Alessandra Macinghi

Alessandra Macinghi Strozzi (1406 – March 2, 1471) was an elite Florentine woman from a political merchant family in the 15th century. Alessandra is best known for her letters, chronicling her fight to stubbornly preserve her family's property and position in Medicean Florence. Overcoming economic hardship and political strife, she raised her sons to be successful merchants and bankers. Seventy-three letters that she wrote were preserved by her son Filippo Strozzi the Elder and they were compiled and published in 1877 by Cesare Guasti and Alessandra’s letters are currently preserved in the Archivio di stato in Florence. Her letters remain some of the richest and revealing autobiographical materials to survive 15th century Florence, offering historians a glimpse into the life of a Renaissance widow.

Alessandra was born into the Macinghi family, a newly elite merchant patriciate family. The Macinghi family gained success as bankers and wool manufacturers and were politically engaged throughout Medicean (Medici) rule in Florence. She was born to Filippo di Niccoló Macinghi and Caterina di Bernardo Alberti. Caterina died while Alessandra was still young, and Alessandra’s father remarried to Ginevra di Albertuccio Riscasoli. In 1420, two years before Alessandra was to be married, Alessandra’s father died before Alessandra's marriage, for which he had already set aside a large dowry of 1600 florins.

At the age of fourteen, Alessandra married Matteo Strozzi on June 10, 1422. Matteo was twenty-five at the time, and was of good pedigree. The Strozzi family was one of the largest and most prestigious lineages in Florence, serving as prominent actors in Florentine politics and business since the end of the 13th century. The Macinghi and Strozzi alliance was considered to be politically and socially beneficial to both parties, as the Strozzi family had strong influence while of modest wealth and the Machinghi family was quite wealthy but not particularly distinguished.

After four childless years of marriage, the couple started their family. They had eight children, five of which survived to reach adulthood. The Strozzi children in chronological order include: Andreuola (1426), Simone (1427), Filippo (1428), Piero (1429), Caterina (1431), Lorenzo (1432), Lessandra (1434), and Matteo (1436). Throughout their marriage, Alessandra and Matteo were separated for extended periods of time due to his diplomatic missions in the early 1430s.

Although the Florentine constitution made political parties illegal, many citizens within the political class were divided into two opposing factions. The Strozzi belonged to the oligarchical faction, a loose alliance of various powerful patrician families, while the Medici faction was supported by the Medici Bank. In 1433, Cosimo de' Medici, the leader of the Medici faction, was exiled from the city to prevent their anticipated siege of power. A year later, the Medici family retaliated in a more successful assumption of power, exiling almost all of their opponents. Consequently, in November 1434, Matteo Strozzi was exiled to Pesaro, with several other of the Strozzi's adult male members removed from lists of politically eligible citizens. Although she was not legally compelled to do so, Alessandra joined her husband in exile. A year into his time in exile, Alessandra's husband and three children- Andreuola, Piero, and Simone- died of the plague.

...
Wikipedia