Camino Photo of the Day: Viana and the Death of Cesare Borgia

02 April 2020 Thom Liminal Space, Photo of the Day 2013

Welcome to Viana! The town continues to be proud of its largest claim to fame: it was here that the infamous Cesare Borgia met his doom. Imprisoned in Spain by his “uncle’s” successor as Pope, Cesare escaped and became a mercenary captain for his brother-in-law, King Juan III of Navarre, who was dealing with a civil war. During the siege of Viana, Cesare led a small detachment of horsemen against a convoy seeking to supply the rebels in the castle.

The story I heard in Spain was that Cesare shouted to his men to follow him, and none of them did. He essentially attacked the convoy by himself. He was gunned down, pulled off his horse, and beat to death by the rebels, aged just 31. His body, reportedly bearing at least twenty-five individual wounds, was laid to rest in the nearby church, where it remains to this day.

I was very much looking forward to seeing the tomb.