Villas in Florence: la Medicean Villa in Careggi
The villa in Careggi is one of the most ancient Medicean properties. Once a country residence as the villa in Cafaggiolo and the castle of Trebbio, the villa in Careggi was the closest to Florence and to the business centre.
Giovanni di Bicci de` Medici, the founder of this important Florentine family, bought the villa in 1417. When he died in 1429, Cosimo the Elder inherited the estate and commissioned Michelozzo to renovate the villa.
Lorenzo the Magnificent was born and died in the villa in Careggi, which was his favourite residence. In the villa Lorenzo used to welcome his friends, members of the Florentine Neoplatonic Academy: Marsilio Ficino, Agnolo Poliziano and Pico della Mirandola.
At the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent, the villa, which had been an epicentre of the Florentine artistic and cultural life, experienced a long period of decadence: its property was transferred several times and a fire damaged it in 1529.
After having been restored by order of Duke Alexander when the Medici family went back to Florence, in 1615 Cardinal Carlo de` Medici undertook a major renovation project for the garden and the interior of the building.
In 1779, the Habsburg-Lorraine sold the villa to the Orsi family, which then sold it to Francis Sloane in 1848. Sloane was a botany lover and planted some rare and exotic plants in the garden of the villa.
In the second half of the 19th century underwent several transfers of property; the Arcispedale of Santa Maria Nuova bought it in 1936.
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