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Girolamo Savonarola was born in Ferrara in 1452. His great faith took him to study theology and to become a monk. In 1482 he went to Florence living in San Marco monastery. In that period Lorenzo Il Magnifico was the Duke Of Florence and his family dominated the city. The rich Florentine families lived in magnificent palaces, surrounded by artists and poets, while common people had to fight everyday against the hunger. Savonarola began to publicly proclaim the Gospel and in his sermons the rich families and also the Roman Catholic Church were accused not to follow Jesus words about poor and humble life. When the Medici were driven out in 1494, Savonarola was the principal maker of the democratic Florentine Republic based on equality of rights and duties. In that period the Pope lived in Roma in rich and sumptuous palaces, very far from the life style proclaimed by the Gospel. The Pope Alessandro VI, frightened by Savonarola sermons, ordered the monks not to preach anymore. Girolamo disobeyed the pope and continued to preach in public against the luxurious life style of the leaders of Roman Church. The Pope, together with the rich families of the city, unfairly accused Girolamo Savonarola of “heretical proclaiming”. An unfairly trial was assembled by the Pope to condemn the monk.So on 23 of May 1498 he was hanged in Signoria Place together with other two monks, their corpses were burned and ash was thrown in the river Arno.
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