21 Facts About Lucrezia Tornabuoni

Lucrezia Tornabuoni was an Italian noblewoman, wife of Piero di Cosimo de' Medici, de facto Lord of Florence and his political adviser.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni was a patroness of the arts who wrote several poems and plays.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni's father was Francesco di Simone Tornabuoni, member of a noble family that could trace its lineage back 500 years.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni was very capable in mathematics and finances, well-versed in literature, rhetoric, and theology, and read many texts in both Latin and Greek besides her native Italian.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni's father was a friend and supporter of Cosimo, even through the latter's exile in 1434.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni became a good friend of her brother-in-law Giovanni.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni's advice was sought by many high and low-born people, who she received.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni bought houses, shops, and farms in and around Pisa and Florence.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni became well known for giving solid donations to religious convents in order to help widows and orphans.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni used her own income to provide dowries for women from poor families so that they could marry.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni received many requests from citizens, which included appeals to end the exile or imprisonment of petitioners and to stop attacks by soldiers.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni was called upon to mediate disputes among others in the area, once ending a feud between two families that had gone on for twenty years.

Since she was of noble birth, Lucrezia Tornabuoni created bridges between her husband's family and the nobility.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni commissioned the Morgante by Luigi Pulci, who called her "a famous lady in our century", and supported many poets, including Bernardo Bellincioni and Angelo Poliziano, who later became a tutor to her grandchildren by Lorenzo.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni was responsible for the addition of the Chapel of the Visitation in the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence and noted for donating many votive statues of her family to numerous churches.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni was known to be devoted to John the Baptist, patron saint of Florence.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni wrote stories about Esther, Susanna, Tobias, John the Baptist, and Judith.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni recommended poets in her circle to use chivalric themes, which some of them did.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni read some of her poems to famous poets, comparing their compositions and exchanging humorous poems with Bellincioni.

Lucrezia Tornabuoni suffered from arthritis and eczema, conditions which caused her to seek treatments at baths around Tuscany.

An older Lucrezia Tornabuoni was portrayed by Sarah Parish in the second and third seasons.