VARCHI, BENEDETTO. - Historian, b. in Firenze on 19 March 1503, d. there on 18 Dec. 1565. At Pisa he completed his studies in jurisprudence and, having returned to Firenze after several years, was received at the court of Duke Cosimo I de' Medici.
V.'s activity was varied: he translated from the classics, composed sonnets in Petrarchan imitation, among which the pastoral and spiritual ones are notable. Among his commemorative orations, the one on the death of Michelangelo is famous. But above his other writings, predominantly humanistic, poetic, and literary, rises the Storia Fiorentina, in 16 books, dealing with events from 1527 to 1538. V.'s history, necessarily confined to a particularistic scope, received varied judgments: it appeared to some to be a work of flattery toward the house of Cosimo de' Medici (given its unfavorable judgments on Clemente VII and Duke Alessandro), while to others it was the objective expression of an independent line of judgment.
V.'s purpose was to recount events with “diligence and truth.” The historian is discerning in his selection of sources, even if his style appears diffuse and prolix. Another important work of his is L'Ercolano, in dialogue form, in which the Florentine character of the Italian language is reaffirmed; it is rich in comparisons and learned references.