| “ | It's over... It's all over... | „ |
| ~ Francesco's last words |
Francesco de' Pazzi (1444-1478) is a villain from the video game "Assassin's Creed II". He is the father of Vieri de' Pazzi and one of the Pazzi conspirators. He is secretly a Templar. Apart from that, he was also one of Florence wealthiest nobles, and he hated the Medici family. Francesco is the main antagonist of Sequence 4, Pazzi Conspiracy and overall the sixth main antagonist of the whole game.
History
Early life
Francesco was a noble, raised in Florence, he was taught to despise the middle-class, and also those who attempted to climb the social ladder.
Throughout his early life, Francesco idly watched as the Medici family took over as the leading influence and baking system in Florence, thus stripping his family of their power.
During this time, the Templar Grand Master Rodrigo Borgia made an offering to Francesco that he could simply not refuse, to kill the Medici family, so as to put the Pazzi in place of the power in the city. Francesco agreed to the terms, and the Pazzi family began to plot the Pazzi conspiracy.
However, in 1476, Francesco was accused of murder by Giovanni Auditore da Firenze. Giovanni was preparing to present his evidence in court, but was betrayed by Uberto Alberti, who was a secret ally of the Templars. Uberto had Giovanni and two of his sons, Federico and Petruccio, executed for the crime of treason. With Giovanni dead, there was no longer any evidence against Francesco, leading him to be cleared of all charges.
The Pazzi Conspiracy
He is first seen discussing with his uncle, son and the Templar grandmaster in Tuscany about the murder of the Medici brothers. He is later seen in a chamber underneath the Santa Maria Novella church in Florence, where they are discussing about the same things. He is seen to be very confident that their mission will end well and he laughs at the enemies, but his uncle warns him that his confidence led to the death of his son, who was killed by Ezio. During the attack on the Medici's, he stabs Giuliano Medici 19 times in his chest. He then tries to kill Lorenzo, but Ezio fights him off, so he is forced to flee.
Death
He and his uncle's army attack Florence starting a civil war. After trying to invade the Palazzo della Signoria to "persuade" the officials to make the Pazzi's the leaders of Florence. Ezio forces him to flee, and he eventually manages to stab Francesco with his hidden blade. Francesco's uncle is then seen claiming the victory and forming a crowd of supporters, though his victory doesn't last long as he notices Francesco's body hung from a tower, forcing him to flee and ending the violence in Florence.
Personality
Francesco de' Pazzi is a violent psychopath who held a deep hatred for any middle class citizen trying to make it up tot he higher class, thus leading him to hate the Medici family. He cared very little for his son, since he was not shook up by the fact that his son was dead. He is also a sadist, stabbing Giuliano Medici 19 times in his chest while violent yelling at him to die. Despite his psychotic personality he is a coward, as he choose to flee from Elio rather than try to confront him.