Lucretia Borgia | Page 4

material. My friends there, as usual,
were of great help to me, especially Signor Zucchetti, of Mantua, late
keeper of the Gonzaga archives, and Signor Stefano Davari, the
secretary.
The state archives of the Este family of Modena, however, yielded me
the greatest store of information. The custodian was Signor Cesare
Foucard. As might have been expected of Muratori's successor, this
distinguished gentleman displayed the greatest willingness to assist me
in my task. In every way he lightened my labors; he had one of his
young assistants, Signor Ognibene, arrange a great mass of letters and
despatches which promised to be of use to me, lent me the index, and
supplied me with copies. Therefore, if this work has any merit, no
small part of it is due to Signor Foucard's obligingness.
I also met with unfailing courtesy and assistance in other places--Nepi,
Pesaro, and Ferrara. To Signor Cesare Guasti, of the state archives of
Florence, I am indebted for careful copies of important letters of
Lorenzo Pucci, which he had made for me.
The material of which I finally found myself in possession is not
complete, but it is abundant and new.
The original records will serve as defense against those who endeavor
to discover a malicious motive in this work. No such interpretation is
worthy of further notice, because the book itself will make my intention
perfectly clear, which was simply that of the conscientious writer of
history. I have substituted history for romance.
In the work I have attached more importance to the period during
which Lucretia lived in Rome than to the time she spent in Ferrara,
because the latter has already been described, though not in detail,
while the former has remained purely legendary. As I had to base my
work entirely on original information, I endeavored to treat the subject
in such a way as to present a picture truly characteristic of the age, and

animated by concrete descriptions of its striking personalities.

BOOK THE FIRST
LUCRETIA BORGIA IN ROME
CHAPTER I
LUCRETIA'S FATHER
The Spanish house of Borja (or Borgia as the name is generally written)
was rich in extraordinary men. Nature endowed them generously; they
were distinguished by sensuous beauty, physical strength, intellect, and
that force of will which compels success, and which was the source of
the greatness of Cortez and Pizarro, and of the other Spanish
adventurers.
Like the Aragonese, the Borgias also played the part of conquerors in
Italy, winning for themselves honors and power, and deeply affecting
the destiny of the whole peninsula, where they extended the influence
of Spain and established numerous branches of their family. From the
old kings of Aragon they claimed descent, but so little is known of their
origin that their history begins with the real founder of the house,
Alfonso Borgia, whose father's name is stated by some to have been
Juan, and by others Domenico; while the family name of his mother,
Francesca, is not even known.
Alfonso Borgia was born in the year 1378 at Xativa, near Valencia. He
served King Alfonso of Aragon as privy secretary, and was made
Bishop of Valencia. He came to Naples with this genial prince when he
ascended its throne, and in the year 1444 he was made a cardinal.
Spain, owing to her religious wars, was advancing toward national
unity, and was fast assuming a position of European importance. She
now, by taking a hand in the affairs of Italy, endeavored to grasp what
she had hitherto let slip by,--namely, the opportunity of becoming the

head of the Latin world and, above all, the center of gravity of
European politics and civilization. She soon forced herself into the
Papacy and into the Empire. From Spain the Borgias first came to the
Holy See, and from there later came Charles V to ascend the imperial
throne. From Spain came also Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the most
powerful politico-religious order history has ever known.
Alfonso Borgia, one of the most active opponents of the Council of
Basle and of the Reformation in Germany, was elected pope in 1455,
assuming the name Calixtus III. Innumerable were his kinsmen, many
of whom he had found settled in Rome when he, as cardinal, had taken
up his residence there. His nearest kin were members of the three
connected Valencian families of Borgia, Mila (or Mella), and Lanzol.
One of the sisters of Calixtus, Catarina Borgia, was married to Juan
Mila, Baron of Mazalanes, and was the mother of the youthful Juan
Luis. Isabella, the wife of Jofrè Lanzol, a wealthy nobleman of Xativa,
was the mother of Pedro Luis and Rodrigo, and of several daughters.
The uncle adopted these two nephews and gave them his family
name,--thus the Lanzols became Borgias.
In 1456 Calixtus III bestowed the purple