Bartolomeo d'Alviano

"You think that commanding an army grants you nobility? Nobility comes from fighting besides your soldiers, not kidnapping a woman to cheat your way out of battle."

- Bartolomeo to Octavian de Valois, 1503.

Bartolomeo d'Alviano (1455 – 1515) was a member of the Assassin Order, and the leader of Venetian and Roman mercenaries. Being a skilled and loyal fighter, as well as being in command of a fair amount of mercenaries, Bartolomeo was an important asset to the Assassin Order.

During his time in Venice, he befriended Ezio Auditore, later Mentor of the Italian Assassins, and together they managed to reconquer the Castello District, Bartolomeo's home, from Silvio Barbarigo, a Templar noble who had claimed it for himself. Bartolomeo was also present when Ezio was officially initiated into the Order. When Ezio infiltrated the Vatican, Bartolomeo assisted, causing trouble in Rome to keep the guards from stopping Ezio.

Bartolomeo and Ezio met again in Rome, where Bartolomeo and his wife, Pantasilea Baglioni, had settled in the Caserma di Alviano. There, Bartolomeo fought with both the Borgia forces and the French soldiers led by Octavian de Valois. Along with Ezio, he managed to weaken the Borgia enough for the Assassins to liberate the city.

Bartolomeo also served as the General of several Italian armies, being renown for his determination and swordsmanship. He fought in the Battle of Agnadello, which he lost. Upon being released, he continued his military career, until he finally fell while besieging Ghedi.

Early life
Bartolomeo was born in the town of, and was the son of Francesco d'Alviano and Isabella degli Atti. He was also the cousin of Fabio Orsini, and Niccolò di Pitigliano.

Bartolomeo somehow found his way into the Assassin Order and based himself in the Castello District of Venice. He resided in the district, and led the mercenaries in the city.

Retaking the Castello District
"Luridi codardi! I'll take you all on! At the same time! With one arm -- no-- BOTH arms tied behind my back!"

- Bartolomeo to the guards during his imprisonment.

By 1486, the Templar Silvio Barbarigo had taken control of the Castello District, capturing Bartolomeo and most of his men in the process. However, Ezio Auditore, the son of the late Assassin Giovanni Auditore, came to Bartolomeo's rescue and the two fought their way back to Bartolomeo's headquarters.

Once at Bartolomeo's quarters, Bartolomeo and Ezio killed Silvio's remaining men and retook the quarters. Locating his longtime weapon "Bianca", Bartolomeo asked Ezio to rescue some of his men who had been captured by Silvio's thugs. After rescuing each of the captured mercenaries, Ezio returned to Bartolomeo's quarters. There, Bartolomeo instructed Ezio to position several of the mercenaries throughout the district in order to stir up enough trouble to regain the district.

Aiding the mercenaries, Ezio helped by eliminating the guards of the district to allow the mercenaries to take their places. Upon posting the last of the men, Ezio scaled the largest tower in the district and launched a firework to signal for the mercenaries to begin their attack.

From the tower, Ezio caught sight of Bartolomeo engaged in a losing battle against Dante Moro and Silvio's men. Rushing to aid him, Ezio helped Bartolomeo kill most of Silvio's men, though Dante abandoned the fight and fled to L'Arsenale.

Ezio was about to defeat Dante, though he slipped away into the shipping port. Bartolomeo called for Ezio to follow the fleeing man, as he would likely lead him straight to Silvio. Sure enough, as Silvio and Dante fled for their ship, they were both caught and assassinated by Ezio.

Afterwards, Bartolomeo thanked and congratulated Ezio on liberating the Castello district from Silvio's oppression, and the two parted ways.

Acquiring the Apple of Eden
"Come at me, codardi! All of you! My Bianca hungers for more skulls to crush!"

- Bartolomeo during the fight with the Borgia guards.

Two years later, Bartolomeo joined with several other Assassins to acquire the Apple of Eden from Rodrigo Borgia, the Grand Master of the Templars. However, when they reached Rodrigo, they found Ezio already fighting Rodrigo and his guards.

Bartolomeo and the other Assassins hurried to Ezio's side, and after killing all the guards and causing Rodrigo to flee without the Apple, the group revealed themselves to be Assassins, a fact previously unknown by Ezio. They then inducted Ezio into the Order atop a tall tower, before the group performed Leaps of Faith off the side of the tower.

Battle against Pope Alexander VI
In 1496, Bartolomeo joined the Orsini in a battle against the Borgia, who were attempting to seize Orsini territory.

Bartolomeo's resources were cut down to three fortresses by the Borgia, but Bartolomeo's fighting spirit kept him going. Cesare Borgia completely cut off his supplies when he thought victory was near, but Carlo Orsini arrived just in time to support Bartolomeo, even wounding Cesare in the face.

Fighting the French
"Cesare persuaded King Louis to lend him an entire army to defeat me. I'm flattered."

- Bartolomeo, regarding his fight with the French.

In 1500, Bartolomeo and his new wife Pantasilea Baglioni moved to Rome, using the Caserma di Alviano as their new barracks. Alongside the other Assassins, Bartolomeo sought to liberate the city from the Borgia oppression, and thus focused his mercenaries on the French army led by the Baron Octavian de Valois.

However, Bartolomeo soon found himself attacked on two fronts: Borgia on one side, and French on the other. That same year, Bartolomeo met again with Ezio Auditore, who helped Bartolomeo liberate the surrounding region from Borgia control. In exchange, Ezio requested that Bartolomeo find the whereabouts of Rodrigo and Cesare Borgia.

After locating Rodrigo and Cesare, Bartolomeo met with the others at Tiber Island to discuss the Assassins' plans.

Three years later, Bartolomeo was still at war with the Baron de Valois. When Ezio met with Bartolomeo again to discuss plans to take out the French commander, their conversation was cut short by a mercenary who alerted Bartolomeo to a surprise assault by French troops. Fighting alongside Ezio and his mercenaries, Bartolomeo successfully defended the barracks from the attack, after which they gathered at the main gate. There, they found the Baron signaling for their attention from the field.

Octavian called out to request Bartolomeo's surrender in exchange for his wife, whom he had kidnapped. Enraged, Bartolomeo shouted insults to the commander, and eventually tore after him on horseback as the French army withdrew.

As he and Ezio arrived at the French camp, the Castra Praetoria, they concluded that it was impenetrable. Distraught, Bartolomeo resignedly decided to surrender, and enter the enemy base bearing gifts, out of hope that they would spare his wife.

However, Ezio came up with an alternative, and upon returning to the barracks, he suggested that they disguise Bartolomeo's mercenaries as French soldiers, and have them pretend to deliver a captured Bartolomeo.

After Bartolomeo offered his enthusiastic approval, Ezio retrieved some suits of armor by stealthily killing several French guards. Upon regrouping with Bartolomeo, Ezio, disguised as a French captain, cleared the way for the disguised battalion all the way to the French camp, which they entered with ease. As they faced Octavian, Bartolomeo started to openly threaten him, demanding that Pantasilea be released. However, the Baron only remarked that "savages never learn", and raised his firearm to kill Pantasilea.

Acting swiftly, Ezio fired his Hidden Gun as a sign to Bartolomeo's mercenaries, breaking their cover and causing confusion among the French guards. In the skirmish that followed, Octavian fled deeper into the camp with Pantasilea in tow. Ezio followed and assassinated him, freeing Pantasilea.

As Bartolomeo hugged his wife, she thanked him, calling him her prince. Afterwards, they and the mercenaries returned to the barracks.

Later that year, Bartolomeo met with the other Assassins to fight the remnants of Cesare Borgia's followers at the gates of Rome. After the last supporters were killed, they witnessed Cesare being arrested by Bartolomeo's cousin, Fabio Orsini, and later returned to their respective bases.

Under Ferdinand II and Nicolò Orsini
In 1503, hired by Ferdinand II of Spain, Bartolomeo became the determinant in the victory at the Battle of Garigliano against the French army, which started the Spanish domination over southern Italy.

In 1507, together with Nicolò Orsini, Bartolomeo was rehired by the Republic of Venice. The following year, he defeated the Imperial Army of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor in Cadore, at Mauria and Pontebba, conquering Gorizia and Trieste. In the same year, Pordenone also fell, and the Serenissima assigned its seignory to Bartolomeo himself.

Battle of Agnadello
"An endless wall of enemy blocks me from escape. Their leader gloats. I stare into his face, one I know all too well, as he shackles me."

- Bartolomeo at the end of the Battle of Agnadello.

In 1509, Bartolomeo fought in the Battle of Agnadello to protect the Shroud of Eden, which was located there. He allegedly attacked the enemy without the authorization of the Orsini, the commander-in-chief at the time. He was greatly wounded as a result, but managed to recover and rally his troops. He won the hearts of the citizens of Agnadello, and they in turn helped Bartolomeo and his men in gathering resources.

In 1510, he was visited by Ezio in Ostia, who requested his assistance in traveling to Bari to begin his journey to Masyaf in Syria, in hopes of finding the library of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. Bartolomeo, happy to see Ezio get back into action, accompanied his friend to Bari, from where they parted ways.

In 1513, after the alliance between France and Venice against the Duke of Milan, he fought under the French commander Louis de la Trémoille. He was defeated at Vicenza by the Spanish viceroy of Naples, Ramón de Cardona.

Later life
Later, Bartolomeo conquered and sacked Pordenone, which in the meantime had fallen again to the Holy Roman Emperor. He was subsequently a protagonist of the French victory at Marignano (September 1515), in which he attacked the hired Swiss mercenaries with a corps of only 300 knights.

Later, he also managed to conquer Bergamo, but died in October of the same year while besieging Ghedi. Venice welcomed his body home with a grand ceremony, and he was buried in the church of Santo Stefano in Venice.

Bartolomeo and Pantasilea had four children; three daughters and one son.

Personality
"[Bartolomeo] has such an aggressive view of the world."

- Pantasilea.

Bartolomeo had an aggressive personality, often disregarding strategy in favor of brute strength. This was clearly shown when Ezio Auditore rescued him in Venice, as he would often remark that Ezio's tactic of avoiding combat was not manly. He, like Mario Auditore, preferred open combat, rather than the Assassin tactic of "sneaking and stabbing." He was a proud man, as was made evident when he told Ezio that he was coping well against the French assault, when in truth, he was fighting a losing war.

Bartolomeo also believed in fair fight. When Ezio was escorting him and the Mercenaries to the French camp, he admitted that he did not like the idea of tricking the Baron da Valois into defeat with the costumes. He also repeated the words of Ezio's father, Giovanni as a further proof that he truly thought that men will no longer be traitorous to one another.

Though a skilled warrior and general, Bartolomeo was not educated, as when Ezio suggested renovating the barracks, he said "I'm no good with these things. You are the educated one, you approve the plans." Bartolomeo held honor in highest regard, and was very upset when the Baron de Valois chose the tactic of taking his wife hostage, viewing this as a dishonorable and cowardly attempt to secure victory.

Fighting style
Bartolomeo was a versatile fighter, able to fight with either a sword or a heavy weapon, although he preferred to use the latter in combat. When Ezio saved him from the Castello district, Bartolomeo proved his adaptability in fighting by using any weapon he could find, including a broom.

His favorite weapon was a heavy sword that he fondly called "Bianca", which greatly resembled a Scottish Claymore. Bartolomeo was very attached to the weapon, going so far as to frantically call and search for it after returning to his ransacked headquarters in Venice.

Trivia

 * Bartolomeo's memories were extracted from the genetic memory of one of his descendants by Abstergo Industries, and relived by another person in 2012.
 * His experiences in the Battle of Agnadello could be relived in the first chapter of the Italian Wars sequence in Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy.
 * In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Bartolomeo's sword Bianca had a slightly different appearance, having a gold guard and also missing an emblem.
 * Bianca was also an exclusive item for Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy, which could be unlocked for 15 Uplay points. It gave a higher chance of winning a Skirmish.
 * It was hinted that Bartolomeo also used an axe in combat, as when Ezio completed all the Mercenary guild quests, he received a weapon called Bartolomeo's Axe, which was almost identical to the Labrys.
 * In the battle where Ezio fought alongside Bartolomeo, Claudia Auditore, Niccolò Machiavelli and La Volpe against Cesare and his men, Bartolomeo could be "killed", though he would only appear knocked out, as if he had lost in a fist fight.