NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE HOUSE OF ESTE
The hereditary Prince of Ferrara made a determined resistance before
yielding to his father's pressure, but the latter was now so anxious for
the marriage to take place that he told his son that, if he persisted in
his refusal, he would be compelled to marry Lucretia himself. After the
duke had overcome his son's pride and secured his consent, he regarded
the marriage merely as an advantageous piece of statecraft. He sold the
honor of his house at the highest price obtainable. The Pope's agents in
Ferrara, frightened by Ercole's demands, sent Ramondo Remolini to Rome
to submit them to Alexander, who sought the intervention of the King of
France to secure more favorable terms from the duke. A letter from the
Ferrarese ambassador to France to his master throws a bright light on
this transaction.
MY ILLUSTRIOUS MASTER: Yesterday the Pope's envoy told me
that his Holiness had written him about the messenger your
Excellency had sent him demanding two hundred thousand ducats, the
remission of the annual tribute, the granting of the _jus
patronatus_ for the bishopric of Ferrara, by decree of the
consistory, and certain other concessions. He told me that the Pope
had offered a hundred thousand, and as to the rest--your Excellency
should trust to him, for he would grant them in time and would
advance the interests of the house of Este so that everyone would
see how high in his favor it stood. In addition, he told me that he
was instructed to ask his most Christian Majesty to write to the
illustrious cardinal to advise your Excellency to agree. As your
Excellency's devoted servant I mention this, although it is
superfluous; for if this marriage is to take place, you will
arrange it in such a way that "much promising and little
fulfillment" will not cause you to regret it. I informed your
Excellency in an earlier letter how his most Christian Majesty had
told me that his wishes in this affair were the same as your own,
and that if the marriage was to be brought about, you might derive
as much profit from it as possible, and if it was not to take
place, his Majesty stood ready to give Don Alfonso the lady whom
your Excellency might select for him in France.
Your ducal Excellency's servant,
BARTOLOMEO CAVALERI.
LYONS, _August 7, 1501_.
Alexander did not wish to send his daughter to Ferrara with empty hands,
but the portion which Ercole demanded was not a modest one. It was
larger than Blanca Sforza had brought the Emperor Maximilian; moreover,
one of the duke's demands involved an infraction of the canon law, for,
in addition to the large sum of money, he insisted upon the remission of
the yearly tribute paid the Church by the fief of Ferrara, the cession
of Cento and Pieve, cities which belonged to the archbishopric of
Bologna, and even on the relinquishment of Porto Cesenatico and a large
number of benefices in favor of the house of Este. They wrangled
violently, but so great was the Pope's desire to secure the ducal throne
of Ferrara for his daughter that he soon announced that he would
practically agree to Ercole's demands, which Cæsar urged him to do.[99]
Nor was Lucretia herself less urgent in begging her father to consent;
she was the duke's most able advocate in Rome, and Ercole knew that it
was due largely to her skilful pleading that he succeeded in carrying
his point.
The negotiations took this favorable turn about the end of July or the
beginning of August, and the earliest of the duke's letters to Lucretia
and the Pope, among those preserved in the archives of the house of
Este, belong to this period.
August 6th Ercole wrote his future daughter-in-law, recommending to her
for her agent one Agostino Huet (a secretary of Cæsar's), who had shown
the greatest interest in conducting the negotiations.
August 10th he reported to the Pope the result of the conferences which
had taken place, and urged him not to look on his demands as
unreasonable. This he repeated in a letter dated August 21st, in which
he stated in plain, commercial terms that the price was low enough; in
fact, that it was merely nominal.
In the meantime the projected marriage had become known to the world,
and was the subject of diplomatic consideration, for the strengthening
of the papacy was agreeable to neither the Powers of Italy nor those
beyond the peninsula. Florence and Bologna, which Cæsar coveted were
frightened; the Republic of Venice, which was in constant friction with
Ferrara, and which had designs upon the coast of Romagna, did not
conceal her annoyance, and she ascribed the whole thing to Cæsar's
ambition.[100] The King of France put a good face upon the matter, as
did also the King of Spain; but Maximilian was so opposed to the
marriage that he endeavored to prevent it. Ferrara was just beginning to
acquire the political importance which Florence had possessed in the
time of Lorenzo de' Medici, consequently its influence was such that the
German emperor could not be indifferent to an alliance between it and
the papacy and France. Moreover, Bianca Sforza was Maximilian's wife,
and at the German court there were other members and retainers of the
overthrown house--all bitter enemies of the Borgias.
In August the Emperor despatched letters to Ferrara in which he warned
Ercole against any marital alliance between his house and that of
Alexander. This warning of Maximilian's must have been highly acceptable
to the duke, as he could use it to force the Pope to accede to his
demands. He mentioned the letter to his Holiness, but assured him that
his determination would remain unshaken. Then he instructed his
counselor, Gianluca Pozzi, to answer the Emperor's letter.[101] Ercole's
letter to his chancellor is dated August 25th, but before its contents
became known in Rome the Pope hastened to agree to the duke's
conditions, and to have the marriage contract executed. This was done in
the Vatican, August 26, 1501.[102]
He immediately despatched Cardinal Ferrari to Ercole with the contract,
whereupon Don Ramiro Remolini and other proxies hastened to
Ferrara,[103] where, in the castle of Belfiore, the nuptial contract was
concluded _ad verba_, September 1, 1501.
On the same day the duke wrote Lucretia, saying that, while he hitherto
had loved her on account of her virtues and on account of the Pope and
her brother Cæsar, he now loved her more as a daughter. In the same tone
he wrote to Alexander himself, informing him that the betrothal had
taken place, and thanking him for bestowing the dignity of Archpriest of
S. Peter's on his son, Cardinal Ippolito.[104]
Less diplomatic was Ercole's letter to the Marchese Gonzaga informing
him of the event. It clearly shows what was his real opinion, and he
tries to excuse himself for consenting by saying he was forced to take
the step.
ILLUSTRIOUS SIR AND DEAREST BROTHER: We have informed your
Majesty that we have recently decided--owing to practical
considerations--to consent to an alliance between our house and
that of his Holiness--the marriage of our eldest son, Alfonso, and
the illustrious lady Lucretia Borgia, sister of the illustrious
Duke of Romagna and Valentinois, chiefly because we were urged to
consent by his Most Christian Majesty, and on condition that his
Holiness would agree to everything stipulated in the marriage
contract. Subsequently his Holiness and ourselves came to an
agreement, and the Most Christian King persistently urged us to
execute the contract. This was done to-day in God's name, and with
the assistance of the (French) ambassador and the proxies of his
Holiness, who were present; and it was also published this morning.
I hasten to inform your Majesty of the event because our mutual
relations and love require that you should be made acquainted with
everything which concerns us--and so we offer ourselves to do your
pleasure.
FERRARA, _September 2, 1501_.[105]
September 4th a courier brought the news that the nuptial contract had
been signed in Ferrara. Alexander immediately had the Vatican
illuminated and the cannon of Castle S. Angelo announce the glad
tidings. All Rome resounded with the jubilations of the retainers of the
house of Borgia.
This moment was the turning point in Lucretia's life. If her soul
harbored any ambition and yearning for worldly greatness, what must she
now have felt when the opportunity to ascend the princely throne of one
of Italy's oldest houses was offered her! If she had any regret and
loathing for what had surrounded her in Rome, and if longings for a
better life were stronger in her than were these vain desires, there was
now held out to her the promise of a haven of rest. She was to become
the wife of a prince famous, not for grace and culture, but for his good
sense and earnestness. She had seen him once in Rome, in her early
youth, when she was Sforza's betrothed. No sacrifice would be too great
for her if it would wipe out the remembrance of the nine years which had
followed that day. The victory she had now won by the shameful
complaisance of the house of Este was associated with deep humiliation,
for she knew that Alfonso had condescended to accept her hand only after
long urging and under threats. A bold, intriguing woman might overcome
this feeling of humiliation by summoning up the consciousness of her
genius and her charm; while one less strong, but endowed with beauty and
sweetness, might be fascinated by the idea of disarming a hostile
husband with the magic of her personality. The question, however,
whether any honor accrued to her by marrying a man against his will, or
whether under such circumstances a high-minded woman would not have
scornfully refused, would probably never arise in the mind of such a
light-headed woman as Lucretia certainly was, and if it did in her case,
Cæsar and her father would never have allowed her to give voice to any
such undiplomatic scruples. We can discover no trace of moral pride in
her; all we discern is a childishly naive joy at her prospective
happiness.
The Roman populace saw her, accompanied by three hundred knights and
four bishops, pass along the city streets, September 5th, on her way to
S. Maria del Popolo to offer prayers of thanksgiving. Following a
curious custom of the day, which shows Folly and Wisdom side by side,
just as we find them in Calderon's and Shakespeare's dramas, Lucretia
presented the costly robe which she wore when she offered up her prayer,
to one of her court fools, and the clown ran merrily through the streets
of Rome, bawling out, "Long live the illustrious Duchess of Ferrara!
Long live Pope Alexander!" With noisy demonstrations the Borgias and
their retainers celebrated the great event.
Alexander summoned a consistory, as though this family affair were an
important Church matter. With childish loquacity he extolled Duke
Ercole, pronouncing him the greatest and wisest of the princes of Italy;
he described Don Alfonso as a handsomer and greater man than his son
Cæsar, adding that his former wife was a sister-in-law of the Emperor.
Ferrara was a fortunate State, and the house of Este an ancient one; a
marriage train of great princes was shortly to come to Rome to take the
bride away, and the Duchess of Urbino was to accompany it.[106]
September 14th Cæsar Borgia returned from Naples, where Federico, the
last Aragonese king of that country, had been forced to yield to France.
To his great satisfaction he found Lucretia prospective Duchess of
Ferrara. On the fifteenth Ercole's envoys, Saraceni and Bellingeri,
appeared. Their object was to see that the Pope fulfilled his
obligations promptly. The duke was a practical man; he did not trust
him. He was unwilling to send the bridal escort until he had the papal
bull in his own hands. Lucretia supported the ambassador so zealously
that Saraceni wrote his master that she already appeared to him to be a
good Ferrarese.[107] She was present in the Vatican while Alexander
carried on the negotiations. He sometimes used Latin for the purpose of
displaying his linguistic attainments; but on one occasion, out of
regard for Lucretia, he ordered that Italian be used, which proves that
his daughter was not a perfect mistress of the classic tongue.
From this ambassador's despatches it appears that life in the Vatican
was extremely agreeable. They sang, played and danced every evening. One
of Alexander's greatest delights was to watch beautiful women dancing,
and when Lucretia and the ladies of her court were so engaged he was
careful to summon the Ferrarese ambassadors so that they might note his
daughter's grace. One evening he remarked laughingly that "they might
see that the duchess was not lame."[108]
* * * * *
The Pope never tired of passing the nights in this way, although Cæsar,
a strong man, was worn out by the ceaseless round of pleasure. When the
latter consented to grant the ambassadors an audience, a favor which was
not often bestowed even on cardinals, he received them dressed, but
lying in bed, which caused Saraceni to remark in his despatch, "I feared
that he was sick, for last evening he danced without intermission, which
he will do again tonight at the Pope's palace, where the illustrious
duchess is going to sup."[109] Lucretia regarded it as a relief when, a
few days later, the Pope went to Civitacastellana and Nepi. September
25th the ambassadors wrote to Ferrara, "The illustrious lady continues
somewhat ailing, and is greatly fatigued; she is not, however, under the
care of any physician, nor does she neglect her affairs, but grants
audiences as usual. We think that this indisposition merely indicates
that her Majesty should take better care of herself. The rest which she
will have while his Holiness is away will do her good; for whenever she
is at the Pope's palace, the entire night, until two or three o'clock,
is spent in dancing and at play, which fatigues her greatly."[110]
About this time occurred a disagreeable episode in connection with
Giovanni Sforza, Lucretia's divorced husband, which the Pope discussed
with the Ferrarese ambassadors. What they feared from him is revealed by
the following despatch:
ILLUSTRIOUS PRINCE AND MASTER: As his Holiness the Pope
desires to take all proper precautions to prevent the occurrence of
anything that might be unpleasant to your Excellency, to Don
Alfonso, and especially to the duchess, and also to himself, he has
asked us to write your Excellency and request that you see to it
that Lord Giovanni of Pesaro--who, his Holiness has been informed,
is in Mantua--shall not be in Ferrara at the time of the marriage
festivities. For, although his divorce from the above named
illustrious lady was absolutely legal and according to prescribed
form, as the records of the proceedings clearly show, he himself
fully consenting to it, he may, nevertheless, still harbor some
resentment. If he should be in Ferrara there would be a possibility
of his seeing the lady, and her Excellency would therefore be
compelled to remain in concealment to escape disagreeable
memories. He, therefore, requests your Excellency to prevent this
possibility with your usual foresight. Thereupon his Holiness
freely expressed his opinion of the Marchese of Mantua, and
censured him severely because he of all the Italian princes was the
only one who offered an asylum to outcasts, and especially to those
who were under not only his own ban, but under that of his Most
Christian Majesty. We endeavored, however, to excuse the marchese
by saying that he, a high-minded man, could not close his domain to
such as wished to come to him, especially when they were people of
importance, and we used every argument to defend him. His Holiness,
however, seemed displeased by our defense of the marchese. Your
Excellency may, therefore, make such arrangements as in your wisdom
seem proper. And so we, in all humility, commend ourselves to your
mercy.
ROME, _September 23, 1501_.[111]
As a result of Ercole's insistence, the question of the reduction of
Ferrara's yearly tribute as a fief of the Holy See from four hundred
ducats to one hundred florins was brought to a vote in the consistory,
September 17th. It was expected that there would be violent opposition.
Alexander explained what Ercole had done for Ferrara, his founding
convents and churches, and his strengthening the city, thus making it a
bulwark for the States of the Church. The cardinals were induced to
favor the reduction by the intervention of the Cardinal of Cosenza--one
of Lucretia's creatures--and of Messer Troche, Cæsar's confidant. They
authorized the reduction and the Pope thanked them, especially praising
the older cardinals--the younger, those of his own creation, having been
more obstinate.[112]
The same day he secured possession of the property he had wrested from
the barons who had been placed under his ban August 20th. These domains,
which embraced a large part of the Roman Campagna, were divided into two
districts. The center of one was Nepi; that of the other Sermoneta--two
cities which Lucretia, their former mistress, immediately renounced.
Alexander made these duchies over to two children, Giovanni Borgia and
Rodrigo. At first the Pope ascribed the paternity of the former child to
his own son Cæsar, but subsequently he publicly announced that he
himself was its father.
It is difficult to believe in such unexampled shamelessness, but the
legal documents to prove it are in existence. Both bulls are dated
September 1, 1501, and are addressed to my beloved son, "the noble
Giovanni de Borgia and Infante of Rome." In the former, Alexander states
that Giovanni, a child of three years, was the natural son of Cæsar
Borgia, unmarried (which he was at the time of its birth), by a single
woman. By apostolic authority he legitimated the child and bestowed upon
it all the rights of a member of his family. In the second brief he
refers to the proceedings in which the child had been declared to be
Cæsar's son, and says verbatim: "Since it is owing, not to the duke
named (Cæsar), but to us and to the unmarried woman mentioned that you
bear this stain (of illegitimate birth), which for good reasons we did
not wish to state in the preceding instrument; and in order that there
may be no chance of your being caused annoyance in the future, we will
see to it that that document shall never be declared null, and of our
own free will, and by virtue of our authority, we confirm you, by these
presents, in the full enjoyment of everything as provided in that
instrument." Thereupon he renews the legitimation and announces that
even if this his child, which had hitherto been declared to be Cæsar's,
shall in future, in any document or act be named and described as his
(Cæsar's), and even if he uses Cæsar's arms, it shall in no way inure to
the disadvantage of the child, and that all such acts shall have the
same force which they would have had if the boy had been described not
as Cæsar's, but as his own, in the documents referring to his
legitimation.[113]
It is worthy of note that both these documents were executed on one and
the same day, but this is explained by the fact that the canon law
prevented the Pope from acknowledging his own son. Alexander, therefore,
extricated himself from the difficulty by telling a falsehood in the
first bull. This lie made the legitimation of the child possible, and
also conferred upon it the rights of succession; and this having once
been embodied in a legal document, the Pope could, without injury to the
child, tell the truth.
September 1, 1501, Cæsar was not in Rome. Even a man of his stamp may
have blushed for his father, when he thus made him the rival of this
bastard for the possession of the property. Later, after Alexander's
death, the little Giovanni Borgia passed for Cæsar's son; he had,
moreover, been described as such by the Pope in numerous briefs.[114]
It is not known who was the mother of this mysterious child. Burchard
speaks of her merely as a "certain Roman." If Alexander, who described
her as an "unmarried woman," told the truth, Giulia Farnese could not
have been its mother.
It is possible, however, that the Pope's second statement likewise was
untrue, and that the "Infante of Rome" was not his son, but was a
natural child of Lucretia. The reader will remember that in March, 1498,
the Ferrarese ambassador reported to Duke Ercole that it was rumored in
Rome that the Pope's daughter had given birth to a child. This date
agrees perfectly with the age of the Infante Giovanni in September,
1501. Both documents regarding his legitimation, which are now preserved
in the Este archives, were originally in Lucretia's chancellery. She may
have taken them with her from Rome to Ferrara, or they may have been
brought to her later. Eventually we shall find the Infante at her court
in Ferrara, where he was spoken of as her "brother." These facts suggest
that the mysterious Giovanni Borgia was Lucretia's son--this, however,
is only a hypothesis. The city of Nepi and thirty-six other estates were
conferred upon the child as his dukedom.
The second domain, including the duchy of Sermoneta and twenty-eight
castles, was given to little Rodrigo, Lucretia's only son by Alfonso of
Aragon.
Under Lucretia's changed conditions, this child was an embarrassment to
her, for she either was not allowed or did not dare to bring a child by
her former husband to Ferrara. For the sake of her character let us
assume that she was compelled to leave her child among strangers. The
order to do so, however, does not appear to have emanated from Ferrara,
for, September 28th, the ambassador Gerardi gave his master an account
of a call which he made on Madonna Lucretia, in which he said, "As her
son was present, I asked her--in such a way that she could not mistake
my meaning--what was to be done with him; to which she replied, 'He will
remain in Rome, and will have an allowance of fifteen thousand
ducats.'"[115] The little Rodrigo was, in truth, provided for in a
princely manner. He was placed under the guardianship of two
cardinals--the Patriarch of Alexandria and Francesco Borgia, Archbishop
of Cosenza. He received the revenues of Sermoneta, and he also owned
Biselli, his unfortunate father's inheritance; for Ferdinand and
Isabella of Castile authorized their ambassador in Rome, Francesco de
Roxas, January 7, 1502, to confirm Rodrigo in the possession of the
duchy of Biselli and the city of Quadrata. According to this act his
title was Don Rodrigo Borgia of Aragon, Duke of Biselli and Sermoneta,
and lord of Quadrata.[116]
FOOTNOTES:
[99] Cavallieri to Ercole, Lyons, August 8, 1501. The Pope has written
his nuncio that he agreed to the duke's demands, for the purpose of
concluding the marriage, which would be extraordinarily advantageous to
himself and the Duke of Romagna.
[100] Despatches of the Ferrarese ambassador, Bartolomeo Cartari, from
Venice, June 25, July 28, and August 2, 1501. Archives of Modena.
[101] Ercole's letter to Pozzi in Ferrara, August 25, 1501. Maximilian's
letters are not in the Este archives but in Vienna.
[102] The instrument was drawn by Beneimbene.
[103] Cardinal Ferrari to Ercole, Rome, August 27, 1501.
[104] Ducal Records, September 1, 1501.
[105] The letter is reproduced in Zucchetti's Lucrezia Borgia, Duchessa
di Ferrara, Milan, 1869.
[106] Ed altre cose che egli disse per maggiormente magnificare il
fatto. Matteo Canale to the Duke of Ferrara, Rome, September 11, 1501.
[107] Quale mi pare già essere optima Ferrarese. Despatch from Rome,
September 15th.
[108] Che voleva havessimo veduto che la Duchessa non era zoppa.
Saraceni to Ercole, Rome, September 16th.
[109] Rome, September 23d, Saraceni.
[110] Despatch, September 25th.
[111] To this Ercole replied in reassuring terms. Letter to his orators
in Rome, September 18, 1501.
[112] Despatch of Matteo Canale to Ercole, Rome, September 18, 1501.
[113] Both bulls are in the archives of Modena. The first is a copy, the
second an original. The lead seal is wanting, but the red and yellow
silk by which it was attached is still preserved. I first discovered the
facts in a manuscript in the Barberiniana in Rome.
[114] Mandate of the Pope regarding certain taxes, dated July 21, 1502:
Nobili Infanti Johanni Borgia, nostro secundum carnem nepoti; and in
another brief, dated June 12, 1502, Dil filii nobilis infantis Johannis
Borgia ducis Nepesini delecti filii nobilis viri Cæsaris Borgia de
Francia, etc. Archives of Modena.
[115] Geradi to Ercole, Rome, September 28th.
[116] Datum in civitate Hispali, January 7, 1502. Yo el rey. Archives of
Modena. In Liber Arrendamentorum Terrarum ad Illmos Dnos Rodericum Bor.
de Aragonia Sermoneti, et Jo. de bor., Nepesin. Duces infantes
spectantium et alearq. scripturar. status eorundem tangentium. Biselli,
1502.