Mecatti gives a vivid account of the attempted murder of Lorenzo, who seems to have behaved with admirable coolness, in his _Storia Chronologica di Firenze_. “When Cesare Petrucci was Gonfalonier of Florence in 1478, the Pazzi, brothers-in-law of the Medici, for Guglielmo had a sister of Lorenzo and Giuliano to wife, proposed, together with the Salviati, to murder Lorenzo and Giuliano; they knew that the Pope would give them a free hand in this undertaking because Francesco Pazzi, treasurer to the Pope, wrote that on account of the aid given to Vitelli the Pontiff was exceeding wroth with him, and also that the King of Naples approved of it. On communicating this their idea to Salviati, archbishop of Pisa, he immediately joined them, accounting himself offended by Cosimo for having outlawed Jacopo Salviati his relation, and by Lorenzo for not having been able to take possession of his archbishopric; moreover he promised to bring with him many of his relations and friends. Matters being thus arranged they thought of how to execute their design. Now there was in Florence at the Loggia de’ Pazzi[51] a nephew of Count Girolamo Riario lately created a cardinal, who was studying at Pisa and considered as an archbishop; so they thought their design might be effected when they went to dine at the villa of Lorenzo at Fiesole. But this came to nought because Giuliano did not come; then they determined to do the deed in the Medici house, for they made sure that when the archbishop came to Florence to attend High Mass Lorenzo, according to his custom, would invite him to dinner. Thus was it therefore settled, and on the 26th April, the day fixed for the function, the cardinal went with a large following to the house of Lorenzo, who received him with every mark of extreme benevolence and courtesy and invited him and all his company to dinner. But on the conspirators hearing that Giuliano would not be present, they determined to do that in church which they had thought to accomplish at table, and settled among themselves that the signal was to be the elevation of the Body of Christ. Therefore when all had gone into the cathedral and the mass had begun, the archbishop of Pisa went with thirty of his companions to the Palace of the Signoria to kill the Gonfaloniere and take possession of the Palace. But on entering to speak with the Gonfaloniere his confusion was such that Petrucci, calling his people ordered them to arm and take prisoner the archbishop, his brother, his nephew Jacopo del Poggio, secretary of the cardinal Riario and the five brothers Perugini with the rest of their company. A short while after securing them a great noise was heard in the street, and Jacopo de’ Pazzi appeared on horseback, galloping hither and thither and shouting aloud Liberty, Liberty. Then the Priors and their familiars threw several stones from the windows: and meanwhile came the news that in Santa Maria del Fiore at