Of all the Italian cities, Florence was the cradle of the Renaissance. But Florentine life was brutal, not gentle. However wealthy and beautiful it appeared, economically and strategically, its position was always desperate. Despite its perils, the families and artists of Florence flourished. Here, from eminent British historian Sir J. H. Plumb, is the story of Renaissance Florence - from the Medici and the Pazzi to Michelangelo and Leonardo.