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| Rodrigo was [[Papacy|Pope]] from 1492 to 1503, and was known as '''Alexander VI'''. He was one of the most controversial Popes of the Renaissance, and his surname became synonymous for the corrupt standards of the Papacy in that era. | | Rodrigo was [[Papacy|Pope]] from 1492 to 1503, and was known as '''Alexander VI'''. He was one of the most controversial Popes of the Renaissance, and his surname became synonymous for the corrupt standards of the Papacy in that era. |
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| ==Biography==
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| ===Early life===
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| Roderic Llançol was born at Xàtiva in the Kingdom of Valencia, one of the component states of the Crown of Aragon, present-day Spain. His parents were Jofré Llançol i Escrivá, and his wife and relative Isabel de Borja. His family name is written Llançol in Valencian and Lanzol in Spanish. After the elevation of Roderic's maternal uncle Alonso de Borja to the Papacy as Calixtus III in 1455, Roderic was adopted into his mother's family name of Borja.<ref name="Wikipedia: Pope Alexander VI">{{Wiki|Pope Alexander VI|''Wikipedia:'' Pope Alexander VI}}</ref>
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| ===As a Cardinal===
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| Rodrigo de Borgia studied law at Bologna, and was successively made bishop, cardinal, and vice-chancellor of the church, all of which were nepotistic appointments characteristic of the age. He served in the Roman Curia under five Popes (his uncle, Pius II, Paul II, [[Sixtus IV]] and Innocent VIII) and acquired much administrative experience, influence, and wealth, though not great power.<ref name="Wikipedia: Pope Alexander VI"/>
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| By the time Rodrigo was under Pope [[Sixtus IV]], he had become the Grand Master of the Templar Order in 1458. In this position, he aspired to unite all of [[Italy]] under the Templar banner. In order to achieve that goal, he made plans to take down the leaders of Italy's main cities, and place his own men in power.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage">''[[Assassin's Creed: Lineage]]''</ref>
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| ===Assassination of Galeazzo Maria Sforza===
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| Rodrigo devised a plan to eliminate [[Galeazzo Maria Sforza]], the Duke of Milan, in which [[Giovanni Andrea Lampugnani]], [[Carlo Visconti]] and [[Gerolamo Olgiati]] would kill Sforza on the day of Santo Stefano.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| One night in December of 1476, Rodrigo was on his way to leave [[Florence]] accompanied by several of his men. Suddenly, [[Giovanni Auditore da Firenze|Giovanni Auditore]], a member of the [[Assassins|Assassin Order]], intercepted him. Rodrigo fled immediately as the Assassin battled his men.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| Hidden behind a corner, Rodrigo witnessed Giovanni capture one of his men, who later revealed the planned assassination of Galeazzo Sforza, a powerful ally of [[Lorenzo de' Medici]]. Giovanni attempted to prevent the assassination, though he arrived too late to do so. Rodrigo's plan had succeeded, thus he began to devise his next scheme.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| ===Auditore execution===
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| Giovanni Auditore learned that Rodrigo's plans would lead him to the city of [[Venice]], after looting a Venetian ducat from Giovanni Lampugnani. Upon traveling there, he intercepted a message from [[Marco Barbarigo|Marco]] and [[Silvio Barbarigo]] to their master, Rodrigo.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| [[File:Tadros.jpg|thumb|250px|Rodrigo walking in Rome.]]
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| After [[Uberto Alberti]] and [[Antonio Maffei|Father Maffei]] "failed" to decode the intercepted letter, the [[House of Medici|Medici]] and Uberto sent Giovanni to carry a copied version of the message to [[Rome]], in order to discover who was behind the plot. Arriving in the city, Giovanni handed the message to a man, and followed the letter as it passed through several hands before meeting its final destination: Rodrigo Borgia.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| Rodrigo then left to see Pope Sixtus IV, hoping to obtain military support in order to conquer Florence. After gaining Sixtus' favor, Rodrigo headed out of the [[Vaticano District|Vatican]], and into the streets of Rome once more.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| Giovanni was still on Rodrigo's trail, and followed him all the way into [[Basilica di San Pietro|St. Peter's Basilica]]. However, he fell into an ambush set by Rodrigo, who had known of the Assassin following him. Rodrigo tried to offer Giovanni a position among the Templars, but the Assassin refused, stating that Rodrigo would be dead before he could see the Templars' fantasy become reality.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| Disappointed, Rodrigo had his men attack Giovanni, but the Assassin routed all of them. Rodrigo, who had been watching from the sidelines, threw a [[Throwing knives|knife]] at Giovanni, which hit him in the chest. Rodrigo then took the chance to flee the Basilica. Afterwards, he discussed the next step in his plan with his Templar brothers, and all agreed that they had to dispose of Giovanni Auditore.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Lineage"/>
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| [[File:LMS_10_v.png|thumb|left|250px|Rodrigo giving orders to Uberto at the Auditore execution.]]
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| In order to get rid of Giovanni, Rodrigo conspired with Uberto Alberti and the [[House of Pazzi|Pazzi family]]. After careful planning, the Templars were able to frame Giovanni for the crimes of treason, and had him and two of his sons arrested.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>
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| The night before the trial of the [[House of Auditore|Auditore family]], Rodrigo was at Uberto's house. [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze|Ezio Auditore]], Giovanni's remaining son, came by to give Uberto his father's letters that would prove him innocent. Ezio noticed Rodrigo behind Uberto, but paid no further attention to him. The following morning, Rodrigo attended the judgment and execution of Giovanni, [[Federico Auditore da Firenze|Federico]] and [[Petruccio Auditore da Firenze|Petruccio Auditore]].<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| ===Pazzi Conspiracy===
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| {{Quote|Gentlemen. Tomorrow, a new sun rises over Firenze.|Rodrigo encouraging the Pazzi Conspirators.|Assassin's Creed II}}
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| [[File:Burgerking.png|thumb|250px|Rodrigo discussing the Pazzi Conspiracy.]]
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| In 1478, Rodrigo conspired to take down the leader of Florence, Lorenzo de' Medici, and his brother [[Giuliano de' Medici|Giuliano]]. Thus, Rodrigo left for [[San Gimignano]], where he held a meeting with [[Francesco de' Pazzi|Francesco]], [[Jacopo de' Pazzi|Jacopo]], and [[Vieri de' Pazzi]]. Rodrigo left the town just before the [[mercenaries]], led by [[Mario Auditore]] and his nephew Ezio, attacked. Their attack resulted in the death of Vieri de' Pazzi.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| Not long after that, Rodrigo met with Francesco and Jacopo de'Pazzi, Antonio Maffei, [[Bernardo Baroncelli]], [[Stefano da Bagnone]] and [[Francesco Salviati]] in a catacomb under the Basilica of [[Santa Maria Novella]]. As the Pazzi Conspirators confirmed their plan to Rodrigo, he reminded them to beware of the Assassins, and stated that the next day would be ''"a new dawn" ''for Florence<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| However, Ezio thwarted the Templars' attempted takeover in Florence and killed off the remaining conspirators Rodrigo was arranged to meet with in San Gimignano, where the Pazzi originally intended to request asylum with Rodrigo in either Venice or Rome. Jacopo was the only one to arrive at the meeting and claimed that the blame for the failure rested with his nephew, for his impatience, and with [[Emilio Barbarigo]], for supplying the Pazzi troops with sub-standard weaponry. Enraged by Jacopo's sniveling excuses, Rodrigo lectured his subordinate on his failure, then stabbed him in the abdomen, aided by an eager Emilio.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| Ignoring Jacopo's pleas for mercy, Rodrigo stabbed him a second time in the neck with his sword, then called out to Ezio who had tailed Jacopo to the meeting. Grabbed by Borgia guards, Ezio was brought into Rodrigo's sight. Sarcastically apologizing for killing Jacopo for him, Rodrigo mocked Ezio, saying that he had been doing this for far longer than the [[novice]] Assassin. He then ordered his men to kill him, and left without bothering to ensure the deed was done.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| ===Venetian Conspiracy===
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| {{Quote|I feel the need to involve myself more directly. The Pazzi disappointed us in Firenze. I pray you will not do the same.|Rodrigo, about personally attending the meeting.|Assassin's Creed II}}
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| [[File:BoF 9.png|thumb|left|250px|Rodrigo on the [[Ponte di Rialto]] with the other Templars.]]
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| Soon after the Florentine attempt failed, Rodrigo returned his attention to conducting his plans for Venice. In 1485, he met with [[Carlo Grimaldi]] and the [[House of Barbarigo|Barbarigo family]] to plan the murder of the current Doge, [[Giovanni Mocenigo]], in order for them to seize control of Venice. During the meeting, Rodrigo chastised the Venetian Templars for making their own plans, rebuking them for their ''"inane prattle"'' as they argued over who would be the new Doge after they took Venice. He then silenced their debates by appointing Marco Barbarigo as the next Doge.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| During this meeting, Marco questioned Rodrigo's presence in Venice, as Ezio was also there, but Rodrigo only replied that he felt he should see out their plans personally, particularly after the failure of the Pazzi conspiracy. Warning the Venetian tyrants of the Assassin that haunted their city, he then made his departure from Venice to Rome, allowing them to carry out his plans.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| ===Shipping the Apple of Eden===
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| {{Quote|You claim not to be a believer. And yet, here you are... Don't you see him? The Prophet is already here... I AM the Prophet. Now give me the Apple.|Rodrigo upon confronting Ezio.|Assassin's Creed II}}
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| [[File:Play along 2.png|thumb|250px|Rodrigo and Ezio confront each other in Venice.]]
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| By 1486, Rodrigo had found out that the Piece of Eden he sought was [[Ezio's Apple|the Apple]], which was hidden on [[Cyprus]]. He thus sent a battalion of his men to retrieve it. Two years later, the men returned to [[Arsenale di Venezia|L'Arsenale]] with the artifact, and Rodrigo met with the courier who was to deliver it to him.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| However, prior to this, Ezio had intercepted the delivery and had disguised himself as the carrier of the artifact, in order to find and kill Rodrigo. Rodrigo was not surprised, and readied himself to deal with Ezio personally. The two exchanged a brief conversation, in which Rodrigo claimed himself to be the Prophet, who was said to be the only one who could open the fabled [[Vatican Vault|Vault]]. The two then began an intense battle, in which Ezio ultimately emerged as the victor.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| Realizing that he could not defeat Ezio on his own, Rodrigo called in a supply of guards to overwhelm him. Suddenly, many of Ezio's allies appeared, all of whom revealed themselves to be Assassins. They held off the guards to allow Ezio to re-challenge Rodrigo, who then escaped from them before Ezio could kill him, leaving the Apple in the hands of the Assassins.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| That same year, Rodrigo found out that the late [[Girolamo Riario]] had created a map marking where all the [[Codex]] pages could be found, thus he hired the [[House of Orsi|Orsi brothers]] to retrieve it from Riario's city of [[Forlì]]. The Orsi discovered that Riario's wife, [[Caterina Sforza]], also had the Apple, and thus laid [[Battle of Forlì|siege]] to the city and took the artifact by force, planning to present it to Rodrigo for an extra pay-off.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| Unfortunately for Rodrigo, Ezio managed to kill both of the Orsi brothers, though the Apple eventually came into the hands of [[Girolamo Savonarola]], a later arch-enemy of Rodrigo.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| ===Deceiving Torquemada===
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| {{Dialogue|Ezio|Rodrigo Borgia is an unbeliever like me, and yet you lavish him with favors.|Torquemada|Borgia is one of three Papal candidates this year. And he is as devoted to God as I am.|Ezio and Torquemada talking about Rodrigo.|Assassin's Creed II: Discovery}}
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| In 1491, Rodrigo fooled the Spanish Inquisitor General [[Tomás de Torquemada]] into capturing and killing Assassins in Spain. Tomás, who thought Rodrigo was as much as a believer of God as he was, blindly followed his orders.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]''</ref>
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| At around this time, Rodrigo also found out about [[Christoffa Corombo]]'s plans to sail west; however he, knowing of the presence of the [[United States|Americas]] and the treasures that lay there, wished to stop anyone from finding it before he could. Thus, Rodrigo arranged a meeting with Christoffa in Venice, and lay a trap for him there.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery"/>
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| However, Christoffa's friend, [[Luis de Santángel]], was suspicious of the arrangement, and called for the aid of his fellow Assassin, Ezio. Ezio rushed to Christoffa's aid, successfully rescuing him from an assassin and thwarted Rodrigo's plans.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II: Discovery"/>
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| ===Papal Rule===
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| {{Quote|The Spaniard, Rodrigo Borgia, has been elected Pope. He rules the Vatican and Rome as the Supreme Pontiff, Alexander VI! [...] The rumour is that Rodrigo simply bought most of the votes. Even [[Ascanio Sforza]], who was the most likely candidate standing against him, voted for him!|[[Sister Teodora]] talking about Rodrigo becoming Pope.|Assassin's Creed: Renaissance}}
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| Rodrigo was elected Pope in 1492, and established his power in Rome. Rodrigo's true intent, however, was simply to get into [[Vatican Vault|the Vault that lay under the Vatican]], where he believed God rested.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| In 1494, with the death of Lorenzo de' Medici, and with the power of the Apple he had obtained, Savonarola [[Bonfire of the Vanities|took control]] over Florence. Rodrigo repeatedly sent his men to Florence in the hopes of acquiring the Apple, though all of his attempts failed. In 1498, Savonarola was assassinated by Ezio, causing the Borgia family to fall into a state of chaos upon losing track of the Apple.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/><ref name="Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy">''[[Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy]]''</ref>
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| [[File:IBAL 4.png|thumb|250px|Rodrigo confronted by Ezio.]]
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| In 1499, Rodrigo was followed into the Vatican by Ezio for yet another assassination attempt. Ezio infiltrated the [[Cappella Sistina|Sistine Chapel]], where Rodrigo was holding Mass, and attacked him from above. However, after turning to leave, Ezio witnessed Rodrigo rise from the ground and use his Piece of Eden, [[Staves of Eden|the Papal Staff]], to strike him down, along with everyone else in the room.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| Rodrigo was surprised to see that Ezio was able to resist the power of his Staff, as Ezio had brought his own Piece of Eden: the Apple. Ezio then summoned four clones of himself to assist in his battle against Rodrigo, eventually defeating him.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| However, Rodrigo knocked Ezio aside with the Staff, and snatched the Apple from his hands. He then combined it with the Staff to open up the door to The Vault, and as Ezio tried to stop him, Rodrigo lifted him into the air with the power of the two combined Pieces of Eden.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| [[File:IBAL 9.png|thumb|left|250px|Rodrigo lifting Ezio into the air.]]
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| As the Assassin hung helpless, Rodrigo stabbed Ezio with a dagger, and left him to die on the floor of the Sistine Chapel. Though injured, Ezio eventually followed Rodrigo to the Vault, and found the Pope furiously pounding upon the door to the inner chambers, which refused to open.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| Ezio then dropped down into the pit where Rodrigo was, and challenged him to one last fist fight, with no more weapons, plots, or decoys. Rodrigo accepted, and the two had one last duel. During the battle, Rodrigo stated that he had never believed in the Bible or in God, and had only become Pope to gain access to the Staff and the Vault, and to unify Italy under Templar rule. Ezio defeated Rodrigo, holding the Pope at blade-point and telling him he was not the Prophet, and had never been.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| Broken by this revelation and accepting defeat, Rodrigo told Ezio to kill him and put an end to it. However, Ezio refused, saying that killing him would not bring back his family. Additionally, the knowledge that he was not the Prophet, as he had believed, was an even sorer blow than anything else that Ezio could have thought of.<ref name="Assassin's Creed II"/>
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| When Rodrigo's son Cesare learned of this, he led a [[Fall of Monteriggioni|siege]] on [[Monteriggioni]], though without Rodrigo's approval, in order to reacquire the Apple of Eden and kill the last of the Assassins. By this time, Rodrigo was reduced to nothing but a figurehead, with Cesare ultimately taking over Rome.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]''</ref>
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| ===Later life and death===
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| {{Quote|You risk upsetting the delicate balance of control we have worked so hard to tighten.|Rodrigo talking about the consequences of his son's actions.|Assassin's Creed II}}
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| [[File:In and Out 8.png|thumb|250px|Rodrigo and Cesare talking at the Pagan party.]]
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| Following his defeat in the Vault, Rodrigo had given up on fighting the Assassin Order and instead chose to preserve the balance of power in Rome he had managed to obtain. However, Cesare was eager to take over all of Italy, a plan that Rodrigo did not approve of. As the Captain General of the Papal armies, however, Cesare held control over Rodrigo's military, and was thus able to carry out his plans without his father's consent.
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| A string of bad luck followed Rodrigo after the events in the Vault: in June 1500, an iron steeple from the roof of St. Peter's fell a few feet away from where he was walking. The next day, he was in a room in the Vatican that collapsed and killed everyone around him: only a piece of canopy wedged above him saved his life. A few weeks later, he grew ill from fever, and at the end of year, he was charged by a stag during a hunting trip.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood"/>
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| In 1503, at [[Juan Borgia the Elder|Juan Borgia]]'s pagan party, Rodrigo spoke to Cesare and reprimanded him, only to have his son brush aside his concerns and remind him of who was ''truly'' in charge.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood"/>
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| Later that year, Rodrigo had grown heavily displeased with Cesare's ambition and entitlement, believing his son to be out of control. Fearing Cesare would jeopardize his own balance of power, Rodrigo decided that his best option would be to remove Cesare.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood"/>
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| [[File:Apple a day 5.png|thumb|left|250px|Cesare killing his father.]]
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| To achieve this, he seized the Castel's supply of [[cantarella]] - the same poison that had been used for Doge Mocenigo - and poisoned a few apples for Cesare to unwittingly eat. However, Rodrigo's daughter Lucrezia discovered the presence of the poison, and warned Cesare about it before he could ingest enough to be mortally wounded.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood"/>
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| Enraged, Cesare promptly spat out what he had eaten, before shoving the remaining apple down Rodrigo's throat. Rodrigo perished before Ezio arrived to kill him, but Ezio nevertheless gave Rodrigo his final blessing.<ref name="Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood"/>
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| ==Legacy== | | ==Legacy== |
Rodrigo hiding from Giovanni Auditore in Florence.
Rodrigo, before becoming Pope.
