Leonardo da Vinci managed to leave his mark on history. A great artist, he created a number of canvases that made him famous. Distinguished Leonardo and as an inventor and engineer. The intense intellectual activity of the genius affected his health. The last years of his life he experienced physical suffering. Da Vinci died, as the researchers suggest, from a stroke.
From the biography of the master
The future "universal genius" of his era, Leonardo da Vinci, is known as an unsurpassed artist, inventor and scientist. The boy was born near Florence on April 15, 1452. Da Vinci's father was a notary, his mother came from a simple peasant family. Leonardo was born out of wedlock: soon his father married a noble person. Then the father took the boy to his upbringing.
From an early age, Leonardo showed creativity, learning to draw. Trying to develop his son's talent, his father sent him to one of the best art workshops in Tuscany for training. Leonardo, however, did not stay long there. He quickly proved to the teacher that he was superior to him in skill and could not learn anything else from him.
Leonardo gained fame primarily as an artist. His most famous canvases are "The Lady with the Ermine", as well as "La Gioconda" (also known as "Mona Lisa"). However, the genius devoted little time to painting, and therefore he could not boast of a significant number of canvases. However, in this area, da Vinci became an indisputable authority: he was able to develop the principles of realism and the laws of perception of works of art. After Leonardo, painting moved to a new stage of development.
Leonardo himself considered himself not so much a painter as an engineer and scientist. Among the inventions he made - a bicycle, a parachute, a catapult, a searchlight, a prototype of a self-propelled vehicle resembling a tank. Almost all of his technical ideas were embodied in numerous drawings, drawings, sketches and sketches. In some of the drawings of the great inventor, modern scientists still cannot figure it out.
Da Vinci spent a lot of his life on architectural and engineering projects. Moreover, such innovations were not only peaceful, but also military in nature. The talent of an engineer came in handy for Leonardo in 1499, when he was recruited into the service of the famous Duke Cesare Borgia. The latter very much hoped that da Vinci's abilities would help him create a number of military mechanisms. In Florence, the master worked for about seven years, later moved to Milan, then went to Rome and eventually ended up in France.
The last years of genius
In 1516, Leonardo received an interesting invitation from the king of France: he offered him to settle in the castle of Clos-Luce. Da Vinci received the honorary title of royal artist, master of architects and engineer. For this position he was entitled to a solid reward. During his life in this country, the master almost did not paint. His main responsibility was the organization of celebrations that were held at the court of the king. Da Vinci also worked on a project for an intricate canal between Sona and Loire.
By that time, da Vinci's health had deteriorated sharply. He could even move with great difficulty.
Researchers of the amazing life and work of the famous master agree that the cause of his death was a stroke. Memories of contemporaries have been preserved, which indicate that by the time of his death Leonardo suffered from paralysis: he could not control his right hand. It was a stroke that could cause this ailment. It is believed that the first time this happened to Leonardo in 1517. The second stroke in 1519 was the last for the Italian. The main data on the state of health of the genius, current researchers gleaned from the memoirs of his contemporaries and fragmentary records of Leonardo himself.
The poor state of health did not become a hindrance to the active and varied creative life of the master. He enjoyed the support and help of his students, among whom Francesco Melzi stood out. He also became the main heir to the master. In the next half century, Melzi disposed of the legacy of his teacher. And it was extensive and included paintings, tools, a rich library, of which no more than a third of all books and documents have survived to date.
The great genius died on May 2, 1519. He spent his last days at the Clos-Luce castle, where he was surrounded by disciples. Buried da Vinci within the castle of Amboise. An inscription is engraved on his tombstone, which says that the ashes of the greatest engineer, artist and architect of France are buried here.
