placing his hand upon the lad's shoulder, said to him:
"You are fortunate, young man, to have had for your father a soldier who
made both France and Spain tremble!"

Between fifteen and eighteen we have few records of Cosimo's life and no
hint as to where he was during the terrible years of tyranny and
debauchery in Florence. Anyhow, Duke Alessandro owed him no kindness,
nor did he enter into any relations with him. What dealings he had with
Lorenzino and Giuliano, his cousins, are unknown. They were nearer the
succession to the ducal throne than himself--indeed, the former was
regarded as next heir to Alessandro. In all probability the young man
lived with his mother at the villa at Castello which had belonged to his
father, and kept himself very much out of sight.

* * * * *

The news of Duke Alessandro's assassination very soon got about, and
groups of citizens gathered in the Via Larga and also in the Piazza del
Signoria. Although considerable excitement pervaded those assemblages,
the people remained quiet and self-controlled. "Everybody," as Benedetto
Varchi has recorded, "spoke out quite fully, as though no one doubted
but that the Greater Council of the city would at once be summoned. They
debated as to who would be chosen _Gonfaloniere_, and whether for life
or not. Meanwhile the Council of Forty-eight had assembled at the Medici
Palace at the call of the Cardinal (Cibo), and were in conference in the
long gallery upstairs."

Cardinal Cibo was the son of Maddalena de' Medici, Lorenzo il
Magnifico's eldest daughter. He with Francesco de' Guicciardini and
Francesco de' Vettori had constituted themselves, in a sort of way,
mentors and advisers to the murdered Duke, who was only too glad to free
himself of some of the distasteful duties of State, and confide them to
anyone who would relieve him of them.

As for a successor to Alessandro, the Cardinal at first suggested
Giulio, the Duke's bastard son, a child of eight years of age. The
Council scouted the idea of another regency, and intimated plainly their
intention to seek an adult Head of the Government. Full powers were
given to the triumvirate to carry on State business during the
interregnum--a decision which greatly displeased the populace. On
dispersing from the conference the councillors were greeted with
derisive cries--"If you cannot make up your minds, we must do it for
you!"

During the adjournment the Cardinal and