en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vannozza_dei_Cattanei
2 corrections found
24 November 1518
The article's death date is off by two days. Credible sources, including a transcription of Vannozza's funerary inscription, give her death as 26 November 1518, not 24 November 1518.
Full reasoning
The page itself later says Vannozza died on 26 November 1518, and that later date is the one supported by external sources.
Two independent sources contradict 24 November 1518:
- Roma Segreta transcribes Vannozza's funerary inscription in the portico of San Marco. The inscription ends with "OBIIT ANNO M D XVIII XXVI NO(VEMBRIS)", which the page translates as "morì nell'anno 1518, 26 novembre".
- The scholarly OpenEdition book La famille Borgia likewise states: "Elle s'éteignit à Rome le 26 novembre 1518" and notes that this is what her funerary inscription proclaimed.
Because these sources support 26 November 1518, the claim 24 November 1518 is incorrect.
2 sources
- Basilica S.Marco | Roma Segreta
La lapide così recita ... VIX (IT) ANN (OS) LXXVI ... OBIIT ANNO M D XVIII XXVI NO (VEMBRIS) ... "Visse anni 76, mesi 4, giorni 13, morì nell'anno 1518, 26 novembre".
- La famille Borgia - Chapitre IX. Les Borgia après la disparition d'Alexandre VI
Le 26 novembre 1518 mourait à Rome sa mère Vannozza... Elle s'éteignit à Rome le 26 novembre 1518, âgée de soixante-seize ans, ainsi que le proclamait son inscription funéraire.
Initially passed off as the offspring of Vannozza's husbands, they were all publicly acknowledged by Alexander as his own children after his accession to the papal throne:
This misstates when Rodrigo Borgia acknowledged the children. Reliable sources say he openly claimed the four children he had with Vannozza before he became pope in 1492.
Full reasoning
The problem here is the timing. The sentence says the children were publicly acknowledged after Alexander VI's accession to the papal throne, but reliable historical sources say Rodrigo Borgia had already openly claimed them before 1492.
- National Geographic states that before Rodrigo Borgia became pope in 1492, Vannozza had four children with him — Cesare, Juan, Lucrezia, and Goffredo — and that he "openly claimed" each of them.
- History Hit likewise notes, specifically for Lucrezia, that Rodrigo "acknowledged her as his child"; it also places her first formal marriage arrangement at age 10, in 1492, showing she was already being treated as Rodrigo's acknowledged daughter around the time of his elevation.
So the article's phrasing is misleading: the children were not only publicly acknowledged after Rodrigo became Pope Alexander VI; at least these four children were already openly acknowledged by him before his papal accession.
2 sources
- The real history of the Borgia family and their cursed 'black legend' | National Geographic
Before Borgia became pope in 1492, she had four children with him: Cesare, Juan, Lucrezia, and Goffredo... With Cattanei, he had four more children—Cesare, Juan, Lucrezia, and Goffredo—each of whom he openly claimed.
- 10 Facts About Lucrezia Borgia | History Hit
Born on 18 April 1480... Lucrezia Borgia was the daughter of Cardinal Rodrigo de Borgia... Importantly - and unlike some of her half-siblings - Rodrigo acknowledged her as his child.