House of Medici

A Captivating Guide to the History of the Medici Family and Dynasty

By: Captivating History

Narrated by: Jay Herbert

Length: 3 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

Did you know that one obscure sheep-herding and wool-making family in the Italian region of Tuscany went from humble beginnings to becoming one of the richest and most influential families of all time?

Meet the Medici family, who, in some ways, can be considered to be the godfathers of the Renaissance. They patronized Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Sandro Botticelli, among many other famous artists. They helped to recover many famous ancient Roman and Greek writings and built academies to encourage the spread of learning.

Inside Captivating History’s House of Medici, you’ll discover:

• The humble beginnings of a family that is estimated to have made more than 120 billion dollars in today’s currency
• Cosimo the Great, the true founder of the Medici dynasty, who built the city of Florence into one of the greatest cities on Earth
• Cosimo’s son Lorenzo, called “the Magnificent” for his athletic abilities, knowledge, wisdom, and desire to improve not only the lives of his family but also of those throughout Europe
• Lorenzo’s Platonic Academy, where the greatest minds of the Renaissance gathered to discuss and debate the great questions of both the age and human existence
• The bloody attempt on Lorenzo’s life and his swift revenge
• The growth of Florence into both a city of great culture and great pleasure
• Savonarola, the religious fanatic who terrified Lorenzo and who ruled a city by fear and was finally burned at the stake himself
• The Medici popes, Leo X and Clement VII
• The great Dome of Florence, which was built by the revolutionary thinker Brunelleschi
• Catherine de’ Medici, the de facto ruler of France and mother of three kings

Scroll up, and click the “Buy Now” button to learn more about the House of Medici!

©2021 Captivating History (P)2021 Captivating History

An influential house

Previously I knew some about the Medici Family, mainly their dealings in art/artists of the times. Captivating History definitely delivers a thorough look into their lives from beginning to end, being influential in politics, the arts, religion, etc. What they touched, they did fully with determination. I enjoy the modern events that will be mentioned in brief just to see how the effect of Medici's influence can be felt even today. Captivating History books are certainly packed with info. At times I relisten to portions to make sure I grasp connections because while so much ground is covered the delivery can be a bit choppy to my brain. I feel the time relistening is worthwhile as the info presented is fascinating, just not always smooth. Overall this was an enjoyable audiobook.

very captivating

loved this audible book. very good narration lots of info to learn. highly recommend

The level of detail is really impressive

I am always so amazed at the level of detail in these Captivating History books.

Most people have heard of the Medici's but not everyone is aware of how they impacted Italy and western European culture, religion, and politics from the 12th century through the Renaissance. This book fills in so many gaps and helps to paint a complete picture of their legacy.

I always have trouble listening to this particular narrator, Jay Herbert. Maybe I'm just too picky or too used to the previous narrators, Jason Zenobia and Colin Fluxman, but the timbre and quality of Jay's voice don't fit this genre of non-fiction history and biography. I do find his sing-songy presentation distracting.

Aside from that, this book is interesting and informative, which is just what I expect from Captivating History.

the house of medici

This book covers the the rise, the Medici dynasty, and the eventual decline of this family . it was interesting to learn about how this familyinfluenced florence and Europe

known n unknown

I knew some things about this family, but it was nice to learn about other events and people that were either influenced, or might not have existed without them. it was also interesting to learn about the hierarchy of the time, and the punishments often imposed on those who dared to disregard and disrupt that way of life.

as usual, this particular narrator got on my nerves through his continuation of mispronounced names, and flipping back and forth on how he decides to pronounce the same name. I will say that the rest of his delivery has improved, so now if he could just focus on learning the proper pronunciations of foreign names and places, he'd be much more enjoyable to listen to.

FIRE THE NARRATOR

For a supposedly professional the narrator should b ashamed. Listen to the section of him pronouncing famous Roman names at about 2 hrs 10 min to go. APPALLING. If it was just that I could live w it. But not 5 minutes went by without so egregious mistake. UNBELIEVABLE. I guess the editors didn’t care, or they r as ignorant as this guy.
I suffered thru the dry & a bit boring book cuz I wanted the info, but it was all I could do to keep going.

Pass

The content is very interesting, but the reader’s voice sounds very robotic and nasally. Also, his pronunciations are atrocious and cringe-worthy.

When i listen to books on audible, I want to hear a pleasant voice and one that can at least attempt to make foreign words somewhat recognizable. This is not the case with this audible selection.