madonna of Cortona; but I
do not think that this was put into execution. He was employed in
the siege on the bastions and fortifications within the city, and in
this undertaking he had as a companion his nephew Francesco. After
this, the Giant of the Piazza, executed by the hand of Michelagnolo,
having been set into place in the time of Giuliano, the brother of
our Antonio, it was proposed to set up the other, which had been
made by Baccio Bandinelli; and the task of bringing it safely into
position was given to Antonio, who, taking Baccio d' Agnolo as his
companion, carried this out by means of very powerful machines, and
placed it in safety on the base that had been prepared for that
purpose.
In the end, having become old, he took no pleasure in anything save
agriculture, of which he had an excellent knowledge. And then, when
on account of old age he was no longer able to bear the discomforts
of this world, he rendered up his soul to God, in the year 1534, and
was laid to rest by the side of his brother Giuliano in the tomb of
the Giamberti, in the Church of S. Maria Novella.
The marvellous works of these two brothers will bear witness before
the world to the extraordinary genius that they possessed; and for
their lives, their honourable ways, and their every action, they
were held in estimation by all men. Giuliano and Antonio bequeathed
to the art of architecture methods that gave the Tuscan Order of
building better form than any other architect had yet achieved, and
the Doric Order they enriched with better measures and proportions
than their predecessors, following the rules and canons of
Vitruvius, had been wont to use. They collected in their houses at
Florence an infinite number of most beautiful antiquities in marble,
which adorned Florence, and still adorn her, no less than those
masters honoured themselves and their art. Giuliano brought from
Rome the method of casting vaults with such materials as made them
ready carved; examples of which may be seen in a room in his own
house, and in the vaulting of the Great Hall at Poggio a Cajano,
which is still to be seen there. Wherefore we should acknowledge our
obligation to their labours, whereby they fortified the dominion of
Florence, adorned the city, and gave a name, throughout the many
regions where they worked, to Florence and to the intellects of
Tuscany, who, to honour their memory, have written to them these
verses--
Cedite Romani structores, cedite Graii,
Artis, Vitruvi, tu quoque cede parens.
Etruscos celebrare viros, testudinis arcus,
Urna, tholus, statuæ, templa, domusque petunt.
FOOTNOTE:
[22] A friable volcanic tufa.
RAFFAELLO DA URBINO
LIFE OF RAFFAELLO DA URBINO
[_RAFFAELLO SANZIO_]
PAINTER AND ARCHITECT