Lucrezia Borgia; Sly Seductress or Pitiful Pawn? by Emma Holbrook

Rising amongst the ranks from a Spanish noble family wanting to establish themselves in Italy, the Borgias certainly made a name for themselves through their sudden rise in power and status. What has made them more famous than this is the corrupt and egregious manners in which they sought and maintained their influence, increasing the hatred their rivals and subjects held towards them. Bribery, assassinations, and blackmail are just a few of the crimes the Borgia family are accused of committing to protect their wealth and power. However, one member of the Borgia family is thought to have been mischaracterized, and quite frankly degraded, by the association to her family. Mislabeled as a sly and calculating seductress intent to do anything to protect her family’s interests, even if it meant committing heinous crimes. This woman was Lucrezia Borgia and—although many representations of her in literature and art depict her as a sexually prominent political schemer—many believe that the real Lucrezia was in fact merely a pawn in her family’s cruel political games. From being sold off for marriage as a teenager to being labelled the Pope’s ‘Poison Princess’ to facing accusations of committing incest with both her brother and her father—the amount of trauma and abuse behind what Lucrezia Borgia was experiencing has failed to be properly presented and this leads to the question of who was the real Lucrezia and why is history obsessed with sexualising and demeaning her? Born on 18th April 1480 at Subiaco near Rome, Lucrezia Borgia was the illegitimate daughter of Rodrigo de Borgia, later Pope Alexander VI, and his favourite mistress; Vannozza dei Cattanei. Her mother was an Italian woman reportedly married to an officer of the church during her affair with Rodrigo and was subsequently married off by Rodrigo to Giorgio di Croce, a apostolic secretary, in 1480 shortly following Lucrezia’s birth. Her father was from a Spanish noble family in Aragon who had moved to Italy to establish themselves. His uncle Alfonso de Borgia, later Pope Callixtus III, would later make his twenty-five year old nephew a cardinal, offering him opportunities many would dream of. Despite being a cardinal, Rodrigo’s insatiable lust for women and his charming, devious nature left many condemning him for his controversial acts as a representative for God on Earth. Lucrezia was one of the four acknowledged illegitimate children fathered by Rodrigo with Vannozza, however her father had many mistresses and other illegitimate children by them. It is believed he had between eight and ten illegitimate children including Lucrezia and her brothers; Cesare, Giovanni (also referred to as Juan) and Gioffre (also referred to as Goffredo). At the time of Lucrezia’s birth, her father consulted an astrologer who foretold ‘a remarkable future’ for the newborn girl. Interestingly, although Rodrigo would later acknowledge his children by Vannozza, he originally claimed them to be his nephews and niece but then also claimed they were fathered by Vannozza’s husbands. Only when Rodrigo was elected Pope Alexander VI on 11th August 1492 did he truly begin to acknowledge his children by referring to them as ‘beloved son / daughter’ in written correspondence—though whether this was needed is arguable as it would be have been obvious, given Rodrigo’s lustful nature, that the children were his. As a result of this, Lucrezia was raised within her cousin Adriana Orsini’s household where Lucrezia’s natural beauty and talent flourished. Provided with a humanist education, she was fluent in Italian, French, Latin, Catalan and she could understand Greek to a certain degree. Her intellect was noticeable from an early age as she was familiar with the works of Dante and Petrarch which ignited a passion for composing poetry and music and being an exquisite dancer. Known throughout Rome for her graceful, joyful nature, Lucrezia possessed golden hair with a ‘friendly’ smile who could easily befriend those within the higher circles of society. Her joyous, loving nature is what permitted her to be one of the select few with the ability to sway and influence her stubborn, ambitious father who is said to have loved her the most of all his children. It was this relationship between Lucrezia and her father that enabled her political judgements to be valued by her father, much to the clergy’s disapproval. Lucrezia enjoyed close, loving relationships with all three of her brothers but it was her closeness to her reputedly bloodthirsty, ruthless brother Cesare that would lead to her reputation being slandered for years to come.

As a Spaniard, he and his family were always viewed with suspicion and were the constant subject of gossip. Naturally, as the Pope’s daughter, Lucrezia would now play an important role in her father’s acquisition of influence not only over Rome but across the world. Her brothers were all blessed by their father; Cesare was a Cardinal alike his father and would later marry Charlotte of Albret, the sister of King John III of Navarre; her brother Juan, who was her father’s favourite son, was made the 2nd Duke of Gandía and was married to María Enríquez de Luna, a first cousin of King Ferdinand II of Aragon, before his suspicious death believed to have been carried out by Cesare. And poor little Gioffre was married off to Sancha of Aragon, an illegitimate daughter of King Alfonso II of Naples, who reputedly cheated on her young husband with his two elder brothers and various older men at court—Gioffre was the only son that Rodrigo had a poor relationship with due to his son’s lack of interest in politics and his concern that Gioffre was not actually his son. Through an advantageous political marriage, Lucrezia would bring an alliance with a powerful family who would support the Pope. Therefore it was imperative to choose the right husband for Lucrezia who was a mere teenager when her father begun searching for a husband. It is believed that Rodrigo forged and broke numerous betrothals for his daughter before he finally settled on what was to be the first of many political marriages for Lucrezia. Pope Alexander VI chose Giovanni Sforza, Lord of Persaro and Gradara, purely for political reasons, not for the sake of his daughter’s happiness. As the nephew of the Duke of Milan and a member of the influential Sforza family, Giovanni possessed great influence over Northern Italy and access to a large army. Not only would this provide a fierce ally who could provide an army easily but it also meant the Sforzas would support the Pope and influence over nobles in his favour. This marriage was a hostile move against the Pope’s enemy, the King of Naples. However, as we will see, this would later change. Whilst the twelve-year-old Lucrezia was married by proxy to the twenty-six-year-old Giovanni, the wedding contract stipulated that, on account of Lucrezia’s age, the marriage would remain unconsummated for a year whilst she remained in Rome. Upon turning thirteen, the official wedding took place a year later on 12th June 1493 in the Vatican Palace where Lucrezia’s dowry was said to be 31,000 ducats (well over a million in today’s currency) and the wedding was a lavish affair with some even saying an infamous orgy took place but whether the Borgias attended is unknown. Unlike what the hit television series The Borgias depicts, there is no indication of an unhappy or abusive marriage between Lucrezia and Giovanni. Whilst it is known that her father and brother were always cautious around their new in-law, Lucrezia is said to have enjoyed her marriage to Giovanni although she experienced difficulties in adapting to a quieter, less social life in Pesaro than the one she had in Rome. During their marriage, Pope Alexander VI and Cesare found out that Giovanni was using his proximity to the Borgias to act as a spy for his uncle, the Duke of Milan. Along with more advantageous political alliances becoming available—an example being the King of Naples wished to become allies—it was obvious to the Borgias that the Sforzas were no longer politically valuable and Lucrezia’s marriage needed to be over so she could be utilised once more. Whether Lucrezia forewarned her husband or he sensed the danger, it is unknown but, during a stay with his wife in Rome, Giovanni swiftly fled back to Pesaro disguised as a peasant in February 1497. After four years of marriage, Lucrezia had produced no children and, despite no evidence suggesting abuse or discontentment in the marriage, the Pope was adamant to use this to end the marriage. As divorce was strictly forbidden by the Holy Roman Church, annulment was the only way forward. Lucrezia’s lack of offspring was used to ‘prove’ Giovanni’s impotency and that the marriage was unconsummated. A marriage unconsummated is not valid in the eyes of God, allowing for annulment. Of course, Giovanni was insulted by this and refused to sign the annulment as he would be labelled impotent by the world and be forced to return Lucrezia’s sizeable dowry. The Borgias believed Giovanni’s impotency would be easily accepted, however Giovanni’s first wife Maddalena Gonazaga reportedly died in childbirth, disapproving his impotency. Regardless, the Borgias pressed on with the claim. Giovanni would not allow his reputation to be damaged without also damaging the Borgias’ reputation. Once he was forced to sign the annulment confirming his impotency, Giovanni accused Lucrezia of incestuous relations with her father and her favourite brother, Cesare on account of their closeness being immoral and ungodly. This accusation tarnished Lucrezia’s name forevermore, even without any evidence to support his accusations but Giovanni understood such an accusation would plague Lucrezia no matter where she went and this certainly was achieved. As a result, Lucrezia’s virginity came into question as, if she was still a maiden, she could be married off once again. Housed within a convent during the annulment proceedings, Lucrezia was soon rumoured to have given birth in secret. Then, the news of a son born to the Borgias only fuelled the gossip that Lucrezia had provided either her father or brother with a son. The scandal continued when the bodies of Pedro Calderon, the Pope’s chamberlain, and Pantasilea, a maid of Lucrezia’s, were found in the Tiber in February 1498. Pedro was rumoured to have been Lucrezia’s lover and also the child’s father and both he and Pantasilea were poisoned to conceal the secret. The boy was named Giovanni Borgia; his mother’s identity remained unknown but the Pope issued two papal bulls asserting his father. One issued in 1501 claimed Cesare as the father with the mother being Cesare’s lover prior to his marriage but the second contradicted this by naming the Pope himself as the father despite the bull kept a secret for years. Regardless of this, Lucrezia was still considered by many to be the mother but no evidence can support this claim.

Even though she was now eighteen-years-old, Lucrezia was still considered innocent and much too young to be involved in the game of politics. Those who knew her always described her as graceful, kind-hearted and innocent in comparison to her corrupt family and though her reputation had been tarnished by her ex-husband’s claims, she still flourished wherever she went. Alfonso of Aragon, the duke of Bisceglie and Prince of Salerno of the House of Trastamara, was chosen as Lucrezia’s second husband for being the illegitimate son of King Alfonso II of Naples. Naturally, this meant that Lucrezia was now the daughter-in-law to the King of Naples who had established a peace treaty and alliance with the Pope in Rome. Alfonso was seventeen when he married the eighteen-year-old Lucrezia in the Vatican Palace on 21st July 1498. Alfonso and Lucrezia were quite fond of one another with some sources claiming they fell in love shortly following their wedding which can certainly be proven when Lucrezia sided with her husband rather than her father over a dispute over her husband’s cousin’s marriage. Lucrezia may have been forced to marry a second time but this second marriage was a happy one as the couple’s first and only child, Rodrigo of Aragon, was born on 1st November 1499 after suffering a miscarriage or potential stillbirth on the 16th February 1499. The couple were delighted with the birth of their son whom they named in the Pope’s honour however, their happiness would not last long. The Borgias were always weary of their allies and their enemies so when Cesare’s marriage to Charlotte d’Albret in May 1499 hit Naples, Alfonso naturally began to worry. Naples was an enemy to France and with Rome now allying with France on account of Cesare’s marriage, Alfonso began to worry that his usefulness to the Borgias had run its course, much like Giovanni Sforza’s before him. And, unfortunately, he was very much right. Alfonso was attacked on the steps of St Peter’s Basilica in July 1500, sustaining multiple injuries that left him bed-bound and lovingly nursed by his wife. A month later, he had still not succumbed to his wounds and it is reported that a loyal servant of Cesare or even Cesare himself strangled Alfonso to death. Devastated, Lucrezia had been made a widow just one year into her marriage with her infant son now fatherless. As Alfonso was an illegitimate son of the King and not a potential heir, many suspected the Borgias felt they could get away with committing such a crime and Lucrezia herself, by association, was not left without suspicion. Rumours that Lucrezia had played a part in her husband’s death began to circulate with the most popular one being that she concealed poison in her ring to poison her enemies and even weaken her husband for her family’s gain. Others claimed she seduced her father’s enemies to gather information for the Pope on who to strike next. There is no evidence to support these claims however, this did not prevent Lucrezia from being slandered for her father and brother’s devious ways—it also did not help that Cesare had been accused of murdering his own brother in 1497. The death of her husband crushed Lucrezia as she is said to have wept endlessly for her husband and mourned his loss dearly. This mattered not to her father who saw her merely as a pawn to secure his own means; despite his daughter’s clear distress and torment over the loss of her husband, he wasted no time finding her what would be her final marriage. Alfonso d’Este, the heir to the dukedom of Ferrara, was her third husband but due to Lucrezia’s tarnished reputation and the scandal the Borgias were causing, a bargain was struck between the Pope and Alfonso d’Este, where he would receive a dowry of 100,000 ducats (as she was the Pope’s daughter after all) and Lucrezia would become a Duchess with her own court. Sadly, her husband’s family disapproved of Lucrezia bringing her infant son into her new marriage with her and she was forced to send him away to live with relatives upon her marriage to Alfonso in December 1502—she would never see him again before his death in 1512. Thankfully, Lucrezia’s final marriage was to be a happy, lasting one as the couple would have many children together; Alessandro, Ercole, Ippolito, another Alessandro, Leonora, Francesco and finally Isabella Maria. Despite it being known that the couple did have extramarital affairs, with Lucrezia reportedly sleeping with her brother-in-law, the couple lived quite happily together in Ferrara. When Pope Alexander VI died in 1503, it leads one to wonder if Lucrezia felt relief at the freedom she now had over her own life. The threat of losing yet another husband to her family’s political schemes had now been irradiated and her brother was too preoccupied within his own marriage and responsibilities to stick his nose into Lucrezia’s marriage. Perhaps she mourned her father’s loss or perhaps not, she had not seen him for many years and she was quite open when siding with her husband in political matters. The relationship might have become strained over the years with Lucrezia understanding her importance was more of a political pawn rather than a treasured daughter. Her father’s lack of interest in her happiness must have proven that to her, surely. Most interestingly, not only did Lucrezia flourish at her court where she was a patron of the arts and her subjects spoke only of their love and respect for her but also how Lucrezia is renown for defending her new home when Pope Julius II excommunicated Alfonso and their city was attacked. She is said to have been merciful towards French prisoners and to have shown great calmness and care towards her people during times of danger and hardship. It is even said that she pawned her own jewellery to assist in funding Ferrara’s defence against the French—her tarnished reputation seemed to have vanished completely or mattered no more once she entered her final marriage. And when Lucrezia sadly passed away at thirty-nine, following complications during the delivery of her last child where she developed horrendous convulsions on 24th June 1519, both her husband and her subjects were heartbroken at her passing and she was given a beautiful funeral where she was buried at the monastery of Corpus Domini where people still pay their respects today for the tragic woman born into a family who lusted for power.