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Hunter Herring
Rice
HIS 355
21 October 2013
Marriage and Family in Renaissance Italy
In Renaissance Italy, love and marriage were two unrelated concepts. As seen in the
marriage negotiations of the Del Bene and Strozzi Families, marriage was more of a political
arrangement than one of love and personal choice. In The Marriage Negotiations of The Del
Bene, two families are trying to go through the process of negotiating a marriage between their
kinsmen. The process of the negotiation is very delicate and thorough, negotiating subjects such
as the brides dowry, property, and family honor. Family honor was a large concern for the Del
Bene, so they included in the marriage contract a penalty for abandoning the marriage
negotiations. In The Marriage Negotiations of the Strozzi, the negotiations are much more
structured and politically motivated. The Strozzi, were a wealthy political family who were
exiled from Florence and were trying to use their marriage prospects to return to their native city.
The Strozzi negotiations are unusual because Alessandra Strozzi, the family matriarch, carries
them out. The male head of the family almost always carried out negotiations and other business
arrangements, but the male members of the Strozzi family were banished which provided a
unique opportunity for Alessandra to handle her families affairs.
Marriages were often arranged and usually negotiated in advance. Negotiations were
often very delicate and driven by the family, which was the core of Italian society at the time,
instead of the two people getting married. Negotiations on money, the wedding ceremony,
property, and family honor all had to be discussed before a ceremony could even take place.

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Political and social aspects had to be considered when arranging marriages. If a family could
marry above their station it was a sign that her family had arrived in Italian society. The reversal
is true as well: if a male member of an influential family married below his station it was a sign
that his family had lost some prestige and possibly their influence in politics. The ultimate goal
of a marriage, during the Renaissance, was to create a powerful social and political alliance in
order to secure the two families involved in the arrangement. As seen in Elite Families,
marriage between two powerful families could become a defense mechanism in times of
upheaval within the Italian communes.
Fertility, intelligence, and looks were all important points to consider when trying to
negotiate a marriage. As seen in the Strozzi negotiations, familial traits played a significant role
in choosing a suitable match. Alessandra Strozzi writes to her son stating, her mother is always
pregnant. Fertility was a major point to consider during marriage arrangements. The reason that
fertility was a major concern during marriage negotiations was because another major goal of
marriage was to insure the family name, honor, and prestige would continue to carry weight in
society even into future generations.