Lucrezia Borgia. La storia vera

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The name Lucrezia Borgia evokes the sinister and corrupt aspects of the Renaissance—incest, political assassination, and papal sexual abuse. However, bestselling biographer Sarah Bradford presents a more nuanced portrait, revealing a woman who was neither a monster nor a pawn, but a shrewd and determined figure who leveraged her beauty and intelligence to navigate the political landscape of her time. Born the illegitimate daughter of Rodrigo Cardinal Borgia and his mistress, Vannozza Cattanei, Lucrezia was only twelve when her father became Pope Alexander VI and thirteen when she entered her first marriage. She would marry twice more, gaining power with each union, ultimately becoming the duchess of Ferrara. In her maturity, Lucrezia emerged as an enlightened ruler—kind and decisive during conflicts, generous to artists and poets, and passionate in love, albeit indifferent to sexual morality. Drawing from a wealth of contemporary documents and firsthand accounts, Bradford vividly depicts the art, pageantry, and perilous politics of the Renaissance world that Lucrezia helped shape. With her expertise on the Borgia family, Bradford showcases Lucrezia as an ideal subject for her narrative and psychological insight, capturing the era’s irresistible blend of sex, gossip, murder, beauty, and ambition.