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40 Facts About the Borgias, One of History’s More Scandalous Dynasties

Tim Flight October 27, 2019 26 min

Jeremy Irons - The Borgias — Jeremy Irons as Pope Alexander VI in the TV series, The Borgias. The Hollywood Review

38. Alfonso de Borja rose from middling origins to become a diplomat for the Kings of Aragon

Alfonso Borgia, as Pope Callixtus III, Valencia, c.1568. Wikimedia Commons

Alfonso de Borja (1378-1458) founded the most successful and notorious branch of the Borgia family. Alfonso earned a doctorate in civil and canon law at university and lectured for a number of years at Lleida. At Lleida, his legal flair attracted the church. After impressing at ecclesiastical councils where he represented the Lleida Diocese, he became Rector of San Nicolas, Valencia. Thoroughly impressed, King Alfonso V of Aragon appointed him as his private secretary, which involved important diplomatic work. Under King Alfonso, he worked closely with the Vatican, and was instrumental in arranging the abdication of Clement VIII, the anti-pope.

Written by

Tim Flight

I am a freelance historical and literary writer based in West Yorkshire, UK. I read for a funded PhD in English at the University of Oxford (Magdalen College) and graduated in 2016. I am a former lecturer in Medieval English Literature at Royal Holloway, University of London. My publications include peer-reviewed articles in academic publications, and pieces in mainstream magazines such as History Today and Fortean Times. For more information, please see www.drflight.co.uk