Lorenzo de’ Medici, brother of Cosimo our grandfather, quitted this life at Careggi on September 20, 1440, aged about forty-six, at the fourth hour of the night, and would not make a will; Pier Francesco, his son, was his sole heir. The property amounted to 235,137 scudi _di suggello_, as appears in the said book kept by Cosimo on page 13, which amount Cosimo kept for the use and benefit of the said Pier Francesco, and for Piero and Giovanni, his own sons, until they were of proper age, as appears in the books of the said Cosimo, wherein is a detailed account of all. On December ... 1451 the said Pier Francesco being of age, we divided the property according to the arbitration of Messer Mannello degl’ Strozzi, Bernardo de’ Medici, Alamanno Salviati, Messer Carlo Marsuppino, Amerigo Cavalcanti, and Giovanni Serristori, by whom a liberal half of our possessions was assigned to him, giving him the advantage over us and the best things. The deed was drawn up by Ser Antonio Pugi, notary, and at the same time we gave him an interest of one-third in our business, whereby he gained much more than we did as he had no expenses. Giovanni, our uncle (_et hujus quidem ingenio et virtute, plurimum confidebat Cosmus, qua propter ejus interitu maxime doluit_), died on November 1, 1463, in our house in Florence, without making a will, because he had no children and was under parental tutelage. But all his last wishes were faithfully carried out. By Maria Ginevra degl’ Alessandri he had a son named Cosimo, who died in November 1461, at about the age of nine. Cosimo our grandfather, a man of exceeding wisdom, died at Careggi on August 1, 1464, being much debilitated by old age and by gout, to the great grief not only of ourselves and of the whole city but of all Italy, because he was most famous and adorned with many singular virtues. He died in the highest position any Florentine citizen ever attained at any period, and was buried in S. Lorenzo. He refused to make a will and forbade all pomp at his funeral. Nevertheless all the Italian princes sent to do him honour and to condole with us on his death; among others H.M. the King of France commanded that he should be honoured with his banner, but out of respect for his wishes our father would not allow it. By public decree he was named Pater Patriæ, and the decree and the letters patent are in our house. After his death much sedition arose in the city, especially was our father persecuted out of envy. From this sprang the parliament and the change of government in 1466, when Messer Agnolo Acciaiuoli, Messer Diotisalvi, Niccolò Soderini, and others were exiled, and the State was reformed.