The Borgias - Chapter 8

The hooded figure in Cesare's cell was none other than Giuliano della Rovere himself. Their conversation that night would alter the course of history, but not in the way either man anticipated.

Della Rovere, soon to become Pope Julius II, did indeed free Cesare from the Castel Sant'Angelo, but his motives were far from altruistic. The new pope had no intention of allowing the Borgia scion to regain his former power. Instead, he set about maneuvering Cesare out of Italy altogether.

Julius offered Cesare safe conduct to Ostia, ostensibly to negotiate. Ostia, the ancient port city at the mouth of the Tiber River, lay just nineteen miles southwest of Rome. Once a thriving commercial center crucial to the Roman Empire, Ostia had declined over the centuries. Yet it remained strategically important due to its proximity to Rome and its fortifications. For Julius, it was the perfect location - close enough to maintain control yet positioned ideally for his true plan.

The pope's offer was a trap. Once in Ostia, Cesare found himself at the mercy of Julius's machinations. The pope had leverage: he threatened to strip Cesare of his remaining titles and excommunicate him if he did not comply with his demands. Moreover, Cesare's own captains in the Romagna, sensing the shift in power, had begun to abandon him. With his military strength crumbling and his political allies deserting him, Cesare saw no choice but to accept when he was forced onto a ship bound for Spain. He went into exile, hoping to regroup and return another day, but it was a hope that would never be realized.

Cesare's exile in Spain marked the beginning of the end for the once-mighty Borgia scion. Unable to regain his former power, he eventually found himself fighting as a mercenary for his brother-in-law, the King of Navarre. In 1507, during a siege near Viana, Cesare was ambushed and killed, a seemingly ignominious end for the man who once aspired to rule all of Italy.

As dawn broke over Rome on November 1, 1503, the city awoke to a new era. The Borgia papacy was over, but its impact would resonate through the centuries to come.

In the immediate aftermath, Pope Julius II set about dismantling the Borgia power structure. He reclaimed the Papal States that Cesare had conquered, establishing direct papal rule. But even as he sought to erase the Borgia legacy, Julius found himself building upon the foundations Alexander VI had laid.

Alexander VI's efforts to modernize the papacy were significant and far-reaching. He had reorganized the Apostolic Chamber, the papal treasury, introducing more efficient record-keeping and financial management. He established new departments within the Curia, such as the Secretariat of Briefs, to streamline papal administration. Alexander also initiated reforms in the College of Cardinals, limiting their number to seventy and requiring that new appointees have a doctorate in theology or canon law.

Julius II, despite his enmity towards the Borgias, recognized the value in many of these reforms. He maintained the improved financial systems and continued the practice of appointing well-educated cardinals. Julius also built upon Alexander's efforts to centralize papal authority, particularly in the Papal States. He used the administrative framework Alexander had established to more effectively govern these territories directly, rather than through feudal lords.

Perhaps the most lasting impact of the Borgia papacy was the change it sparked in papal elections. The scandals and excesses of Alexander VI's reign led to a tightening of conclave procedures. The bull "Cum tam divino" issued by Julius II in 1505 declared simoniacal papal elections invalid, attempting to curb the rampant bribery that had characterized previous conclaves. The physical isolation of cardinals during the conclave was more strictly enforced, and measures were taken to prevent outside interference. These changes laid the groundwork for Pope Gregory XV's 1621 bull "Aeterni Patris Filius," which established many of the procedures still used in modern conclaves. These include the use of secret ballots, the two-thirds majority requirement for election, and the practice of burning ballots to produce the famous white or black smoke signals. The seclusion of cardinals and the oath of secrecy they must take also remain key features of modern conclaves.

The Borgia influence extended beyond the walls of the Vatican. In Spain, the Inquisition that had been revitalized under Alexander VI continued its zealous pursuit of heretics and conversos. The methods and structures established during this period, such as the use of familiars (lay collaborators) and the practice of confiscating property from the convicted, would cast a long shadow over European history, influencing religious policy and shaping the course of the Counter-Reformation.

As the 16th century progressed, the Borgia name became synonymous with corruption and depravity in the popular imagination. Yet reality, as always, was more complex. In Ferrara, Lucrezia Borgia reinvented herself as a patron of the arts and a model of Renaissance nobility. Her court became a center of culture and learning, far removed from the scandalous reputation of her youth. Lucrezia lived out her days as the Duchess of Ferrara, bearing several children and earning a reputation for piety and charitable works. She died in 1519 at the age of thirty-nine, following complications from the birth of her eighth child. Her death was mourned throughout Ferrara, where she had become a beloved figure, her early notoriety largely forgotten.

And then there was Francis Borgia, Cesare's grandson. Born in 1510, Francis would grow up to renounce his noble titles and join the Jesuit order. His piety and dedication to reform within the Church stood in stark contrast to the reputation of his infamous grandfather. In 1670, he was canonized as St. Francis Borgia, providing a counterpoint to the family's dark legacy.

Cesare Borgia's military and political strategies, as observed and recorded by Machiavelli, had a profound influence on political thought. His method of consolidating power in the Romagna by eliminating rival noble families and installing loyal governors became a model for centralized state-building. Cesare's use of both force and diplomacy, his ability to inspire loyalty in his troops, and his strategic acumen in forming and breaking alliances as needed, all featured prominently in Machiavelli's "The Prince." These ideas would go on to influence rulers and political thinkers for centuries, from the absolute monarchs of the 17th century to modern studies of realpolitik.

The Borgias also left a lasting mark on Renaissance culture. Their patronage of the arts, exemplified by the Borgia Apartments frescoed by Pinturicchio, helped to establish Rome as a center of Renaissance art to rival Florence. The opulent papal court under Alexander VI set new standards for princely magnificence that would be emulated across Europe.

In the realm of international politics, Alexander VI's bull "Inter caetera" of 1493, which divided the New World between Spain and Portugal, had far-reaching consequences for global colonization and the spread of Christianity. This papal act of arbitration established a precedent for the Church's role in mediating international disputes that would continue for centuries.

As the centuries passed, historians began to reassess the Borgia papacy. While the corruption and nepotism of Alexander VI's reign were undeniable, so too were his administrative reforms and patronage of the arts. The Borgia Apartments, with Pinturicchio's magnificent frescoes, remained a testament to their cultural contributions.

In the end, the legacy of the Borgias defied simple categorization. They were neither the demons of legend nor misunderstood visionaries. They were human, in all the complexity that entails – capable of great achievements and terrible misdeeds, of piety and sin, of vision and shortsightedness.

As we close the final chapter on our Borgia saga, we are left to reflect on the complex interplay of faith, power, and human nature that defined their era. The Borgias rose to the pinnacle of earthly power, only to fall spectacularly. Yet their impact on the Church, on Italy, and on European history cannot be denied.

In the shadowy corridors of the Vatican, in the grand palaces of Ferrara, in the philosophical debates of chancelleries across Europe, the echoes of the Borgia era can still be heard. Their story serves as a cautionary tale about the corrupting influence of power, but also as a reminder of the enduring human capacity for redemption and renewal.

And so, dear reader, we bid farewell to the Borgias. But their legacy lives on, a testament to the enduring power of history to enlighten, caution, and inspire us across the centuries.

[The End]