- Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452, in Vinci, Italy, to a notary father and a peasant mother.
- He was apprenticed at a young age to the painter Verrocchio in Florence for six years.
- At age 20, he opened his own workshop in Florence, creating works for patrons, including a silver lyre for the Duke of Milan.
- His letter to the Duke led to employment from 1482 to 1499 in Milan, where he worked on “The Last Supper” and designed court festivals, weapons, buildings, and machinery.
- His notebooks from this period contain studies on nature, anatomy, flying machines, advanced weapons, mechanics, submarines, and architecture.
- Due to his varied interests, many projects remained unfinished; only about 15 paintings survive, but his contributions rival those of Michelangelo.
- A war with the Duke of Milan led him to work in Florence, Bologna, and Venice; during this time, he painted the “Mona Lisa,” which he kept until his death.
- From 1513 to 1516, he worked in Rome for the Pope.
- In 1516, King Francis I of France granted him the title “Premier Painter and Engineer and Architect of the King” and provided a manor house near the royal chateau.
- Despite suffering paralysis in his right hand, he continued to draw and teach until his death on May 2, 1519, in Cloux, France.
- Legend states King Francis I cradled Leonardo’s head as he died.
- He is described as the ultimate Renaissance Man, revered for technological ingenuity, conceiving flying machines, armored vehicles, solar power, and an adding machine.
- Few of his designs were built in his lifetime, but smaller inventions like an automated bobbin winder and tensile strength tester entered manufacturing.
- He made substantial discoveries in anatomy, civil engineering, and optics but never published them.
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