Cosimo I

The grand duke Cosimo I dei Medici, portrayed by Justus Sustermans posthumous in 16th century,  holds the crown, the grand ducal sceptre and wears a precious ermin cloak on his shoulders.

Cosimo was born in 1519 and when he was eighteen years old, after the murder of the duke Alessandro dei Medici he went to Florence to become the Head of the government and in 1539 he married Eleonora di Toledo, Don Pedro’s daughter  who was viceroy of Naples and lieutenant of Charles V. The marriage started a policy supporting the Emperor.

In Pisa Cosimo I pursued both urban and industrial economic works, such as the water’s regulation  with the institution of the Ufficio dei Fiumi e Fossi, the Navicelli canal’s digging out to connect Pisa to Livorno and last the construction of the Arsenali Medicei intended for the shipyard activity.

In 1543 Cosimo I promoted the reopening of the Studio Pisano (the University) inaugurating the Palazzo della Sapienza in Pisa.

In 1562 he founded the Ordine dei Cavalieri di Santo Stefano (St. Stephen's Chevaliers Order) whose insignia, represented by a red cross with eight tips, gold hemmed in the white background, is visible in lots of portraits here.

The aims of the Order were the defence of Christian faith, the fight against Ottomans and against the piracy in the Mediterranean Sea, but above all in the Tirrenian Sea, where Cosimo had just founded Livorno’s port.

He entrusted Giorgio Vasari with the construction of the palace for the Order and the new planning of the buildings in the square now called Piazza dei Cavalieri.