Cesare Borgia (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
maleborgia) wrote2010-08-13 01:58 am
maleborgia) wrote2010-08-13 01:58 am
Entry tags:
Family
Cesare has a complicated relationship with his family which I think is worth explaining more fully. On the one hand he has not lived with his parents or siblings since he was seven and there was some serious drama between them. On the other hand, the Borgia family sees itself as an island surrounded by clans that are untrustworthy at best and blatantly antagonistic at worst. This lends itself to some interesting family dynamics...
Rodrigo Borgia (Roderic Llançol/Lanzol, Roderic de Borja i Borja) is Cesare's father and the head of the Borgia clan. Rodrigo was born Roderic Llançol in Valencian or Roderic Lanzol in Spanish at Xátiva in the Kingdom of Valencia, part of what we now recognize as Spain. After his maternal uncle became Pope Calixtus III in 1455, he took his mother's surname of Borja. Her family was supposedly descended from the royal family and it was through her that he took his emblem of a red bull rampant on a gold field. He was brought to Rome with a cousin by Calixtus III as part of the nepotism engaged in by most men of power. During Cesare's time at the University of Pisa, he is a cardinal in the Vatican and vice-chancellor of the Church. Simplifying things, he is the second most important man in the Church and is already planning his second (and ultimately successful) attempt for the Papal Throne since it is clear by 1491 that the current pope, Innocent VIII, is dying.
In 1491, the year Cesare is taken from, Rodrigo is sixty--considered to be getting on in years but by no means the oldest man in Rome. He is highly ambitious, intelligent, and financially shrewd. He is also lecherous and incredibly proud of his achievements and of his family, as becomes blindingly apparent once he becomes pope and sets in motion plans that seem to have been heading to ultimately found a dynasty in the Romagna. He is not the first man of the cloth to have illegitimate children, but he is the first cardinal or pope to openly acknowledge them. Cesare and his siblings were all well known to be their father's children and everyone understood just how fond he was of them, especially of the four born to Vannozza di Catanei.
Rodrigo is seen as a monster by many in Italy because of his ambition and lack of the kind of sexual restraint expected of a man in his position. His lenient stance towards the Jews (apart from two incidences of heavy taxation in the later years, his reign was remarkably tolerant) and dealings with the Muslim Turks leads to accusations that he himself was a Jew or infidel. Being Spanish, furthermore, and being proud of his heritage is yet another mark against him. He takes these accusations in stride, perhaps because by his age he has simply become accustomed to them. Cesare, on the other hand, is less thick-skinned. Whatever one might say about Rodrigo, however, it is clear to everyone that he loves his children and has great pride in them.
Vannozza dei Catanei was thirty-three when she gave birth to Cesare, the eldest of the four children she gave to Rodrigo, and forty-nine in 1491. There is dispute over her background, although it is clear that she did not have family in Rome. Regardless, she was unusually mature in years when she captured Rodrigo's affection a short while before Cesare's birth and was thought to be both very attractive and very smart, capable of holding his affections the longest out of any of his mistresses, so that they were on good terms even after their liaison was over.
Rodrigo arranges for Vannozza to be married four times in order to provide her with greater financial security and status. She is a devout Christian, has good business sense, and eventually becomes independently wealthy, owning multiple inns and creating various charities in Rome. All in all she is very highly regarded in Rome and is generally given respect even by Rodrigo's enemies.
Cesare and his siblings are all very close to their mother even though they left her household at an early age, and remain close to her throughout their lives. Talk about Vannozza being a whore will not be taken well. (Although, really, when has calling someone's mom a ho even been a good idea?) Although Cesare canonically refers to her as such, he was also making a statement about the political times they live in.
Giovanni Borgia (Juan Borja) is Cesare's brother, born the year after him. He is only mentioned briefly in the series, but their statement that he is Cesare's opposite pretty much sums up their relationship. Giovanni is well-known in Italy as Rodrigo's favorite son but is not well-liked. Unlike Cesare, he is not skilled at playing the diplomat and is considered to be the less talented of the two brothers. He and Cesare rarely get along and as they get older it becomes clearer that while Giovanni is envious of Cesare's close working relationship with their father and the authority he gets, Cesare is jealous of Giovanni's favored status and the underserved honors lavished upon him (after Rodrigo becomes pope and Cesare is made a cardinal, Giovanni becomes the 2nd Duke of Gandía and gonfalionere, a position he was unsuitable for). In 1491 their relationship has not yet become as strained as it does by the time of Giovanni's murder in 1497, but it is certainly not an ideal one.
Giovanni's murder eventually leads to rumors that Cesare was the killer and even that he was the real power behind his father. This is irrelevant to the Cesare in camp since his brother is still very much alive. Regardless, Cesare and Giovanni do not get along. There is some serious sibling rivalry here.
ed And now that I've read Don Juan, I can come back to this and say that he is pretty similar. Except wrong time period and junk.
Lucrezia Borgia (Lucretia Borja) is the much adored daughter and sister of the family. She was born in 1480, making her eleven in 1491. She is a very pretty, energetic, and clever girl (she is also very Christian, although she shows as a teenager a certain disrespect for ceremony) and is currently being raised in the household of Adriana di Mila, Rodrigo's cousin. Giulia Farnese, Adriana's daughter-in-law also lives with them and is Rodrigo's current mistress. Lucrezia herself is eventually married to Giovanni Sforza (who, after a nasty divorce, spreads rumors that she had sexual relations with both her father and Cesare), Alfonso de Bisceglie (who was murdered by Cesare's men), and finally Alfonso d'Este. At this point, however, she is engaged to a Spaniard (or two, depending on who you ask) but is still too young to be married.
Lucrezia is very close to her father and two older brothers and remains a valuable ally to Cesare throughout his adult life. The canon I took Cesare from does play up the incest but only from Lucrezia's side and it hints that it has less to do with love and more to do with a fierce need to protect and be protected from the outside world. While normally the incest thing is a huge turn-off for me (between Cesare and Lucrezia, at least), I'll actually buy this since 1) she is portrayed as young and not really understanding what she is talking about or expressing 2) it is not mutual/not from Cesare's point of view 3) includes Lucrezia's statement that she may be the only woman in the world who can help him. That last part in particular is what did it for me, as I think it nicely encapsulates the idea that they were outsiders and were forced into closeness with each other and also reminds more of the political marriages that so defined the practice among the powerful of the time. The marriage Lucrezia is talking about is not one based on romantic interest (although it does leave her feelings for her brother up in the air) but on practical need.
There are infamous rumors about Lucrezia. The incest one in particular annoyed irl Cesare (although it hasn't yet been spread in 1491, so canon him hasn't heard it). That she is a poisoner also isn't true. One way or another, Lucrezia is his baby sister and if you are going to dishonor her, he is going to have to rough you up.
Gioffre Borgia (Jofré Borja) was born in 1482 and is currently nine years old. He is married to Sancia of Aragon, the illegitimate daughter of the King of Naples, in 1497 and becomes the Prince of Squillace (making him both Lucretia's brother and brother-in-law). Right now, however, he's not doing much. Actually, he never does very much, even when he's an adult. It is also uncertain if he is Rodrigo's son or if he was the legitimate product of one of Vannozza's marriages. Regardless, while he was certainly part of the family, he was never a dynamic member of it and (in part because of his contested birth) was not as close to his father and elder siblings.
Gioffre was rather unkindly referred to by contemporary chroniclers as able to fit only the spurs of Cesare's boots. He never got up to much and is best known for being cuckolded. Also, he's nine right now. Cesare doesn't have a lot to say about him one way or the other.
Other Siblings: Cesare also has three older half-siblings (Isabella, Girolama, and Pier Luigi [Pedro Luis]--the 1st Duke of Gandía) from unknown mothers. After 1491 he eventually also has three younger half-siblings (the mysterious infans romanus, and two children from Giulia [Laura in 1492 and Rodrigo in 1503]). Less is known about these siblings in part because it was Rodrigo's strong connection to Vannozza that bonded him to her children as well and in part because of their ages. The three older siblings are already adults by 1491 and the two girls are married off by the time Rodrigo becomes pope, while Pedro Luis dies shortly after. The infans romanus created a stir in Rome at the time of his birth because of rumors of Lucrezia's incestuous relationships. He and the two children born to Giulia, however, were still too young by the time of their father's death in 1503 to warrant any real attention from the chroniclers of the day.
Cesare has never met his older half-siblings and Pedro Luis (as he is called at this time since he is living in Spain) would be the only one he would know much about. The younger ones haven't been born yet.
Note: I'm basing a lot of this off of what I know of the irl Cesare. If canon ever says otherwise, I'll update this to reflect that.
Rodrigo Borgia (Roderic Llançol/Lanzol, Roderic de Borja i Borja) is Cesare's father and the head of the Borgia clan. Rodrigo was born Roderic Llançol in Valencian or Roderic Lanzol in Spanish at Xátiva in the Kingdom of Valencia, part of what we now recognize as Spain. After his maternal uncle became Pope Calixtus III in 1455, he took his mother's surname of Borja. Her family was supposedly descended from the royal family and it was through her that he took his emblem of a red bull rampant on a gold field. He was brought to Rome with a cousin by Calixtus III as part of the nepotism engaged in by most men of power. During Cesare's time at the University of Pisa, he is a cardinal in the Vatican and vice-chancellor of the Church. Simplifying things, he is the second most important man in the Church and is already planning his second (and ultimately successful) attempt for the Papal Throne since it is clear by 1491 that the current pope, Innocent VIII, is dying.
In 1491, the year Cesare is taken from, Rodrigo is sixty--considered to be getting on in years but by no means the oldest man in Rome. He is highly ambitious, intelligent, and financially shrewd. He is also lecherous and incredibly proud of his achievements and of his family, as becomes blindingly apparent once he becomes pope and sets in motion plans that seem to have been heading to ultimately found a dynasty in the Romagna. He is not the first man of the cloth to have illegitimate children, but he is the first cardinal or pope to openly acknowledge them. Cesare and his siblings were all well known to be their father's children and everyone understood just how fond he was of them, especially of the four born to Vannozza di Catanei.
Rodrigo is seen as a monster by many in Italy because of his ambition and lack of the kind of sexual restraint expected of a man in his position. His lenient stance towards the Jews (apart from two incidences of heavy taxation in the later years, his reign was remarkably tolerant) and dealings with the Muslim Turks leads to accusations that he himself was a Jew or infidel. Being Spanish, furthermore, and being proud of his heritage is yet another mark against him. He takes these accusations in stride, perhaps because by his age he has simply become accustomed to them. Cesare, on the other hand, is less thick-skinned. Whatever one might say about Rodrigo, however, it is clear to everyone that he loves his children and has great pride in them.
Vannozza dei Catanei was thirty-three when she gave birth to Cesare, the eldest of the four children she gave to Rodrigo, and forty-nine in 1491. There is dispute over her background, although it is clear that she did not have family in Rome. Regardless, she was unusually mature in years when she captured Rodrigo's affection a short while before Cesare's birth and was thought to be both very attractive and very smart, capable of holding his affections the longest out of any of his mistresses, so that they were on good terms even after their liaison was over.
Rodrigo arranges for Vannozza to be married four times in order to provide her with greater financial security and status. She is a devout Christian, has good business sense, and eventually becomes independently wealthy, owning multiple inns and creating various charities in Rome. All in all she is very highly regarded in Rome and is generally given respect even by Rodrigo's enemies.
Cesare and his siblings are all very close to their mother even though they left her household at an early age, and remain close to her throughout their lives. Talk about Vannozza being a whore will not be taken well. (Although, really, when has calling someone's mom a ho even been a good idea?) Although Cesare canonically refers to her as such, he was also making a statement about the political times they live in.
Giovanni Borgia (Juan Borja) is Cesare's brother, born the year after him. He is only mentioned briefly in the series, but their statement that he is Cesare's opposite pretty much sums up their relationship. Giovanni is well-known in Italy as Rodrigo's favorite son but is not well-liked. Unlike Cesare, he is not skilled at playing the diplomat and is considered to be the less talented of the two brothers. He and Cesare rarely get along and as they get older it becomes clearer that while Giovanni is envious of Cesare's close working relationship with their father and the authority he gets, Cesare is jealous of Giovanni's favored status and the underserved honors lavished upon him (after Rodrigo becomes pope and Cesare is made a cardinal, Giovanni becomes the 2nd Duke of Gandía and gonfalionere, a position he was unsuitable for). In 1491 their relationship has not yet become as strained as it does by the time of Giovanni's murder in 1497, but it is certainly not an ideal one.
Giovanni's murder eventually leads to rumors that Cesare was the killer and even that he was the real power behind his father. This is irrelevant to the Cesare in camp since his brother is still very much alive. Regardless, Cesare and Giovanni do not get along. There is some serious sibling rivalry here.
ed And now that I've read Don Juan, I can come back to this and say that he is pretty similar. Except wrong time period and junk.
Lucrezia Borgia (Lucretia Borja) is the much adored daughter and sister of the family. She was born in 1480, making her eleven in 1491. She is a very pretty, energetic, and clever girl (she is also very Christian, although she shows as a teenager a certain disrespect for ceremony) and is currently being raised in the household of Adriana di Mila, Rodrigo's cousin. Giulia Farnese, Adriana's daughter-in-law also lives with them and is Rodrigo's current mistress. Lucrezia herself is eventually married to Giovanni Sforza (who, after a nasty divorce, spreads rumors that she had sexual relations with both her father and Cesare), Alfonso de Bisceglie (who was murdered by Cesare's men), and finally Alfonso d'Este. At this point, however, she is engaged to a Spaniard (or two, depending on who you ask) but is still too young to be married.
Lucrezia is very close to her father and two older brothers and remains a valuable ally to Cesare throughout his adult life. The canon I took Cesare from does play up the incest but only from Lucrezia's side and it hints that it has less to do with love and more to do with a fierce need to protect and be protected from the outside world. While normally the incest thing is a huge turn-off for me (between Cesare and Lucrezia, at least), I'll actually buy this since 1) she is portrayed as young and not really understanding what she is talking about or expressing 2) it is not mutual/not from Cesare's point of view 3) includes Lucrezia's statement that she may be the only woman in the world who can help him. That last part in particular is what did it for me, as I think it nicely encapsulates the idea that they were outsiders and were forced into closeness with each other and also reminds more of the political marriages that so defined the practice among the powerful of the time. The marriage Lucrezia is talking about is not one based on romantic interest (although it does leave her feelings for her brother up in the air) but on practical need.
There are infamous rumors about Lucrezia. The incest one in particular annoyed irl Cesare (although it hasn't yet been spread in 1491, so canon him hasn't heard it). That she is a poisoner also isn't true. One way or another, Lucrezia is his baby sister and if you are going to dishonor her, he is going to have to rough you up.
Gioffre Borgia (Jofré Borja) was born in 1482 and is currently nine years old. He is married to Sancia of Aragon, the illegitimate daughter of the King of Naples, in 1497 and becomes the Prince of Squillace (making him both Lucretia's brother and brother-in-law). Right now, however, he's not doing much. Actually, he never does very much, even when he's an adult. It is also uncertain if he is Rodrigo's son or if he was the legitimate product of one of Vannozza's marriages. Regardless, while he was certainly part of the family, he was never a dynamic member of it and (in part because of his contested birth) was not as close to his father and elder siblings.
Gioffre was rather unkindly referred to by contemporary chroniclers as able to fit only the spurs of Cesare's boots. He never got up to much and is best known for being cuckolded. Also, he's nine right now. Cesare doesn't have a lot to say about him one way or the other.
Other Siblings: Cesare also has three older half-siblings (Isabella, Girolama, and Pier Luigi [Pedro Luis]--the 1st Duke of Gandía) from unknown mothers. After 1491 he eventually also has three younger half-siblings (the mysterious infans romanus, and two children from Giulia [Laura in 1492 and Rodrigo in 1503]). Less is known about these siblings in part because it was Rodrigo's strong connection to Vannozza that bonded him to her children as well and in part because of their ages. The three older siblings are already adults by 1491 and the two girls are married off by the time Rodrigo becomes pope, while Pedro Luis dies shortly after. The infans romanus created a stir in Rome at the time of his birth because of rumors of Lucrezia's incestuous relationships. He and the two children born to Giulia, however, were still too young by the time of their father's death in 1503 to warrant any real attention from the chroniclers of the day.
Cesare has never met his older half-siblings and Pedro Luis (as he is called at this time since he is living in Spain) would be the only one he would know much about. The younger ones haven't been born yet.
Note: I'm basing a lot of this off of what I know of the irl Cesare. If canon ever says otherwise, I'll update this to reflect that.