Historical Figure
Lucrezia Borgia
1480–1519
Spanish-Italian duchess-consort of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio (1480–1519)
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Biography
Lucrezia Borgia was an Italian noblewoman of the House of Borgia who was the illegitimate daughter of Pope Alexander VI and Vannozza dei Cattanei. She was a former governor of Spoleto.
Timeline
The story of Lucrezia Borgia, told in moments.
Married off at 13 to Giovanni Sforza, Lord of Pesaro. When her father no longer needs the Sforza alliance, the marriage is annulled on grounds of non-consummation. Sforza protests publicly that the marriage was very much consummated.
Married again. This time to Alfonso of Aragon. Her brother Cesare has him strangled after two years when the Aragonese alliance sours. She's 20 and a widow. The rumors of incest and poison follow her. Historians now believe most of them were propaganda from rival families.
Married a third time, to Alfonso d'Este, heir to the Duchy of Ferrara. She reinvents herself. Patron of artists and poets. Ercole Strozzi and Pietro Bembo dedicate works to her. She runs the court efficiently when her husband is away at war.
Dies of complications from childbirth in Ferrara at 39. Her eighth pregnancy. She writes a letter to Pope Leo X hours before dying, asking him to care for her children. The poison queen reputation outlasts her by centuries. Modern historians paint a different picture.
Artifacts (15)
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Okänd kvinna kallad Lucrezia Borgia - Nationalmuseum - 16217
Unknown authorUnknown author
Veneto, Bartolomeo - Lucrezia Borgia (alleged), detail of portrait
Bartolomeo Veneto
1520 Veneto Idealbildnis einer Kurtisane als Flora anagoria
Bartolomeo Veneto
Idealised Portrait of a Courtesan as Flora by Bartolomeo Veneto (SM 1077)
Bartolomeo Veneto
Bartolommeo Veneto - Geïdealiseerd portret van een courtisane als Flora - 1077 - Städel Museum
Bartolomeo Veneto
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