Role Of Lusanna's Hierarchy Of Power In Fifteenth-Century Florence

The Inescapable Presence of Power in Fifteenth-century Florence In fifteenth-century Florence, almost every aspect of life revolved around nobility and status. The Florence society was structured into a hierarchy, which was set in stone and completely determined one’s lifestyle. People of noble descent and wealth oftentimes commanded much respect, which also gave them widespread influence and power in the community. Furthermore, the wealthy oftentimes had powerful friends as well, solidified their power. This hierarchy of power was determined by numerous factors including nobility, affluence, and profession. “The notion of a hierarchy of professions ranked according to ‘nobility’ was a truism in this society, so universally accepted that it

Lusanna accused Giovanni of breaking their wedding vows and marrying another woman and appealed to the church for help. Lusanna was at an inherent disadvantage due to her class and because she was “challenging a basic tenet of the social order” (Brucker 111). Lusanna, who was a widow after her previous husband Andrea had died, claimed that she had been wed to Giovanni in a small ceremony. The wedding ceremony was small and clandestine because Giovanni’s father would “disinherit him if he learned about his son’s matrimony” (Brucker 16). His father would have been opposed to the marriage because of the discrepancy in nobility and wealth between Giovanni and Lusanna. A marriage between Giovanni and Lusanna would have been widely considered as “violations of social norms” (Brucker 100). Even Lusanna’s loved ones thought it was irrational for her to pursue Giovanni for this very reason. Giovanni and his procurator wanted to pass on this marriage as merely just an affair fueled by lust. During this historic case, they conceded that Giovanni did indeed have sexual relations with Lusanna, but that they were never married. This claim hurt Lusanna’s reputation much more than Giovanni’s because Giovanni would have

A few of Giovanni’s witnesses such as Giuliana Magaldi even admitted to giving false testimonies under oath. They were most likely bribed by Giovanni and his allies, who had plenty of resources and money to spare. This illustrates how corruption was also rampant in fifteenth-century Florence, which gave the upper-class members of society an even bigger advantage over everyone else. Giovanni, who not only had an abundance of money but also connections with powerful members of society, was able to manipulate witnesses into lying for him. In fact, the De Vallas were friends with the Medici including Cosimo Medici who was “the most prominent and influential citizen” in Florence and “dispensed favors to his allies” (Brucker 111-112). The Della Casa’s were “intimately acquainted with the officials –cardinals, judges, notaries –who decided cases of disputed marriages (Brucker 117). Giovanni and his friends were also held in high regard by the community, so people trusted their version of the story. Furthermore, Giovanni could utilize his social and capital resources to incentivize prestigious lawyers to defend him. This is seen when “three distinguished lawyers” identified themselves as “advocates for Giovanni” and tried to delay the final decision (Brucker 62). On the other hand, Lusanna did not have many powerful