Federico Cesi

Federico Angelo Cesi (; 26 February 1585 – 1 August 1630) was an Italian scientist, naturalist, and founder of the Accademia dei Lincei. On his father's death in 1630, he became briefly lord of Acquasparta.

Biography Federico Cesi was born to an aristocratic family highly connected in Rome and the Papal States. The family derives its name from Cesi, a little town near Rome. They had a close connection with the Catholic Church, Frederico's uncle Bartolomeo Cesi was a cardinal in the church, and most of their wealth came from that connection. Federico was the first of eleven legitimate male children and was born in Palazzo Cesi, in via della Maschera d'Oro, Rome, on 26 February 1585. His father was Federico, marchese di Monticelli (1562–1630) and his mother was Olimpia Orsini of Todi. In 1614 Cesi was married to Artemisia Colonna, the daughter of Francesco, Principe di Palestrina; she died two years later. In 1617 he married Isabella, cousin of Filippo Salviati, the daughter of the Marquis of Lorenzo. In 1618 he moved to Acquasparta and lived there until his death at the age of forty-five.

The Accademia dei Lincei ("Academy of the Lynxes")

In 1603, at the age of eighteen, Cesi invited three slightly older friends, the Dutch physician Johannes van Heeck (in Italy Giovanni Ecchio), and two fellow Umbrians, mathematician Francesco Stelluti of Fabriano and polymath Anastasio de Filiis of Terni to join with him in the founding of the Accademia dei Lincei ("Academy of the Lynxes"), aimed at the understanding of all natural sciences through a method of research based upon observation, experiment, and the inductive method. Their goal was to penetrate the secrets of nature, observing it at both microscopic and macroscopic levels. The four men chose the name "Lincei" (lynx) from Giambattista della Porta's book "Magia Naturalis", which had an illustration of the fabled cat on the cover and the words "...with lynx-like eyes, examining those things which manifest themselves, so that having observed them, he may zealously use them". Cesi chose the sharp-eyed lynx and the eagle for the academy's symbols. The academy's motto, chosen by Cesi, was: "take care of small things if you want to obtain the greatest results" (minima cura si maxima vis).

Since it was an uncertain time to conduct scientific research — in 1578 the Inquisition by order of the Pope Gregory XIII had closed Giambattista della Porta's Academia Secretorum Naturae in Naples under suspicion of sorcery — the Accademia dei Lincei had rough beginnings. Cesi's own father forbade Cesi's association with the other three men, suspecting them of undermining his authority and trying to separate his son from family interests. During this time of separation, Cesi began collecting books for a library that he intended for personal use and for the use of the Academy. He specifically looked into the theories pertaining to the permeability of the Heavens and the routes of different comets. The first verification that Cesi had knowledge of the telescope is seen in a letter from August 28, 1609. The letter was sent by Giovanbattista della Porta, an Italian natural philosopher, and it depicted an illustration of the early telescope along with instructions on how to manufacture one. While there, Cesi was able to see the advancements that della Porta came up with and was very impressed when he was able to see a man three thousand paces away. Cesi played a critical part in bringing Galileo to Rome in 1611, where Cesi planned out his schedule and followed him everywhere. Cesi sought out to learn everything he could about Galileo and his discoveries, and even helped him plan out his presentations. He backed Galileo and his research up, and he brought other people to observe Galileo and come to the same conclusion. Galileo brought a new wave to the Academy, and they stopped looking into what was wrong with old science and started to build the new science. In August of 1603, Cesi and his compatriots began design and construction of a large astrolabe to which they referred to as "The Planisphere or the Great Astrolabe."

Books by Federico Cesi Theatrum totius naturae, a "Universal theatre of nature", which he began around 1615 and never completed; it was a project for a comprehensive encyclopedia of natural history.