GREGORIO DATI (1362-1436) Florentine merchant
The Italian title of his “diary” is Libro segreto, or “Secret Book” referring to the “secret account books”
that merchants kept to shield information from the Florentine government. Other similar books from the
same period are entitled Ricordi or “Memoirs.”

Genre: What kind of a “diary” is this? What kind of information is included?

What can you learn about Dati’s background & social status?

What kind of economic activity is he involved in?
What is the geographical range and scale of his business?

What do his religious beliefs consist of?

Is there any conflict between his religion and his economic activities?

What do we learn about his wives, children and sexual affairs?

(Try counting them up and keeping track of deaths.)

How does the dowry system interact with his business affairs?
(Try keeping track of dowry amounts in this and other reading in the course.)

How does he deal with taxation?

What kind of offices does he hold in Florence?

BUONACCORSO PITTI (born 1353; died between 1431-1433)
Names to note: Albizzi, Bardi, Ricasoli

How would you describe Pitti’s social status? Compare to Dati.
Evidence includes where they came from, how their families made a living,
who they married, what kind of property they own, etc.

What kind of economic activity is he involved in?
What is the geographical range and scale of his business?

Do you get any sense of his education or religious ideas?

Compared with Dati, who has more experience with violence? In what contexts?

Note Pitti’s responses to: Ciompi Revolt of 1378. (pp. 28 ff.)

Experience of exile (p. 30-38): what was it like in other cities and countries?

Military experience with France: Skim pp. 39-61

Note his marriage pp. 45-47

What kinds of offices does he hold? pp. 59-106
Any problems with other families?

PAPER TOPICS (4-5 pages)

Your essay should make use of both the primary documents and assigned secondary sources as applicable.

1) Compare the life experiences of Gregorio Dati and Buonaccorso Pitti, both citizens of Florence around the turn of the 15^th century.
How do they differ in terms of economic and social status, religious values, and political standing? What are the boundaries that
define each of their worlds, and what can you learn about their family life from each memoir?

2) Compare the role of ambition and office holding in the historically documented careers of Gregorio Dati and Buonaccorso Pitti with the semi-fictional career of Bianco Alfani (Martines, Renaissance Sextet Ch.4). Why does Bianco’s ambition attract the negative attention of his peers in Florence?