Acciaiuoli family

Family of Italian bankers prominent in the 14th and 15th centuries. Based in Florence, they also had important branches in Rome and Naples. From the 1430s they strongly supported the ruling Medici family in Florence, who rewarded them with political and ecclesiastical positions.

The family moved from Bergamo to Florence in the 12th century, and by the 1340s had created one of the richest banks in Italy, vying with those of the Peruzzi and Bardi. The family business was bankrupted in 1345 by the combination of high Florentine taxation, loss of business in Rome due to strained relations between Florence and the papacy, and (from 1341) the default of Edward III of England on his loan repayments. The Acciaiuoli soon recovered, however, and began playing an increasingly important role in politics. Their success was assured when, in 1434, Agnolo Acciaiuoli helped the Medici to seize power in Florence by overcoming the ruling Albizzi family.

Leading members of the family included the banker Niccolò Acciaiuoli (1310–1365) and the scholar Donato Acciaiuoli (1429–1478).