Cesare Borgia

Who was Cesare Borgia?

Cesare Borgia, Duke of Valentinois, was an Italian condottiero, nobleman, politician, and cardinal. He was the son of Pope Alexander VI and his long-term mistress Vannozza dei Cattanei. He was the brother of Lucrezia Borgia; Giovanni Borgia, Duke of Gandia; and Gioffre Borgia, Prince of Squillace. He was half-brother to Don Pedro Luis de Borja and Girolama de Borja, children of unknown mothers.

After initially entering the church and becoming a cardinal on his father's election to the Papacy, after the death of his brother in 1498 he became the first person to resign a cardinalcy. His father set him up as a prince with territory carved from the Papal States, but after his father's death he was unable to retain power for long, and after escaping from prison died fighting in Spain.