The Emerging of Modern Concept of Diplomacy

In Italian Renaissance Era

(The city-state of Florence, Milan and Venice)

By:
Haridha Frieska
(MRI II 2012-2014)

Master de Relaii Internaionale

Facultatea de tiinte Politice
Universitatea din Bucureti
Mai 2014

The Emerging of Modern Concept of Diplomacy

In Italian Renaissance Era
(The city-state of Florence, Milan and Venice)

Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception.

Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince

I.

Introduction.

Diplomacy is not a modern invention. Since a long time ago, people have been practicing
the art of diplomacy. Sending a representative to other kingdoms is a usual practice
among the kingdoms around the world. From the Chinese dynasty, Srivijaya Kingdom,
the Indians Kingdom, the kingdoms in Greece, the clans in Arabian deserts, to the
sovereign-state in Italia around the Renaissance era; all sent their representative to other
counterparts in order to regain trust, to make a profit or to inform war. Diplomacy seems
a natural behavior among the parties since they intend to survive. Even though in
particular cases some kingdoms forbid themselves to open the relation with outsiders,
e.g., China and Japan, but they actually did the practice of sending their representative in
restricted numbers.

Even though this practice has been practicing a long time ago by the people around the
world, but the comprehensive written about diplomatic practice came from the
Renaissance era. Many people agree that the early modern diplomacy was being
practiced by the people in this era especially among the city-state of Italy. Before this era,
the practice of diplomacy is hard to define. The ambassador could be a representative
from the leader of a clan, the king from the neighborhood area, from a merchant or
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sometimes from one group in the community itself. In antiquity era, there is not a custom
or a set of rule in which regulate who can send the representative, how much the power of
the representative, what is the hierarchy between the representatives, and who can accept
the representative of one party. For such a long time everybody seems accept this practice
but after the emerging of city-state in Italy in the end of Middle Age this practice was not
regarded as a good practice since the relations between states became more complicated.
In this paper, I will write about the emerging of early concept of modern diplomacy in
Italy in Renaissance Era. How the city-state like Florence, Venice, Milan and also the
Holy See has played their roles in a new system of international relations? What is the
circumstance in Renaissance that helps those actors create a new system of diplomacy?
What is their legacy for the diplomatic history in modern era?

II.

Diplomacy

Before I write down about the history of diplomacy in specific era of Renaissance, firstly,
we have to know what is the definition of diplomacy? According to G.R. Berridge and
Alan James in their book:1
Diplomacy. (1) The conduct of relations between sovereign states through the
medium of officials based at home or abroad, the latter being either members of
their states diplomatic service or temporary diplomats. Thus diplomacy includes
the stationing of representatives at international organizations. But the backbone
of diplomacy has, for five centuries, been the dispatch of diplomatic missions to
foreign states, and it is still very much the norm. As states are notional persons,
they cannot communicate in the manner of individuals, but must do so through
representative human persons. In principle, this can be done by such individuals
speaking to each other at a distance through electronic devices. But there are
large practical objections to the use of these as the sole or even the prime method
of interstate communication. Diplomacy is therefore the principal means by
which states communicate with each other, enabling them to have regular and
complex relations. It is the communications system of the international society.
The label diplomacy was first given to this system by Edmund Burke in 1796.
(2) The use of tact in dealing with people. Diplomacy in this sense is a skill
which is hugely important in the conduct of diplomacy. But there is a large
1 G.R. Berridge and Alan James. A Dictionary of Diplomacy.I (New York: Palgrave Macmillan,
2003), 69-70.
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distinction between an apt way of executing a task and its underlying function.
(3) Any attempt to promote international negotiations (particularly in
circumstances of acute crisis), whether concerning inter- or intra-state conflicts;
hence track two diplomacy. (4) Foreign policy. The use of the word
diplomacy as a synonym for foreign policy, which is especially common in the
United States, can obscure the important distinction between policy and the (nonviolent) means by which it is executed.

In short, diplomacy is an art and also a practice of conducting negotiations among

nations, in which the person whom is being appointed by his government must have the
skill in handling issues without arousing hostility from another party. This definition of
diplomacy is shallow comparing to the scoop of activities under this terminology. As a
concept, diplomacy is broadly understood as the legitimate instrument of national policy
in which its main goal is to maintain the national interest of the representative country
without using force. Diplomacy usually is viewed as a soft way to gain the national
interests of one country through negotiation, communication and bargain.

After the fall of Roman Empire, the development of diplomacy can be divided broadly
into three phases, I.e., Italian System; French System and Modern System of democracy.
Modern diplomacy was first developed in the city-states of Italy as they stood outside the
feudal system, where they are tied together by a common interest. Diplomatic service laid
on a solid foundation since a permanent ambassador sent by the Duke of Milan to
Florence in the mid of 15th century,

Furthermore, the French period, in which the method of French diplomacy has been used
by all the countries of Europe during the three centuries. Methods of France survived as a
model of diplomacy in a long time. During this period the French give great emphasis on
written instructions given to the ambassadors. And the last one is the modern period; this
is a diplomacy system that we broadly accept as a common attitude in international
relations. The entire ambassadors from every country has equal position; the hierarchical
structure of legal representative of one country has similar form with another country; the
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diplomacy system have developed into more complicated, more specific and more
organized.

III.

The Italian Renaissance Era.

Renaissance is one famous era among the European history. Immediately following the
Middle Age, Renaissance is a cultural movement throughout Europe. This is a new phase
for European generally and city-state in Italy specifically. This era is not only has its
glory for the art, architecture, science, but also for its new definitions of relations
between states as a product of political struggles. The first Renaissance movement has
been starting to take a shape in Italy since the black plague was attacking Siena around
14th century. Before the plague, Siena is a prominent state in northern Tuscany along with
Florence. It even defeated Florence in a small war between the states. After the plague hit
Siena, more than half of its population died and gradually Siena overcast under the city of
Florence.

According to encyclopedia Britannica is:2

Renaissance, literally rebirth, the period in European civilization immediately
following the Middle Ages and conventionally held to have been characterized
by a surge of interest in Classical learning and values. The Renaissance also
witnessed the discovery and exploration of new continents, the substitution of the
Copernican for the Ptolemaic system of astronomy, the decline of the feudal
system and the growth of commerce, and the invention or application of such
potentially powerful innovations as paper, printing, the mariners compass, and
gunpowder. To the scholars and thinkers of the day, however, it was primarily a
time of the revival of Classical learning and wisdom after a long period of
cultural decline and stagnation.

The influence of Italian Renaissance had on European society can roughly divide into
three categories, I.e., in economic system, cultural and also political system. For the
2 http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/497731/Renaissance, last accessed 5/5/2014.
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economy, the Italian Renaissance has been produced many modern economic institutions,
the utmost institutions among them is the banking system in Florence. The Medici family
of Florence is the wealthiest family in this era especially since they successfully created
the Medici Bank, the most respected institutions throughout Europe in their era. The city
of Florence also introduced the early form of modern tax system in the form of Catasto
of 1427.3 Catasto is the system of the land registration in Florence, Italy. Not only the
tax system, The Italian city-states also introduced the environment in which the merchant
can trade easily. This circumstance made the city-states like Florence and Venice became
so wealthy hence other nations such as French, Spain and England took this model of the
Italian city-states and put it for their own system.

In cultural system, the Italian Renaissance was influential in the area of art, music,
architecture and also scholarship. The blooming of the study of humanism started in this
era. Humanism, shortly, can define as a philosophy that looked back to the classical
knowledge of Rome and Greece. This philosophy encouraged people to rethink about the
classical knowledge not only in philosophy or art but also in science and architecture.

Filippo Brunelleschi is the perfect example how humanism encouraged people to rethink
about the knowledge from the antique civilization. Brunelleschi is the main architect for
Duomo di Firenze or the Basilica di Santa Maria de Fiore in Florence, Italy. The duomo
is the biggest and the most luxurious basilica throughout Europa in that era. Brunelleschi
learned the mechanism for the perfect dome in Milan, where he conducted his research
for Roman architectural knowledge for over two decades.

3 http://cds.library.brown.edu/projects/catasto/, last accessed 5/5/2014. For further information

about catasto, please kindly search through this link. This website is an extensive collection about
the land registration in Florence from 1427-1429. Covering around 10.000 documents, the
collection is the most complete work for the Catasto system in Florence. The collection of catasto
was edited by David Herlihy, Christiane Klapisch-Zuber, R. Burr Litxhfield and Anthony Molho.
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Under the influence of humanism, the Gothic architecture of the Middle Ages that made
humans feel cold and distant being replaced by a warmer architectures; Filippo
Brunelleschi is one of its innovators. Not only in the former of architecture, Humanism
also changed the character of art in Italian Renaissance Era. Placed humanity at the center
of the stage, the character of the art was broken away from the Church-dictated art and
shaped a more secular and human view. Universities were founded and people were
educated in the classics knowledge. Under Guicciardi, the modern form of historical
study was created during the Italian Renaissance Era.

In political system, the city-states of Italy were the first nations to realize the importance
of diplomacy. Before this era, there are no permanent or resident ambassadors. This
position was an innovation of Italian Renaissance which is still important for the modern
concept of diplomacy in international relations. The famous handbook of Machiavellis
Il Prince also has influenced until today was written during this time. The Italian citystate also dismantled and remodeled the feudal bureaucracy and the royal structure which
is so influential for others European kingdoms

III.I. The Environment in Italian Renaissance Era

Before we analyze the practice of diplomacy in Italian Renaissance era, firstly, we need
to understand how the environment is in this time. In the late Middle Ages and early
Renaissance era, the framework is too different with the modern era. According to Garret
Mattingly in his book The Renaissance Diplomacy, the people and the leaders of either
big or small kingdoms see themselves as one society under the Christendom. Even if
they were torn by the internal conflicts, doctrinal dispute, religious debate, war between
classes or between kings in the neighborhood area, but still Latin Christendom still saw
itself as one society. The belief about one society under Christendom is so complex,
adaptable under any circumstance and change easily, hence different observers can
conclude different point of view. But not so far wrong as it would be to deny that a belief

in the actual unity of Christendom, however variously felt and expressed, was a
fundamental condition of all medieval political thought and activity.4

The evolution to modern form was taken shape when, by the fourteenth century, some
city-states in Italy once subject to the emperor or the pope had clearly become
independent and sovereign. With this reality, they started to see themselves as a single
entity which has their own interest towards the others. The leader of those city-states is a
prince in respect to itself and they started to see another prince as an equally prince in
their respective kingdoms. Before this revolutionary view, the same sense unity which
made men to think themselves as a one society under one common law and Christendom
made it difficult to create theories and practices of diplomatic principals. After the
creation of city-states, every city-state in Italy seeking for the power. They established
relations in order to survive and gained mutual profit from each other. The concept of
allies were emerging naturally in this kind of environment; later on the city-states started
to send their representative in order to maintain a good relation and trust between each
other.

Even though the point of view has been changed, but practically the diplomatic practice
was still far from a clear cut and made it hard to define. The theorist in this time were not
led to try to distinguish single class of diplomatic principals but they were tried to
establish a roughly hierarchical structure of dignity among all the power and authorities
who might be hold a position as a diplomatic principals for another party. This practice
led to the classification of diplomatic agents and the beginning of specific terminologies
to describe the different grade of diplomatic principals in diplomacy. The first textbook of
diplomatic practice written in Western Europe was created by Bernard du Rosier, mostly
known as an archbishop of Toulouse, with the title of his book is Short Treatise about
Ambassadors on 1436. This book was presented by Rosier at the court of King of

4 Garret Mattingly, Renaissance Diplomacy, (New York: Dover Publication, 1988), 16.
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Castile. He intended to make the handbook as a practical advice for diplomatic principals
in his time.

IV.

The City-State of Italy and the Holy See.

There were some major city-states in Italy around the Italian Renaissance era, namely,
Florence, Venice, Milan, Mantua and Modena. Every city-state has their own leader,
mostly from royal descendants but in exception with the Medici family from Florence
who gained their leadership through financial power and later through arranged
marriages. The House of Medici is the wealthiest and the most respective family in Italian
Renaissance Era, along with the House of Visconti and House of Sforza of Milan; House
of Gonzaga of Matua and House of Este of Ferrara and also later on the ruler of Modena
through its descendants.

Each of the House tried to insert their influence through their people into the important
institutions especially the Holy See. They also tried to save their position through
arranged marriages either with the other Houses of Italy or the king of Spain, England or
French. Florence, Milan and Venice are big city-states comparing to Matua and Modena.
Another important actor in this struggle for power is the Holy See with its pope as a
spiritual leader and still has a big influence in governmental issues as a natural mediator
between nations.

The interaction among those families and the Holy See created a dynamic and
complicated relationship in Italian Renaissance Era. Venice is the center of trading and
gradually increased their profit from trade after the city-state form when they start to
build commercial relations with Ottoman Empire. With its strategic location, Venice soon
became the center of commerce between the Western Europe and Byzantine Empire
including Islamic world. Venice is an exception among the other city-states of Italy.
Differ with the rest of city-states like Florence, Milan, Matua and Modena, Venice does
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not have the ruler from one family lineage. Their governmental system shared a similar
form with the republican system of ancient Rome. They have a senate assembly of nobles
with limited political power of a mass of citizens; they also have the election of chief
executive or the Doge who theoretically hold his position for his entire life. The main
goal for the Venetian is a greater profit from commerce. Their action through war or
diplomacy mostly took place in consequence of the trading issues.

Florence on the other hand faced internal struggles until the Medici family gained full
control of not only the government but also financial system of Florence. Medici family
is not a royal blood in nature; they are a merchant family who, at first, made profit
through textile and wool trading. This family originated in Muguello, Tuscan province.
Before Siena collapsed from the Black Plague, Florence and Siena shared their power in
northern Tuscany. In historical documentary, Siena gained a bigger influence than
Florence, but after the plague the city of Siena lost their power instantly because of the
population decreased all of sudden. Florence and Medici like two sides of one coin, one
cannot erase another existence. The Medici family started to gained a bigger profit when
their successfully became the banker of the pope. The Medici bank was relatively small
when it first established in Florence on 1397. The church at this time faced a difficult
problem since there was two popes, first the pope of Avignon (Benedict XIII) and the
second one is the pope of Italy (Gregory XII). As the result the council had been deposed
both Avignon pope and also Italian pope, and elect Alexander V as a new pope. This
solution was not a correct once since three of them did not gain full support throughout
the Christendom until the death of Alexander V.

After the death of Alexander V, Cardinal Cossa succeeded him as Pope John XXIII.
Cossa has strong relations with the Medici family through Giovanni the Medici. He
pointed him as his personal bankers when he had to go to the Council of Constance.
Cossa succeeded to save his position as Pope John XXIII, since then the Medici family
has a strong influence in the Holy See. Lorenzo de Medici is the most well-known figure
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from this family. He gained support through financial power, governmental power and
secures his position through many careful movements in which he put his people as elite
in government, church and also build a strong relation through arranged marriage. The
Medici family has two regent queens of French, respectively, Catherine de Medici and
Marie de Medici and also four Popes of the Catholic Church, namely, Pope Leo X, Pope
Clement VII, Pope Pius IV and Pope Leo XI; and finally in 1531 the family became
hereditary Dukes of Florence which the title was created by Pope Clement VII. 5

On the other hand, Milan has two House of rulers, Visconti and Sforza. Sforza took the
power from Visconti family around the mid of 15 th century. Visconti and Sforza are
traditional rulers if we compare with the Medici family; they are from rural nobility. The
House of Sforza succeeded the House of Visconti through marriage. Later on, Sforza
family also secured its position through marriage. The most well-known arranged
marriage is between the Borgia family through Lucrezia Borgia with Giovanni from the
House of Sforza. After this arranged marriage both house defused into one as House of
Sforza, Duke of Milan. Later on in Italian Renaissance era, the House of Sforza also the
main actor along with Medici, Venetian Doge, the Pope and also other rulers from smaller
city-states like Matua and Modena. Matua and Modena relatively small city-states
compare to Florence, Venetia and Milan. The Gonzaga family was a ruler of Matua;
meanwhile Modena was ruled by the House of Este of Ferrara.

Differ with the House of rulers; the Holy See is a well-established institution under the
name of Christianity. The pope is both the spiritual leader and also kind of secular leader
who can force a king to do what the Holy See wants under the name of God. Later on his
function changed gradually until he just became the spiritual leader and the mediator,
peace keeper between nations and the arbitrators in Christian monarch. Even though the
pope function is a mediator, but he also has big influence throughout Europe. The Holy
5 See the book about the Medici Family in Italy. Christopher Hibbert. The House of Medici: Its Rise and
Fall. (William Morrow, 1999).

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See in Rome can put their influence and make one empire sending their army in order to
fight under the name of God. The perfect example of how great his influence can we see
through the history of crusades and the papal inquisitions.

V.

The Emerging of Diplomacy and Dynamic Interactions between the

Actors.

As Mattingly mentions in his book, the first act of modern form of diplomacy and also
the key element of transition from medieval into modern era of diplomacy is permanent
ambassador. Although the pope had appointed his permanent representative for Byzantine
court but there is no permanent ambassadors until the Italian Renaissance Era. The first
resident embassy in the modern sense was that accredited in 1450 to Cosimo de Medici
by the Duke of Milan. The Ambassador chosen on that occasion was Nicodemus de
Pontramoli, known to his contemporaries as sweet Nicodemus.

This example was

followed by practically all the Italian and European states for the next decades. These
envoys were not at first called ambassador but resident orators. 7

Milan and Florence played their roles in diplomacy area since both of the try to gain the
trust in order to form a mutual ally within each other. Fransesco Sforza also established
relations with Venetia under different reasons. With Florence, Sforza also sent his
representative under the title ducal secretaries; in this sense there is some justification
for the traditional view of Nicodermo Tranchedini (Sforzas most favoured agent in
Florence between 1440s and 1460s) as the first resident ambassadors but on the other
hand, he acted as the intermediary not a relation between states but for a mutual bond
between regimes.8 The resident ambassador is a product of pressure under the Italian
system in this time, in which the city-states has to survive their own life and has to
6 Harold Nicolson. The Evolution of Diplomatic Method. (The lecture delivered in Oxford,
1953), 33.
7 Ibid.
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established a good relation not only with the Pope but more importantly with their
neighborhood. Actually the first resident ambassador is quite unclear due to debate
between the scholars. Even Mattingly seems unsure about the Nicodemus and later on
Daniela Frigo debate the position of Nicodemus with the function of Tranchedini for
Sforza in Florence. But all of them are sure that the new institution and also the resident
ambassador position was being created by the Italian in the Italian Renaissance Era.

On the other hand, Sforza established relations with Venetian under different reasons. His
diplomatic principal in Venetia is an action to ensure recognition by virtue of the presence
of his diplomat in Venetia. Milan and Venice signed the bilateral Pact of Lodi in 1454;
this is a treaty between Venice and Milan in order to end war of Milanese duchy in favor
of Francesco Sforza. It marked the beginning of a 40-year period of relative peace, during
which power was balanced among the five states that dominated the Italian peninsula
Venice, Milan, Naples, Florence, and the Papal States. Another accomplishment of
Sforzas diplomacy is League of Italy on 1455. The states of the league promised to
defend one another in the event of attack and to support a contingent of soldiers to
provide military aid. The league, officially proclaimed by Pope Nicholas V on March 2,
1455, was soon accepted by almost all the Italian states.9

Differ to Milan, Venice is well-known as the first to create and organized system of
diplomacy. They were the first, and it is mush to their credit, to preserve their state
archives in systematic form. Their diplomatic documents cover the nice centuries from
883 to 1797 and contain the instructions given to, and the official dispatches received
from, the ambassadors sent to foreign countries. 10 The three of the city-states played their
roles in order to maintain balance of power in Italy along with other smaller city-states.
8 Daniela Frigo and Adrian Balton. Politics and Diplomacy in Early Modern Italy: The Structure
of Diplomatic Practice 1450-1800. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), 29.
9 http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/345981/Peace-of-Lodi, last accessed 5/5/2014.
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At first the resident ambassador has a negative image in their resident state. Mostly
because the leader still thought that they are the spies of his representative country. It was
also a rule in Florence and also Milan that forbid their people especially their officer to
talk with the ambassador from the other city-states especially about political issues in
their region. This kind of attitude is a usual custom around this time because their
constant fears for survival under the pressure of Italian city-state system. The diplomatic
practice helps to maintain balance of power in Italian Renaissance era; this practice helps
to maintain the survival not only the smaller city-states like Matua or Modena but also
ensure the survival of Florence, Venice, Milan, Naples and Genoa. The smaller city-state
can live under the protection of their allies; and the bigger city-states ensure each other
that they will not attack their neighborhood and seize their land.

VI.

Conclusion

This paper is too short to explain about the dynamical interaction in Italian Renaissance
Era completely. It is only analyze some example of the interaction between Florence,
Venice and Milan in order to get the rough understanding about how the Italian
Renaissance Era is the beginning of the modern diplomacy in international relations. The
resident ambassador is the key element to mark out the beginning of modern era in
diplomacy. Even if their name is resident ambassador but the position is unclear and still
in progress in order to be fix like the term of Ambassador in our modern era. Despite the
unclear position and function of resident ambassador, the Italian Renaissance era also
contribute to shape the hierarchical structure of diplomatic principals. In this time also
appeared the practice of balance of power through diplomatic representatives. The
diplomatic mission had their clearer goal, function and system under the Italian
Renaissance Era.

10 Harold Nicolson. The Evolution of Diplomatic Method. (The lecture delivered in Oxford,
1953), 27.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Book:
Berridge, G. R. and Alan James. A Dictionary of Diplomacy. New York: Palgrave
Macmillan. 2003.
Hibbert, Christopher. The House of Medici: Its Rise and Fall. William Morrow. 1999.
Harold Nicolson, Harold. The Evolution of Diplomatic Method. The lecture delivered in
Oxford. 1953.
Frigo, Daniela and Adrian Balton. Politics and Diplomacy in Early Modern Italy: The
Structure of Diplomatic Practice 1450-1800. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
2000.
Mowat, R. B. The History of European Diplomacy 1451-1789. London: Edward Arnold
& Co. 1928.
Black, Jeremy. A History of Diplomacy. London: Reaktion Ltd. 2010.

Website:
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/497731/Renaissance
http://cds.library.brown.edu/projects/catasto/

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