the enemies of the borgia pour into rome—fears of the sacred college—orsini and colonna—the cardinals and valentino—caesar enters into an agreement with france—the cardinal d’amboise—scheming before the conclave—caesar leaves rome—return of giuliano della rovere—the conclave—election of francesco piccolomini to the papacy—the new pope supports caesar—valentino’s fortunes ebb—death of pius iii.—machinations preparatory to electing his successor.
rome was in a tumult; the enemies of the house of borgia and of the spanish party began to pour into the city. the orsini were the first to appear; fabio, niccolò, and giangiordano, with their followers, at once prepared to take possession of their estates in the romagna. prospero colonna led his army up to the very gates of the city. the vitelli were advancing on città di castella, giampaolo baglioni attacked perugia; urbino, camerino, cagli, and piombino were ready to revolt; caesar’s domain was to crumble away in a day. valentino did not lose courage; he was resolute, defiant; he had—so he told machiavelli later—prepared for everything, even for the death of the pope—for all but one contingency, and that was his own illness.
the streets were thronged with troops; the spanish cardinals, officials, retainers, hangers-on, spies, informers, bullies were panic-stricken; they barricaded their doors and armed themselves. it243 was feared the french would seize the opportunity and advance on the city, and to the south not far away was the army of the king of spain. the sacred college, whose duty it was to elect a successor to alexander, had no military force at their command, and they were afraid to appeal to caesar, who, with his well-disciplined troops and able commanders, was still the strongest power in the city.
the orsini and the colonna, now at the very gates of rome, were ready to fly at valentino’s throat. the cardinals santa croce, cesarini, and de’ medici went to the warder of the castle of st. angelo, francesco de roccamura, a spaniard, to assure themselves of his support, and, although he was one of alexander’s creatures, to his great credit and in spite of caesar’s efforts to win him over, he remained faithful to the sacred college as the representative of the papal power. he trained his cannon on the streets leading to the castle and his men shouted “collegio, collegio! chiesa, chiesa!” the same afternoon the spanish mob burned the orsini palaces on monte giordano.
august 21st the cardinals, to the number of seventeen, again met in the minerva, and the question of entering into some agreement with valentino was discussed at length. the duke had professed loyalty and devotion to the sacred college, and pandolfo, a notary, was directed to confer with caesar’s secretary, agapito of amelia.
august 22nd, through his secretary, caesar swore obedience to the cardinals, who confirmed him in his office of captain-general of the church. the cardinals had warned both the colonna and244 the orsini to keep away from rome, but, disregarding their orders, prospero colonna entered the city with a small force of cavalry. the next day ludovico and fabio orsini also appeared with their followers. determined to avenge the murder of their kinsmen and the plundering of their estates, they sought caesar, and failing to find him, they wrecked their vengeance on the castilians generally. valentino and the spanish cardinals kept to the vatican, and without the whole city was in a tumult. gangs of ruffians rushed about shouting “colonna! orsini! borgia!”
caesar’s political sagacity coming to his aid, he endeavoured to separate the colonna, whom he had injured the least, from the orsini. these great rival families had been brought together by the wrongs they had suffered at the hands of the borgia. caesar offered to restore the property of the colonna, and this offer prospero promptly accepted, at the same time promising in return to support the duke. this agreement saved caesar for a time, and it was thought that in the impending conclave a pope favourable to the borgia might be elected. the orsini were frightened and, yielding to the demands of the cardinals, withdrew from the city during the night of august 24th.
prospero colonna
from an early engraving.
to face p. 244.
245 in the meantime the italian cardinals had been insisting that caesar also leave rome. the sacred college had secured about two thousand troops and had placed the city under the protection of the ambassadors of the emperor, of spain, france, and venice, who—august 25th—went to valentino, whom they found in the vatican stretched upon a bed, but completely dressed and surrounded by the spanish cardinals, and requested him to leave the palace. this he refused to do, saying that he was ill and that he would be safe nowhere else. thereupon they offered him the castle of st. angelo for his abode. caesar asked permission for his troops also to occupy the stronghold. he was still duke of romagna and he had more than nine thousand men under his command. he also had large amounts of money on deposit with alessandro spanocchi, consequently he was treated as a reigning prince. both the spanish and french ambassadors knew that his aid would be valuable in the war in naples, and prospero colonna was endeavouring to persuade him to enter the service of gonsalvo de cordova. at the same time france was trying to secure him.
finally, to the utter dismay of colonna and the spanish cardinals, he decided to cast his fortunes with the latter power, for september 1st, through the mediation of grammont, the french ambassador, he entered into an agreement by which he was to place his troops at the service of france in the regno and to hold himself in readiness at all times to aid the king, and to use all his influence with the spanish cardinals to secure the election of the cardinal of rouen to the papacy.
no sooner had georges d’amboise, cardinal of rouen, learned of the death of alexander vi. than he set out in great haste for rome, feeling certain that he could be elected to succeed the borgia. the papacy was the dream of his life, and he was ardently supported by the king, who would profit greatly by the election of his minister.246 in fact, louis thought that if amboise, his intimate friend, his subject, his prime minister, became pope he could easily make himself master of all italy. amboise, with the french army under the very walls of rome, promptly secured a strong following in the sacred college.
by his agreement with france caesar was assured the protection of the king both as to his person and his property. the same day—september 1st—valentino entered into an arrangement with the sacred college, one clause of which required him to leave rome within three days. prospero colonna had also been compelled to depart, and the ambassadors of maximilian and of louis xii. guaranteed that while the papal throne was vacant caesar, the colonna, and the spanish forces would not approach within ten miles of rome; the orators of venice and france did the same with respect to the french army and the orsini.
giustinian says it was agreed that prospero colonna should leave september 2nd, and caesar, with all his artillery, the following day. colonna did depart on the appointed day and caesar withdrew a little later with all his troops, horse, foot, and artillery. the duke himself was so ill that he had to be borne on a litter. the venetian orator adds: “now that caesar has gone it is thought that the election will take place quietly and without any disturbance, since every one respects the sacred college.” still, some uneasiness was felt lest the french should cause a disturbance, because odoardo bugliotto, the king’s valet, had arrived with a large amount of money, determined to make the cardinal of rouen pope. monsignor247 de trans had told giustinian that neither ascanio sforza nor any of the other cardinals then in france would attend the conclave, “nevertheless, yesterday evening the report was circulated, and this morning it was confirmed, that amboise, sforza, san malo, and aragona27 were already on the way, and,” he adds, “if this is true there will be much intriguing, for these men are seditious and shameless and with their astuteness and machinations cause much disturbance, and may god in his mercy watch over christendom.”
the same day—september 2nd—giustinian informs his government: “it is learned that valentino, without the knowledge of any one, has entered into an agreement with france.”
prospero colonna was greatly chagrined by caesar’s last trick, and when he left rome he took with him the princess of squillace—“who will be some comfort to him—while the prince went with the duke. the princess departed willingly, hoping to recover her estates in the regno—in any event there is little love between her and her husband as they are entirely unlike.” owing to the trouble and discord she had occasioned in the family, the princess sancia had been imprisoned by alexander vi. in the castle of st. angelo.
burchard describes valentino’s departure in detail. the very morning of the agreement he paid his troops and sent thirteen heavy wagons laden with engines of war forward through trastevere. he had three large bombards, two248 medium, and eight small ones. then he dispatched his guard to the milvius bridge, there to await him. more than a hundred wagons were required for his baggage. they left the vatican by the viridaria gate and proceeded to monte mario, the duke borne on a litter by twelve halberdiers. after him was led a magnificent charger with trappings of black velvet, embroidered with his arms and the ducal crown.
the spanish and french ambassadors accompanied him as far as the city gate. caesar set out for nepi, a town belonging to his family, the citadel of which was still loyal to him. gregorovius says his mother vannozza and his brother giuffre accompanied him.
valentino was still a power to be reckoned with, and he undoubtedly hoped to secure the election of a pope who would be friendly to himself and the borgia family, for he knew that he could count on the votes of the eleven spanish cardinals.
alexander’s obsequies began september 4th, and in accordance with the papal custom continued for nine days. the cardinals, however, soon lost interest in the ceremonies and were anxious to enter into conclave. one after another the cardinals who, for various reasons, had been living abroad returned. all rome was looking forward to the event which to caesar was the most momentous in his entire career—not excepting the election of his own father to the papacy—for not only his future but his very life depended on the outcome.
the french army, under monsignor de la trémoille and the marquis of mantua, had entered the249 romagna, where they were ordered to remain until a successor to alexander had been elected.
giuliano della rovere, after an absence of ten years in france, returned to italy september 3rd; cardinal colonna, who had been hiding in sicily for five years, appeared a few days later; the 9th the romans received riario in triumph, and the next day ascanio sforza, georges d’amboise, and the cardinal d’aragona made their entry. amboise had secured sforza’s release from prison and had brought him with him from france, counting upon securing his vote. the cardinal of rouen also felt certain that at the proper moment caesar would throw the votes of the spanish cardinals for him, and he believed that the near presence of the french troops would influence the sacred college in his favour, because they would immediately see that the papacy would be greatly strengthened by having the support of the armies of france. he, however, was not slow to discover that ascanio sforza was the favourite of the romans; moreover, the sacred college promptly requested amboise not to permit any of the french troops to enter the city.
when giustinian called upon giuliano della rovere on his arrival in rome the cardinal remarked to him: “i am here in my own interests and not in those of any one else; i am not here to cast my vote for the cardinal of rouen unless i should see that even without my vote he could be elected—which i think is impossible.” he added that he was a good italian and that he could not be forced to make a pope unless it were for the good of the christian religion and the peace and welfare of italy; he also expressed great affection250 for venice and promised to consider her interests.
september 16, 1503, thirty-eight cardinals entered the conclave which was held in the vatican. they first drew up an agreement which was to be submitted to any power that would guarantee their rights; they also promised to reform the abuses which were wellnigh universal in ecclesiastical affairs, and agreed to summon a council for that purpose within two years; they also promised to prosecute the war against the turks. the urgency of the situation in which they were placed cut short the discussion. the italians and the spaniards united against amboise and agreed to elect a pope who could not long survive, and, september 22nd, on the second scrutiny they selected francesco piccolomini, cardinal of siena, to be the supreme head of the church. he adopted the name pius iii.
piccolomini had been cardinal-deacon forty-three years; he was a man of probity, advanced in years, and a sufferer from the gout, with not long to live. giuliano della rovere, seeing that his own election was impossible, had secured the elevation of piccolomini. french politics had failed signally, and pius iii. promptly compelled the marquis of mantua to withdraw his troops from the romagna.
the college had been divided into three nearly equal factions—the french, the spanish, and the italian, whose respective candidates were georges d’amboise, bernardino carvajal, and giuliano della rovere. caesar for obvious reasons had supported the french candidate, and had succeeded in frustrating della rovere’s plans; the latter,251 however, had immediately discerned the true situation, and with the aid of oliviero caraffa, cardinal of naples, and girolamo basso della rovere, cardinal of recanati, succeeded in placing his eminence of siena in the papal chair, thereby giving himself time to perfect his own plans for securing the great prize on the demise of pius iii., which was sure to take place soon.
pius iii. was born in siena in 1439, consequently at the time of his elevation to the papacy he was sixty-four years of age. the cardinals who had procured his election in the hope that he would not survive long were not disappointed, for he died twenty-seven days after assuming the tiara—so promptly that the usual rumour of poison immediately spread. at first it was whispered that pandolfo petrucci, tyrant of siena, was guilty of the crime, and later the enemies of julius ii. fancied they discovered the hand of the cardinal of san pietro ad vincola in the sudden death. although pandolfo had committed many atrocities, it is extremely unlikely that any crime in this instance had been committed. as to della rovere, he knew that the new pope could not live long, and therefore had no need to shorten his days; in fact, he had procured his election for the express purpose of gaining time to perfect his own plans to secure the throne of st. peter.
caesar had also been active in effecting the election of piccolomini, who, in the event of his elevation, had promised to confirm him in his office of captain-general of the church and vicar of romagna. immediately after his elevation to the papacy the new pope began to bestow marks of252 his favour upon valentino. bonafede, bishop of chiusi, caesar’s representative during the conclave, was made governor of rome the very day the new pontiff was proclaimed.
september 23rd the pope granted giustinian an audience, during which the venetian ambassador interceded in favour of the romagnol barons, who had returned to their estates. his holiness replied: “as far as cesena is concerned, i agree perfectly with your illustrious signory, but as to the other lords, god has punished them for their sins with a tristo instrument, and i wish to remind the senate that all the troubles of italy originated in romagna.” then he said, smiling, “perhaps god will restore these lords after they have done penance.” undoubtedly the pontiff had made some sort of an agreement with caesar, for he did not hesitate to maintain the duke’s rights in romagna. he even went so far as to dispatch a legate to perugia to break up the league which valentino’s enemies had formed against him, and he also sent commissioners through romagna to urge the people to be loyal to him.
thus enjoying the favour of the new pope, caesar returned to rome with a considerable following october 3rd. he was accompanied by cardinals amboise, sanseverino, and d’albret.
the pope, however, did not support caesar very actively. in fact, when he urged obedience upon the romagnols, he remarked that he would give the duke no further aid—he wished, not to be a warlike pope, but a pacific one, to bring peace and quiet to christendom. regarding valentino, the pope advised the republic to do nothing, because253 it would soon be all over with him—his illness was a punishment from god. the 29th the ambassador writes: “valentino has sent messengers from nepi to rome to ask the pope’s assistance, but the only result so far is a few briefs.”
caesar had only 200 men left; ugo moncada with the flower of his troops had deserted him, and 2,000 men who had been under the command of romolino also left. alessandro spanocchi, the duke’s treasurer, tried to send money of his for deposit in florence, milan, bologna, and ferrara—14,000 to 20,000 ducats. it was said that the florentines offered valentino a free passage through their territory in case he wished to go to romagna.
the following day the pope issued a brief threatening with excommunication any one who should refuse to return any money or other property removed from the apostolic palace during the illness of pope alexander vi.—evidently this was aimed at caesar and his agents.
nothing escapes giustinian. “the duke is still at nepi in bad health, and deserted by nearly every one. the pope has given him fair words, but caesar is distrustful.” october 1st bartolomeo d’alviano requested the venetian orator to secure the senate’s permission for him to attack caesar in nepi; he also informed the ambassador that caterina sforza desired to join in the undertaking and had promised him a large sum of money, but he had refused his consent because he would have been obliged in return to help her recover her own estates, which would offend venice. october254 2nd the orator writes that the duke of urbino had sent a courier to rome with a letter in which he said he had attempted, but unsuccessfully, to persuade the people of fano, which was in the possession of valentino’s forces, to return to the holy see—and he asked permission to compel them to do so. the cardinal san pietro ad vincola accompanied the messenger and explained all to his holiness, who replied that he could not make any open demonstration against caesar, but that he was willing that the duke of urbino should do what he could—that it would not displease him; which shows that the pope was willing they should do as they saw fit with respect to this duke of valence, provided it did not appear to come from him. the pope decided valentino should return to rome, and he arranged to put the palace of the cardinal of ferrara near st. peter’s at his disposal. his holiness stated that he could not bring himself to use extreme measures with respect to the duke—that he had decided to have pity on him—however, “the chief reason why the pope has been so indulgent is that he heard the duke was very ill and incapable of taking the field, and being by nature very determined and avaricious, he hopes in case the duke dies, without using force, to get possession of the money and other valuables he removed from rome, although i think—and this is the opinion of many—that in this he will be disappointed, because the greater part of the valuables have been taken to the castle of forli and the money deposited in various places. the reason the duke asked to be allowed to return to rome is because he is afraid of alviano, who is trying in every way to get his clutches on him.”
255 valentino entered rome october 3rd with his entire force, about 150 men-at-arms, 500 foot-soldiers, and a few light horse. burchard’s mention of caesar’s return is even more concise.
the duke was lodged in the palace of the cardinal of san clemente, and many of the high church dignitaries immediately called upon him. “he is still sick,” adds giustinian, “and it is thought he will die.” two days later the orator writes, perhaps somewhat regretfully: “valentino is not as ill as was supposed; he talks arrogantly and boasts that he will shortly recover all his domain. to-day the cardinal of rouen went to see him and succeeded in getting 30,000—some say 50,000—ducats from him. although the pope is not very favourably disposed towards him, valentino, to obtain his support, is said to have lent him a large sum of money for his coronation expenses. it is believed here that the pope will regard this money as his own and keep it, together with the other valuables collected after the publication of the brief of excommunication, and also the 24,000 ducats found on deposit in the bank in the name of the duchetti”—the little dukes, don giovanni and don rodrigo.
the cardinals san pietro ad vincola and san giorgio complained to the pope of caesar’s presence in the city, and the ambassador reports a conversation he had with his holiness, in which the latter said: “i am neither a saint nor an angel, but a man, and one who does not fancy that he knows everything. i have been deceived. i thought the duke would ask to be made captain-general of the church, and then i should have256 told him that i had no money for soldiers.” it was rumoured in rome that the city of pesaro had been captured in the name of caesar, with the aid of florence, and the duke became more arrogant and threatening. the french and the cardinal of volterra were scheming to get him to enter the service of florence.
the pope was crowned in st. peter’s, october 8th, but the event in comparison with the actions of valentino was of slight importance in the opinion of giustinian; the florentines were negotiating with him, and he was busily engaged enlisting soldiers for use in romagna. the agent of the duke of urbino informed the venetian orator that soderini, cardinal of volterra, had asked him in what manner the republic of venice had helped valentino, and that he had also tried to convince him that insomuch as alexander vi. was dead, there was no reason whatever to accord caesar any protection any longer; to which giustinian replied that it would be a mistake for urbino to second the endeavours of venice, who was trying to get possession of romagna, for in that case valentino, france, and the other powers would take steps against him, and the duke of urbino would lose his domain for the third time; “then i advised him to make a compact with florence and the french.” urbino was, however, more inclined toward venice. the very day pius iii. was crowned he issued a bull appointing caesar gonfalonier of the church.
valentino felt that his star was again in the ascendant. favourable reports were coming in from the romagna, and about the end of september257 the people of cesena had dispatched an ambassador whom caesar received graciously and thanked for the loyalty of his people. immediately after the victories of carpineto and martirana, he sent letters to the romagnols urging them to resist until he should be well enough to come to their assistance. the states he had more recently acquired were somewhat doubtful, but most of them remained loyal to him. his bitterest enemy, giulio orsini, had made peace with him, and the pope gave him permission to embark on a new campaign to punish pandolfo malatesta for his attempt to seize rimini, and sforza for his movement against pesaro, and also to chastise the duke of urbino for endeavouring to recover his own property.
alvisi publishes a brief issued by the pope october 13th, in which he requests the florentines to allow caesar, “whom he loves tenderly, paternally, on account of his rare and superior virtues,” to lead his army through their territory.
it is difficult to judge how sincere the pope was, but it is certain that all italy, except romagna, feared and hated caesar, and rejoiced in his downfall; many were afraid that he might rise again; every one was eager to betray him; ferrara, in spite of lucretia borgia’s marriage with alfonso d’este, hated him—the daughter of a dead pope was of slight account in italian politics. the romagnol barons had entered into a treaty with him, but had no intention of keeping it. bartolomeo d’alviano and baglioni were gathering an army to crush him, and, in conjunction with the orsini, were trying to get possession of his person;258 shortly after his return to rome his enemies entered into a solemn compact to pursue him to the death. even spain’s representative in naples, gonsalvo de cordova, signed the agreement.
annibale bentivoglio came to rome early in october ostensibly to do homage to the pope, but in reality to watch caesar’s movements. the holy father told bentivoglio he had written the briefs in caesar’s favour in good faith, but that henceforth he would do nothing for him—but at the same time he was careful to add that he would do nothing to injure him. dissatisfied with this, bentivoglio asked cardinal della rovere to get the pope’s permission for him to attack caesar. this the cardinal promised to endeavour to do, and riario likewise agreed to use his influence to this end.
in the meantime valentino’s forces were rapidly dwindling away; of the 6,000 foot-soldiers and 600 men-at-arms he had at the time of his father’s death, not half were left to him. the clouds were fast gathering; even the florentines, who pretended to be his friends, were more than suspicious of him. gonsalvo de cordova promulgated an edict forbidding the spanish captains to serve under caesar’s orders, and commanding them immediately to report to himself to check louis xii., who was advancing on naples; october 14th the edict, in the name of castile, was solemnly proclaimed in rome before valentino’s palace and in two other places. small companies of men under the lieutenants of alviano, of baglioni, and orsini were constantly being brought to rome. the pope held a conference with the ambassadors of the various powers, and asked them to put a stop to259 alviano’s operations in the romagna; this they diplomatically declined to do.
caesar’s palace was surrounded; it was impossible for him to escape. in case he attempted to flee by way of ostia, mottino, formerly captain of alexander’s galleys, was ready to pounce upon him, and giustinian says: “this alviano is like a mad dog determined to fly at his throat.”
valentino, however, bribed the guards at the porta viridaria, and burchard records that he escaped with all his men october 15th, but that some of his people immediately deserted and returned to rome. when orsini heard of his flight he hurriedly left the city by another gate, and caesar, finding his road cut off, returned to rome, where he was admitted to the vatican. all but seventy of his men-at-arms abandoned him, and they, together with a few foot-soldiers, acted as a guard before the palace.
on the ground that he was a common criminal the orsini protested to the pope against affording him any protection.
rome was on the verge of civil war; the orsini burnt the torrione gate, and fabio orsini and renzo di ceri were ordered to attack the borgo which caesar had fortified. with the torrione gate destroyed, it was easy to get into the vatican. valentino was driven to the wall, when cardinals borgia, salerno, sorento, and arborea had him conducted through the subterranean passage to hadrian’s mole, where for a time at least he was safe. with him he had his natural children and the little dukes of nepi and of sermoneta. his palace in the borgo was sacked and plundered.260 october 16th giustinian tersely records: “the duke has retreated to castle s. angelo with four or five servants; his people are scattered; the orsini have surrounded the castle; they are trying to persuade the spanish ambassador to take steps to prevent him getting away.”
at the same time the spanish cardinals were endeavouring to induce the warder to permit valentino to escape disguised as a friar. but the orsini were vigilant and took every precaution to prevent this. caesar was deserted by all his people; what little property he had managed to save was now gone; the captain of the guard, a nephew of the pope, secured the greater part of it, and even the magnificent bartolomeo d’alviano obtained two beautiful chargers; all was scattered and valentino was in sore straits.
the orsini, finding themselves baffled, instituted a civil suit against their enemy for seizing the estates of the barons, and demanded that he be held in the castle of st. angelo until a decision could be rendered.
to some extent caesar still enjoyed the favour of the pope, and he conceived the idea of escaping by night and joining michelotto at the castle of soriana, where, he believed, he might collect an army and recover romagna. he, however, had no chance to carry out this plan, for the one friend still left—if friend he could be called—pope pius iii., died during the night of october 18, 1503, thus promptly fulfilling the hopes and expectations of many of the cardinals. piccolomini had reigned just twenty-seven days. september 27th he had undergone a painful operation, and the261 venetian ambassador followed his illness day by day as closely as he had done that of his predecessor. october 16th he states that fears for the pontiff’s life were felt; he was worse the next day and during the night his brothers removed his valuables from the vatican to a place of safety. the orsini, determined to force the election of a pope of their choice when pius passed away, remained in rome.
when alexander vi. died, the most scurrilous epitaphs were found affixed to the palace walls, but when pius iii. passed away, numerous laudatory epigrams were discovered. angelo colucci drew a striking comparison of the short but respectable reign of piccolomini and the shameless pontificate of his predecessor.
the death of pius was a great blow to caesar, who had enjoyed his support for a time. even now, however, his courage did not entirely desert him. machiavelli, who arrived in rome october 26th, wrote the signory that the duke was more hopeful than ever of accomplishing great things—providing a friendly pope is elected. it was said that caesar finally despairing of any other aid, had made some sort of a compact with the cardinal of san giorgio.
the sacred college, after seriously considering the demands of the orsini that caesar be held until a new pope was elected, decided that they had no authority to do so. during the meeting the cardinal of rouen defended caesar, hoping thereby to secure the support of the spanish prelates who were still devoted to valentino and were themselves influential and united. the cardinals decided that262 the duke was at liberty to go and come as he saw fit. there was, however, little likelihood that he would leave, as he was safer where he was than he would be anywhere else; moreover, when the new pope should be elected he would be in the best possible position to secure his favour through the mediation of the cardinals who might remain loyal to him. how influential caesar still was is shown by the orator’s remark that all those who aspired to the pontificate were ready to promise him anything he asked to secure the votes of the spanish cardinals and “there is one thing certain,” he adds: “no one will be pope who does not consent to all of valentino’s demands.”
the spanish prelates seemed to favour the astute cardinal of san pietro ad vincola, but santa prassede and alexandrino were also strong candidates.
burchard records that the cardinal of san pietro ad vincola came to the apostolic palace october 29th with valentino and his spanish cardinals, and entered into an agreement with them by which he promised, when he became pope, to make caesar captain-general of the church, and also to protect his interests and restore him to his estates; the duke on his part was to aid della rovere in the conclave, and all the spanish cardinals promised to cast their votes for him. the evening of october 30th, the obsequies of the deceased pope being over, the cardinals agreed among themselves that the cardinal of san pietro ad vincola should be his successor. the same day machiavelli informed his signory that giuliano della rovere had secured the promise of the263 majority of the votes of the sacred college “by means adapted to this end.”
giustinian repeats the various rumours current regarding the momentous event, the election of the new pope. the very day of the pontiff’s death he wrote: “there are three strong candidates—naples, san pietro ad vincola, and san giorgio; the spaniards incline to the second because he will be able to satisfy their demands the best. the cardinal of naples may get a few votes, but he is suspected of being french. san giorgio’s age is against him, consequently della rovere is the strongest candidate. sforza, colonna, and rouen are not mentioned now.”
the day following the pope’s decease all the cardinals were “intent on their machinations, some with little respect to god and the dignity of their office. bargains are openly made; the terms are no longer in hundreds, but in thousands and tens of thousands—to the measureless shame of our religion, and insult to god; there is now no difference between the papacy and the sultanate—it will go to the highest bidder.”
october 22nd the orsini complained to the sacred college of their treatment and alessandrino and medici were delegated to confer with them and caesar. the orsini, feeling that they had been grievously wronged, and at the same time not wanting to oppose the holy see and the sacred college, promised that if the duke would leave italy and go to france or some other place they would allow him safe passage; on the other hand, if he desired to remain in italy in the province of gesia, they demanded that he be required to give264 security for his appearance before the future pope to answer the charges lodged against him; they also agreed to give bonds to appear and defend an action he had threatened to bring against them. “it is not known what caesar said to these suggestions; many think he will decide to go to france, but some say he will remain here.” the next day the orator heard that valentino had resolved to leave italy, and that he had asked for eight or ten days in which to make his preparations; he also demanded that the orsini be required to leave rome and to give him a safe-conduct as they had agreed. it is clear that he asked for this time to enable him to persuade the sacred college to force the orsini to leave rome and also to permit him to carry on his machinations in connection with the election.
the obsequies of the deceased pope continued, but attracted little attention, the impending election of his successor being the all-absorbing topic—while the electioneering proceeded and the scandal increased.
cardinal colonna went over to the spanish faction, and this again rendered the situation more complicated. the 27th of the month the venetian ambassador wrote that it was still uncertain who would secure the great prize. the cardinals of naples and san pietro ad vincola were now the leading candidates; ascanio sforza was also mentioned. the ambassador adds that while “the wishes of the king of france have some weight, the duke’s desires are more important than anything else—and may god save us from having a pope who, under obligations to valentino, may convulse265 the affairs of all italy and even of all christendom.”
reports reached rome that antonio ordelaffi had captured forli and that sforza had recovered pesaro; at the same time pandolfo petrucci had entered rimini, taken the fortress, and put caesar’s men to rout; this renewed activity was directly due to the pope’s death and caesar’s retreat to the castle of st angelo.
the duke was greatly discouraged by this news and dispatched a messenger to the venetian ambassador to ask the help of the senate. by this time alviano and the orsini had, in obedience to the wishes of the cardinals, left rome with nearly all their troops.
the pope’s obsequies were concluded the 29th. giampaolo baglioni was still in rome under the protection of the cardinal of rouen, who stated he desired his presence for his own security. the sacred college, however, to render this unnecessary, enlisted about five hundred foot-soldiers to guard the conclave. caesar was still in the castle of st. angelo and daily received visits from cardinals borgia, loris, romolino, and vera to confer regarding the future pope.
although valentino had received the safe-conduct he made no move to depart; in fact, he had no intention of going before the election of the new pope. the morning of the 30th it became known that della rovere had reached an agreement with the spanish cardinals and rouen, and his election was assured. the betting, according to giustinian, ran as high as 82 per cent. on della rovere as against 6 per cent. on the field—just how bets were placed in those days is not known.