Borgia
Infamous Italian dynasty
Borgia is a Spanish-Italian noble family notorious for political intrigue, corruption, and alleged murder during the Renaissance.
The name evokes ruthless ambition and moral depravity: a Borgia-style power grab, corporate politics worthy of the Borgias.
Pope Alexander VI and his children Cesare and Lucrezia remain bywords for Renaissance villainy, though historians debate how much was fact versus enemy propaganda.
Supporter's financial backing
- humanismPhilosophy prioritizing earthly reason
- art collectionAssembled creative works
- Leonardo da VinciItalian artist-scientist-engineer
- MachiavelliPolitical realism's founding theorist
Florence · Rome · classicism · scholarship · culture · splendor
Clandestine coordinated scheming
- schemingCrafty and calculating
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
- assassinationMurder of a prominent figure
- poisonHarmful ingested substance
treachery · betrayal · plotting · machination · deception · subterfuge · double-dealing · clandestine
Famous for negativity
- scandalousMorally offensive or shocking
- corruptionDishonest abuse of power
- depravityProfound moral corruption
- villainyCriminal or evil behavior
sin · murder · excess · decadence · immorality · ruthless · unscrupulous · nefarious
Papal city-state
- pontiffSupreme Catholic leader
- Holy SeePapal governing authority
- conclavePrivate, secretive assembly
- ecclesiasticalRelating to church matters
curia · bull · indulgence · simony · cardinal · benefice · tiara · mitre
- lineageDescent from progenitors
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- clanRelated group sharing ancestry
heritage · descendants · scions · progeny · genealogy · kinship · relatives · siblings
Superior influence over others
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
- territorial expansionIncreasing a state's domain
- influencePower to affect others
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
political control · hegemony · ascendancy · command · supremacy · conquest · ambition · ruthlessness
patronage
Supporter's financial backing
- humanismPhilosophy prioritizing earthly reason
- art collectionAssembled creative works
- Leonardo da VinciItalian artist-scientist-engineer
Machiavelli · Florence · Rome · classicism · scholarship · culture · splendor
conspiracy
Clandestine coordinated scheming
- schemingCrafty and calculating
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
- assassinationMurder of a prominent figure
poison · treachery · betrayal · plotting · machination · deception · subterfuge · double-dealing · clandestine · secrecy
notorious
Famous for negativity
- scandalousMorally offensive or shocking
- corruptionDishonest abuse of power
- depravityProfound moral corruption
villainy · sin · murder · excess · decadence · immorality · ruthless · unscrupulous · nefarious · wicked
Vatican
Papal city-state
ecclesiastical · curia · bull · indulgence · simony · cardinal · benefice · tiara · mitre · canon law
Rodrigo
clan · heritage · descendants · scions · progeny · genealogy · kinship · relatives · siblings · offspring
dominance
Superior influence over others
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
- territorial expansionIncreasing a state's domain
- influencePower to affect others
sovereignty · political control · hegemony · ascendancy · command · supremacy · conquest · ambition · ruthlessness · military campaigns
- Italian NobilityMedici, Gonzaga, Savoy, dukes, counts
- Italian DynastiesMedici, Gonzaga, Savoy
- Italian HeritageRome, Florence, Venice, Vatican, Tuscany
- historical dramasBridgerton, Downton Abbey, Poldark, The Crown, Victoria
- Italian IconsLeonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Dante, Galileo, Marco Polo
- nobilityking, queen, prince, princess, duke
Borgiasaint
Canonized holy person
martyr · Thomas More · Francis of Assisi · virtuous · incorruptible