Drawn mostly from the records of Master of Ceremonies to Pope Alexander VI, Johann Burchard, these notes were set down and abbrevaited to show the rapid development of things in Rome as the forces of France were moving to engulf the city.
Tuesday, December 2:
Cardinal Ascanio w/ 20 'ecclesiastics and a great number of companions' return to Rome. [p.93]
Tuesday, December 9: Cardinal Ascanio, Cardinal Sanseverino, Cardinal de Lunate, the Bishop of Cesena, Prospero Colonna and Jerome d'Estouteville were all brought to the Vatican Palace and placed under arrest. Jerome d'Estouteville 'was the son of Cardinal d'Estouteville' a strong French partisan before his death in 1483. Jerome was an ambasssador for Napolitan, French and Sforza interets and was 'in Rome at the close of 1494 in such service.' [pp. 93-4]
In the footnote here [p. 93], our editor explains that Alexander 'must have thought, in some panic, to secure his own position, and also to put pressure on Charles VIII.'
But then he 'must have sensed the futility of such actions and began releasing them in time' or simply, released them as he saw the opportunity for their individual uses.
Wednesday, December 10: Bishop of Cesena and Cardinal de Lunate was released (the latter sent to Ostia for negotiations there), but Cardinal Ascanio and Sanseverino were taken to rooms above the papal apartments and imprisoned there. Also
Don Ferrantino of Aragon (or Federigo or Ferdinando depending on the source) commanding the forces of Naples (and soon to be dubbed the Duke of Calabria and son of King Alfonso of Naples) returned to Rome and after he 'dined in Cardinal Orsini's garden' rode off to visit the pope at the Vatican.
Also in Rome, after a consistory of several days, discussing all these matters the Pope finally told the ambassadors that he would not feed or allow the French armies passage through papal lands.
Friday, December 12: The forces of Don Ferrantino sacked and pillaged the residence in Rome of French Cardinal Raymond Peraudi who
had left November 15th. And did it with papal sanction. [p.94] The editor in a footnote tells us this 'seems the pope took advantage of popular opinion to order this' in response to rumors of Peraudi's treachery with the French.
Christopher Hibbert in his book
The Borgias [p 63], tells us that it was around this time that a French commander near
Viterbo, Italy had captured a number of travelling ladies. Two of these turned out to be Giulia Farnese and Adriana da Mila, the pope's mistress and cousin who led the household of his children. The French commander Yves d'Alegre reported this to his king who supposedly said he was 'not at war with women'. The commander went ahead and demanded 3000 ducats for their ransom.
When this was arranged and the women returned safely to Rome under an escort of 400 soldiers), Ludovico Sforza was incensed saying they could have been used 'as a fine whip against this pope since he could not live without them'.
Tuesday, December 16: He asked them to communicate with Germans in the city, as he said he was with the Spanish and even the French in the city, to arm & ready their number to defend themselves against any possible attacks from the French armies.
Wednesday, December 17: Burchard explains that he personally did so, meeting with 'two landlords and six shoemakers at our inn Ospedale dell' Anima'. This place was just off the Piazzo Navona where the della Rovere family and
young Felice had recently just left. But they could not agree, already being responsible to 'regional captains' and that 'they could not be released from these duties' in order to carry out such things. Burchard sent word back to the pope their responses. [p.95]
Meanwhile, a message from Florence had arrived [pp. 95-98]. It came from Cardinal Peraudi saying that Don Giorgio Bucciardo had been captured. He was the pope's courier and envoy to Sultan Bajazet of the Turks in Constantinople. This capture, by Giovanni della Rovere the brother of the famous Cardinal della Rovere, had the effect of dumping the correspondences between the pope and the Turkish Sultan into the hands of Cardinal della Rovere and the French partisans previously just in Florence.
An example of this correspondence, dated as coming from Constantinople, three months earlier, says our editor, was retained by Burchard in his manuscript. Afraid of the dangers that his younger brother Djem might pose if released (by the pope or the French, if they captured him), the Sultan in this letter 'judged that Djem should die instead, and his body be sent back to any of our servants on our shores' for 300,000 ducats. This and the kindly words that the Sultan had for the pope was just the sort of evidence that the papal reform-minded Cardinal and French ally Giuliano della Rovere might use against the Borja pope Alexander VI. A remarkable document in any event, at this juncture, it could easily be used in deeply damaging the current pope and his reputation.
Thursday, December 18: Moving day for the pope and those cardinals closest to him. The pope had finally decided to make a stand at the most defensible place in the city:
Castel San Angelo. 'All the pope's possessions, his bed, daily table, vestments, the money chests from the sacristy, palace weapons, stores of food and all the papal belongings' were sent 'by road' from teh Vatican to the Castel San Angelo in Rome. There was an underground passage.
Friday, December 19: Cardinal Sanseverino was released with instructions to go and negotiate with the French King.Prospero Colonna having changed sides, was also released and sent to restore the papal fortress at Ostia from the French. [p.98]
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Johann Burchard: At The Court of the Borgia translated for english, with introduction by Geoffrey Parker, The Folio Society, Ltd, 1963
