born April 18, 1480, Rome
died June 24, 1519, Ferrara, Papal States
Italian noblewoman.
The daughter of the future pope Alexander VI and sister of Cesare Borgia , she was probably more an instrument for their ambitious projects than, as has been suggested, an active participant in their many crimes. Her three marriages into prominent families helped augment the political and territorial power of the Borgias. Her child may have been the issue of an incestuous relationship with her father. After her father's death (1503), she ceased to play a political role and increasingly turned to religion. She died at age 39.
Lucrezia Borgia, detail from the fresco the "Dispute of St. Catherine," by ...
Alinari/Art Resource, New York