Giovanni delle Bande Nere facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ludovico di Giovanni de' Medici
Portrait of Giovanni by Carlo Portelli
Spouse(s)	Maria Salviati
Issue
Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany
Noble family	Medici
Father	Giovanni de' Medici il Popolano
Mother	Caterina Sforza
Born	6 April 1498 Forlì, Papal States
Died	30 November 1526(1526-11-30) (aged 28)  (DOW) Mantua, Duchy of Mantua

Ludovico de' Medici, also known as Giovanni delle Bande Nere, was a famous Italian soldier. He was born on April 6, 1498, and died on November 30, 1526. Giovanni was a condottiero, which means he was a military captain who led his own army for hire. He became well-known for leading a group of soldiers called the Black Bands. He fought bravely in important wars like the War of Urbino and the War of the League of Cognac. He served under his cousins, Pope Leo X and Pope Clement VII.

Giovanni's Early Life

Statue of Giovanni at the Uffizi Gallery.

Giovanni was born in a town called Forlì in Northern Italy. His father was Giovanni de' Medici il Popolano, and his mother was Caterina Sforza. Caterina was one of the most famous women of the Italian Renaissance, a time of great art and learning.

From a young age, Giovanni loved physical activities. He was very good at martial arts, like riding horses and sword fighting. He had a son named Cosimo (1519–1574). Cosimo later became the Grand Duke of Tuscany, a powerful ruler in Italy.

Giovanni the Mercenary Captain

Giovanni became a condottiero, a military leader who worked for different rulers. In 1516, he began working for Pope Leo X. The Pope was also a member of the Medici family. Giovanni led his soldiers in a war against Francesco Maria I della Rovere, Duke of Urbino.

After this, Giovanni created his own group of soldiers. They rode light horses and were very good at quick attacks and ambushes. In 1520, he defeated some rebel leaders in a region called the Marche. The next year, Pope Leo X joined forces with Emperor Charles V. They fought against King Francis I of France to take back control of cities like Milan. Giovanni helped defeat the French in November.

When Pope Leo X died in 1521, Giovanni was very sad. To show his grief, he added black stripes to his army's flag. This is how he got his famous nickname, Giovanni delle Bande Nere, which means "Giovanni of the Black Bands."

In 1523, Giovanni was hired by the army of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1524, he defeated the French and Swiss armies. Later that year, another Medici family member became Pope Clement VII. The new Pope helped Giovanni with his debts. In return, Giovanni switched sides and fought for the French. He was injured in a small fight and had to go to Venice to get better.

In 1526, a big war called the War of the League of Cognac started. Giovanni's army fought against the Imperial army. He managed to defeat some of their soldiers near the Po River.

Giovanni's Final Battle

On November 25, 1526, Giovanni was fighting near a town called Governolo. He was hit by a shot from a small cannon called a falconet. The shot badly hurt his right leg above the knee.

He was taken to a nearby place, but no doctor could be found. So, he was moved to a palace in Mantua. There, a surgeon named Abramo, who had treated him before, had to cut off his leg.

Sadly, Giovanni de' Medici died five days later, on November 30, 1526. Doctors believe he died from an infection called sepsis.

In 2012, Giovanni's body was examined. Scientists wanted to learn more about how he died. They found that his leg was cut off below the knee, not above it. This made them think he might have died from gangrene, another serious infection.

Giovanni's Legacy

Giovanni's early death was a big moment in history. It showed that the old way of fighting, with armored knights on horseback, was becoming outdated. New weapons like pikes were changing how wars were fought. Because of this, Giovanni is often called the last of the great Italian condottieri.

His fame was also kept alive by his friend, Pietro Aretino. Pietro was a writer and satirist who often wrote about Giovanni's adventures.

Descendants

See also

• Italian Wars
• Condottieri
• Black Bands