Lucrezia Borgia: Life, Love, and Death in Renaissance Italy by Sarah Bradford

May 03, 2012 Shaherzad ahmadi rated it 2 of 5 stars

It's hard to review this book because I know she spent a fair amount of time researching materials for the biography but then good research does not imply good writing. I seldom read histories of biographies, but when I do I always turn to Antonia Fraser and I think Bradford should take a page from one of her books to understand the tonality biographies of these types should assume in order to express both admiration for a great, historical figure and empathy for a real human being. Lucrezia is...more It's hard to review this book because I know she spent a fair amount of time researching materials for the biography but then good research does not imply good writing. I seldom read histories of biographies, but when I do I always turn to Antonia Fraser and I think Bradford should take a page from one of her books to understand the tonality biographies of these types should assume in order to express both admiration for a great, historical figure and empathy for a real human being. Lucrezia is never fleshed out; in the beginning of the book she is hardly mentioned and toward the middle and end the vast majority of the time is spent describing her outerwear rather than her personal life (save letter quotations from her lovers). Even that aspect of her personal life which Bradford seems most interested in sharing with the reader, her love affairs, are never properly described. Books written about the medieval period where little written material is available should depend on the biographer/historians own inference. Fraser does this rather beautifully. She explains the feelings these historical figures must have had at important junctures of their lives, giving the impression of a real human being. In Fraser's Marie Antoinette, the final scene of the dying queen's life, already sick in her prison cell, brought tears to my eyes. I truly felt as though someone I had watched grow up, mature into a mother and wife, then slandered and cornered into prison, would die and I felt her humiliation and pain as she prepared for the guillotine. Lucrezia's death is given as much attention as the death of her servant Strozzi; she was sick, had convulsions, and died, quite simply (on second thought, Strozzi's death was given far more attention).

I was also annoyed by the minimal weight given to her major relationships: brothers and father. The only relationship that was given appropriate attention was the relationship she had with her husband, Alfonso, though only because of the length of their relationship and the eventfulness of his life. However, her principle familial relationships are practically ignored. For example, when Lucrezia is sick and Cesare, her brother, comes back and forth from battle to support her as she was bled, even making her laugh during her treatments, comprised an extremely touching scene. Cesare's darkness and amorality juxtaposed to Lucrezia's purity and religiosity could have been an interesting aspect to discuss; what did Cesare write about his sister? Did Lucrezia understand, or admit to herself, her brother's amorality? Was that what attracted her to him? This is never explored. In the end, I expected some reference to be made of her other near-death experience; something like "Perhaps Lucrezia clung to life in remembrance of her convalescence from that earlier illness, whence all her doctors, and herself, thought for certain her life was lost. However, this time, without the love of her brother who would drop his murderous affairs in order to deliver her from death, she gave into her illness. The young girl who, in her darkest moment approaching death, had been made to laugh by her brother who held her as she prayed to live and accomplish the dreams her father had envisioned for her, was now an adult, with the hopes the principle players in her life had had for her long fulfilled. She had been a dutiful wife, a faithful servant of Ferrara, and mother to the heir of the throne. It is not unreasonable to assume that instead of fighting to live, she had resigned herself to heaven where she would be met with her beloved father and brother."

That, in my opinion, would have been a better ending. The feeling you get from the book is that her father controlled her life while her brother would come to only complicate it; but still, her devotion to them both is impressive. Her second marriage, which ended with the murder of her beloved husband by the hands of Cesare's henchmen, perhaps brought the most exhilarating scenes: love, betrayal, and the overwhelming commitment to family. When Lucrezia's husband is killed, Cesare immediately visits his furious and grievous sister - what did he say? How did he explain what he did? Any assumptions or inferences? All Bradford says is that it proves how close they were that Cesare would visit her directly after the murder. Even something like this would have been nice: "One can imagine the conflicting feelings Lucrezia had for her brother then - confronting his violence as it touched on one she loved. But in the end, their love would triumph, and she would forgive this travesty as a peccadillo only pardonable due to its author. And, certainly, Cesare was confident he would ascertain this forgiveness, though his bold appearance directly after the murder underlines how unbearable it must have been to imagine she would harbor enmity toward him." Furthermore, another annoyance was that Bradford's proofs of Lucrezia's intimacy with her third husband, Alfonso, is that he was attracted to her (evidenced in her constant pregnancies) and trusted her to be in charge of his state while he was away. The latter proves nothing, because that was the tradition for most Italian states (even Isabella, Francesco Gonzaga's wife and sister of Alfonso, was in charge of their state when Francesco was off at war and he didn't trust her at all). And physical intimacy does not exactly prove affection; perhaps true affection would have been acknowledgment on his part that her pregnancies almost always proved near-fatal and an understanding that he would not endanger her life and take his conjugal visits elsewhere. Then, the love affair between Bembo and Lucrezia - this isn't fleshed out at all. Really, we get the feeling that Bembo is curious to see if he can be with a woman of Lucrezia's stature and fills her head with empty promises and pretty words, there is no hint of true affection. Lucrezia's relationship with Gonzaga, her brother-in-law, is more interesting, but still dry considering one gets the impression they never saw each other. Because we only have her letters to him, she seems extremely desperate, begging him to come visit her which he never does. It hardly seemed like love.

Three issues with the content (above has only been style and things she omitted, following will be my issues with the things she actually wrote): 1) long quotes from letters that are completely meaningless and could have been summed up in one sentence, 2) lengthy descriptions of clothes and foods which have no bearing on the story and distract the reader, 3) not enough introduction/ reintroduction of characters; when there are so many people it would be nice for her to say something like, "remember earlier in her life when she was at this ball and this guy said this, it's that guy." She never does anything of the sort, so it's very easy to get mixed up in all the names, especially since there are many people with the same name.

Altogether, Bradford makes Lucrezia's life rather boring. The first half of the book the reader is thinking, "Well, Rodrigo sounds way more interesting, I'll just read a book about him," then in the middle replace Rodrigo with Cesare, then in the end replace Cesare with practically any male character in the book. Lucrezia is a tertiary and unimportant character in her own biography. It was very sad indeed. (less)

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Jul 20, 2010 MKat rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, biography, history

I'm still very interested in Lucrezia and the Borgias generally, but I just do not like Bradford's style. Very clinical and dry, which is NOT what you want from a biography of a Borgia! Bradford just sloughs along from one event to another in Lucrezia's life, interspersing lengthy (and often irrelevant and/or sycophantic) excerpts from her letters that, oftentimes, you're just happy to zip through. This book suffers the most common and worst fate of biographies - the subjects just do not feel li...more

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May 13, 2013 Leon rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Lucrezia Borgia - an infamous murderess or simply the victim of bad press? Lucrezia Borgia's name has echoed through history as a byword for evil - a poisoner who committed incest with her natural father, Pope Alexander VI, and with her brother, Cesare Borgia. Long considered the most ruthless of Italian Renaissance noblewomen, her tarnished reputation has prevailed long since her own lifetime. In this definitive biography, a work of huge scholarship and erudition, Sarah Bradford gives a fascin

...more

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Feb 24, 2013 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars

The name "Borgia" always seems to conjure up visions of extreme evil. Although her brother Cesare was pretty much the Devil and her father, Pope Alexander VI (yes, I know. But morals among the holy orders in the 15th/16th centuries were a lot looser than the Church EVER lets on!) was the master of getting what he wanted, Lucretia was a pawn in the marriage game. She was married 3 times. The first time at 12. After several years of marriage and no child, her father realized there was no politicsl...more The name "Borgia" always seems to conjure up visions of extreme evil. Although her brother Cesare was pretty much the Devil and her father, Pope Alexander VI (yes, I know. But morals among the holy orders in the 15th/16th centuries were a lot looser than the Church EVER lets on!) was the master of getting what he wanted, Lucretia was a pawn in the marriage game. She was married 3 times. The first time at 12. After several years of marriage and no child, her father realized there was no politicsl advantage in continuting the marriage and got it annulled as non-comsumated ((How humiliating for her husband! But he didn't dare protest....) Her second husband was killed by the paid assassin of her brother. (Too complicated to explain in detail.) Her third marriage was one that neither party wanted but Pope Alexander did, so it happened. Lucretia and her new husband Alfonso d'Este actually had a good marriage to the extent that he trusted her to rule his duchy in his absence.

In Bradford's portrait, Lucrezia is as much put upon as she is conniving and deadly. She was an extreme political animal, understanding, as her father did, when to force an issue and when to let it go. Because she was female, she was dependent on the actions of men and so became extremely adept at soothing their egos and pumping their pride so that she could get her way. But she was never "evil" like her brother. Her schemes were for the betterment of her husband or their duchy, not to the detriment of others. The only time she pursued something that was not "acceptable" to the people she asked help from was the release from prison of her brother Cesare. He was not well-liked in what was then Italy.

Bradford writes so well you feel like you aren't reading nonfiction. You know she's done her homework when she mentions that another biographer thinks "this" happened and then points out that they didn't access "that" document which tends to clarify a matter and turn the interpretation towards a different direction.

And at time she can't resist throwing in some dry humor. My favorite sentence in the entire book is

"Alessandro - a ruthless husband who had twice tried to poison,
and then to strangle his second wife, before forcing her into a
convent - was otherwise a civilized man who employed the best
architects and artists to beautify the town."

Of course Lucrezia was proud and used her family name to accomplish actions that others couldn't, but she never did them to cruelly usurp power or punish others.

Read and learn!(less)

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May 23, 2012 Lindley rated it 5 of 5 stars

I could not disagree more with the reviewers who are lambasting this book for its lack of purple prose and for not having the Antonia Frasier approach of “just make stuff up”. Meticulously referenced and using vast amounts of primary sources, as well as looking in a measured way at historical debates, this is exactly what a biography should be – and Lucrezia emerges from her own voice and those of the people around her, rather than as a trashy historical fiction heroine.

What emerges is fascinati...more I could not disagree more with the reviewers who are lambasting this book for its lack of purple prose and for not having the Antonia Frasier approach of “just make stuff up”. Meticulously referenced and using vast amounts of primary sources, as well as looking in a measured way at historical debates, this is exactly what a biography should be – and Lucrezia emerges from her own voice and those of the people around her, rather than as a trashy historical fiction heroine.

What emerges is fascinating – a woman surrounded by violence and intrigue and incredibly able and politically adept; with the Borgia “resilience” that allowed her to quickly recover from the horrible fates of those she loved without losing any of her devotion to their murderers’ a woman of great and apparently sincere piety and complete sexual amorality; a woman who would condone her brother’s hideous miscarriages of justice and yet spent much of her time pleading for clemency for prisoners; a loving and happily married wife who carried on long-term adulterous affairs. Her contradictions are the most interesting part. Given great power and riches at a very young age, living a life of almost obscene self-indulgence, governing cities by seventeen, thrust into “temporary” marriages as stepping stones for her family, and loving excessively a father and brothers of stunning brutality, the Lucrezia depicted here is morally ambiguous but very definitely a strong and intelligent woman of unusual gifts and capabilities, neither the monster nor the passive innocent of fiction.

Perhaps the most fascinating part of her life is the part most ignored by sensationalists who focus on her Borgia connection – her life in Ferrarra. That she could largely negotiate her own marriage into a family who were desperate to escape having to accept her marrying into them, and win the hearts, minds and trust of at least the male members of the family – though never her sister-in-law – is an incredible achievement. That the marriage wasn’t annulled when the Borgia connection became a disadvantage (and there were reasons enough for an annulment) and that in fact she was frequently trusted to rule Ferrarra for long periods of time, is even more impressive. Lucrezia’s delicate handling of her lover’s affection and trust to help save Ferrarra from a hostile Pope shows her great ability, and the fact that she managed to transform herself from the notorious bastard Lucrezia Borgia to the beloved and almost universally respected Duchess of Ferrarra – hailed on all sides as a beautiful, modest, wise and above all *good* princess - is an incredible story. I spent most of the book marvelling at, not just her canny intelligence, but the incredible charm she must have exerted to win so many hostile men – including her family’s implacable enemies – over to her side.

This is an excellent telling of her life – scholarly but not dense, readable but not sensationalised, measured and fair, and using sources unique to this book. It relies on the authentic voices of the Renaissance to bring out the extraordinary impact this woman managed to have on her time.

It’s probably sad, then, that the most striking fact that remains with me is that Lucrezia and her father-in-law shared a hobby of collecting nuns.
(less)

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Oct 04, 2011 Madeline rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: history-nonfiction

Like most historical figures that interest me, I was first introduced to Lucrezia Borgia and her awesome, psychotic family through historic fiction. In high school I read The Borgia Bride, which was told from the perspective of Lucrezia's sister-in-law, Sancha of Aragon. It was awesome (and, as I now know from reading this book, pretty accurate) for several reasons: first, lots of sex, which to a fifteen-year-old is a great recommendation in itself; second, it was full of poisonings, backstabbin...more Like most historical figures that interest me, I was first introduced to Lucrezia Borgia and her awesome, psychotic family through historic fiction. In high school I read The Borgia Bride, which was told from the perspective of Lucrezia's sister-in-law, Sancha of Aragon. It was awesome (and, as I now know from reading this book, pretty accurate) for several reasons: first, lots of sex, which to a fifteen-year-old is a great recommendation in itself; second, it was full of poisonings, backstabbing both figurative and literal (I recall that Sancha carried a dagger in her gown and used it several times), political intrigue, and general skullduggery. Also the author decided that, yes, the rumors were true and Lucrezia was sleeping with both her father and her brother Cesare, so there was that additional bit of escandalo. It was an awesome read, is what I'm saying, and when I saw this in a bookstore I decided to buy it on a whim and find out more about the real Lucrezia Borgia.

The first half, when her father is Pope and is gaining power (and then at the height of it), is fascinating. There are murders, wars, scheming, teenage mistresses, bastard children, and other classic Renaissance-style fun (and syphilis). What I learned from this segment of the book is that the Borgias' bad historical reputation is well-earned - Alexander basically bribed his way into the papacy and, despite being a religious person, had no problem keeping a mistress and being a power-hungry, murderous jackass in order to keep his power; his son Cesare wanted to take over Italy and came pretty damn close; and one of the Borgia children was murdered, probably by his own siblings, and found dead in a river. The only thing that's missing is the incest, which Bradford adamantly insists did not happen. I'm inclined to agree (after all, Cesare and Alexander could sleep with literally any women they wanted, so it's not like they were so desperate for tail they resorted to banging their sister/daughter), but in the interest of fairness and rumor-mongering, Bradford doesn't really offer up any compelling evidence that Lucrezia didn't sleep with her father or her brother. Just sayin'.

In fact, there aren't many claims made in this book at all, which is one reason it loses a star. Bradford isn't really making any specific points with this book, aside from setting out to show us that Lucrezia was a) not sleeping with her family members and b) not nearly as villainous as she's portrayed, and was actually very intelligent and sympathetic. Many of the other characters are more interesting that she is, particularly her fascinating and totally evil brother Cesare, who deserves a book of his own (I'm sure there are several already, but at times it felt like he was the one Bradford really wanted to be writing about). Sancha also makes a few appearances (she's known as Sancia here) and the little bits of information that Bradford reveals about her actions are tantalizingly brief. She'll mention offhandedly "Sancia was now Cesare's mistress" and then a few chapters later, "Sancia was no longer with Cesare and was now the mistress of so-and-so" with nothing in between. This made me want to find a biography of Sancha, because she sounds cool as hell. Equally so is Lucrezia's other sister-in-law, Isabella d'Este (the sister of Lucrezia's third husband), who becomes an important character in the second half of the book.

Unfortunately, that's where it gets boring. Once Lucrezia marries Alfonso d'Este and moves away from Rome, she's away from the center of the papal goings-on, which means the reader is too. Then Cesare and Alexander die, and there are no more cool characters doing batshit crazy things. Instead, it's just chapter after chapter of "Then Lucrezia got pregnant again and had another miscarriage. Then she wrote this letter to this person. Then Alfonso went to war and Lucrezia was in charge of Ferrara, and here's some stuff she did." Once the crazy Borgias are gone and it's just Lucrezia, the story stops being interesting. It doesn't help that Bradford's writing style is so dry and dull already, even when describing poisonings and ruinous affairs, and she makes Lucrezia's later life intolerably boring. Also Bradford's writing can be very confusing and oddly-structured, as evidenced in this bizarrely-constructed sentence that I had to read three times before I understood what it was trying to say: "That very day, alone in charge at Ferrara since Alfonso was away in camp and Ippolito also, Lucrezia, despite Sanudo's report of panic, kept her head, informing Alfonso of all she was doing to help, including sending a spy to Venice to find out whether the Venetians were arming forces and, if so, of what kind."

What? There has got to be a better way to phrase all that.(less)

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Feb 13, 2011 Kajah rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

While some people may find Bradford's meticulous approach to Lucrezia dull, the books reliance on primary sources, mostly correspondence between major players in Lucrezia's life, made for a satisfying listen (I listened to it on MP3). The book dodges the villainous reputation that various operas, plays, and histories have apparently given her and instead portrays her as woman caught in a powerful family that used deception and violence to grab land and power. She isn't portrayed as a victim,eith...more

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Jul 13, 2010 Dorothy rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. You might ask why someone like me would continue to be a Catholic after reading this book. Add to this the number of pedophile scandals among the clergy in recent years, and you have a real point. However, incest, pedophilia, and assassination in the name of politics,power,position,and greed is nothing new to the realm of Popedom and the Church.
My reason then for remaining a Catholic is based on the basic tenets of the Church and not on the people who run them.
One of these is none other than Car...more You might ask why someone like me would continue to be a Catholic after reading this book. Add to this the number of pedophile scandals among the clergy in recent years, and you have a real point. However, incest, pedophilia, and assassination in the name of politics,power,position,and greed is nothing new to the realm of Popedom and the Church.
My reason then for remaining a Catholic is based on the basic tenets of the Church and not on the people who run them.
One of these is none other than Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia who sired the heroine in this historical tale of Lucretia her brother, Cesare, and her half brothers Juan, Giovanni, and Rodrigo.
Right from the outset, the reader becomes privy to the insidious ways in which Rodrigo operates in order to rise to the power of the Pope and uses Lucretia and Cesare as pawns to spawn his influence throughout the known world during the 15th century.
Our heroine was born in 1480. Right from the outset, Rodrigo knew that he had a winner. Bradford describes her as, "She was of middle height and graceful in form. Her face is rather long and the nose is well cut, hair golden, eyes of no special color...Her teeth were brilliantly white, ... the bust admirably preportioned, She is always gay and smiling."At twelve when Rodrigo would be anointed Pope Alexander VI, she was ripe for the first of her three marriages.
1. On June 12th, 1493, she was wed to Giovanni Sforza, This union was admittedly based on a vendetta in retaliation to an affront to the Pope made by the King of Aragon in Naples. The marriage was later annulled on the pretext that it had never been consummated. ( History proved otherwise.)
With Giovanni out of the way, Lucretia was then betrothed to 2. Alfonso d'Aragona, but he, too, fell into disfavor and was conveniently done away with by Cesare, Lucretia's arrogant and malevolent brother. Even motherhood did not stop Alexander from moving Lucretia forward on a mission to expand the empire and his influence for by this time she had proven that she was a skillful administrator and a person who could easily gain the love and the loyalty of her people. After the untimely demise of spouse number two, negotiations were readily in place for
3. Alfonso d'Este the Duke of Ferrara. His fame as a military man was renown. He was particularly adept in the knowledge and use of ammunitions and artillery. This made him valuable to the Pope and to his people in their effort to expand the empire. Lucretia was of such great value to him during his wars away from home, because he knew that he could trust her with governing whilst he was away.On the other hand, when he was at home conjugal unions were frequent leaving Lucretia with a number of miscarriages and at least five living progeny. Her first born was dutifully named after her father, Rodrigo, the Pope who spawned her.
The foregoing is only a glimpse into the intrigue, the debauchery, the politics, and the sexual innuendos that were an integral part of the Borgia's legacy. If you wish to get down to the nitty gritty details on your own, I dare you to attempt this historical documentary.
I,myself, found it to be a rather difficult exercise. Ms. Bradford confused this reader by referring to her characters with different names, jumping from one episode in the adventure to another, and repeating various incidents ad infinatum . Believe me if I were not focused, or if I did not go back to check the references, I would have been left in the proverbial dark. Even at that, I cannot say that I fully understood the full impact of the strategies of war and the political machinations that were used to achieve their goals.
This summary is but a brief description of interludes in the Borgia'sstory. One would have to read the book in order to delve further into the each move made on the chessboard of time during the reign of the Borgian dynasty.
Good Luck!!
Note: Bradford denies that Lucretia was a pawn in the Pope's power moves.(less)

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Jun 26, 2012 Christie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 15th-century, 16th-century, books-with-pictures, history, italy, royalty

First Sentence: "Lucrezia Borgia's name has been a byword for evil for five hundred years, her life distorted by generations of historians and seen through the prism of the crimes of her family, themselves magnified by hostile chroniclers of the time."

Lucrezia Borgia was the daughter of Rodrigo Borgia, also known as Pope Alexander VI. She was the sister of Cesare Borgia who would strike fear in the hearts of many Italians in the late 1400s and early 1500s. She has been seen alternately as a vic...more First Sentence: "Lucrezia Borgia's name has been a byword for evil for five hundred years, her life distorted by generations of historians and seen through the prism of the crimes of her family, themselves magnified by hostile chroniclers of the time."

Lucrezia Borgia was the daughter of Rodrigo Borgia, also known as Pope Alexander VI. She was the sister of Cesare Borgia who would strike fear in the hearts of many Italians in the late 1400s and early 1500s. She has been seen alternately as a victim of her father and brother's machinations or as an evil woman in her own right. But who was the real Lucrezia Borgia? Sarah Bradford tries to answer this question in her extremely well-researched biography.

I had not known much about the Borgias before reading this book. I had come across them in a few books and in the Assassin's Creed video game series, but didn't really know much about them. This book was a nice introduction. Where a lot of biography authors just expect you to have a lot of background knowledge of the subject and the time in history, Ms. Bradford does a very good job of setting the stage and familiarizing the reader with the key characters, setting, and how it all fits with world history. Like I said above, the book is extremely well-researched but still approachable for the casual reader. Lucrezia was a fascinating woman. At first, controlled by her father and brother, she made her own life after their deaths. She had a great head for government and her third husband, Alfonso Este, Duke of Ferrara, left much of the government running to her. She was also a passionate woman as her many love letters quoted in the text exemplify.

The first part of the book dragged for me like nobody's business. It really seemed more like a biography of Rodrigo and Cesare Borgia than of Lucrezia. In fact, Lucrezia seemed to be just a minor personage in that part of the book. In the second part, she really came into her own more and I enjoyed that. It also irritated me a bit that quite a few Italian words that were unfamiliar to me were used throughout the text with no definitions. This book also is one biography that does not read like fiction at all. It's not boring, but it does get repetitive after awhile. It was also hard for me to keep all the players straight at times since they were all named the same 5 or 6 names. I also feel that Lucrezia was a little too squeaky clean in this biography than she might have been in real life.

This book was very interesting to me. Lucrezia was a fascinating woman as were all the Borgias. I would recommend this to anyone interested in the Borgias or Renaissance Italy in general. (less)

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Jan 14, 2013 Elizabeth Reuter rated it 3 of 5 stars

Unfortunately, Lucrezia Borgia promises a lot it doesn't deliver on.

The book is only half about Lucrezia. Bradford branches out to tell the stories of not only those close to her, but those who had barely anything to do with her.

This could be excused as a way of teaching readers about Lucrezia's Italy. Except:

a) Bradford drops so many names that only a historian could keep track of everyone, and

b) Bradford tell us little of what Lucrezia herself did.

For example, Bradford mentions that Lucrezia...more

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Aug 13, 2009 Sara Poole rated it 5 of 5 stars

Long vilified as a murderess, conspirator and partner to incest, Lucrezia Borgia was overdue for a reappraisal by a serious historian able to blast past the stereotypes. Sarah Bradford does exactly that by dint of meticulous research revealing the fascinating if turbulent life of the daughter of Pope Alexander VI. Used by her father to advance his political ambitions, Lucrezia endured an early marriage that was annulled under questionable circumstances, the brutal murder of her second husband, a...more

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Nov 13, 2012 Rio (Lynne) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: library-book, non-fiction, rome-italy-renaissance

I have been looking for a book about Lucrezia that told her complete life story, so many books only cover her childhood or her first or second marriage. This non-fiction book covered it all...The notorious Borgia family...all three husbands Giovanni Sforza, Alfonso of Aragon and Alfonso d' Este...The Italian Wars and an intimate look and detailed history about the city of Ferrara, where Lucrezia's life ended. I'm not a big non-fiction fan, but this book answered my questions. I just visited Ferr...more

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Jan 03, 2009 Jae rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2008-books

In a lot of ways this book was very interesting yet a little frustrating. For a woman about whom so much has been written, and so many incredibly scandalous things, there really isn't very much known about her. Compared to other women of her time, there's a lot, but still there are a lot of empty spaces especially in terms of how she felt about the many amazing things that happened in her life. But even given that, her life was fascinating, and certainly the time period was fascinating. There di...more

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Sep 19, 2010 Belinda rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-bio

This was a wonderful biography---and one of the few honest ones of Lucrezia Borgia out there. Most bios before a certain time are to be avoided--littered with inaccuracies and downright slander. Also usually far too filled with information on her illustrious if somewhat decadent family. This book truly focuses on Lucrezia herself. It starts with her beginnings and a nice overview of the warring families and duchys that made up Italy at the time and from which she sprung.
The book pretty quickly...more

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Feb 24, 2013 Ulissae Efp rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ho comprato questo libro più o meno un anno fa, proprio dentro la Corte degli Este: ero andata a visitare Ferrara con la famiglia e al classico shop che si trova alla fine di ogni mostra o museo ho trovato questa biografia, che era in offerta. Spinta anche da mia madre che mi disse di aver letto tale libro e di averlo molto apprezzato lo comprai, tornata a casa lo posai nella libreria e qualche giorno fa, risvegliata in me la curiosità dopo un video Cesare/Lucrezia, mi misi a leggerlo
Bene.
Non er

...more

Ho comprato questo libro più o meno un anno fa, proprio dentro la Corte degli Este: ero andata a visitare Ferrara con la famiglia e al classico shop che si trova alla fine di ogni mostra o museo ho trovato questa biografia, che era in offerta. Spinta anche da mia madre che mi disse di aver letto tale libro e di averlo molto apprezzato lo comprai, tornata a casa lo posai nella libreria e qualche giorno fa, risvegliata in me la curiosità dopo un video Cesare/Lucrezia, mi misi a leggerlo
Bene.
Non era il libro che aveva letto mia madre.
E dovrei imparare a diffidare dei libri in offerta in negozi dove tutto costa un miliardo e la tua anima.

L'autrice apre il libro dicendo che Lucrezia è stata una donna sempre oscurata dalle figuri forti maschili della sua famiglia, considerando il tono polemico ci si aspetta un bel libro incentrato unicamente su di lei, capace di raccontarcene la psiche. Magari qualche bella indagine sulle numerose voci diffamanti che si sono tramandate.
Scordiamocelo. Ma proprio... no.
Il libro racconta della storia rinascimentale italiana con vaghi riferimenti a Lucrezia. Solo quando finalmente Alessandro e Cesare muoiono riusciamo a scorgere, anche se vagamente, la figura di questa donna, che però viene sempre oscurata da questioni politiche.
Ovviamente non si può prescindere la vita di Lucrezia dalla storia del suo tempo, essendo stata lei stessa grande protagonista, ma è anche vero che non si possono spendere tre quarti della sua biografia a spiegare la situazione politica rinascimentale, e il restante quarto a descrivere il modo in cui era vestita o veri e propri elenchi di ordini fatti ai sarti o di nomi del suo seguito.
Di Lucrezia, dopo 324 pagine, non sappiamo nulla se non che: ha avuto una storia con Pietro Bembo, con Francesco Gonzaga. Era rispettata per le sue capacità amministrative dal marito Alfonso d'Este, che amava Cesare e Rodrigo, che stava male molto, ma molto spesso, e che ha abortito numerose volte. Ah, e che evidentemente non gliene fregava niente, ma proprio niente, della madre.
Ho scoperto più cose su Cesare e su Alfonso d'Este e su qualunque altro uomo presente nella vita di Lucrezia!
Di un'aridità spaventosa, che ha reso la lettura veramente, ma veramente pesante.
Pesantezza peggiorata dal fatto che l'autrice, inglese, ha inserito numerosissimi inserti originali di lettere di Lucrezia, Francesco Gonzata, Prosperi, Isabella d'Este, Alessandro, Cesare... che sicuramente in inglese saranno state tradotte e quindi rese accessibili a tutti, mentre in versione italiana sono state lasciate "in-tradotte". Quindi, leggendo questo libro, ci troviamo davanti a lunghissime lettere originali: l'itagnolo di Alessandro VI, il ferrarese di Francesco, i latinismi... Insomma, una vera propria impresa.
Soprattutto perché la Branford non spiega nessuna delle lettere. Le inserisce per spiegare una situazione, supponendo che il lettore vedrà chiaro dopo aver letto la lettera. Il problema è che le lettere, spesso, non sono così chiare.
Ammetto che ogni volta che ne vedevo una avvicinarsi iniziavo ad agitarmi sul posto!

Sarah Bradford aveva a disposizione numerosissimi documenti di archivio e numerosissime epistole. il problema è che un saggio non è una mera elencazione, né una semplice citazione diretta delle fonti. Manca totalmente la rielaborazione dell'autrice, che avrebbe reso questa biografia sicuramente di più facile e piacevole lettura.

A chi lo consiglio?
Bhè, diciamo a nessuno. A meno che non siate veramente, ma veramente degli appassionati, già allenati alla lettura di testi dell'epoca (si può dire?) Ma diciamo che se, come me, volete soltanto scoprire qualcosa di più su questa donna... vi conviene cercare altro.

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Sep 09, 2012 Mark Kenneth rated it 1 of 5 stars

Sorry to say, but this book is a total pile-on of confusing names, dates and setups that still have not delivered for me 1/3 of the way in. This one was a hard slog and I give up. This book needed a better editor, who should of told Ms. brdford to stop packing so much in .... I mean just read here acknowlegment page with out your eyes going cross. I think good history should put things into context and tell a compelling story, give possible insights and illuminate the past. Also a book on Lucezi...more

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May 06, 2011 Miranda Henley rated it 2 of 5 stars

Still working on this one. I really want to become engrossed in this book, but I'm having a really hard time. There are so many people being discussed (at about 50 pages in, I haven't read much about Lucrezia herself), and it's very difficult to keep straight who is who, which makes it difficult for me to really care. This has several good reviews on here that have convinced me to not give completely up on it yet, but there are just as many reviews that concur with my opinions on the dryness and...more

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May 14, 2012 Thomas rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a very academic book, filled with excerpts of letters written by Lucrezia and her contemporaries. As such, it was difficult to follow as I was constantly wading through long names and titles of individuals and their words, translated from Italian (in most cases) into very formal, courtly language. I learned a lot about Lucrezia as a able administrator of her husband's property (duchy?), but still felt lost in the details of intrigue, double-crosses, and triple-crosses by the rulers of th...more

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Jul 09, 2009 Sarai rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: general-nonfiction, nonfiction-historical, biographies, historical

This is a true story covering the life of Lucrezia Borgia, the illegitimate daughter of Pope Alexander VI, who lived in what is now Italy in the late 1400s. Lucrezia has been charged with incest and murder, but Bradford paints a different portrait of a young woman who spent much of her life under the rule of her father and brother and was used as a pawn in their machinations toward gaining more power.

This is not a book for people who enjoy light, fast reading. There is a lot of detail presented...more

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Jan 31, 2012 Susan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: italy, biography

This was a meticulously researched and carefully constructed biography of Lucretia Borgia, arguably the most famous of a family known as poisoners and murderers. Since I particularly enjoy the day-to-day details of history retrieved from primary sources, for me this was a very absorbing study of a Renaissance life. While the facts are slightly less shocking than the popular portrayal of them, the background of continual lies, treachery, double-dealing and betrayals is overwhelming. However it pr...more

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Jun 07, 2011 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Candice

Shelves: biography-memoir, europe, female-authors, history

Very scholarly -- I had to look up several new-to-me words that Bradford chose, which was nice. This is my first exposure to Renaissance Italy (besides the generic "stuff you're taught in history classes, which is a nice paintbrush"). I found it completely compelling and even learned a bit about torture.

This continues my urge to go back to school and become a feminist historian, because the treatment of women like Lucrezia Borgia and Anne Boleyn by their contemporaries and even present day histo...more

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May 09, 2013 Bunny Christine Arlotti rated it 2 of 5 stars

Because I'm an English major, I decided reading this biography would be detrimental to my recent knowledge of correct grammar and syntax. I tried to read beyond the bad writing, but not even the story was interesting. If I were ever to write an historical fiction novel based upon Lucrezia's life and loves, I would utilize this biography's in-depth historical information. I only wish the information was organized in a readable format. Bradford includes so much background information that she loos...more

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Mar 05, 2013 Angela rated it 3 of 5 stars

I agree with a lot of the other reviews out there. Lucrezia Borgia is a fascinating woman with a fascinating family and lifestyle. So where is all the intrigue, drama and passion? I really appreciate the attention to detail and the exhausting research Sarah Bradford must have done, but for such an exciting (and not very long) life, this could have definitely been pumped up a notch. I just found the style of writing a little dry and matter of fact.

All that aside I do think it's an honest, good o...more

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Feb 25, 2013 Annie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: history, the-renaissance, women-in-history, read-in-2013, reviewed, faves, women-writers

I loved this book and enjoyed the subject too much to find it tedious, although I can see how others might. It's an illuminating biography on one of history's most (in)famous women, and although much of the rumor and glamour of the Borgia legacy has been stripped by the truth (or the closest we'll ever come to the truth, anyway), it is still a fascinating read. Indeed, Lucrezia shines the brightest not as the daughter of the pope, but when she was the Duchess of Ferrara; being no longer subject...more

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May 02, 2013 Dorothy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography

This provided lots of nice detail about life in Rome and Ferrara among the aristocracy and does a good job of debunking the salacious myths that have dogged Lucrezia Borgia.

That said, like many biographies, love for the subject has skewed the profile for many of the other people whose lives touched hers. I have discovered that to gain a group portrait, so-to-speak of key figures in 15th and 16th century Italy (and many other states as well) one must read many individual biographies and be wary o...more

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Dec 29, 2011 Chloe rated it 2 of 5 stars

While this is clearly a thoroughly well researched book it somehow still leaves me knowing very little about Lucrezia Borgia, maybe this is because so much of the detail of her life is known only through the letters of the other people in her world. Unfortunately for Sarah Bradford it seems that there just isn't enough evidence to support or refute any claims about Lucrezia, and she remains a largely shadowy figure. This book seems to not quite know what it is trying to be, it's not informative...more

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Apr 07, 2012 Caroline rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography, non-fiction, the-borgias, lucrezia-borgia, sarah-bradford

The great thing about anything by Sarah Bradford is that she adores her subjects, yet can look at them from an objective manner. The bad thing about Sarah Bradford is that she adores her subjects, and thus is meticulously detailed in her work. If you are not a hardcore fan of whatever she's writing about--in this case the Borgia family--you probably won't like her biographies. Lucrezia Borgia, in particular, is somewhat sparsely documented in some cases; we can't always know for sure where she w...more

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Sep 13, 2010 Rachel rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: history and rennaissance fans

This book was clearly very well researched and quite well written. The author offers some interesting perspectives on Lucrezia's life. It's hard to get a good perspective on who exactly Lucrezia was, largely because most of what is known of her has to be gathered from third party sources. In spite of a few too many details about clothing, jewels and furniture (there may be no heart-felt record of Lucrezia's true emotions in existence but there sure is a lot of documentation concerning her wardro...more

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Aug 15, 2010 M.J. Fiori rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: actually-reviewed, history-biography-or-memoir, nonfiction

This biography of Lucrezia Borgia reads like a novel, thanks to Lucrezia's multiple marriages and love affairs, murderously ambitious father, Pope Alexander VI, and equally murderous and devoted brother, Cesare. Bradford makes a case for Lucrezia as a 'good girl' - in opposition to what scholars and the public have maintained all these centuries - as well as a deft administrator, loving and faithful family member, and pious Catholic. Bradford's textured, detail-laden prose may have something to...more This biography of Lucrezia Borgia reads like a novel, thanks to Lucrezia's multiple marriages and love affairs, murderously ambitious father, Pope Alexander VI, and equally murderous and devoted brother, Cesare. Bradford makes a case for Lucrezia as a 'good girl' - in opposition to what scholars and the public have maintained all these centuries - as well as a deft administrator, loving and faithful family member, and pious Catholic. Bradford's textured, detail-laden prose may have something to do with the fact that the book was such a slow read, in spite of the exciting events depicted therein: Sarah Bradford often quotes at length from primary sources that paid a great deal of attention to what one wore, ate and decorated with, while also guessing at what one might have thought. The inclusion of these descriptions added immediacy and offered some perfect little windows into moments in Lucrezia's life. On the other hand, the biographer's Anglicisms sometimes forced me to read and re-read passages several times - not so much for vocabulary as for syntax and unfamiliar constructions.

As far as I can tell, this is the most authoritative work on the life of Lucrezia Borgia due to the fact that Bradford relied on far more sources than others before her. The book's main failing shows in the latter years of Lucrezia's life, when many sources fell silent. Without letters to consult and quote, great gaping holes are left in what we can see of our heroine's existence. We don't know exactly what she did with herself, far less what she thought. This is a pity, but not something Bradford could very well have changed. As a result, some of the middle years are most compelling and poignant - notably the weeks following Lucrezia's marriage to Alfonso d'Este, when the groom's sister, the noted Renaissance artist patron Isabella d'Este, had enlisted a prolific spy to report to her the minutest details of Lucrezia's comportment, speech, fashion and table. These days marked the final high times in the fortunes of both the d'Este and Borgia families, and this makes for a fascinating backdrop for the stiff dance between the two female rivals, Lucrezia and Isabella. What a great novel this would all make.

Final caveat: With so many ruling families and city-states populating the landscape of Renaissance Italy - not to mention the actions of royals from as far away as France, Spain and England - it is sometimes hard to follow the tides of war, peace and everything in between. It would be helpful to already have read a book or two on 16th century Italy (just as it would be ever so useful to know Italian). This is not to say that Sarah Bradford has not done a good job of offering concise backgrounds and explanations. I am sure entire books could be written about, say, the dispensing of papal indulgences by the former Rodrigo Borgia. (less)

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Jan 06, 2010 Adrian Stumpp rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: history, italian, non-fiction

Bradford achieved fame for an apparently first rate retelling of the life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. I have not read that book but I hope it is better than the current one. A deplorable trend is building steam among historians, and hence, biographers, that literary license makes for bad history. Therefore, we get a chronological detail of the events of the Borgia dynasty, heavy on factual information that is well researched from the vaults of the Vatican and quick paced in narrative, but lig...more

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