Strozzi, Ercole (c. 1473–1508) Italian poet
Ercole was from the branch of the Strozzi family that had
established itself in Ferrara in the early 15th century. Like
his father Tito Vespasiano Strozzi (1424–1505) he was fa-
mous as a writer of Latin elegies; their works were pub-
lished together as Strozzi poetae pater et filius (1513). A
few vernacular sonnets have also survived. His circle of
friends included the young ARIOSTO, Pietro BEMBO, and
Lucrezia BORGIA. He was murdered in mysterious circum-
stances and his wife, the renowned beauty Barbara Torelli
(1475–1533), is credited with a moving sonnet on his
death.
Strozzi family Italian bankers. A member of a noble
Florentine banking family, Filippo I (1428–91) returned
to Florence from exile in 1466; he prospered and became
Lorenzo de’ MEDICI’s trusted adviser in foreign affairs.
Filippo began (1489) the construction of the magnificent
Palazzo Strozzi. His grandson Filippo II (1488–1538),
despite his marriage to a Medici, opposed Medici power
and was a leader of the rising (1527) that expelled the
Medici from Florence. He went into exile when the Medici
were restored (1530) but then led a band of republican
exiles in an unsuccessful attack on Florence (1537); he
was caught and tortured before his death in captivity. The
Strozzi clan then moved to France, where several
members became valued servants of the French kings.
Stuart, Lady Arabella (1575–1615) English noblewoman
Her great-grandmother was Margaret Tudor, daughter of
Henry VII, and in some quarters she was the favored can-
didate to succeed Elizabeth I, in preference to her cousin,
James VI of Scotland, as she was English by birth. Having
lived in seclusion at Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, she was
allowed back to court in England after James’s accession,
but was imprisoned in 1609 when he feared she would
gain political support by marrying a foreign prince. On
her release she married William Seymour in secret (1610).
But, as a descendant of Mary Tudor, sister of Henry VIII,
Seymour too was a claimant to throne, and the couple
were arrested. Although Seymour escaped and fled to Bel-
gium, Arabella was captured, having escaped house arrest,
while attempting to join him. Sent to the Tower of Lon-
don, she became unhinged and died of self-imposed star-
vation.
Stuart style See JACOBEAN STYLE
Sturm, Johannes (1507–1589) German educationist
A native of Schleiden, Sturm underwent the usual hu-
manistic training at Liège and at Louvain, where he started
a printing press. He then went to Paris, where under the
influence of Martin BUCERhe became a Protestant. In 1537
he became professor of rhetoric and dialectic at the Col-
legium Praedicatorum in Strasbourg, and there in 1538 he
founded the first gymnasium in northern Europe. He re-
mained its principal for 43 years. Sturm was a zealous sup-
porter of the Swiss reformers and engaged in lively
controversies with the Lutherans. He wrote numerous ed-
ucational works, in which, as in his school, he promoted
his ideal of wise and eloquent piety, produced an edition
of CICERO(1557) and a Latin translation of Aristotle’s
Rhetoric, and wrote the biography of Beatus RHENANUS.Suarez, Francisco (1548–1617) Spanish Jesuit theologian
and philosopher
Born in Granada, he became a Jesuit in 1564, was or-
dained in 1572, and studied canon law, theology, and phi-
losophy at the universities of Ávila, Segovia, Valladolid,
Alcalá, Salamanca, and Rome. In 1597 Philip II appointed
Suarez professor of philosophy at the university at Coim-
bra, where he remained until 1615. At Pope Paul V’s re-
quest, he wrote De defensione catholicae fidei (1613)
against James I of England and De immunitate ecclesiastica
against the antipapalism of Venice (1615). He was a pro-
lific writer and his Opera omnia (Venice, 1747) totalled 23
volumes. Although a Thomist, he was not a mere echo of
St. Thomas Aquinas nor of Aristotle, and he founded a
school of thought called Suarism. He represents a late Re-
naissance resurgence of scholasticism, the more universal
success of which was thwarted by the new science, and he
is still considered one of the founders of modern interna-
tional law, mainly by virtue of his summary of the princi-
ples of the law in De legibus (1612). He died in Lisbon.Sublime Porte (French, “High Gate”) The name, often
shortened to “Porte,” by which the Ottoman seat of gov-
ernment in CONSTANTINOPLE(Istanbul) was known in the
West. The French phrase translates the Turkish Babi Ali,
which suggests not just “physically lofty” but also “hon-
orable”. It refers to the gateway in the outer wall of Istan-
bul’s Topkapi Serai that led to the offices and palace of the
grand vizier, it being here that much of the official busi-
ness of the Ottoman empire was conducted and ambas-
sadors from foreign powers were received.Sully, Maximilien de Béthune, Duke of (1560–1641)
French Huguenot statesman
As HENRY IV’s most important minister, Sully did much to
aid France’s recovery from the religious wars, in which he
had served with distinction. He encouraged agriculture,
improved the posts and roads, and started major canals.
An honest man in an age of corruption, Sully, as superin-
tendent of finances (1598–1610), rescued French finances
from bankruptcy. He removed the worst abuses of the fis-
cal system, cut extravagance at the court, and introduced
a system of book-keeping to check on tax-farmers and of-
ficials. In 1602 he was made governor of the Bastille. In
1606 he was created a duke. He was forced to retire in
1611, the year after Henry IV’s assassination, and devotedSSuullllyy,, MMaaxxiimmiilliieenn ddee BBeeíí tthhuunnee,, DDuukkee ooff 4 45533