Pietro Guerrini

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Pietro Guerrini (* 1651 , † 1716 ) was a Florentine draftsman , technician and spy , who was commissioned by Grand Duke Cosimo III. Medici explored Switzerland , Germany , France , the Netherlands and England between 1682 and 1686 with the aim of military and industrial espionage.

Live and act

The Pietro Guerrinis family came from Tuscany Romagna and had moved to Florence in the generation before Pietro . Pietro Guerrini trained as a draftsman and technician and entered the civil service under the government of Cosimo III. a.

The Granduca of the northern Italian state of Florence noticed at the beginning of the 1980s that its country was falling behind the northern European states. Pietro Guerrini was personally commissioned by the Grand Duke to tour large parts of Northern Europe and to scout out all objects of military or economic interest. Correspondence with the Grand Duke went through the ducal secretary Apollonio Bassetti , who guided the agent through letters during the trip from 1682 to 1686 through Switzerland, Germany, France, the Netherlands and England. For his part, Guerrini had to regularly report to Bassetti the results of his research, which should be supported by detailed technical drawings. There is evidence that Guerrini's suggestions were implemented in Tuscany. The special interest of Cosimo III. applied to military and civil machines. A good part of Guerrini's correspondence and also images have been preserved in the Florentine State Archives. Published in 2005 by Francesco Martelli, they are an important source for European economic history after the Dutch War .

literature

  • Francesco Martelli: Il viaggio in Europa di Pietro Guerrini (1682–1686), Edizione della corrispondenza e dei disegni di un inviato di Cosimo III dei Medici, a cura di Francesco Martelli. Olschki, Firenze 2005, ISBN 88-222-5401-5 .
  • Hans Cools, Marika Keblusek, Badeloch Noldus: Your humble servant: agents in early modern Europe. KNIR, Rome 2006, ISBN 90-6550-908-9 .

Web link

  • State Archives Florence [1]