Cesare Borgia

Cesare Borgia

• Who: Italian military dicator called Duke Valentino, son of Pope Alexander VI and duke of Valentinois and Romagna, noted as an exemplary yet vicious prince by Machiavelli in his The Prince.

• What: skillful and merciless subjugation fo the local lords of Romagna

• When: around 1500

• Where: Italy

• Why: Notes that Machiavelli’s audience was focused on Italy’s ruling class, because he wanted a more stable government in Florence in order to resurrect a Roman empire vibe.

• Through his military action, the duke was able to rid Romagna of corruption and establish a strong, united government—at first under the complete authority of one man, but then Borgia put in place a civil court in a more republic mode.