cosimo de' Medici got his power from his father Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici who had already set up the Medici name to be one well known all around the world. Giovanni befriended Baldassare Cossa who ended up becoming pope and Giovanni became papal banker. By the time Giovanni passed, Cosimo stepped up and took his spot, adding to the branches of Rome, Florence and Venice of the Medici bank which were established by his father to Pisa, Avignon, Geneva, Ancona, London, Bruges and Basel. His money set him up well and then after he was exiled after having been seen to have prolonged the war with Lucca he covertly adjusted the government to suit his needs and put Pro Medici people in the government areas, he was still trying to keep the Republican front on Florence.

To make himself more powerful from here he uses the following techniques:

- he hijacks the accoppitori (the ones who pick the names of who will be in government positions out of bags) by controlling the list of whos names go up for voting. Cosimo picks whos names are shortlisted for the bags

- he cripples his enemies through things like taxes (catasto), exile and getting rivals tried for treason to the state - like the Albizzi

- he uses the exisiting process of parlemento (a mass meeting of the people to vote on to get a balia (group to fix a certain issue)) the parlemento is out in the square where you are surronded by troops, often milanese and you vote by hand - people are pressured into voting yes - cosimo extends the usually short term limited powers of the balie to ones that are longer and more powerful than ever and filled with many medici supporters

- he stacks the ten of guard with medici supporters and gives them more police power where they bypass the capitano - the ten of guard yet again usually have finite short powers.

- cosimo eventually gets rid of pulling names by lot and changes this to a mano - where he picks who he wants in the positions by hand

- in the decision making councils (council of the commune, council of the popolo) he changes how they vote, from secret ballot to hand in the air, this creates a lot of pressure for members to vote towards the Medici

- he uses the pre-existing technique of amici, vicini, parenti (friends, neighbours, family) to create networks and supporters - he does favours, lends money, provides dowrys,

- he also is so powerful because on the face he is such a modest man and people like that

- he creates a brand new committee - the cento - who sit in the political hierarchy below the goodmen and standard bearers of justice but above the council of the commune and the popolo - he gives the cento (council of one hundred) extraordinary powers to pass legislation and he picks who goes in there - yet again, they are pro-medici and selected via priors who are also most likely pro-medici

- he also avoids conflict by putting his enemies or rivals on house arrest particularly at a time when something important is being voted for

- he may seem like a tyrant but his wealth brought prosperity and somewhat peace to Florence eg peace of lodi which he was instrumental in - people want to believe his modest image

- he was very cultural - not overtly but covertly - he commissioned through the guilds, brunelleschi's dome could not have been done without cosimo and his money - florence flourished

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