Cavalcante de' Cavalcanti

Cavalcante de' Cavalcanti was a Florentine philosopher who flourished around 1250 and died around 1280. He was the father of Guido Cavalcanti, a close friend of Dante Alighieri. Cavalcanti was a wealthy member of the Guelph faction and a merchant banker who lent money under usurious conditions. In 1257, he served as the Podestà (chief magistrate) of Gubbio. Following the Ghibelline victory in the Battle of Montaperti in 1260, Cavalcanti went into exile in Lucca. He returned in 1266 and arranged for his son Guido to marry the daughter of Farinata degli Uberti. Despite his alignment with the Guelphs, Cavalcanti was denounced as a heretic, and it is suggested he may have been an atheist like his son. Dante's Inferno features a conversation with Cavalcanti, who is depicted as a doting father concerned about his son Guido.