Zezar Borjia Cardinal, military commander Date of Birth: 18.09.1476 Country: Italy

Biography of Cesare Borgia

Cesare Borgia, the cardinal and military commander whom Machiavelli took as a model for his "Prince," was intelligent, handsome, athletically built, sometimes simply charming, and always completely unprincipled and indiscriminate in his methods. Cesare Borgia, whom Machiavelli took as a model for his "Prince," was intelligent, handsome, athletically built, sometimes simply charming, and always completely unprincipled and indiscriminate in his methods. He is attributed with one good deed he did in his life: he opened a special hospital ward where old prostitutes, retired due to poor health or old age, could live and receive treatment. Borgia was born, probably in Rome. His father was Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia, who later became Pope Alexander VI, and his mother was his lover Vannozza dei Cattanei. In 1480, Cesare Borgia's birth was legitimized by a special decree of the Pope. When his father became the Pope in 1492 with the help of bribes, there was no need to worry about Cesare's future. The following year, he was made a cardinal, but he left the church for a politically advantageous marriage. In 1499, he attempted to establish control over one of the northern provinces of Italy with the help of his father, who still controlled the Vatican and the church's treasury. He simply eliminated all opponents, including some of his own relatives. Cesare nearly achieved his goal, but his father suddenly died in 1503. At that time, Cesare himself was seriously ill and could not fully control the course of events. He was unable to influence the election of the new Pope, and Julius II, a sworn enemy of the Borgia family, became the Pope. Cesare was arrested but managed to escape twice. In 1507, he was caught near the town of Viana and, after a short fierce battle, was killed. When his mangled body was found, it had twenty-five severe wounds, each of which could have been fatal. Women always represented only sexual interest for Cesare Borgia. He had many sexual relationships, but there is no hint that he ever loved any of the women he encountered in his life. His sexual behavior was scandalous even for Italy of the Renaissance era. There were persistent rumors, for example, that he maintained a sexual relationship with his sister Lucrezia. On October 30, 1501, he organized a party where 50 naked courtesans danced for him and his guests. At the same party, prizes were awarded to guests who had sexual relations with the most prostitutes present in the hall. In another instance, on Cesare's order, four stallions and two mares were released into a paddock. Cesare, his sister, and their father watched with interest everything happening in the paddock. In 1496, while still a cardinal, Cesare started an affair with the 22-year-old fiancée of his brother Jofre, who was then 15 years old. However, Cesare soon decided that in order to strengthen the power of the Borgia family, he needed to get married. He announced his decision in August 1498. His chosen bride was Charlotte of Aragon, the daughter of King Frederick of Naples. Cesare's father secured the support of the French king Louis XII, who promised to convince Charlotte and her father to accept Cesare's proposal. In return, Louis XII was promised a special decree from the Pope annulling his own marriage so that he could officially marry his new chosen one. When everything was prepared, Cesare went to France for his bride. However, Charlotte, who was in love with someone else, refused to marry him. She and her father were also against such a groom for her. Louis XII quickly found a replacement for Charlotte and offered 17-year-old Charlotte d'Albret, the beautiful daughter of the Duke of Guyenne, as a bride for Cesare. Cesare agreed. The wedding took place on May 12, 1499. The wedding night did not bring much happiness to Cesare. Before that, he did not feel well and accidentally drank several laxative pills. According to Charlotte's maids, who watched everything that happened that night in the newlyweds' room, Cesare spent more time in the toilet than in bed with his young wife. Four months after the wedding, Borgia went to fight in Italy. They never saw each other again. Borgia never saw his daughter, whom Charlotte gave birth to a few months later. They named her Lucrezia, and she was the only officially recognized child of Cesare Borgia. Upon learning of Cesare's death, Charlotte, who was 25 at the time, went into mourning and continued to wear black for 7 more years until the last day of her life.
Naturally, Cesare constantly cheated on his wife. In 1500, his troops captured the fortress of Forli in northern Italy. The defense of the fortress was led by the fearless 37-year-old Caterina Sforza. Borgia raped her and humiliated her even more when he announced to his officers, taken captive by his army, that Caterina had defended the fortress much longer and more bravely than her honor. In the same year, Borgia began a sexual relationship with the beautiful and wealthy courtesan from Florence, Fiammetta de'Michelis. She was educated, knew Latin and Greek poetry, played the lyre, and sang well. She outlived Cesare by 5 years and died in 1512. None of Cesare's relationships caused as much scandal as the one that occurred in 1501 when, on his orders, soldiers kidnapped Dorothea Caracciolo, the wife of a Venetian army officer. The uproar caused by her disappearance forced Cesare to claim that he had no involvement in the matter. Later, he even accused one of his officers of organizing the abduction. Dorothea remained a victim of Cesare's sexual whims for two years. Then she was placed in a convent, from where she managed to escape only in 1504.
History has preserved the names of only two illegitimate children of Cesare, who were born in the early 16th century. His son, named Gerolamo, was just as ruthless and cruel as his father, and his daughter, Camilla Lucrezia, became a nun in 1516 and lived a righteous life until her death in 1573. Their mother or mothers are unknown. In 1497, Cesare contracted syphilis. Because of the disease, he sometimes had spots and pimples on his face, and for this reason, in his last years, he often wore a special mask.