Baldassarre Castiglione was born in Bologna, Italy. He received his first education at the renowned Collegio Ghislieri, where he learned Latin and Greek. In 1502, he entered the University of Bologna to study law. In 1505, he became a Doctor of Civil and Canon Law
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During this time, he wrote The Book of the Courtier, a treatise on courtly manners that became a classic manual for European nobles. In 1513, Castiglione left Italy for Spain to serve as secretary to Pope Leo X under his uncle, Cardinal Ippolito de' Medici. After the pope's death in 1521, he traveled through France and Germany before settling in Florence under Cosimo I de' Medici.
In 1528, Castiglione married Lucrezia Crivelli. There they adopted two sons and two daughters from their previous marriage.