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The Borgias

3.58 of 5 stars 3.58 · rating details · 526 ratings · 97 reviews

The name Borgia is synonymous with the corruption, nepotism, and greed that were rife in Renaissance Italy. The powerful, voracious Rodrigo Borgia, better known to history as Pope Alexander VI, was the central figure of the dynasty. Two of his seven papal offspring also rose to power and fame - Lucrezia Borgia, his daughter, whose husband was famously murdered by her broth...more

Paperback, 328 pages

Published 2011 by Constable (first published 2008)

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Nov 12, 2012 Sarah rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Though this book tells a good story and has some useful and interesting information in it, I really struggled with it at times. It was frustrating- nothing was really described in any detail. The author would mention something that would grab my attention, then move swiftly on. It left me feeling flat and disappointed.

Some of the sentences are really long and confusing. I counted eight lines and as many commas in one about halfway through the book.

The book is not well referenced at all. I unders...more

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Mar 26, 2012 Dawn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction-history

The author gives a great overview of the Borgia’s rise and fall in this book. It mainly focuses on Pope Alexander VI and his children Caesar and Lucrezia. The early years are skimmed through as a set up for the famous members of the family and the minor players are often only described in relation to the three main characters.
An in depth look at the entire family and era it is not, but it is well worth the read; especially as a start to a more comprehensive look into the family and/or time peri...more

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Apr 26, 2013 Louise rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: italy, biography, papal-history

For the general reader, Italian history is difficult. British history, like American history, is about one country tied by one language. While these histories have religious and political strife they are very unlike the situation where city states and a religious superstructure vie for power. The many narratives and subnarratives, inclusive of the monumental art created at this time, make it hard for the general reader. A focused work like this is most appreciated.

I particularly liked that Hibbe...more For the general reader, Italian history is difficult. British history, like American history, is about one country tied by one language. While these histories have religious and political strife they are very unlike the situation where city states and a religious superstructure vie for power. The many narratives and subnarratives, inclusive of the monumental art created at this time, make it hard for the general reader. A focused work like this is most appreciated.

I particularly liked that Hibbert brings us to Rodrigo Borgia within 10 pages. (I put down The Perfect Hostage: A Life of Aung San Suu Kyi because she was not yet born after the first 70 pages.) Another quality I liked was that the quotes from primary sources are translated using modern English.

The content is striking. It's hard not to marvel at how bad the Borgias were and how much they got away with. The Borgia Pope, Alexander VI, is 2 popes away from the Medici heir whose reign will have to deal with Martin Luther and his theses. It is clear that the Protestant movement was not the result of (only) Leo X, but found its roots in the extreme corruption, violence and perversion of faith in the Borgia period.

Another thing that is striking is the serenity and virtue ascribed to Lucretia, who seems to be unaware of the murderous qualities of her family, particularly Cesare. How can this child, most likely a product of incest by father and brother, twice a widow (once perhaps at the hand of her brother) and married off against her will and later a mother who burried children be the accepting, spirited and gracious person history records? Perhaps a forensic psychologist will someday read the records and explain Lucretia's true essence. She "takes to her bed" many times in stress, perhaps this is a clue.

The common people were vulnerable to terrorism from within and without. I exect most of the victims, who lost if not their life - their lives, in the wars and plots knew little of why their towns were being attacked. Whole towns, of presumably Christian people, were killed, maimed, raped and/or looted by the army of the Pope.

I highly recommend this book for the general reader. The material is interesting and well presented.(less)

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Apr 17, 2013 Rob Atkinson rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A rather straightforward and unsensational history of one of history's most scandalous families, this work provides a good if basic overview of the careers of Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) and his children, particularly Cesare and Lucrezia Borgia. The infamous reputations of the former two are largely confirmed, with devious deal-making, murder, theft, simony and licentiousness aplenty. Nevertheless, the Borgia Pope did prove a wily navigator of the tricky terrain of Italian politics, succe...more A rather straightforward and unsensational history of one of history's most scandalous families, this work provides a good if basic overview of the careers of Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) and his children, particularly Cesare and Lucrezia Borgia. The infamous reputations of the former two are largely confirmed, with devious deal-making, murder, theft, simony and licentiousness aplenty. Nevertheless, the Borgia Pope did prove a wily navigator of the tricky terrain of Italian politics, successfully maintaining the Church's lands and power amidst the dangerous military tug of war between France and Spain. And after his son Cesare left his nepotistic position of Cardinal, he proved to be something of a military genius, bringing the family's enemies to heel and briefly establishing one of Italy's greatest domains in the Duchy of the Romagna, of which he was made Duke. The chief surprise here is Hibbert's account of Lucrezia, who comes across much more sympathetically than I might have expected, based on her reputation. There is no hint of her being complicit in any poisonings, and her worst crime -- putting aside the unsubstantiated rumors of incest with her brothers, and even her father the Pope(!) -- seems to have been her sexual affairs and a resulting child out of wedlock, evidently fathered by one of the Pope's grooms. Otherwise, she seems very much the model Renaissance woman, intelligent, well-educated and capable, both gracious and graceful, and quite beautiful besides. Such were her talents that she would govern in the stead of her father the Pope when he was absent from Rome, and would later do likewise for her last husband, the Duke of Ferrara. This portrayal is a bit hard to reconcile with the 'Lucrezia Borgia' of legend, and I wonder if Donizetti's opera (with which I'm admittedly unfamiliar) did for her reputation what Shakespeare's "Richard III" did, creating a legendary monster of its subject, perhaps unfairly.

I picked this up after watching the first two seasons of Showtime's "The Borgias", curious to see how many of the teleplay's extraordinary events had a basis in fact. The answer is: apparently, not a great deal. The show plays very fast and loose with the chronology, invents many episodes altogether, substitutes one historical character for another or subsumes several into one, and while its portrayal of the principals is generally true to their character, it appears the scriptwriters feel free to invent much. It's a wildly entertaining soap opera set in a fascinating place and time, but don't mistake it for history. To a lesser degree, "The Tudors" was guilty of taking the same license.

For those interested in the true story, this is a good place to start.
(less)

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Aug 15, 2012 Fajar Indra rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history

Ah, finally I finish a book and now am back to drop a comment on Goodreads. It's been more than one year since I posted the latest comment here. Well, it was a matter of fact book, very little speculation about whether or not certain historical rumors were true. Rodrigo Borgia, Juan, Lucrezia and Cesare, - what to make of them? Were they the hopelessly corrupt villains that history has often made them out to be, or were they products of a tumultuous 16th century Renaissance and no better and no...more

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Apr 22, 2012 Angie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history, biography

Hibbert's familial biography of the Borgias was surprisingly interesting; but I've realized, thinking back to past books of history I've relished, that I love the breezy style with which British authors often approach such large subjects: you are swept away by the force of the writing; and, if you are like me, are willing to let go the notion you would remember the name of every personage mentioned, let alone know who they were. I was captivated by page fifteen, if I recall.

What Hibbert subtly m...more Hibbert's familial biography of the Borgias was surprisingly interesting; but I've realized, thinking back to past books of history I've relished, that I love the breezy style with which British authors often approach such large subjects: you are swept away by the force of the writing; and, if you are like me, are willing to let go the notion you would remember the name of every personage mentioned, let alone know who they were. I was captivated by page fifteen, if I recall.

What Hibbert subtly manages to bring into focus is the pageantry of the times, and how it clashed with the ugly actions (see below) of Rodrigo and Cesare Borgia, in particular. Hibbert refuses to let the reader believe that anything written during Lucrezia's youth was indeed true of her. Again, he does this with delicacy, pointing to the difference in propaganda and sensationalism (yes, they existed in the 15th century) and the actual record.

In fact, the book's main "characters," so to speak, are the Borgia pere and fils, Cesare and Juan, those men who wielded power and misused it. We are left with no doubt as to how they achieved their status and rank (in the sons' case, by the mandates or bullying of the father.) Much of what they did is reprehensible and vile.

My only connection to this time period is reading about the authors of the period, in light connection to studies of 16th century English and French literature. That was a long time ago, but I did summon it up, as I did about 5 months ago when, stuck home with a stomach bug, I watched the first season of a European television series entitled simply "Borgia." The first season covers the first year or two of Rodrigo Borgia (the father of Cesare and Lucrezia)'s accession to the papacy. (He became pope Alexander VI, known for dividing the Western world between Portugal and Spain, and for continuing to allow the selling of indulgences, cardinalships, etc., that led to the Reformation.) I don't recommend the television show to anyone put off by violence, nudity, lewd sexual conduct or references and scenes of homicide, incest, torture, and rape. But the creators sum up the spirit of the times quite well.

One truth that the television show does convey, that Hibbert only has time to hint, is that the Borgias simply were perhaps more openly ruthless than their ruthless contemporaries, not more so, and never sui generis. Hibbert has quotes some contemporaries who mention the fearlessness with which they acted, and their willingness to barter and bribe at will, for what they desired.

I'm sure, friends, that you will see me occasionally read books about this period; and for any history, you bet that I will know be looking for the shorter books by English authors who write as if they have been doing it since they were old enough to pick up a pen.

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May 04, 2011 Aaron rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I picked this up after I started watching the new Showtime series The Borgias, which I find myself really enjoying. I was really curious to see how much dramatic liberty with the historical figures and events were being taken. The only thing I really remembered about the Borgias was a comment from my European history teacher in high school who said that one of them was a Pope, who had an affair with his son and his daughter. There are so many things wrong with that statement, not even taking int...more I picked this up after I started watching the new Showtime series The Borgias, which I find myself really enjoying. I was really curious to see how much dramatic liberty with the historical figures and events were being taken. The only thing I really remembered about the Borgias was a comment from my European history teacher in high school who said that one of them was a Pope, who had an affair with his son and his daughter. There are so many things wrong with that statement, not even taking into account the large EWWW factor.

The Borgia's were a Spanish family who found a great deal of influence in Italy largely because of their ties to the church. With that said, very few of them could actually be considered holy. Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia is really the first of the family to have a major influence, though is uncle Alfonso was the first to become Pope as Calixtus III. He proved to be one of those elderly Popes who served only a very brief amount of time before dying so his influence was limited.

Rodrigo, on the other hand, was able to use the papacy to start unifying Italy and to provide his children with a great deal of power, influence, and money. His influence started when he served under a number of Popes as their vice chancellor. That helped maneuver him into an important position where, after a very controversial vote allegedly influenced by a number of bribes, he was chosen to be Pope in 1492. He chose to serve under the name of Alexander VI.

He was not alone among the cardinals to have children, but he was unique in that he recognized all five of them. As a holy man who had taken the collar, he should have lived a celibate life. The result was that his children, who were all born to the same mother (Vonezza), would be considered bastards. With that said, his recognition allowed them to gain a surprising level of importance on the Italian peninsula and in France.

Most folks have heard of his son Cesare, who also served for a time as a cardinal, before leaving the cloth to become quite the military leader. He was so successful, that Machiavelli studied him and his actions in order to produce The Prince, one of the most important works discussing leadership in the form of the monarch. Along the way, Cesare had not trouble killing those who got in his way ... enemies, friends, and family were all equal targets if it served his purpose.

His sister, Lucrezia, can probably be considered to be the best of the bunch. While rumors swirled around her when she was younger in regard to her relationships, such as the one mentioned by my teacher, she did eventually settled down as the Duchess of of Ferrara. She was well-loved by her people (and her husband) and strongly supported the arts.

The other three siblings (all brothers) are also explored. While they played important roles in the family's rise to power through marriage and battle, individually they contributed little. Juan, who was quite the warlord and don juan, ended up back in Spain, where his descendants continued to have influence for generations. Jofe married into one of the most important families in Italy (the Sforzas), creating an important tie, but accomplished little else besides providing his family a claim on that land before dying young.

All-in-all, I thought this was a pretty strong presentation of the people and events surrounding the Borgias. Hibbert clearly makes an attempt to provide an impartial presentation of what is considered to be the world's first crime family. It is hard not to be judgmental since they were often on the bad side of ethics with their decisions relating to power, sex, and violence.

At times, it can be difficult to follow the who's who of Italian politics. There are a large number of influential families involved, particularly in light of the fact that the yet-to-be-unified nation was made up of a number of smaller statelets, each with its own king, duke, or other form of leader. Having a master list of major players would have proven extremely helpful. The same could have been said of the benefits of including a family tree for the Borgias as well as similar genealogies of some of the other families playing a major role in the history of events included in the book. Their exclusion does not prevent the book from being interesting or being understandable, but they would have been helpful and eased access to the information.(less)

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Jun 16, 2009 Bruno Bouchet rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book should really be called Renaissance Mules and the Fabrics they Carried as the author seems far more interesting in describing in detail how many mules loaded up with how many yards of brocade, silks and cloth of gold schlepped across the Apennines for sundry weddings and festivities. I suppose accurate history does depend on the contemporary documents available and the writers of the Borgias time might be the ones obsessed with fabrics, public parades and the costumes of the 300 page b...more

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Jan 29, 2010 Elaine Dowling rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book attempts to cover almost 100 years of Renaissance Italian history in 336 pages. Don't expect detail. Still, it does a surprisingly good job. You don't get depth of character. The various atrocities committed primarily by Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) and his son Cesare are so numerous and covered so quickly that they lack the shock value they rightly deserve. These shortcomings are a consequence merely of the length of the volume. It is well researched, well presented and, rather notab...more

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Feb 12, 2012 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Candice

Shelves: europe, history, non-fiction

My brother got this off my wishlist for me for Christmas, and he read a bit of it while we were home, saying it was kind of good. I finally picked it up the other day and found it eminently readable. I had never read anything by Hibbert before but I can see why people call him a great popular historian. There's not a lot of in-depth information, especially about Cesare, but I suspect the book would be 3x as long if you did that.

I also noticed other reviewers complaining about the ridiculous con...more

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May 26, 2011 Christina Sesok rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history-non-fiction, summer-reading-2011

There were aspects of this book that I found interesting, but it was simply pockets of the book, not the book as a whole. Hibbert seems to focus on three main aspects of the Borgias that he repeated over and over again: the STDs that they may or may not have had (although I do believe that they did have some), how much stuff cost, and military/politics. While some of these are important, it was basically 90% of what he talked about throughout the book.

Another thing I found that I did not like ab...more

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Feb 13, 2012 Bubbles rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've been doing research on the Borgias for a project I'm working on, and this book is an excellent starting point. Don't expect depth; it covers nearly one hundred years of history in 300 pages, but for those looking for more detailed information, there are excellent biographies focusing on Rodrigo, Cesare and Lucrezia.

Cesare dominates this book, much like he tried to dominate Italy, particularly in regards to his relationship with the French. Rodrigo and Lucrezia are tied in second for book sp...more I've been doing research on the Borgias for a project I'm working on, and this book is an excellent starting point. Don't expect depth; it covers nearly one hundred years of history in 300 pages, but for those looking for more detailed information, there are excellent biographies focusing on Rodrigo, Cesare and Lucrezia.

Cesare dominates this book, much like he tried to dominate Italy, particularly in regards to his relationship with the French. Rodrigo and Lucrezia are tied in second for book space, with Juan and Jofre only being mentioned when the reader needs to be reminded that they existed. Cesare and Lucrezia are simply the more famous of his children, having been the subject of vile rumors for most of their lives. This book has received criticism for focusing too much on the outfits and what types of cloth they were carrying when going from place to place, but the fact remains that is the type of information that survived long enough to get to us. In fact, if you read Sarah Bradford's biography, you learn at one point Ferrante D'Este was chastised by his sister Isabella for not including the details of Lucrezia's dress when he wrote to her. Fashion is very much an integrated part of society, and if you don't believe me, just look to see what celebrities were wearing at the Red Carpet. This book also excels at explaining the turbulent political situation of the time, with various states declaring their allegiances to France or Spain depending on the year.

My only gripe with this book is that it contradicts itself when the sources have been known to contradict themselves. At this point, there's no telling which source would be more reliable. For instance, at one point it's stated that Jofre consummated his relationship with Sancia while her father was in the room, but later in the book her affairs with Cesare and Juan are attributed to the fact that her relationship with Jofre was never consummated.

This book is sadly one of the few biographies on the family that is still easily accessible in English, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to get an overview of what the political situation was like in Italy during the time of the Borgias.(less)

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Jan 26, 2012 Mike rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history, biography

As with any well-written and diligently researched history book, one of the first things the reader notices about Christopher Hibbert's 'The Borgias' is the amount of subtle myth-busting that is done. In the course of this work, Hibbert manages to guide us through the lesser known points of early Renaissance Europe whilst simultaneously chipping away at rumour and gossip. Lucrezia Borgia was, so popular history would have us believe, some fully-fledged harlot (she was actually renowned in her ow...more

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Nov 14, 2012 Sherwood Smith added it · review of another edition

I picked this up cheap, prompted mostly by hopes of reading about the connection between Cesare Borgia and Leonardo de Vinci, Lucrezia and Ariosto, how Michelangelo wandered through all their lives--how Erasmas and Machiavelli both watched them and commented, how the Strozzi brothers jet-setted between France and Italy, trailing court customs back and forth.

Hibbert seems to write pop history. I find it readable, but the lack of footnotes for those who like to see exactly where the fact came fro...more

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Aug 12, 2009 Sara Poole rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Being fascinated by all things Borgia, I picked up this work by renowned historian and biographer, Christopher Hibbert with great eagerness. I won’t say that I was disappointed; histories of the Borgias are too few and far between not to give any one of them the benefit of the doubt. The problem really lies in the book’s brevity, skimming as it does over events and personalities that deserve more detailed consideration, if only to make them comprehensible. Hibbert also wrote an examination of th...more

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Aug 30, 2011 kissmyshades rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction, italian, 2011

I have a lot of problems with popular historians:

1. The complete lack of footnotes (?! whose dumb idea was that? it's insulting to the reader!*)
2. The lack of discussion of potential bias in the sources (important part of a historian's job!)
3. The unscholary language i.e. "they were often to be seen romping about just like high-spirited schoolgirls."

But it was quite short and readable. I don't know. I would honestly have rather read something a bit more substantial. Maybe I will later. I suppose...more

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May 08, 2013 Troy Rodgers rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: biography, history

When you know that Cesare Borgia is the model upon whom Niccolo Machiavelli based his work "The Prince," this gives an instant expectation to the sordid tale within. This story has nearly every level of scandal imaginable and is anything but boring as a result. The thing is, Renaissance Italian politics can be confusing at best for the newcomer. Christopher Hibbert to the rescue. The narrative here begins well before Rodrigo Borgia becomes Pope, and it unfolds simply and directly, with enough de...more

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May 04, 2013 Rob Atkinson rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A rather straightforward and unsensational history of one of history's most scandalous families, this work provides a good if basic overview of the careers of Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) and his children, particularly Cesare and Lucrezia Borgia. The infamous reputations of the former two are largely confirmed, with devious deal-making, murder, theft, simony and licentiousness aplenty. Nevertheless, the Borgia Pope did prove a wily navigator of the tricky terrain of Italian politics, succe...more A rather straightforward and unsensational history of one of history's most scandalous families, this work provides a good if basic overview of the careers of Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) and his children, particularly Cesare and Lucrezia Borgia. The infamous reputations of the former two are largely confirmed, with devious deal-making, murder, theft, simony and licentiousness aplenty. Nevertheless, the Borgia Pope did prove a wily navigator of the tricky terrain of Italian politics, successfully maintaining the Church's lands and power amidst the dangerous military tug of war between France/Milan and Spanish-ruled Naples. And after his son Cesare left his nepotistic position of Cardinal, he proved to be something of a military genius, bringing the family's enemies to heel and briefly establishing one of Italy's greatest domains in the Duchy of the Romagna, of which he was made Duke. The chief surprise here is Hibbert's account of Lucrezia, who comes across much more sympathetically than I might have expected, based on her reputation. There is no hint of her being complicit in any poisonings, and her worst crime -- putting aside the unsubstantiated rumors of incest with her brothers, and even her father the Pope(!) -- seems to have been her sexual affairs and a resulting child out of wedlock, evidently fathered by one of the Pope's grooms. Otherwise, she seems very much the model Renaissance woman, intelligent, well-educated and capable, both gracious and graceful, and quite beautiful besides. Such were her talents that she would govern in the stead of her father the Pope when he was absent from Rome, and would later do likewise for her last husband, the Duke of Ferrara. This portrayal is a bit hard to reconcile with the 'Lucrezia Borgia' of legend, and I wonder if Donizetti's opera (with which I'm admittedly unfamiliar) did for her reputation what Shakespeare's "Richard III" did, creating a legendary monster of its subject, perhaps unfairly.

I picked this up after watching the first two seasons of Showtime's "The Borgias", curious to see how many of the teleplay's extraordinary events had a basis in fact. The answer is: apparently, not a great deal. The show plays very fast and loose with the chronology, invents many episodes altogether, substitutes one historical character for another or subsumes several into one, and while its portrayal of the principals is generally true to their character, it appears the scriptwriters feel free to invent much. It's a wildly entertaining soap opera set in a fascinating place and time, but don't mistake it for history. To a lesser degree, "The Tudors" was guilty of taking the same license.

For those interested in the true story, this is a good place to start. (less)

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May 24, 2012 Victor Tatarskii rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Enjoyable, but a bit shallow read.
Hibbert's book is focused on the pope Alexander VI, and his children, Lucrezia and Cesare, during his reign in Rome. Mostly it is about intrigues in the papal court, Cesare's military campaigns and Lucrezia's marriages, described in letters and memoirs of this period. It's a small book, so there is almost no place for analysis, or descriptions of anything beyond the life of Borgias. Also a big part of the book is taken by lengthy descriptions of ceremonial proc...more

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Mar 19, 2012 Eve rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: History buffs

Shelves: kindle

Intrigue, plotting, sex, assassinations, military conquest, money, politics, clothes, repeat. Sound like a fun read? Well, not really. This historical account of the Renaissance family that supposedly inspired Mario Puzo (I’m talking THE GODFATHER, not SUPERMAN) is kind of dry, with the author giving equal weight to major events and superficial details such as how much things cost and how the horses were decked out. He threw the kitchen sink at this treatment for sure, and he certainly researche...more

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Feb 22, 2012 Mary rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was seriously disappointed in this book. Its supposed to be a biography which suggests to me that there should be a vast assortment of sources that give the book credence. There is a list of sources at the end of the book but nowhere in the entire narrative is there a footnote or endnote that links information with the sources. Instead, there are numerous references that state things on the order of "a spectator stated" or a "source noted". We don't know who these sources are or where the auth...more

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Jan 03, 2012 Ken rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Showtime did a dramatic series last year on Pope Alexander VI and his children. I didn't see it, but they could have used this book as a model. The author enjoys describing the more sensational aspects of the Borgias and their personal relations with their enemies (then again, the characters in Renaissance Italy did some pretty sensational things). The book mostly focuses on Alexander and his family, especially Cesare and Lucrezia. The last chapters are a little disappointing, because Cesare kin...more

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May 15, 2013 Gitta marked it as to-read-non-fiction · review of another edition

Shelves: early-modern, italy

There seem to be three historiographies of the Borgia family: 1955's The Borgias, 1969's The Borgias: The Rise and Fall of a Renaissance Dynasty and 2008's The Borgias and Their Enemies: 1431-1519. Just trying to figure out which one is the best to read...

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Apr 24, 2011 Ariana Deralte rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: archaeology-history

I appreciate that the author of this book went through a lot of effort to make this a straight forward factual portrayal of the Borgias (or as factual as you can get from the Renaissance chroniclers). I think it could have used a few images to illustrate some of the things he was discussing (close ups of the Borgia Apartments for example), and the detailed lists of how many pack horses or mules people had and what treasure was laden upon them could have been cut out (and were happily skimmed by...more

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Mar 06, 2012 Lisa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction-history

After returning from 10 days in Romes, I eagerly wanted to read about this family that accumulated I saw in the Borgias Gallery. It was ornate. It was plentiful. A couple of pieces were amazing. Several works I had seen in my school year history and literature books.

Knowing that our family was likely spending the 2011 holiday in Rome, I tried to watch all the episodes of The Borgais on PBS, but got turned off by all the melodrama. Having taught an Italian history course, I was familiar with rea...more

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Feb 05, 2012 Isis rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Those with little to no previous knowledge

Shelves: renaissance-age-1400-to-1650ce-fact

I noticed that there were a lot of mixed reviews for this book when I came to review it, some people saying that the book is an interesting, good introduction to the Borgias, others complaining that the book is boring and focuses on trivial detail whilst refraining from passing judgement on its eponymous subject. I think both camps are right about this one, and that has caused me to consider this book’s intended readership.

The book is a largely descriptive narrative of the rise and fall of the B...more

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Jun 23, 2011 Jules rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: top-10-non-fiction

The Borgias were seriously badass. The Pope is a fairly fat corrupt conniving dude who at least cares for his family very much and at least fixes the city up a bit (fittingly played by Jeremy Irons in the series), but his son Cesare is pretty much a mass-murdering fuckhead (unfittingly portrayed as a good and hot guy in the show - he's supposed to be covered in herpes rash), his daughter is cute and cunning in both versions. The real star is 'master of ceremonies' Johannes Burchard who is forced...more

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Jul 10, 2012 Dawn rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history-european

Even though it was more of a survey than a comprehensive study, this book could have been much better. Start with the title: The Borgias and their Enemies. It sounds sexier than "The Borgias", but their enemies are not discussed in any depth. At all.

The book primarily centers around Rodrigo Borgia, who becomes Pope Alexander VI, his son Cesare, and his daughter Lucrezia. The author switches from one Borgia to another in his narrative. Because there are hundreds of people mentioned in the book, t...more

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Jan 22, 2011 Morgan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-reads

A good overview of the Borgia family, if not insanely detailed. The book starts even before Rodrigo is named pope and ends with Lucrezia's death, so it covers a lot of history and isn't quite as in depth with everything. It does, however, seem pretty fair and even handed to this family who did enough scandalous things without needing the extra vilifying that's often been done throughout history. The writing could be a bit dry at times but for the most part I found everything was pretty well pres...more

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Feb 07, 2011 Lyn M rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Jennifer , Niecole, Kate, Aly,

Recommended to Lyn M by: Colleen

Shelves: 2011, borrowed, ccclib, non-fiction-history, royals, stacks

The Borgia family has always held an allure for me since I lived on a street named after them when I was a child. In addition, I was raised a Catholic, so the Popes are intriguing to me, especially those during the period where the church was more of a political entity. When I heard that Showtime was doing a show about this family this spring, I decided now was the time to do some background reading and get the real story about the family.

I had never read any books by Christopher Hibbert, but h...more

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About Christopher Hibbert

Christopher Hibbert, MC, FRSL, FRGS (5 March 1924 - 21 December 2008) was an English writer, historian and biographer. He has been called "a pearl of biographers" (New Statesman), was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and the author of many books, including Disraeli, Edward VII, George IV, The Rise and Fall of the House of Medici, and Cavaliers and Roundheads.

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