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This chapter traces the origins of the Soderini–Medici bond. The first section examines how the Soderini become involved with the Medici. With Niccolò Soderini's failed assassination of Niccolò da Uzanno, Soderini seeked the help of da Uzzano's political opponents — the Medici and their supporters. Events indicated that the Medici partisans supported Soderini's cause in order to make political capital against their oligarchic opponents. Niccolò Soderini's appeal to the Medici group succeeded in protecting him from the consequences of his political vendetta and earned him powerful friends. The second section considers the Soderini brothers' involvement in the electoral controls of the regime. The presence of Niccolò and Tommaso on the winning side in 1434 enabled them to enjoy active political careers that involved them in the institutional controls introduced by the new regime. By the mid-1440s, the political sympathies and principles of the brothers were starting to diverge.

The case of Niccolò and Tommaso Soderini suggests that fraternal rivalry played a role in the development of their political enmity, as jealousy developed over political success and acquisition of positions and power. Financial obligations also created strains, compounded by differences over political principle and alignment, leading eventually to a permanent rift. However, their lives were not entirely based on conflict. Initially, they enjoyed closed relations, as they lived and started their business careers together. Apparently, it was the crisis of 1465–6 that brought about the final break between the brothers. There was no indication that Tommaso tried to save Niccolò from the banishment to which he was condemned in September 1466.

The Soderini brothers offer an example of patricians who gained political success despite their limited financial resources. Their careers indicate how political activity could provide opportunities for monetary gain, and how a citizen's financial situation affected his views on political questions. Niccolò's and Tommaso's finances closely followed their political careers. Tommaso eventually increased his meager fortune, while Niccolò found himself in economic difficulties even before the crisis of 1466 threw his financial affairs into disarray. Tommaso's connection with the Medici proved extremely important to him financially, whether in acquiring and protecting property or in avoiding the consequences of bankruptcy. Niccolò also used his influence, but his exclusion from the successful power circle in Florence meant that he was unable to protect his finances from taxation.

The settlement of 1444 constituted a turning point not just for the Soderini, but for the regime as a whole. When it was clear that the controls were to be used to shift the locus of political power, opposition against them became more widespread. This involved a further elaboration of the partisan institutions used since 1434 and a confirmation of the leading citizens' power was due in large to committed citizens, such as Tommaso Soderini. During the latter 1440s and 1450s, he emerged as a major figure in these political struggles, as his attachment to the Medici and his own political ambition made him a leading exponent of the restrictive institutions against which a rising chorus of criticism was by being heard by then. Medici and their friends were forced to battle against Niccolò and his ‘popular’ current for political survival.

During the last years of Piero de' Medici's life, from 1466 to 1469, the careers of Niccolò and Tommaso Soderini demonstrated what the political winners and losers could expect in Medicean Florence. While Tommaso benefited from the reconfirmed authority of the inner circle and from Piero's unchallenged leadership of the regime to increase his political status, Niccolò's hopes of returning in triumph to Florence gradually disappeared. He saw his native city becoming increasingly subject to personal Medici rule, with citizens like his brother dominating the political scene.

Although the book has dealt principally with the careers of only two citizens, it suggests more general conclusions regarding the nature of politics in fifteenth-century Florence. Tommaso Soderini's history confirms that the Medici consciously sought to build up a group of friends who would act as supporters and defenders of the family's political position. By furthering these citizens' political careers and their personal interests, the Medici were able to expect from them the gratitude and support that they desired. Meanwhile, the oath of 1449 demonstrates how members of the regime could define their goals and organise their action without any reference to the leading family of the regime. Thus, the history of Tommaso and Niccolò also shows the factors contributing to Florentine's political success and the complexity and variety inherent in Florentine politics.

This work aims to show how politics worked in fifteenth-century Florence, and the factors that brought about the constitutional change for which the period was well known. These political changes consisted primarily of the rise of the Medici family to a position of predominance never before enjoyed by any Florence clan. The Florence constitution of the fifteenth century represented a compromise between groups within the city's society, and one which had repeatedly been remodeled throughout the city's history. The ability to call on foreign support was one of the important factors contributing to the Medici political success. The following pages investigate the careers of two brothers, Tommaso and Niccolò Soderini, who were partisans and enemies of the Medici at different periods.