Acknowledgments

It is a pleasure to acknowledge those who made this project possible and sustained it in a variety of ways. My sincerest appreciation and warmest thanks go to Christopher Wheeler, who invited me to write a history of Florence and whose support never wavered even as it took longer to complete than either of us expected. To the National Endowment for the Humanities, which provided the means, and to Walter Kaiser, who extended the welcome, I am grateful for a year spent as visiting professor at Villa I Tatti, where, in that most lovely of places and with the many kindnesses of the library staff, I drafted the early chapters. At Blackwell I thank Angela Cohen for her unfailing patience and expert editorial guidance, Tessa Harvey for graciously accepting a somewhat longer book than we had anticipated, and Louise Spencely for perceptive and judicious copy-editing. Special thanks to Greg Tremblay for again generously sharing his expertise in computer technology in connection with the maps, and to Humberto DeLuigi of Art Resource for help in selecting the illustrations. To the team of scholars who created the “Online Tratte” - the amazingly complete computerized database of Florentine officeholders - I am grateful for a remarkable resource that facilitated aspects of research that once required laborious compilations of lists in the archives. But so much remains available only in Florence’s rich archival and manuscript collections, and I thank the staffs of the Archivio di Stato and Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale for efficient and friendly assistance in the many years of research on which this book depends.

It would be literally impossible to acknowledge every colleague and friend who has helped with an idea, source, citation, correction, and most of all encouragement. But a few must be mentioned. I extend my sincere apprecia-

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Tion to Robert Black for his valuable assessment of several chapters, to Carol Lansing and Christine Shaw, who read the manuscript for Blackwell and gave helpful advice about trimming it, and to Robert Fredona for generously reading drafts of all the chapters and making insightful suggestions for improvement. They all saved me from mistakes and oversights. To Amy Bloch I owe more than I can say here, even as I offer my deepest thanks for the exquisite care and critical judgment with which she read the entire manuscript, for indispensable help particularly with chapter 11 and with the illustrations and maps, for wise advice about nearly every issue and problem, and for the steadiness of her sustaining support.

I dedicate this book with gratitude and affection to the family that welcomed me to Italy long ago and has indeed been family to me all these years, and especially to Marina whose extraordinary generosity that first year, amid many other cares, made all the difference.

JN

Florence November 2005