This plaque is located in Via Por Santa Maria, near house number 11r.
Coat of arms: Amidei family.
paradiso – Canto XVI – vv 136 -139
“LA CASA DI CHE NACQVE IL VOSTRO FLETO,
PER LO GIVSTO DISDEGNO CHE V’HA MORTI,
E PVOSE FINE AL VOSTRO VIVER LIETO,
ERA ONORATA ESSA E I SVOI CONSORTI.”
“The household (the Amidei and their allies) from which your weeping originated (the mourning and divisions of Florence), due to the just resentment that caused your ruin (through civil strife) and put an end to your peaceful existence, was honored back then—both the family itself and those associated with it.”
“This refers to the House of Amidei and, in a broader sense, all their family allies.
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‘IL VOSTRO FLETO’ (Your weeping): This means your grief or, more extensively, the civil wars that tore Florence apart (the division between Guelphs and Ghibellines). Dante attributes the first spark of these conflicts to the Buondelmonte episode.
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The ‘Just Resentment’ (Il giusto sdegno): This refers to the anger felt by the Amidei, who took revenge for a slight they suffered. The offense was committed by Buondelmonte de’ Buondelmonti, who had promised to marry a woman of the Amidei family but instead married a Donati, dishonoring his betrothed.
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The Murder: The Amidei retaliated by killing Buondelmonte (at the foot of the statue of Mars). This murder gave rise to the city’s factional split. Before this event, the Amidei family and their allies were highly esteemed and respected in Florence.
In summary: Cacciaguida concludes his review of illustrious but fallen families by identifying the Amidei’s revenge as the fatal turning point that ended the ‘joyful life’ and peace of ancient Florence, introducing the feuds that ultimately ruined the city.”
