The Renaissance’s Most Shocking Murder Mystery: Who Killed Giovanni Borgia?
The Renaissance was a time of great artistic and cultural innovation, but it was also a time of great political intrigue and danger. The House of Borgia, a prominent family in Renaissance Italy, was no exception. Born in 1476, Giovanni Borgia was the second son of Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia and his mistress Vannozza Dei Cattanei. Despite their prominence and patronage of the arts, the family had a notorious reputation for immorality and sin, including rumors of incest, adultery, theft, and murder by arsenic poisoning.
In 1492, Giovanni’s father, Rodrigo Borgia, became Pope Alexander VI, which only added to the family’s notoriety. However, many modern scholars believe that the accusations against the Borgias were exaggerated and that they were no more criminal than other noble families of the time.
Despite his family’s reputation, Giovanni became the Duke of Gandia in 1493 after the death of his half-brother. He later married his half-brother’s betrothed, Maria Enriquez De Luna, with whom he had two children. Giovanni also became a captain general in the papacy’s army.
However, on the night of June 14, 1497, Giovanni attended a feast at his mother’s villa on the outskirts of Rome, and his life would be tragically cut short.
