Why Was Political Reform Central to Savonarola Religious Agenda?

Why was political reform central to Savonarola religious agenda

Fra Girolamo Savonarola, the ____________friar was born in 1452 and had entered

The Dominican Order in 1475. He first visited Florence in 1482, when he became Reader at the convent of S. Marco, which was afterwards to become the headquarters of the movement of religious revival which he inaugurated in the city. At this time, however, he made little impression, and departed in 1487. Three years later, at the invitation of Lorenzo de Medici, he returned to Florence to resume his post at S. Marco and almost immediately began to preach the sermons which, in series after series, were to have such momentous repercussions on Florentine religious and political life.

Although he early assumed the prophetic mantle which was ever afterwards to clothe his utterances, at this stage, his message, designed by means of dire warnings of impending tribulations, to arouse the Florentines to a sense of their spiritual inadequacies and to prompt them to undertake a thoroughgoing moral and spiritual reformation, bore little that distinguished it from others of an apocalyptic sort. With the French invasion of 1494, however, there was a dramatic change. Because this calamity appeared to be a confirmation of all that he had predicted concerning the trials to be visited upon Florence, Savonarola rose rapidly to a position of immense authority and prominence. Assured now of the attentiveness of those in high places, and enjoying great popularity and prestige amongst the populace in general, he began to develop a sweeping programme of religious and political reform, based upon his divinations of God’s will.

Savonarola’s fundamental message was that God was about to usher in a new Christian era which would be characterized by purity of faith and a spirit of complete unity and goodwill among men. Envisaging a society living in perfect harmony with the precepts of the Gospel, he demanded that the Church should be purged of its corruption, the vices of simony, nepotism, lust and avarice being removed from all levels of the ecclesiastical hierarchy. In the universal renovation which would shortly overtake the whole of Christendom, Florence was marked out for a key role. First expressed in a series of sermons on Haggai, preached in November and December 1494, this message was developed in subsequent cycles in which the books of the Old Testament prophets - Asmos, ________ and Zachariah, and ____________-figured largely. His theories were put forward in written works as well; most notably the ‘Compendio di ______________’ of 1495, ‘De simplicitate Christianae Vitae’ published in 1496, and the ‘Triumphas Crucis’ of 1497.

From the time of the expulsion of the Medici in November 1494, moreover, Savonarola had been calling also for reform of the Florentine political system. Having made a distinctive contribution to the governmental reforms which followed, he became thereafter a powerful force in Florentine politics. A political grouping devoted to the furtherance of the civic changes which he saw as a necessary preliminary to religious revival grew up around him, and was to play a crucial role in Florentine affairs in the following years.

The Savonarola movement was born of a conflict that had its immediate origins in the collapse of Medici power in November 1494. The expulsion of the Medici released latest social, political, and religious rivalries which it proved impossible to resolve. Despite his and his follower’s claims, Savonarola’s intervention in politics was in the long run to harden divisions and to embitter the rivalries amongst the Florentines. By canvassing and then appropriating various elements from the Florentine political tradition, Savonarola and his followers succeeded in forging a new idealogy which in turn dramatically altered the terms and development of the traditional political conflict.

At a time when the majority of Florentine ‘_____________’ seemed to have thrown in their lot with the Medici, and to have become resigned to the gradual transformation of the republic into a principality, the Savonarolas stood out against general trend. They became the rallying point for the opponents of the Medicean regime.

As is well known, one of the control features of this system, both before and after the constitutional reforms of December 1494, was the elaborate mechanism set in place to prevent the formation of sorties, lobby groups, and even covert allegiances between politically qualified citizens. In the period of Medici ascendancy, these laws had been disregarded to allow the manipulation of the system by the small ruling group. With their expulsion in 1494, and with memory of these manipulations still fresh in their minds, the representatives of the new regime ____________ and strengthened the legislation on this matter.

A more balanced view of the Savonarolan political following and of its influence is obtained if the information provided by these sources is compared with the archival records of the various legislative, administrative, and advisory bodies comprising the Florentine government.

Of the approximately 3500 citizens rendered eligible for membership of the Great Council by the laws of 22-23 December 1494, the Savonarolans numbered close to 400, that is a little better than one-ninth of the total. Ever on occasions of most pressing needs, the Savonarolans do not seem to have been able to muster more adherents than this, as is attested by the city-wide petition of 1497 to Alexander VI which yields the names of 364 politically qualified citizens.

Lack of numbers did not prevent the Savonarolans from steering through the Great Council many important items of legislation. That they were able to do so was due to a combination of factors. Early in the life of the Great Council they took advantage of the goodwill acquired by Savonarola as a result of the fulfilment of his prophecies and the role he had played in the establishment of the new regime. In those early months, they could also count on the support of the _______________ Mediceans who had escaped revenge from their enemies because of Savonarola’s intervention and who realized that their safety was to depend for a whole yet on their acquiescence in Savonarola’s plans.

What must also be strongly emphasized, was the Savonarolan’s good fortune in having in their ranks a number of exceptionally gifted and experienced politicans, men such as Domenico Borasi, Lorenzo Lenzo and above all, Francesco Valori. These were the men who dominated Florentine political life in the first few years of the newly established regime and who ensured with their expertise the initial successes of the Savonarolan movement.

The subsequent political careers of these men, Francesco Valori and Jacopo Salviati, their actions, demonstrate unequivocally their devotion to Savonarola’s cause and their determination to translate the religious and political ideals of their prophet into reality. Equally significant was the high proportion of individuals who belonged to the cultural elite of Florence. The whole circle of literate, humanists and philosophers who gathered around Lorenzo de Medici seem to have joined on bloc the Savonarolan movement. For Savonarola and for his programme of reform, the backing of such men was invaluable, especially in the early years of his second apostolate.

As Savonarola admitted, he could provide only general guidelines. The details and implementation of policy were best left to the leaders of the Piagnoni in the Great Council who he freely conceded were better versed in Florentine politics than he was.

To be effective the party needed a recognized political leader. Savonarola realized as much and tried to have Francesco Valori’s leadership accepted by the other Piagnoni. His efforts were not only unceremoniously rebuffed, but seem also to have brought to the surface latent rivalries and hostilities between the major exponents of the Piagnoni party. In addition, they revealed the existence of three factions within the party. Headed by Francesco Valori, Paolantonio _______________, and ___________________________. A great deal of his political activity was devoted to the preservation of the party’s unit which ensured the survival of the system of government on which his whole programme of reform was predicated. The party owed its existence to Savonarola and to his doctrines, but its members disagreed not only amongst themselves but even with Savonarola himself on how best to ensure the fulfilment of their prophet’s vision.

This vision, though essentially religious, was founded on clear political premises. As Professor Weinstein has already demonstrated, Savonarola’s political tenets, in their general outline, were derived from traditional beliefs and aspirations long current in Florence. Under Savonarola’s urging, the Florentine’s conviction in their city’s divine election, in her political and religious primacy, and finally in her future and everlasting glory – a conviction which had long sustained them in times of calamity and duress – became the spur for present action. This message began to receive precise formulation in the wake of the expulsion of Piero de Medici and of the departure of Charles VIII and his army from Florence. In the optimistic days that followed and while actively engaged in laying the foundations of the new government that was to replace the Medicean regime, Savonarola set forth the principles of the new political order which was to lead Florence to her pre-ordained inheritance.

Contemporary perceptions of what had occurred, differed considerably from the reality. Just as the expulsion of the Medici could not have been achieved by human endeavour, so the establishment of the new government could not have been effected without divine intervention. This new govenment as symbolized by its most charteristic institution, the Great Council, has therefore, a divine creation, and as such beyond political discussion or criticism. Those seeking to weaken it or destroy it were to be dealt with not solely as political but also as religious offenders and punished accordingly. This veneration for the Great Council was soon extended to everything associated with it: so its deliberations, decisions and, above all, to its meeting hall, the ‘Sola del Gran Consiglio’.

The continued existence of the Great Council was evidence of Florence’s favoured status in the eyes of God and consequently of her acquisition of spiritual and temporal glory. Some minor modifications to its procedure and operations were counternamed by Savonarola and his followers in pursuit of greater efficiency. Nothing, however, was to be permitted that could undermine its authority or threaten its survival.

Within a remarkably short period of time, the new system of government was invested with an idealogy which it was to retain thereafter; An idealogy which set forth a powerful alternative to contemporary trends towards absolutism. Not surprisingly given Savonarola’s role in its elaboration, this idealogy was pervaded with religious elements and was all the more effective for it. In direct opposition to the tyranny that had preceded it and the oligarchy which some had wanted to put in its place, the newly instituted government was, Savonarola and his followers argued, ‘popular’ in both membership and orientation.

In these elements lay the proof that in Florence there had been instituted a ‘Vivere civile’ so called Savonarola explained, because the government as ‘in the hands of the whole population’ and ‘belonged to all citizens’. However, important as institutions undoubtedly were, a true ‘Vivere civile’ was to be judged above all on its operations and on its effects. As Savonarola never wearied of repeating, the newly established government had to reflect God’s intentions and to engender His goodness in society. Political action by individual citizens was to be guided purely by considerations of common good, of reciprocal love, of natural and supernatural charity, of virtue, and of goodness. In the fulfilment of his civic duties the citizen best expressed his love of God and also helped to bring the city closer to perfection.

In addition, borrowing heavily from the rhetoric of the humanists, Savonarola and the apologists of the new regime argued that it was ideally suited to the preservation of individual and collective liberty, without which there could not be any spiritual amelioration. In time, they came to argue that, unlike the Medici regime, a thinly veiled tyranny which had resulted in the enslavement of the Florentines, the new political order was equitable and just. Its institutions were now independent and not as formerly, corruptly manipulated by the tyrant for his own and his followers benefit.

They protected the citizens rights as well as determining their duties. Justice was impartially administered with every citizen equal before the law. Taxes were fairly assessed and imposed. Unlike the past when the Medici tyrants had enriched themselves through the efforts of their subjects, now personal effort was encouraged and properly rewarded, contributing in turn to the prosperity of the whole city. There was no longer the need to seek approval for marriage and other contracts. Individuals could now dispose of their own affairs as they wished. In short, the new political order, in the opinion of its apologists, had created an environment in which the collective ‘common good’ rather than personal or factional interest, thrived.

The contrast of political conditions was placed in even sharper relief by the juxtaposition of the moral and religious conditions obtaining under the old regime and those expected under the new dispensation. The tyranny of the Medici had led not only to the political but also to the moral enslavement of the Florentines for, relying on arguments drawn from St Thomas Aquinas and from the humanised defenders of republican liberty, Savonarola stressed the fact the tyrants were motivated solely by the basest of instincts. Rapaciousness, lust, pride and avarice were invariable ________________ of tyranny. The unfortunate subjects could not be contaminated and corrupted by their all-pervasive sinfulness, which was consciously employed as an instrument of allure and control. Its moral effects were particularly destructive because the tyrants undermined the spiritual authority of the church and regulated its activities to their own advantage.

Under the new republican regime, on the other hand, conditions would be totally different. The citizens participation in government would ensure a better, more efficient and stable government. Even more, by exercising their civic duties, the citizens would accrue vitue and merit as would also by extension their beloved Florence; So that, within a short period of time, the city would be like a terrestrial paradise. Savonarola said that religious principles made, indeed, for a better and stronger government.

The expulsion of the Medici tyrants and the institution of a ‘Vivere civile’ with the legislation of December 1494 were the first steps in the sanctification of Florence. The city and the elect would henceforth grow in spiritual perfection until deemed fit by God to receive His promised blessings. This indissoluble link between politics and religion was strengthened further by the legislation promulgated by the new government and also by the language in which political decisions were justified. On 2 December 1494 it was decided that henceforth in perpetuity the day God had delivered His city from the Medici tyranny should be celebrated as a solemn holy day, with appropriate thanksgiving ceremonies, processions, and distribution of alms to the poor.

Similarly, though not formally sanctioned by legislation on Savonarola’s urging, the citizens took Christ as their King and acknowledged the fact by popularly referring to the Hall of the Great Council as the Hall of Christ (_______ di Christo). Political terminology changed accordingly.

To emphasize the religious and moral effects resulting from the newly acquired political freedom, the government had no compunction in referring to it as the holy liberty (__________ liberta). Conversely, in keeping with this religious outlook, ______________ groups seeking to overthrow the new political order were characterized as ‘ _______________’ or ‘sects’ and condemned as such.

Savonarola and his followers did not doubt that the governments duties lay also in regulating more rigidly and more precisely than had hitherto been the case the religious and moral life of the citizens. It was the major task of government to create the conditions conducive to virtue by ensuring that the occasion for and temptation of sin were removed. As envisaged, this entailed a two-fold governmental commitment. On the one, more conventional level, the government had to pass and enforce legislation against sin, against activities which could lead to sin, and against persons or groups who either by their actions or by their mere presence undermined Christian living. This meant, in practice, immediate and strident calls for government’s intervention against sodomy, blasphemy, gambling, lascivious literary and artistic works, obscene theatrical representations, and excesses in dress, expenditure, and consumption. It meant also calls for the expulsion of prostitutes and Jews.

On the other, more far-reaching and radical level, the government had to take an active role in initiating the moral and religious reform of its citizens. Religious practices had to be strengthened and moral behaviour encouraged in all sections of the population.

Throughout, however, the dominant note of Savonarola’s reforming message was Christian charity, understood as the tangible expression of love for one’s neighbour. Pointing to Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for _________ mankind as the supreme example of this love, Savonarola asked for similar commitment from all the components of the Florentine policy: the government, the Church, and the people. As he never tired of repeating true Christian living, on which the blessings of Florence were stipulated, could not prosper in a ____________ in which large numbers of people were degraded and brutalized by poverty.

When the time came to translate these calls into the legislation needed to create a just and goodly society, Savonarola and his followers had to contend with the reality of Florentine politics. Where some precedent existed for the legislation sought or where the measures proposed were perceived as moderate and beneficial, their passage was quick and uneventful. Where, however, no such precedent could be found or where doubts existed regarding the legislation’s aims and possible effects on the balance of forces within Florentine politics, then the passage was slow and almost invariably destined to failure.

Advised by their prophet and inspired by prayer, they were the best interpreters of God’s will and the best judges of which laws most closely conformed to it and thus contributed to spread the millennium on its way. As Lorenzo Lenzi admonished, recourse to God did not mean that the citizens could abdicate their reponsbilities, it was essential ‘first to have recourse to God with our prayers and then, on our own part, continually do our duty’. Only Savonarola and his friars could lead them to their glory.