Medici leaders and rulers in Florence -- High noon -- Origins of a dynasty. Ancient beginnings ; The origins of the Medici bank ; Giovanni's legacy ; Cosimo rising ; The moment of truth -- Out of the darkness. The Medici in exile ; The dawn of Humanism ; East meets West ; Art reborn : the egg dome and the human statue ; 'Father of the country' ; Piero the Gouty -- The Prince and the Prophet of Doom. The Renaissance Prince ; Murder in the cathedral ; Plato in the piazzas ; A succession of masters ; The tide turns ; The Bonfire of the Vanities -- The Pope and the Protestant. 'Il Gigante' : a statue of biblical proportions ; Rome : the Medici's new home ; Machiavelli meets his match ; Rome and the Lion Pope ; The Pope and the Protestant ; The Papacy stays in the family -- The battle for truth. A grim aftermath ; Aristocratic rule ; Medici : European royalty ; Godfathers of the scientific Renaissance ; Godfathers no more? ; Finale.