Editing Pope Alexander VI (section)

=== Overview ===
Roderic de Borja's career in the Church began in 1445 at the age of 14, when he was appointed [[sacristan]] at the [[Valencia Cathedral|Cathedral of Valencia]] by his influential uncle, [[Pope Callixtus III|Alfons Cardinal de Borja]], who had been appointed a [[Cardinal (Catholic Church)|cardinal]] by [[Pope Eugene IV]] the previous year.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hollingsworth|first=Mary|title=The Borgias: history's most notorious dynasty|date=2014|isbn=978-1-78206-944-7|location=London|page=17|oclc=868380201}}</ref> In 1448, de Borja became canon at the cathedrals of Valencia, Barcelona, and Segorbe. His uncle, Cardinal de Borja, persuaded [[Pope Nicholas V]] to allow young de Borja to perform this role ''in absentia'' and receive the associated income, so that de Borja could travel to [[Rome]].<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, pp. 17–19</ref> While in Rome, Rodrigo Borgia (as his name was usually spelled in [[Italian language|Italian]]) studied under Gaspare da Verona, a humanist tutor. He then studied law at [[University of Bologna|Bologna]] where he graduated, not simply as [[Canon law|Doctor of Law]], but as "the most eminent and judicious jurisprudent."<ref name="deroo1">Monsignor Peter de Roo (1924), ''Material for a History of Pope Alexander VI, His Relatives and His Time'', (5 vols.), Bruges, Desclée, De Brouwer, volume 2, p. 29.  {{cite web |title=Archived copy |url=http://attomelani.net/de_roo/volumeII_lowres.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426065604/http://attomelani.net/de_roo/volumeII_lowres.pdf |archive-date=26 April 2012 |access-date=22 December 2011}} [http://www.attomelani.net/?page+id=143 volumes 1–5]</ref>

The election of his uncle, Alfons Cardinal de Borja, as [[Pope Callixtus III]] in 1455 enabled Borgia's appointments to other positions in the Church. These [[Nepotism|nepotistic]] appointments were characteristic of the era. Each pope during this period found himself surrounded by the servants and retainers of his predecessors who often owed their loyalty to the family of the pontiff who had appointed them.<ref name="Burkle" />  In 1455, he inherited his uncle's post as bishop of Valencia, and Callixtus appointed him Dean of Santa Maria in Xàtiva. The following year, he was ordained [[deacon]] and created [[Lay cardinal|cardinal-deacon]] of [[San Nicola in Carcere]]. Rodrigo Borgia's appointment as cardinal only occurred after Callixtus III asked the cardinals in Rome to create three new positions in the [[College of Cardinals]], two for his nephews Rodrigo and Luis Juan de Milà, and one for the Prince Jaime of Portugal.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 36</ref>

In 1457, Callixtus III assigned the young Cardinal de Borja (or Borgia in Italian) to go to Ancona as a Papal legate to quell a revolt. Borgia was successful in his mission, and his uncle rewarded him with his appointment as [[Apostolic Chancery|vice-chancellor]] of the Holy Roman Church.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 43</ref> The position of [[Apostolic Chancery|vice-chancellor]] was both incredibly powerful and lucrative, and Borgia held this post for 35 years until his own election to the papacy in 1492. At the end of 1457, Rodrigo Cardinal Borgia's elder brother, Pedro Luis Borgia, fell ill, so Rodrigo temporarily filled Pedro Luis' position as [[captain-general]] of the papal army until he recovered.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 45</ref> In 1458, Cardinal Borgia's uncle and greatest benefactor, Pope Callixtus, died.

In the [[1458 papal conclave|papal election of 1458]], Rodrigo Borgia was too young to seek the papacy himself, so he sought to support a cardinal who would maintain him as vice-chancellor. Borgia was one of the deciding votes in the election of Cardinal Piccolomini as [[Pope Pius II]], and the new pope rewarded Borgia not only with maintaining the chancellorship but also with a lucrative abbey benefice and another titular church.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 55</ref> In 1460, Pope Pius rebuked Cardinal Borgia for attending a private party which Pius had heard turned into an orgy. Borgia apologized for the incident but denied that there had been an orgy. Pope Pius forgave him, and the true events of the evening remain unknown.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 60</ref> In 1462, Rodrigo Borgia had his first son, Pedro Luis, with an unknown mistress. He sent Pedro Luis to grow up in Spain.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 65</ref> The following year, Borgia acceded to Pope Pius's call for cardinals to help fund a new crusade. Before embarking to lead the crusade personally, Pope Pius II fell ill and died, so Borgia would need to ensure the election of yet another ally to the papacy to maintain his position as vice-chancellor.

On the first ballot, the [[1464 papal conclave|conclave of 1464]] elected Borgia's friend Pietro Barbo as [[Pope Paul II]]. Borgia was in high standing with the new pope and retained his positions, including that of vice-chancellor. Paul II reversed some of his predecessor's reforms that diminished the power of the chancellory. Following the election, Borgia fell ill of the plague but recovered. Borgia had two daughters, Isabella (*1467) and Girolama (*1469), with an unknown mistress. He openly acknowledged all three of his children.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 81</ref> Pope Paul II died suddenly in 1471.

While Borgia had acquired the reputation and wealth to mount a bid for the papacy in [[1471 papal conclave|this conclave]], there were only three non-Italians, making his election a near-impossibility. Consequently, Borgia continued his previous strategy of positioning himself as kingmaker. This time, Borgia gathered the votes to make Francesco della Rovere (the uncle of future Borgia rival [[Pope Julius II|Giuliano della Rovere]]) [[Pope Sixtus IV]]. Della Rovere's appeal was that he was a pious and brilliant [[Order of Friars Minor|Franciscan]] friar who lacked many political connections in Rome.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 82</ref> He seemed to be the perfect cardinal to reform the Church, and the perfect cardinal for Borgia to maintain his influence. Sixtus IV rewarded Borgia for his support by promoting him to cardinal-bishop and consecrating him as the [[Cardinal-Bishop of Albano]], requiring Borgia's ordination as a priest. Borgia also received a lucrative abbey from the pope and remained vice-chancellor.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 85</ref> At the end of the year, the pope appointed Borgia to be the papal legate for Spain to negotiate a peace treaty between [[Crown of Castile|Castile]] and [[Crown of Aragon|Aragon]] and to solicit their support for another crusade. In 1472, Borgia was appointed to be the papal chamberlain until his departure to Spain. Borgia arrived in his native Aragon in the summer, reuniting with family and meeting with King Juan II and Prince Ferdinand. The pope gave Cardinal Borgia discretion over whether to give dispensation for [[Ferdinand II of Aragon|Ferdinand]]'s marriage to his second cousin [[Isabella I of Castile|Isabella of Castile]], and Borgia decided in favour of approving the marriage. The couple named Borgia to be the godfather of their first son in recognition of this decision.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 95</ref> The marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella was critical in the [[Habsburg Spain|unification of Castile and Aragon]] into Spain. Borgia also negotiated peace between Castile and Aragon and an end to the civil wars in the latter Kingdom, gaining the favour of the future King Ferdinand - who would go on to promote the interests of the Borgia family in Aragon.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 87</ref> Borgia returned to Rome the following year, narrowly surviving a storm that sank a nearby galley that was carrying 200 men of the Borgia household. 
[[File:Vanozza.jpg|thumb|[[Vannozza dei Cattanei]]]]
Back in Rome, Borgia began his affair with [[Vannozza dei Cattanei|Vannozza dei Cattenei]] which would yield four children: [[Cesare Borgia|Cesare]] in 1475, [[Giovanni Borgia, 2nd Duke of Gandía|Giovanni]] in 1474 or 1476, [[Lucrezia Borgia|Lucrezia]] in 1480, and [[Gioffre Borgia|Gioffre]] in 1482. In 1476, Pope Sixtus appointed Borgia to be the cardinal-bishop of Porto. In 1480, the pope legitimized Cesare as a favour to Cardinal Borgia, and in 1482, the pope began to appoint the seven-year-old to church positions, demonstrating Borgia's intention to use his influence to promote his children. Contemporaneously, Borgia continued to add to his list of benefices, becoming the wealthiest cardinal by 1483.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 100</ref> He also become [[Dean of the College of Cardinals]] in that year. In 1484, Pope Sixtus IV died, necessitating another election for Borgia to manipulate to his advantage.

Borgia was wealthy and powerful enough to mount a bid, but he faced competition from [[Pope Julius II|Giuliano della Rovere]], the late pope's nephew. Della Rovere's faction had the advantage of being incredibly large as Sixtus had appointed many of the cardinals who would participate in the election. Borgia's attempts to gather enough votes included bribery and leveraging his close ties to Naples and Aragon. However, many of the Spanish cardinals were absent from the conclave and della Rovere's faction had an overwhelming advantage. Della Rovere chose to promote Cardinal Cibo as his preferred candidate, and Cibo wrote to the Borgia faction wanting to strike a deal. Once again, Borgia played kingmaker and conceded to Cardinal Cibo who became [[Pope Innocent VIII]].<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 106</ref> Again, Borgia retained his position of vice-chancellor, successfully holding this position over the course of five papacies and four elections.

In 1485, Pope Innocent VIII nominated Borgia to become the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seville|Archbishop of Seville]], a position that [[Ferdinand II of Aragon|King Ferdinand II]] wanted for his own son. In response, Ferdinand angrily seized the Borgia estates in Aragon and imprisoned Borgia's son Pedro Luis. However, Borgia healed the relationship by turning down this appointment. Pope Innocent, at the urging of his close ally Giuliano della Rovere, decided to declare war against Naples, but Milan, Florence, and Aragon chose to support Naples over the pope. Borgia led the opposition within the College of Cardinals to this war, and King Ferdinand rewarded Borgia by making his son Pedro Luis the [[Duke of Gandía|Duke of Gandia]] and arranging a marriage between his cousin Maria Enriquez and the new duke. Now, the Borgia family was directly tied to the royal families of Spain and Naples. While Borgia gained the favour of Spain, he stood opposed to the pope and the della Rovere family. As a part of his war opposition, Borgia sought to obstruct an alliance negotiation between the papacy and France. These negotiations were unsuccessful and in July 1486, the pope capitulated and ended the war.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 111</ref> In 1488, Borgia's son Pedro Luis died, and Juan Borgia became the new duke of Gandia. In the following year, Borgia hosted the wedding ceremony between [[Orsino Orsini]] and [[Giulia Farnese]], and within a few months, Farnese had become Borgia's new mistress. She was 15, and he was 58.<ref>Hollingsworth 2014, p. 114</ref> Borgia continued to acquire new benefices with their large streams of income, including the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Majorca|bishopric of Majorca]] and Eger in Hungary. In 1492, Pope Innocent VIII died. Since Borgia was 61, this was likely his last chance to become pope.