Alexander VI: Demon or Angel?
Jason H. Rodarte, Ed.D
When one thinks about the corruption of the Renaissance Papacy one often thinks of the papacy of Rodrigo Borgia, who ruled as Alexander VI from 11 August 1492 to his death on 18 August 1503. His papacy took place as the New World was discovered and settled by Europeans. His papacy took place prior to the split in Western Christendom that would take place shortly after his death with the Protestant Reformation. Many historians posit that his papacy is indeed a low point in the history of the occupancy of the Chair of St. Peter. Is the reputation surrounding his papacy one that is deserved or is the papacy of Alexander VI a victim of influences outside of its control?
Early Life and Education
The future Alexander VI was born Rodrigo Borgia on 1 January 1431 in Valencia, then a part of the Kingdom of Aragon, in modern day Spain. He came from a noble house. His uncle,Alonso de Borja (Italianized to Alfonso Borgia) would be elected to the papacy on 8 April 1455, though as a cardinal, Alfonso spent most of his life in Rome at the service of the different popes. Rodrigo would soon join his uncle in Rome for an ecclesiastical career, which was not uncommon in the late Middle Ages and Renaissance time periods.
Rodrigo was sent by his uncle to study law at the University of Bologna and upon the election of his uncle to the papacy was ordained to the deaconate and created Cardinal-Deacon of San Nicola in Carcere at the age of 25. He held that title until 1471, when he became Cardinal Bishop of Albano and in 1476 he was named Cardinal Bishop of Porto and Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals. It must be noted that it was not unusual for Popes to raise their nephews or other members of the their families to the Cardinalate in the Middle Ages and the Post-Reformation era.
Ecclesiastical Responsibilities
As part of his responsibilities as Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals, Borgia was sent out throughout the Papal States and the others Italian Provinces to conduct Apostolic Visitations at the behest of his uncle. These responsibilities including settling court cases which needed the judgement of the Pope as well as audits of the various ministries and holdings held within the particular Italian dioceses and archdioceses. Francesco Guicciardini, a Florentine statesmen and a supporter of the Medici Family, wrote that, “in him were combined rare prudence and vigilance mature reflection, marvellous power of persuasion, skill and capacity for the conduct of the most difficult affairs” (New Advent). Though there was a letter of reprimand due to some questionable activity by his retinue in Sienna, it appears that the Cardinal was not responsible for it and did not know about it until after the events had taken place (Meyer, 2014).
In his duties of the Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals also meant that he was also in charge of the distribution of funds for the Holy See, which included the upkeep of churches and basilicas. Meyers (2014) indicated that he was noted for his prudence and financial sense in caring for the land and buildings owned by the Diocese of Rome and was also known for his own charity in caring for pilgrims from Spain and the poor of the city of Rome.
Elected Pope
Rodrigo Borgia was elected to the Papacy on 11 August 1492 at 61 years of age. This was not without almost immediate controversy as Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere accused Alexander VI of simony. Simony is the selling of ecclesiastical services for benefit.
1492 is an important year in Spanish history. It was during this year that Los Reyes Catolicos were able to defeat the last Muslim stronghold at Granada. After over 700 years the Spanish were once again in control of their country. Also in 1492 Rodrigo Borgia was elected to the Chair of St. Peter (Diarios de Los Borgia, 1492 entries).
The rumor of simony would plague the Borgia papacy. These rumors were so severe that the Venetian diplomat Girolamo Priuli felt able to claim he had “given his soul and body to the great demon in Hell”. Indeed, as the papal master of ceremonies, Johann Burchard, was to contend in the middle of Alexander’s reign:
There is no longer any crime or shameful act that does not take place in public in Rome and in the home of the Pontiff. Who could fail to be horrified by the…terrible, monstrous acts of lechery that are committed openly in his home, with no respect for God or man? Rapes and acts of incest are countless…[and] great throngs of courtesans frequent St. Peter’s Palace, pimps, brothels, and whorehouses are to be found everywhere! (Matthews, 2018).
Inter Ceastera (Treaty of Tordesillas)
One of the major accomplishments of the Borgia Papacy was the naming of which European countries would have control of the New World. It should be noted that this was done without the consultation of Native peoples and was only between the Spanish and the Portuguese. Alexander V I, being Spanish sided with the Spanish and awarded them the largest amount of territory, though the Portuguese would gain the largest modern country of Brazil. This is why Spanish is spoken in the majority of countries in the Latin American and Portuguese is spoken in Brazil.
Diffie (1977) explained the 3 fold issuance of Papal Bulls that settled the question and what land masses were divided up between Spain and Portugal:
- The first bull, Inter caetera, dated 3 May, recognized Spain’s claim to any discovered lands not already held by a Christian prince, and protected Portugal’s previous rights. Both parties found this too vague.
- The second bull, Eximiae devotionis, also dated 3 May, granted to the kings of Castile and León and their successors the same privileges in the newly discovered land that had been granted to the kings of Portugal in the regions of Africa, and Guinea.
- The third bull, also entitled Inter Caetera, dated 4 May, exhorts the Spanish monarchs to spread the faith west from a line drawn “one hundred leagues towards the west and south from any of the islands commonly known as the Azores and Cape Verde”. Diffie notes that it has been suggested that this change may have been prompted by the Portuguese ambassador.
Children?
Many Renaissance Popes were known to have fathered children either before or after entering the clerical state, which required celibacy for those in Holy Orders. It is believed that Rodrigo Borgia fathered at least 4 children prior to his elevation to the Papacy. Giovanni or Juan (1474 or 1476–1497), Cesar (13 September 1475–12 March 1507,who became the first person to willingly leave the Cardinalate and is the figure Machiavelli was supposed to have based his work, The Prince, on), Lucrezia ( 18 April 1480–24 June 1519) and Gioffre (1481/82–1516/17).
Cesar and Lucretia would be accused of scandalous behavior, including incest and being masters of poisoning their foes. Cesar was accused of committing fratricide against Juan and Lucrezia was accused of having sexual intercourse with her father. Modern historians have indicated that the only evidence that there is of any of these accusations is gossip and the fact that the Borgias were a Spanish rather than an Italian family (Meyer, 2014, Matthews, 2018). Does this mean that the family was free from scandal? No, only that there is no historical evidence that can strengthen the claims which have survived for over over 500 years.
It should be noted that other Renissancance families in Italy were rumored to have indulged in such behavior as that which the Borgias are accused of doing.
Meyer posited that the children that are associated with the family name of Borgia were not his biological children, all least all of them. It is believed that they may have been children from a lesser known part of the Borgia family who Rodrigo adopted as a cardinal. This was not uncommon behavior in the Renaissance especially with a family as well connected both politically, financially and religiously as the Household of Rodrigo Borgia. Even if they were his children, it was not unknown for clerics to father children.
Changing Opinions of Spanish
At different times in the late Renaissance period those from Spain were seen in various lights, especially since the Aragonese had a claim to the throne of Naples and at times there would be large numbers of Spanish in Italy, especially during the Borgia Papacies. According to Lee (2013), “in the affairs of Northern Italy during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, there gradually emerged a ‘Black Legend’, a virulent form of anti-Spanish propaganda which identified all things Spanish with oppression, brutality, and cruelty.” This more than anything seems to be a major factor in the propaganda spread about this family by Italians and particularly Alexander VI’s successor Pope Julius II (Giuliano della Rovere) who was defeated in the Papal Conclave of 1492 by Borgia. Immediately Cardinal della Rovere accused Alexander VI of simony, or selling ecclesiastical benefits in order to secure the necessary vote of the College of Cardinals in order to be elected Pope. Cardinal della Rovere fled Rome and was later declared an enemy of the City of Rome by Alexander VI.
Even as Cardinal della Rovere, he did much to malign the Borgias on an international level to France and the Court of Charles VIII(reinged 30 August 1483–7 April 1498). The Cardinal urged Charles VIII to claim the Kingdom of Naples for his own, invade the Italian peninsula, enter the City of Rome and depose Alexander VI as pope. Charles did enter the Italian peninsula, was allowed to enter into Milan with little combat, and made his way down to Rome, where instead of deposing Alexander VI, he seemed to become friends and allies of the Pontiff.
Once della Rovere was elected to the Papacy he did much to destroy the legacy of the Borgias (Meyer, 2014, Matthew, 2018). This, coupled with the above mentioned circumstances has much to do with the poor reputation of the Borgias.
Death of Alexander VI
On 6 August 1503, Alexander VI and Cesar dined at the home of Cardinal Adriano Castellesi. Soon after both became seriously ill. Cesar, being much younger than Alexander VI, at the time 72 years of age, was able to recover. The Pope, however, was not able to do so. He passed away on the 18th of August. It was rumored that the Borgias had been poisoned.
According to the Papal Master of Ceremonies, Johann Burchard (1921):
Saturday, 12 August 1503, the Pope fell ill in the morning. After the hour of vespers, between six and seven o’clock a fever appeared and remained permanently. On 15 August thirteen ounces of blood were drawn from him and the tertian agnes supervened. On Thursday, 17 August, at nine o’clock in the forenoon he took medicine. On Friday, the 18th, between nine and ten o’clock he confessed to the Bishop Gamboa of Carignola, who then read Mass to him. After his Communion he gave the Eucharist to the Pope who was sitting in bed. Then he ended the Mass at which were present five cardinals, Serra, Juan and Francesco Borgia, Casanova and Loris. The Pope told them that he felt very bad. At the hour of vespers after Gamboa had given him Extreme Unction, he died.
Modern historians do not believe that oisoning was the cause of death. Rather. modern forensics believe that the cause of death of Alexander VI was malaria (Meyer, 2014). Rome is infamous for the heat and the mosquitoes that plague the city, especially at the time of Alexander. Most Roman families, even to this day, leave the city of Rome to their villas or other vacations outside of the city. It was not uncommon for those who stayed in the city to succumb to malaria or some other type of pestilence, especially at such an advanced age as Alexander VI.
Conclusion
The original intent was to discover whether or not Alexander VI, the Borgia Pope, and in a related way, his family, deserved the reputation which he has had for the past 500 years. Through an examination of the evidence, it does not seem as if the Borgias were any better or any worse than any other Renaissance family of means. Contemporaries spoke well of Rodrigo prior to his election to the Chair of Saint Peter. It seems as if the contention for such a powerful office between the major Italian families was a factor in this reputation. The fact that the Borgias were Spanish did not help their cause, especially since their enemies, such as Pope Julius II (Giuliano della Rovere), would survive this family by many years.
The Bohemian humanist poet, Bohuslav Hasistejnsky Lobkovic,(1461–1510), dedicated one of his Latin poems to Alexander, demonstrating that the Pontiff was not reviled by all (reprinted in 1996):
Epitaphium Alexandri Papae
Cui tranquilla quies odio, cui proelia cordi
et rixa et caedes seditioque fuit,
mortuus hac recubat populis gaudentibus urna
pastor Alexander, maxima Roma, tuus.
Vos, Erebi proceres, vos caeli claudite portas
atque Animam vestris hanc prohibete locis.
In Styga nam veniens pacem turbabit Averni,
committet superos, si petat astra poli.
Epitaph to Pope Alexander
Who sacrificed quiet to hatred, with a warrior heart,
who did not stop at quarrels, struggles and slaughters,
is lying here in the coffin for all people to rejoice,
thy supreme pontiff Alexander, oh, capital Rome.
Ye prelates of Erebus and Heaven, close your doors
and prohibit the Soul from entering your sites.
He would disrupt the peace of Styx and disturb Avernus,
and vanquish the Saints, if he enters the sphere of stars.
Was Alexander VI a perfect man? Very few of the Renaissance Popes have been canonized. Was he a devil? No. However, as with all people, the complicatedness of life would place us all somewhere in the middle.
Limitations of the Study/Reflection
There were a few limitations to this study. The first is the time required to go into great depth on any of these topics. Secondly, a wonderful font of primary resources would have been the ability to get access to the Secret Archives of the Vatican which contains great information on this time period. However, the inability to travel to the Vatican as well as having limited time to translate the documents from Latin into English also is a deficit in the completeness of this project.
References
Alexander VI. https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01289a.htm
Bohuslav, B.H. (1996): Carmina selecta, Praha 1996, p.14
Burchard, J. (1921). Pope Alexander VI and His Court: Extracts from the Latin Diary of Johannes Burchardus, F. L. Glaser, tr., N.L. Brown, New York.
Diaro de los borgias. https://sites.google.com/site/diarioborjaborgia/Home. (Spanish).
Diffie, B.W. (1977). Foundations of the Portuguese Empire, 1415–1580. University of Minnesota Press, St. Paul-Minneapolis:MN
Lee. A. (2013).Where the borgias really so bad? https://www.historytoday.com/history-matters/were-borgias-really-so-bad
Matthew, A.H. (2018). Life and times of rodrigo borgia, Pope alexander VI, e-book.
Meyer,GJ. (2014) Borgias: The hidden history. Bantam: New York: NY