César Borgia (in Valencian and in Catalan, César de Borja), known as "the Valentinois" (Il Valentino), was an Italian lord of the Renaissance, born September 13, 1475 in Rome and died March 12, 1507 in Viana, Navarre , Spain. He succeeds his brother Giovanni Borgia (Juan Borgia) as Duke of Gandia.
He was Peer of France, Knight of the order of Saint-Michel, Prince of Romagna, Andria and Venafro, Duke of Gandia, Romagna and Valentinois, Count of Diois, Lord of Issoudun, Piombino, Camerino and Urbino, Gonfalonier of the Holy Church, Captain General of The Universal Church, Condottiere and Cardinal.
He owes his notoriety largely to Machiavelli, who frequently quotes him in The Prince.
Family origins and birth
César is the son of Roderic Llançol i de Borja, from a Spanish family and future Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia then Pope Alexander VI, and his mistress Vannozza Cattanei. He is also the brother of Giovanni Borgia (1476-1497), duke of Gandie, of Lucrèce Borgia, of Gioffre (Jofré), prince of Squillace, and the half-brother of Pedro Luis de Borja (Pere Lluis de Borja) and of Girolama de Borja, born to unknown mothers.
The Borgia family (Borja in Catalan) originated in the kingdom of Valencia and saw its influence increase in the 15th century, when Cesare's paternal great-uncle became pope under the name of Calixte III in 1455, then Roderic (Rodrigo in Spanish) under the name of Alexander VI in 1492.
Although the previous popes sometimes had mistresses, his father was the first to publicly recognize his children, which led to Caesar often being called "the pope's nephew", out of modesty, just like his brothers and sisters.
Like virtually every aspect of his life, Cesar Borgia's date of birth is open to debate. In general it is assumed that he was born in Rome in 1475.
Youth
Described as a graceful child, he grew up quickly and became a handsome and ambitious man like his father. The latter, in his desire to develop the influence of his family in Italy, has big plans for his sons. While temporal affairs fall to his brother Giovanni, appointed Captain General of the Church and made Duke of Gandia, Caesar pursues a career in the Church in order to succeed his father.
Sacred prothonotary of the papacy at the age of 7, Caesar was made bishop of Pamplona at the age of 15, and at the age of 17 he was appointed archbishop then cardinal of Valencia in Spain by his father, who had recently been elected pope. In 1493, he also obtained the bishoprics of Castres and Elne and even became abbot of the abbey of Saint-Michel de Cuxa the following year. At that time, he studied law in Perugia and Pisa and his tastes led him more towards bullfighting, horses and the exercise of arms.
In 1497, the stabbed body of his brother Giovanni was found in the Tiber. Caesar is suspected of the crime, which he would have committed either for political reasons or out of jealousy:Sancha of Aragon, daughter of the King of Naples and wife of Gioffre, would have been the mistress of Caesar as of Giovanni. Nothing was proven then, but Caesar now had his way:on August 17, 1498, he became the first cardinal in history to resign.
At that time, Louis XII, King of France, sought to have his marriage annulled in order to marry Anne of Brittany and thus annex his duchy to the kingdom of France. Alexander VI agrees to render him this service, in exchange for which Caesar becomes Duke of Valentinois, which will earn him his nickname (Il Valentino). He is also granted the hand of Charlotte d'Albret, lady of Châlus and sister of Jean III, king of Navarre. Their marriage took place on May 12, 1499.
Ascent
Alexander VI allies himself with Louis XII who continues the wars of Italy, hoping to benefit from it, and in particular to obtain the throne of Naples5. In 1498, he was honored by Louis XII with the title of governor of Lyonnais.
In 1499 the king entered Italy, and after Gian Giacomo Trivulzio drove out the Duke of Milan Ludovico Sforza, Caesar rode alongside him as he entered the city.
The Borgia father and son then take action:they rid the Papal States of their leaders who, supposed to be under the authority of the pope, had actually considered themselves independent for several generations. So in Romagna and Marche.
Caesar is appointed gonfalonier of the papal army (known as the "Army of the Keys", named after the heraldic emblem of the papacy) which includes Italian mercenaries and Swiss regiments sent by the King of France (about 4,000 infantry and 300 riders). The only one who managed to stand up to him in his campaign was Caterina Sforza, but on March 9, 1499 she was defeated, allowing Caesar to add Imola and Forlì to his possessions.
In 1500, Alexander VI appointed twelve new cardinals, which gave him enough money to allow Caesar to hire the condottieri Vitellozzo Vitelli, Gian Paolo Baglioni, the Orsini brothers Giulio and Paolo and Oliverotto da Fermo who continued his campaign in Romagna . Giovanni Sforza, first husband of his sister Lucrezia, loses Pesaro and Pandolfaccio Malatesta loses Rimini in the same year.
In 1501 Faenza surrendered and its young lord Astorre III Manfredi was sent to Castel Sant'Angelo in Rome. His body was found in the Tiber shortly after. In May of this year Caesar takes the title of Duke of Romagna, and adds Castel Bolognese to his domain. While his condottieri besieged Piombino, which fell in 1502, Caesar fought in Naples and Capua with the French. On June 24, 1501, the city, defended by Prospero and Fabrizio Colonna, fell, leading to the start of the conflict between the King of France and Ferdinand II of Aragon for control of Naples.
In June 1502 Caesar returned to the Marches and conquered Urbino and Camerino. Florence, fearing his power, sent him two emissaries, Machiavelli and Cardinal Soderini, to find out his intentions, but it was above all Louis XII who opposed his desire to attack the city. His ambition then focused on Bologna. But his condottieri plot against him (Congiura di Magione):with their help, Guidobaldo da Montefeltro and Giovanni Maria da Varano push Camerino and Fossombrone to revolt. Caesar learns of this and organizes a reconciliation at the castle of Sinigaglia on December 31, 1502. Vitellozzo Vitelli, the Orsini brothers and Oliverotto da Fermo come without their troops. In the middle of the banquet, Caesar has them arrested and then strangled. Paolo Giovio describes this act as “wonderful deception”. After this coup, Cesar Borgia is at the height of his power:
“Some would like to make Caesar king of Italy, others would like to make him emperor, because he succeeded in such a way that no one would have the courage to refuse him anything,” wrote the Venetian Priuli.
César Borgia was a patron of Leonardo da Vinci for ten months. During this period, he carried out cartographic works, in particular of the town of Imola.
Fall
Although a talented general and statesman, his empire collapsed very quickly. On August 10, 1503, Caesar and his father attended a banquet with Adriano Castelli, the newly appointed cardinal. Many guests feel violent pain, Alexander VI dies eight days later. Before his death is publicly revealed, Caesar, also ill, sends Don Michelotto to loot the papal coffers, planning to conquer Tuscany, but his poor condition prevents him from pressuring the Conclave to appoint a pope in his pay.
The new pope is Pius III, considered neutral between the Borgia party (Caesar having remained in Rome to influence the election) and that of Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere, a fierce enemy of the latter. But Pius III dies barely a month after his election and, this time, della Rovere is elected under the name of Julius II, and does everything to weaken Caesar. While this one goes to Romagna to quell a revolt, he is captured near Perugia by Gian Paolo Baglioni, and imprisoned. Julius II will then dismember his domain, either by attaching it to the Papal States (Imola), or by restoring their rights to those whom Caesar has expelled from power (Rimini and Faenza).
In 1504, Caesar was delivered to the King of Spain, against whom he fought with Louis XII, and was imprisoned in the fortress of Medina del Campo. He manages to escape and enters the service of his brother-in-law Jean III of Navarre. Fallen in an ambush, he died during the siege of Viana on March 12, 1507, at the age of 31.
His motto has remained famous:
“Aut Caesar aut nihil” (“Or Caesar, or nothing”),
who plays on the ambiguity of his first name and the title worn by the Roman emperors.
Marriages and descendants
On May 12, 1499 César Borgia married Charlotte d'Albret (1480-1514), lady of Châlus and sister of Jean III of Navarre. From this union was born a daughter, Louise Borgia, known as Louise de Valentinois (1500-1553), who married, on April 7, 1517, Louis II de la Trémoille (died in 1524), in second marriage, on February 3, 1530, Philippe de Bourbon (1499-1557), baron of Busset.
Besides Louise, César Borgia had at least eleven children, all illegitimate, including Girolamo Borgia, who married Isabella, Countess of Carpi and Camilla Borgia (1502-1573), Abbess of San Bernardino of Ferrara.
Caesar Borgia and Machiavelli
It is generally considered that Caesar Borgia served as a model for the Prince of Machiavelli. He presents him as the model of the tyrant:in addition to his political crimes, which he makes a game of, he is accused of having had his younger brother, Giovanni Borgia (1476-1497), of whom he is jealous, assassinated, and of maintain an incestuous relationship with his sister, Lucrezia.
Machiavelli remained with Caesar from October 1502 to January 1503, as secretary of the second chancellery sent by Florence, during which time he often wrote to his superiors; this correspondence has survived to the present day.
Chapter VII (“New principalities which are acquired by the strength and fortune of others”) indeed returns to his conquest of Romagna and the trap of Sinigaglia. Caesar is presented there as a model for any statesman:
"I could not propose to a new prince better precepts than the example of his actions", his fall not being his responsibility but due "only to an extraordinary malignity of fortune".
This praise is controversial. Indeed, some scholars see Machiavelli's Borgia as the precursor to 20th-century crimes committed in the name of the state. Others, including Macaulay and Lord Acton, explain that the admiration for violence and the lack of speech were only an effect of widespread criminality and corruption at that time.