Cesare Borgia

"Ezio Auditore. Brave of you to stand alone against me, but also quite foolish&hellip;"

- Cesare Borgia, 1503.

Cesare Borgia (13 September 1475 - 12 March 1507) was the son of Rodrigo Borgia and an arch-nemesis of Ezio Auditore da Firenze. Like his father, he was a Templar; eventually, he became the commander of the Papal army and a leader in the Templar Order.

Early life
Cesare Borgia was born in Rome in 1475, to Rodrigo Borgia, the Grand Master of the Knights Templar, and his long-term mistress Vannozza dei Cattanei. He was one of Lucrezia Borgia's brothers.

As a Templar
In 1496, when his father waged war with the Orsini Family to seize their territory, Cesare joined the battle. Among the enemy's ranks was Bartolomeo d'Alviano, in secret an Assassin. When Bartolomeo's resources were down to three fortresses, Cesare cut off his supplies. When it looked like victory was near, Carlo Orsini arrived with his army and joined Bartolomeo, even wounding Cesare in the face.

Siege of Monteriggioni
"I know you're there Ezio! The Pope told me about you and your little group of Assassins!"

- Cesare Borgia to Ezio Auditore, 1499.

In 1499, Cesare, who had been brought up in the Templar ways, lead an assault on Monteriggioni, headquarters of the Assassins in Italy in order to eliminate the Master Assassin Ezio Auditore da Firenze. Besieging the city, Cesare's forces overwhelmed the city's defenders and handed to him Mario Auditore and Caterina Sforza. Standing at the city gates, the Apple of Eden in his hand, Cesare 'invited' Ezio to come and face him in Rome with a shot of his firearm that killed Mario. Ezio was then shot down and wounded by a team of Arquebusiers and the battle was won. With Monteriggioni in ruins, Cesare returned to Rome with his prize.

Trivia

 * Historically, it is said that Niccolò Machiavelli greatly admired Cesare.
 * Cesare Borgia briefly employed Leonardo da Vinci as military architect and engineer between 1502 and 1503. Cesare and Leonardo became intimate instantaneously — Cesare provided Leonardo with an unlimited pass to inspect and direct all planned and undergoing construction in his domain. After Cesare, Leonardo was unsuccessful in finding another patron in Italy.
 * Cesare's comments about bloodshed and the need for cleansing may highlight the origin of the name Abstergo being adopted by the Knights Templar, which is Latin for "I cleanse".