He was the son of a pope and brother of the notorious poisoner Lucrezia Borgia.
Cesare Borgia was born in Rom in 1476 while his father, Pope Alexander VI, was still a cardinal. The son of Alexander’s mistress, Vanessa die Catani, Cesare was his father’s favorite son, according to NNDB.com. Since nepotism under Alexander Vi’s papacy ran rampant, Cesare was able to lead a profligate life at the Vatican.
When Charles VIII left Rome to conquer Naples in 1495, Cesare went with him as a hostage to assure the pope’s good behavior. However, he escaped and returned to Rome. Once back home, he began to show the signs of violence for which he was later notorious. When his brother Giovanni was murdered, the killing was attributed to Cesare with a possible motive of gaining his sister-in-law’s affections. Even darker rumors hinted of an incestuous relationship involving the two brothers and their sister Lucrezia.
Although he was named archbishop of Valencia and later a cardinal, Cesare apparently thought a lot about trading his ecclesiastical career for a secular one. In 1497, he traveled to Naples as papal legate and crowned Frederick of Aragon king. His father, Pope Alexander VI, used him to carry out his political schemes and attempted to arrange a wealthy marriage for him. Although Cesare wanted to marry Carlotta, daughter of the king of Naples, the princess and her father refused the union, calling him a priest and the illegitimate son of a priest.
In 1498, Cesare asked for and received permission to renounce the priesthood. He left in October for France as papal legate to Louis XII, intending to deliver the pope’s bull annulling his marriage to Jeanne of Frances so that Louis could marry Anne of Brittany. He then received military assistance from Louis as well as the duchy of Valentines. Eventually, he married Charlotte d’Albret, sister of the king of Navarre. Their union produced a daughter, Louise. Cesare went on to father at least 11 illegitimate children.
After a military campaign, Cesare returned to Rome. Five months later, Lucrezia Borgia’s third husband, the duke of Bisceglie, was attacked on the steps of St. Peter’s. After he recovered from his wounds, Cesare had him murdered for no apparent reason.
In October of 1500, he set out again for Romagna with an army of 10,000. Once he returned to Rome, now lord of an extensive empire, he developed a reputation for cruelty. He was generally described as morose, silent and unsympathetic.
Cesare went on many campaigns to extinguish the power of the rebel Orsini family. In 1503, he was in the process of organizing yet another expedition when both he and the pope came down with a fever. Alexander died on August 18. Cesare remained incapacitated, something for which he had never prepared. Once Pope Pius III was elected, Cesare’s dominion began to crumble. After Pius died in October, the cardinals elected Pope Julius II, who insisted Cesare’s territories must go back to the Church.
Eventually, Julius had Cesare arrested, ending his power. He was forced to surrender nearly all his castles. On the pretext of persuading his governors to surrender the remaining properties if he appeared in person to give the order, he was able to gain his release. He went to Naples, which was in the possession of the Spain. The Spanish governor promptly had him arrested as a disturber of the peace of Italy in May 1504.
Cesare was sent to Spain, where he remained a prisoner for two years before making an escape to the court of his brother-in-law, the king of Navarre. While attaching the castle of Viana, he was killed on March 12, 1507.
Although remembered today primarily for his treachery, Cesare Borgia was typical of the adventurers founding Italy during the Renaissance. However, he was clearly more clever and unscrupulous than his rivals.
Reference:
- NNDB.com web site
