pope alexander vi and sex

8/10/2019 Pope Alexander VI and Sex

1/3

Pope Alexander VI and Sex

Pope Pius II allegedly wrote:

"Dear Son: We have learned that your Worthiness, forgetful of the high office with which

you are invested, was present fro the seventeenth to the twenty!second hour, four daysago, in the gardens of ohn de #ichis, where there were several woen of Siena, woen

wholly given over to worldly vanities$ %our copanion was one of your colleagues who

his years, if not the dignity of his office, ought to have reinded of his duty$ We have heardthe dance was indulged in all wantonness& none of the allureents of love were lac'ing,

and you conducted yourself in a wholly worldly anner$ Shae for(ids ention of all that

too' place, for not only the things theselves (ut their very naes are unworthy of yourran'$ In order that your lust ight (e all the ore unrestrained, the hus(ands, fathers,

(rothers and 'insen of the young woen and girls were not invited to (e present$ %ou and

a few servants were the leaders and inspirers of the orgy$ It is said that nothing is nowtal'ed of in Siena (ut your vanity, which is the su()ect of universal ridicule$ *ertain it isthat here at the (aths, where *hurchen and the laity are very nuerous, your nae is on

every one+s tongue$ ur displeasure is (eyond words, for your conduct has (rought the holy

state and office into disgrace& the people will say that they a'e us rich and great, not thatwe ay live a (laeless life, (ut that we ay have eans to gratify our passions$ -his is

the reason the princes and the powers dispose us and the chancellor of the *hurch, and

what renders your conduct all the ore reprehensi(le is the fact that you have a seat aongthe cardinals, with the Pope, as advisers of the .oly See$ We leave it to you whether it is

(ecoing to your dignity to court young woen, and to send the laity to oc' us& this is

why our own ode of living is thrown in our face when we reprove others$ *ontept is the

lot of *hrist+s vicar (ecause he sees to tolerate these actions$ %ou, dear son, have chargeof the (ishopric of Valencia, the ost iportant in Spain& you are one of those who love

fruits and wine, and during the whole day to give no thought to anything (ut sensual

pleasures$ People (lae us on your account, and the eory of your (lessed uncle,*alixtus, li'ewise suffers, and any say he did wrong in heaping honors upon you$ If you

try to excuse yourself on the ground of your youth, I say to you& you are no longer so young

as not to see what duties your offices ipose upon you$ A *ardinal should (e a(overeproach and an exaple of right living (efore the eyes of all en, and then we should have

)ust grounds for anger when teporal princes (estow uncoplientary epithets upon us&

when they dispute with us the possession of our property and force us to su(it ourselvesto their will$ f a truth we inflict these wounds upon ourselves, and we ourselves are the

cause of these trou(les, since we (y our conduct are daily diinishing the authority of the*hurch$ ur punishent for it in this world is dishonor, and in the world to coe well

deserved torent$ /ay, therefore, your good sense place a restraint on these frivolities, anday you never lose sight of your dignity& then people will not call you a vain gallant aong

en$ If this occurs again we shall (e copelled to show that it was contrary to our

exhortation, and that it caused us great pain& and our censure will not pass over you withoutcausing you a (lush$ We have always loved you and thought you worthy of our

protection as a man of an earnest and modest character.-herefore, conduct yourself

henceforth so that we ay retain this our opinion of you, and ay (ehold in you only the


2/3

exaple of a well ordered life$ %our years, which are not such as to preclude iproveent,

perit us to adonish you paternally$"

But...

"-he words 0fro the seventeenth to the twenty!second hour0 suggests lurid deeds in the falling

dar'ness of a uly night$ In fact the hours at that tie were nu(ered fro half!an!hour after sunset$

-he tie given was (etween one o0cloc' and six o0cloc' of the afternoon an innocent enough hour$ Wealso 'now fro another conteporary letter that the occasion for the party was a (aptis at which

*ardinal #orgia was a godfather$ After the cereony the clergy were invited to see the woen dancing

in the garden$ -he *ardinal0s gallantry ay well have (een overdone, and the dancing under the eyes oftwo very (road!inded cardinals ay well have (een of the sensual type coon enough at the tie$

1ot a very edifying spectacle, no dou(t, (ut one, we venture to suggest, that has had its parallels,

allowing for the fashions and anners of different periods, often enough since$ It is at any rate clearthat the story which had coe to the ears of the Pope was very uch exaggerated, and *ardinal

2odrigo at once wrote to the Pope to explain what had really happened and to as' his forgiveness forany ill!(ehaviour on his part$" ! /ichael de la #edoyere 3The Meddlesome Friar and the Wayward

Pope, p$ 456

"We adit that, according to a very du(ious, or spurious, letter of pope Pius II, cardinal de #orgia once

too' his recreation at no great distance fro a copany of Sienese ladies& (ut there is not a

conteporary author to give a single instance, where he ever passed any of his tie in fealecopany$" ! /sgr$ Peter de 2oo 3Material for a History of Pope Alexander VI, His elati!es, and HisTime, Vol$ 7, p$ 7486

"$$9-he professionally celi(ate young *ardinal, whose good reputation we 'now, should have

conducted hiself in his private life in a anner consistent with his status$ And there is good evidencethat this was the case$" ! /ichael de la #edoyere 3The Meddlesome Friar and the Wayward Pope, p$

4;!46

On Giulia Farnese:

"nly the clearest proof of his de(auching =iulia 3sister of a cardinal6 can, in our view, a'e good the

accusation$ Such clear evidence has not (een found$ -he open =iulia accusation was not conteporary,

and it is a(surd to a'e anything of 2oan gi(e that =iulia was 0the (ride of *hrist$0 It was typical2oan scandal!ongering$" ! /ichael de la #edoyere 3The Meddlesome Friar and the Wayward Pope,


3/3

p$ 8?6

On the Banquet of hestnuts:

"ne of the oddities a(out 9this story is that 9it stand9s alost alone of 9its 'ind in an iensely

long docuent devoted to what o(viously interested the writer, naely his (usiness of reporting the'ind of Papal activities now read in the official coluns of the $sser!atore omanoand criticising

Alexander and others for not o(serving exact ru(rics$ Why )ust 9this, if such was the #orgia papacy0s

way of life@ And how did #urchard coe to (e a(le to relate as a personal eye!witness 9this story@ Did

he really loo' through the 'eyhole !! the picture of hi doing so is ore ausing than what he saw$#ut the strongest arguent against the veracity of 9this anecdote which 9has done so uch to dan

the #orgia reputation is the suggestion of ucreBia0s presence at 9the (anCuet$ Whatever ay (e said

a(out the other children, ucreBia was a good woan with a strongly developed religious side to hercharacter$ .er father adored her$ Is it conceiva(le that he would have gone out of his way to corrupt her

in such a fashion@ 1othing a(out hi a'es sense if this is to (e (elieved$" ! /ichael de la #edoyere

3The Meddlesome Friar and the Wayward Pope, p$ 5!556

pope alexander vi and sex

Documents