Page 3 of The Medici Return

That he could believe, since Alexander VI had been a degenerate who cared for nothing much besides pleasure. It was well known that the Borgia pope had drained the treasury.

“We have also financed many wars,” Julius said. “All necessary in order to expel our enemies and restore the Papal States to their glory. It is such an insult to have lost them in the first place.”

That precious territory, which had long belonged to the papacy, stretched across the Italian peninsula from the Mediterranean to the Adriatic, then north toward Venice. The holdings were a physical manifestation of the temporal power of the popes, but Alexander VI had allowed a large swath of the territory to beappropriated by Venice. In 1508 Julius personally led an army and subjugated Perugia and Bologna. Then, in 1509, he defeated Venice and restored the Papal States. Hence why the doge would wish nothing but pain and death on this pope.

“Those wars were costly,” Julius said. “But we have also supported the arts and erected grand buildings, along with being generous to the poor. Our charity has caused the treasury at Castel Sant’ Angelo to draw nearly empty. We are ashamed to say, Medici, that we have resorted to selling offices, benefices, and indulgences to raise funds. Shameful, I know, but necessary. We want, before we die, to restore the treasury.”

“Our bank no longer exists,” he pointed out. “We are not in the business of making loans.”

The Peruzzi, Scalia, Frescobaldi, and Salambini were well-known lenders, but the Banco dei Medici had been the largest and most respected in Europe. Giuliano’s great-grandfather Cosimo had been a master financier, using his wealth—spread across art, land, and gold—to acquire political control over Florence. But the Medici after him were not as astute. Overspending and bad management combined to send the bank to the brink. For all his political canniness, his father, Lorenzo, had been a terrible banker. Eventually bad loans and too many defaults led to bankruptcy. With his brother’s disastrous political moves and the family’s exile to Venice, some of the family assets had been seized and distributed to creditors. All of the bank’s branches throughout Europe were dissolved. But the Medicis’ vast personal wealth survived.

“Do not think us a fool,” Julius said. “True, there were great losses when your bank collapsed. But those were borne mainly by your customers, not by you. Your family escaped with its riches.”

“Our home was pillaged and burned,” he told Julius.

“But most of your art and gold had already been removed.”

This pope was remarkably well informed.

“We are aware that your wealth has grown immeasurably during the past eighteen years. Though you deflect all attention, you remain the wealthiest family in Europe.”

No sense being coy. “How much do you seek?”

“Ten million florins.”

His father had taught him the first rule of negotiating.Never reveal what is on your mind.So he did not react to the incredible sum. There were also a couple of other lessons.Never cut what you can untie.Advice passed down from Cosimo himself. Along with,Necessity does not make a good bargain.Not a muscle twitched on his face, and his eyes remained rock-steady as he weighed his options.

The past eighteen years had been tough on Florence. The city had been nearly destroyed by corruption, misgovernment, and heavy taxation. Everything had come to a head two months ago. The papal forces, plus Spain, had met the French in Ravenna. Both sides fought hard and the French lost their commander, but the Spanish won, driving the French northward to the Alps. That’s when Julius laid siege to Florence, intent on changing its wanton ways. That army was still there. Along with the Spanish. Waiting. Outside the walls.

“Forgive me, Holiness,” he said. “But my family has not been a lender to the Mother Church for a long time. We were… dismissed, in favor of another bank.”

“We are aware of such. But that was another pope’s action, not ours. True, we have a bank to handle church affairs, and it will continue to do so. What we are asking of you is something far more personal. More secretive. An arrangement only a few will know exists.”

Secrecy brought with it a multitude of problems, especially when it came to repayment. The Medici had learned long ago that kings and emperors never wanted others to know they were borrowing money, which made it easy for them to default.

“In our closing time of life we are concerned about the church’s grandeur,” Julius said. “Some call us the savior of the papacy. We rather like that description. Popes before us were corrupt, stupid, or weak. But no more do kings and emperors laugh at Rome. Now they fear us. We require you to ensure that legacy remains intact.”

“Ten million gold florins would be the largest loan ever made,” he had to say.

Julius shrugged. “It is what we require for the treasury to be restored. For your family to once again live in Florence and Tuscany. But it does not have to be all in gold. Property that can be converted to gold later would be welcomed.”

Now the main question. “What would the collateral be for such a large risk?”

“An army outside your precious Florence is not sufficient?”

“Hardly.”

“Yet you are here.”

“And you need money.”

He was pushing things.

“Our word means nothing?” Julius asked.

“No. It does not. Especially considering that your army is outside the gates of Florence. And by your own words, you are dying.”

He was not going to be bullied. He came with nothing and he could leave with nothing. If his ancestors had been equally as cautious, perhaps the family would not have found itself in its present predicament. True, this pope was stern, passionate, impatient, keen to move from one fight to another, and never happy except at war. All bad. If Julius reacted with his characteristic rage and cast him away, then so be it. Better that than losing everything. The pope was right. The family’s wealth was at an all-time high, and he intended on keeping it that way.

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