Evil Duos: The Borgias, Part 2 of 2

This entry is part 3 of 3 in the series Evil Duos In History

Continuing with the Borgias we discuss cantarella poison and the fall and death of the Borgias. Also, which is the lesser of two evils: being poisoned by Alexander or stabbed and strangled by Cesare? Plus pop culture. Part 2 of 2.

Music: “Daddy’s Little Boy” by The Mills Brothers

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Series Navigation<< Evil Duos: The Borgias, Part 1 of 2

11 Responses

  1. Kevin, was it from Ex Urbe* that you got the comparison between the two tv shows?

    If so, that post was made while the blog was written anonymously but nowadays it’s written under _her_ real name, Ada Palmer, a Renaissance-historian (http://www.exurbe.com/?page_id=21).

    Either way there’s some pretty interesting historical essays there, it’s well worth it to explore the site if you’re at all interested in the time period and like (or at least don’t mind) a more academic take on it. It’s somewhat long form and occasionally demanding but definitely rewarding if you can spare the time.

    Two examples that seems fitting are a post regarding the use of torture and execution (http://www.exurbe.com/?p=2339) which is fairly caustic and the series on the history of skepticism (Part 1: http://www.exurbe.com/?p=2725, Part 2: http://www.exurbe.com/?p=2772).

    * i.e. from here: http://www.exurbe.com/?p=2176

    Tired and somewhat in the thick of it but hopefully this post isn’t too riddled with errors.

  2. I’m somewhat curious as to how the “Flatulence” episode is listed as one of the four most related episodes to this one. 😉

    Very interesting pair of episodes guys, btw.

    1. The “Related” posts are chosen automatically by a plugin. It’s probably text-related somehow, though I can’t see how at the moment.

  3. Loved this one.
    Especially the popes terribly poetic ending.

    The banquet of chestnuts is a bit confusing though. Its not the picking up of the chestnuts by the fifty honest prostitutes with expert muscle control rather its the image of them trying to roast them over a flame while holding them there. Ouch.

    I remember trying to sell assassins creed 2 to my friends based on that final boss fight.
    “You get to fight the pope.
    He fires laser beams from his papel staff then you defeat him in a fist fight!”

    I laughed histerically through out that last epic battle

    1. Also is it just me or are Alexander and Cesare rather like Palpatine and Vader especially when people are getting stabbed at the base of thrones.

      1. Oh, I would have loved to have unearthed a Lucas quote about how he based Palpatine and Vader on these two….. I don’t know if it was a conscious effort, but the comparison seems apt.

  4. I keep seeing articles and blog posts about how the popular image of Jesus Christ, the paintings we are all familiar with, are based on Cesare Borgia. None of these posts mention what an evil dickhead he was, just that he wan’t the real Jesus. I’m never going to be able to look at a painting of white Jesus the same, that’s for sure.

  5. I seem to recall Cesare dying in Brotherhood, not Revaluations. The game jumps forward a number of years to after Cesare escapes from prison. Revelations takes place in Istanbul an number of years after.