Jofré Borgia

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Jofré Borgia

Jofré Borgia (also: Jofre, Joffre, Gioffre or Goffredo Borgia or Borja), (* 1481/82; † December 1516 or January 1517 in Squillace ) was the youngest son of Rodrigo Borgia (1431–1503), later Pope Alexander VI . , and his partner Vanozza de 'Cattanei (1442–1518). His older siblings were Cesare (1475–1507), Juan (1476 / 78–1497) and Lucrezia Borgia (1480–1519).

Life

Vanozza de 'Cattanei; Detail of the portrait of Innocenzo Francucci ; Borghese Gallery , Rome

Vanozza de 'Cattanei, in addition to her extramarital relationship with Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia, also had a sexual relationship with her rightful husband Giorgio della Croce around 1481 . For this reason, the future pope doubted his fatherhood for years and did not grant the youngest offspring of his former lover any favors. However, Vanozza de 'Cattanei managed to get Alexander VI. to convince of his fatherhood, so that Jofré officially recognized on August 6, 1493 as his youngest son. However, Alexander was also guided by political considerations, as he needed sufficient staff to implement his ambitious dynastic goals.

After Jofré's legitimation, both the influential Cardinal and Vice Chancellor Ascanio Sforza and the Neapolitan King Ferrante submitted their marriage proposals. Ascanio Sforza planned to marry an illegitimate Sforza princess to the Pope's son. The couple would then rule in Bologna, which de jure belonged to the papal territory, but was de facto ruled by Giovanni II Bentivoglio . This option seemed too politically risky for the Pope and he feared the Sforza would gain power in northern Italy. That is why he rejected the proposal of his Vice Chancellor and instead favored the Neapolitan offer.

The King of Naples intended to marry his granddaughter Sancia , illegitimate daughter of his son Alfonso of Calabria, to one of the Pope's sons. Ferrante absolutely needed the Pope's help to fend off the claims of the French kings to the throne of the Kingdom of Naples that had existed since the death of John II († 1435). Alexander VI. was also unwilling to recognize the French King Charles VIII as the rightful King of Naples. Therefore, in March 1494, he confirmed the legitimacy of the Aragonese kingship and commissioned his legate, Juan Borgia , to crown Alfonso II on May 2, 1494 as King of Naples. He also decided that his phlegmatic son Jofré should marry the fun-loving Sancia (1478-1506).

Pope Alexander VI, after a painting by Cristoforo dell'Altissimo ( Uffizi Gallery , Florence )

Jofré Borgia and Sancia of Aragon were married on May 11, 1494 in Naples. This marriage cemented the alliance between the Pope and the Neapolitan king. Alfonso II transferred the Principality of Squillace and the County of Cariati to Jofré. In addition, he appointed the Borgia offspring procurator and lieutenant of the Kingdom of Naples and granted him a fixed annual pension of 10,000 ducats. In return, Alexander VI refused. in March 1495 the coronation of Charles VIII as King of Naples. He justified this with the fact that his sons Juan, Duke of Gandia, and Jofré were in the hands of the House of Aragon in Spain and Sicily. Since the marriage between Jofré and Sancia brought political advantages to both sides, the Pope renewed the alliance of the Papal States with the Kingdom of Naples in 1498 and married his daughter Lucrezia to the brother Sancias Alfonso of Aragon-Bisceglie (1481-1500).

However, the spouses Jofré and Sancia were too different in character. The spirited beauty Sancia led a dissolute, promiscuous life at the court of Naples and the good-natured Jofré could not assert himself against his wife. To avoid further damage to his reputation, the Pope ordered the return of his son and his wife to Rome, which took place on May 20, 1496 with the enthusiastic sympathy of the Roman population. Sancia began love affairs with Jofré's brothers Cesare and Juan in Rome and quickly damaged the reputation of the Borgia among the Roman public.

Finally, Alexander VI intended. to dissolve the marriage between Jofré and Sancia after the murder of his son Juan, which took place in June 1497 and has not yet been clarified. Instead, he planned to marry Sancia to Cesare and to appoint Jofré cardinal. This would have meant that Cesare would have traded his benefits for Jofré's wife. However, since the Neapolitan King Federigo agreed in January 1498 to marry his legitimate daughter Carlotta to Cesare Borgia, the Pope changed his plans and in August 1498 sent Jofré and Sancia to the official coronation of Federigo in Naples.

Alleged portrait of Lucrezia Borgia, painting by Bartolomeo Veneto

Already at this point in time, Alexander VI. a political course correction. After the death of the French King Charles VIII († April 7, 1498), his successor Louis XII. an alliance against the Duchy of Milan with the Republic of Venice. He also needed the ecclesiastical dispensation to dissolve his marriage to Jeanne , the sister of Charles VIII, and then to marry his widow Anne de Bretagne . For this aim, the French king was ready to transfer the duchy of Valentinois in Provence to Cesare Borgia . Cesare eventually received the duchy, the French king was divorced from his wife and the Pope ended the alliance with the King of Naples.

As a result of this policy, Jofré narrowly escaped an assassination attempt by angry Romans in February 1499 and in July 1499 he got into armed clashes between the Aragonese and the Borgia supporters. Alfonso von Aragon-Bisceglie then fled to Naples and Sancia von Aragon had to leave Rome for Naples on August 7, 1499 on the advice of the Pope. Lucrezia Borgia, who wanted to follow her husband and sister-in-law to Naples, was sent by the Pope on August 8, 1499 as regent to the Duchy of Spoleto. Jofré was therefore commissioned to accompany his sister to Spoleto in order to support her, but also to control her. Aside from Roman politics, Lucrezia and Jofré were able to find trust in each other, and since then they have remained connected in fraternal affection. But already on October 14, 1499 Lucrezia and Jofré returned to Rome and Cesare took over the government in Spoleto.

Cesare Borgia, portrait probably by Giorgione , Bergamo , Galleria dell 'Accademia Carrara

In January 1500, the assassination of Alfonso of Aragon-Bisciglie by hired contract killers of the Borgias led to the final break of the Roman-Neapolitan alliance. However, Sancia of Aragon returned to Rome due to the fall of the Neapolitan royal family in 1501 and became the mistress of Prospero Colonna . In the following years Jofré accompanied his brother on his campaigns. However, he often proved unable to carry out the military orders of Alexander VI. or to perform Cesares. At the beginning of 1503, Jofré nominally led the campaign actually led by Cesare's captains against Guidobaldo da Montefeltro , Duke of Urbino, and the campaign against the Roman family Orsini .

Alexander VI died on August 18, 1503. His sons Cesare and Jofré and their mother Vanozza had to flee Rome on September 2, 1503. A little later Prospero Colonna brought Sancia from Aragon to Naples to safety. In the spring of 1504 Cesare and Jofré also traveled to Naples to see Sancia, who had meanwhile established herself as the mistress of the Spanish viceroy Consalvo di Cordoba . Cesare tried to reconcile his sister-in-law and his brother, but Jofré was no longer willing to forgive his wife on the one hand and to follow his brother's wishes on the other. He separated from Sancia and went to Spain.

There Jofré married his relative Maria de Milà a few months after the death of his wife Sancia († 1506). They moved to Calabria in 1507 and have since lived in the Principality of Squillace, which Jofré was allowed to keep and where he founded the village of Borgia , which still exists today . Jofré Borgia died in December 1516 or January 1517 (the exact date is not known). All that has survived is a letter from Lucrezia dated January 1517, in which she informed her sister-in-law Isabella d'Este : "... that the death of Jofré had hit me hard."

Marriages and children

Jofré married on May 11, 1494 Sancia of Aragon (1478-1506), an illegitimate daughter of the Neapolitan king Alfonso II and Truzia Gazella (or Trusia Gazullo). The marriage remained childless.

Jofré's second marriage was in 1507 with María de Milán y Aragón . She was a lady in waiting for the Spanish Infanta Catalina of Aragon , the first wife of King Henry VIII of England . She was a distant relative from Spain and the daughter of Jaime de Milán y Aragón , Count of Albayada , and Leonor de Aragón , a niece of King Ferdinand II of Spain . From the happy marriage came:

  1. Francesco Borgia, Prince of Squillace and Count of Oliveto, who was married to Isabella Piccolomini in his first marriage and to Isabella d'Aragon in his second marriage . He was the father of Juan de Borja, Prince of Squillace, and the grandfather of Pedro de Borja, Prince of Squillace. The branch of the Prince Borgia-Squillace , which is still flourishing today, descends from him.
  2. Lucrezia Borgia was married to Giovanni Battista Carafa, third Count of Grotteria and first Marchese of Catelvetere .
  3. Antonia Borgia was married to Antonio Piccolomini d'Aragona, fourth Marchese of Delicete .
  4. Marina Borgia was married to Michele d'Aierbe d'Aragona, second Count of Simari .

There was also an illegitimate son who grew up with Vanozza de 'Cattanei in Rome.

See also

literature

  • Joachim Brambach: The Borgia. Fascination of a Renaissance family. Unabridged licensed edition, 3rd edition. Callwey, Munich 1997, ISBN 3-424-01257-2 .
  • Ivan Cloulas: The Borgias. Biography of a family dynasty (= Heyne books volume 12 = Heyne biographies volume 226). Heyne, Munich 1993, ISBN 3-453-06082-2 .
  • Massimo Grillandi : Lucrezia Borgia. Special edition, 3rd edition. Econ, Düsseldorf / Vienna / New York NY 1994, ISBN 3-430-13456-0 .
  • Uwe Neumahr: Cesare Borgia. The Prince and the Italian Renaissance. Piper, Munich et al. 2007, ISBN 978-3-492-04854-5 .
  • Volker Reinhardt : The uncanny Pope. Alexander VI. Borgia 1431-1503 (= Beck series, volume 1748). Beck, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-406-54753-9 .
  • Alois Uhl: Pope children. Pictures of life from the time of the Renaissance (= Piper Volume 4891). Unabridged paperback edition. Piper, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-492-24891-4 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Borja Lanzol de Romaní, el mayor, Juan de. In: Salvador Miranda : The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. ( Florida International University website ), accessed July 20, 2016. (English)
  2. ↑ Quote from Massimo Grillandi: Lucrezia Borgia. P. 307.
  3. ↑ a b c d e f Grandes de España-Gandía. at grandesp.org.uk (Spanish).
personal data
SURNAME Borgia, Jofre
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Borgia, Joffre; Borgia, Gioffre; Borgia, Goffredo
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Son of Pope Alexander VI.
DATE OF BIRTH 1481 or 1482
DATE OF DEATH December 1516 or January 1517
Place of death Squillace