The Family - Mario Puzo [12]
And his own family, the Borgia, with countless relatives to be taken care of, and his own sons and daughters, sworn to him by blood but uncontrollable because of their own unruly passions—what of them? Where did his primary duty lie? And could his two objectives be accomplished without sacrificing one for the other?
Alexander’s duty to God was clear. He must make the church strong. The memory of the Great Schism, seventy-five years before, when there had been two Popes and two churches—both weak—made his resolve stronger.
The cities of Italy that belonged to the church were now ruled by tyrants who thought more of enriching their family coffers than of paying their rent to the Holy Church which sanctified their rule. The kings had used the church as a tool to seek power for themselves. The saving of the immortal souls of humanity was forgotten. Even the wealthy kings of Spain and France withheld their church revenues when they were displeased with the Pope. They dared! What if the Holy Church withdrew its blessing of their rule? For the people who obeyed kings did so because they believed them to be anointed by God, and only the Pope, as the representative of the church and the Vicar of Christ, could confirm that blessing. Alexander knew he must continue to balance out the power of the kings of France and the kings of Spain. The dreaded Great Council, called by kings, must never happen again. The church and the Pope must have worldly power to enforce the will of God. In short, a great army. And so it followed that Alexander carefully considered his power as Pope. And he formed a plan.
Immediately after his coronation, he nominated his son Cesare for cardinal. While still a child, Cesare had been given benefices by the church and the title of bishop had been bestowed upon him, with an income of thousands of ducats. Now, though Cesare was only seventeen years of age, with all the carnal passions and vices of youth, he was in body and mind a full-grown man. He had degrees in both law and theology from the Universities of Perugia and Pisa, and his disputation was considered one of the most brilliant student works ever presented. But his great love was the study of military history and strategy. He had in fact fought in some minor battles, managing to distinguish himself in one. He was well trained in the art of war.
Alexander was fortunate. God had blessed this son of his with a quick wit, a firm purpose, and a natural ferocity, without which one could not survive in this wicked world.
Cesare Borgia received the news that he had been appointed a cardinal of the Holy Roman Catholic Church while he was still a student of canon law at the University of Pisa. The appointment was not unexpected, as he was the son of the new Pope. But Cesare Borgia was not happy about it. True, it would make him richer, but he was at heart a soldier; he wished to lead troops into battle, to storm castles and overcome the fortresses of cities. And he wanted to marry and have children who were not bastards like himself.
His two closest friends and fellow students, Gio Medici and Tila Baglioni, congratulated him and then began to prepare an evening festival, for Cesare would have to leave the following week for his investiture in Rome.
Gio had already been appointed cardinal at the age of thirteen, through the power of his father, the ruler of Florence, the great Lorenzo the Magnificent. Tila Baglioni was the only one of the three who had no religious office, but he was one of the heirs to the dukedom of Perugia. Here at the University of Pisa the three were merely high-spirited students; though they had servants and bodyguards all were well equipped to guard themselves. Cesare was an accomplished fighter with sword, ax, and hunting pike, but he did not yet own full battle armor. He had tremendous physical strength, and was taller than most men. He was brilliant in his studies, the pride of his mentors. But all of this was to be expected from the son