Studies in Renaissance Humanism and Politics

The fifteen articles republished here represent the many directions that Robert Black's research has taken during his academic career. The first four articles look Renaissance Humanism and, in particular, at the work of the Aretine humanist and lawyer, Benedetto Accolti (1415-1464), who served as first chancellor of Florence during the last six years of his life. The Florentine chancery provides the link between Accolti and Machiavelli. Articles VI-VIII show that Machiavelli, a later Florentine chancellor, entered the chancery not only because of his anti-Savonarolan sentiments, but also because of the political detachment of his branch of the Machiavelli family. In 'Machiavelli, servant of the Florentine Republic' Black argues that Machiavelli largely conformed to conventional patterns of political, cultural, bureaucratic and diplomatic activity in the chancery. In 'New light on Machiavelli's education' it is shown that Machiavelli's first steps in formal learning followed the normal pattern of humanist formation that had become fashionable among the Florentine upper classes in the later fifteenth century. Accolti's native city of Arezzo has been central to Black's research interests. Accolti emigrated from Arezzo to Florence, and relations between centre and periphery in the Florentine territorial state provided the theme for section three's studies of Arezzo.