Girolamo Savonarola

"Why are you here?! Why do you disturb me?! You should be cleansing your homes, cleansing your SELVES!"

- Savonarola, after a mob swarms the Palazzo Pitti.

Girolamo Savonarola (1452 – 1498) was a Dominican friar and the leader of Florence from 1494 to 1498. Despite having great ambitions, most men found him lacking the ability to be a great leader.

In 1488, Savonarola managed to obtain the Apple of Eden. Recognizing its powers, he used it to instigate the Bonfire of the Vanities in Florence; hoping to cleanse the city of everything he regarded as evil, such as art and wealth.

Biography
Savonarola was born in the city of Ferrara, where, at a young age, he took a moral stance against the corrupt clergy present in Renaissance Italy.

In 1475, Savonarola studied at Santo Spirito, and became a Dominican friar. In 1482, he was dispatched to Florence, which his Order considered to be the "city of his destiny". During the 1480s, he made little impression, and was often called a poor public speaker.

Seven years later, in 1487, Savonarola departed from Florence for Bologna.

Battle of Forlì
A year later, in 1488, Savonarola resided in Forlì for some time, where he caught wind of the existence of the Apple of Eden after passing by the Orsi brothers, who were conversing with Caterina Sforza. He eavesdropped on them, and from then on, he kept a close eye on the Orsi pair.

By some means, Checco Orsi managed to take the Apple of Eden from Caterina, and fled with it out of Forlì. Though he was pursued and killed by Ezio Auditore da Firenze, he managed to stab the Assassin in his lower abdomen, causing him to collapse.

Before Ezio lost consciousness, Savonarola appeared, and took the Piece of Eden from him.

Bonfire of the Vanities
After the King of France drove Piero de' Medici from Florence in 1494, Savonarola used the Apple he had stolen to take over Florence. After uniting the city under his banner, he began to destroy all Renaissance art pieces and books, due to his desire to revert the city back to Medieval times.

When Pope Alexander VI, the Grand Master of the Templar Order, found out that Savonarola had the Apple of Eden in his possession, he sent several Papal troops to retrieve it, though with no success.

Meanwhile, Ezio Auditore returned to Florence in 1497, and worked with Niccolò Machiavelli to overthrow Savonarola, and retrieve the Apple of Eden.

Ezio concluded that Savonarola's rule was being enforced by his nine lieutenants, who were suppressing the Florentines. With this in mind, Ezio assassinated all nine of them, who had all been either lured into serving Savonarola, or were being controlled by the Apple.

Once this had been been achieved, his fellow Assassins La Volpe and Paola began to encourage the people to fight for themselves. Eventually, Savonarola's grip over Florence was lost.

In May of 1498, an angry mob gathered in front of Savonarola's residence at the Palazzo Pitti to stand up against him. In response, Savonarola tried to control the mob with the Apple of Eden, but Ezio threw a knife at Savonarola's hand, which caused him to drop the artifact.

With Savonarola powerless, the mob took him away, and a Templar guard fled with the Piece of Eden. Ezio chased after and killed the guard, taking possession of the Apple again.

Death
Savonarola was taken by the Florentine citizens to his execution: being burned alive at the Piazza della Signoria. In an act of mercy, Ezio decided that no one should die in such agony, and pushed through the crowd towards Savonarola. The Assassin then stabbed him in the neck with his Hidden Blade before the flames could reach him, ultimately ending his life.

Savonarola's death greatly upset the Borgia family, as it meant that the Apple had again become out of their reach.

Lieutenants
The following individuals were those who did Savonarola's bidding:
 * The Painter
 * The Doctor
 * The Preacher
 * The Farmer
 * The Condottiero
 * The Merchant
 * The Nobleman
 * The Priest
 * The Captain Guard

Final words

 * Savonarola: It's you. I knew this day would come. Please, show mercy!
 * Ezio: I have. Va' ora – che sia il tuo Dio a giudicarti. Requiescat in pace. (Go now – that you may be judged by your God. Rest in peace.)

Trivia

 * In 1488, Savonarola was missing his little finger, although the reason for this is unknown.
 * During the memory "A Warm Welcome", Savonarola could be seen next to the gate when Niccolò Machiavelli and Caterina Sforza entered the city.
 * Historically, Pope Alexander VI tolerated Savonarola's criticisms against the church, but after constant defiance, he had Savanarola hanged and burned at the stake.
 * Savonarola's character was quite similar to that of Jubair al Hakim from Assassin's Creed. Both men believed that knowledge was the path to evil and sin, and both organized massive bonfires throughout their cities to burn books and other sources of knowledge that they believed corrupted society. The memories which resulted in their assassinations were also very similar, as both situations had the respective Assassins take down each of the target's lieutenants before actually confronting them, though for Jubair, killing his lieutenants was optional.
 * In Assassin's Creed: Renaissance, Ezio shot Savonarola with his Hidden Gun instead of stabbing him.
 * Savonarola was mentioned in Machiavelli's The Prince, where his failure was used as a reference in the sixth chapter of the treatise; which stated "Moses, Cyrus, Theseus and Romulus would have been unable to have their constitutions obeyed for so long a time if they had been unarmed, as was the case in our own day with Fra' Girolamo Savonarola, who failed with his new laws as soon as the multitude no longer believed in them. He had no way to keep them faithful to what they had believed, or to force the unbelievers to believe."
 * Savonarola was the only assassination target in Assassin's Creed II that was obligatory for Ezio to kill (outside of the memory corridor) with his right Hidden Blade.
 * During Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, heralds mentioned Savonarola in a warning to his remaining followers, advising them to either conform with the Church or face inquisition.