# Pope Alexander VI — The Prince character guide

> Pope Alexander VI in The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Alexander the Sixth, Alexander, Pope Alexander VI, Alexander VI

**First appearance:** 0007-i-how-many-kinds-of-principalities-there-are-and-by-what-means-they-are-acquired

## Who they are

A pope who fathered children, sold offices, and treated the Church as a family business, proving to Machiavelli that sacred robes can hide the most worldly appetites.

## In the story

### [Office](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/office)

His ambitions, along with those of his son Cesare Borgia, heavily influenced Machiavelli's political observations.

### [The Man and His Works](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/the-man-and-his-works)

Referenced as an example of an era when men were dupes of their simplicity and greed, and whose vices Machiavelli laid bare.

### [III: Concerning Mixed Principalities](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/iii-concerning-mixed-principalities)

Pope whom Louis XII assisted in occupying the Romagna, weakening his own position.

### [VII: Concerning New Principalities Which Are Acquired Either by the Arms of Others or by Good Fortune](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/vii-concerning-new-principalities-which-are-acquired-either-by-the-arms-of-others-or-by-good-fortune)

Father of Cesare Borgia; used his papal authority to aggrandize his son.

### [VIII: Concerning Those Who Have Obtained a Principality by Wickedness](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/viii-concerning-those-who-have-obtained-a-principality-by-wickedness)

Referenced as the pope during whose rule Oliverotto's actions took place.

### [XI: Concerning Ecclesiastical Principalities](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/xi-concerning-ecclesiastical-principalities)

Showed how a pope with money and arms could prevail; aggrandized the Church through the Duke Valentino and the entry of the French.

### [XVIII: Concerning the Way in Which Princes Should Keep Faith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/xviii-concerning-the-way-in-which-princes-should-keep-faith)

Cited as a master of deception who always found victims for his deceit, successfully using craft to achieve his aims.

### [Endnotes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/chapters/endnotes)

Died of fever, 18th August 1503; noted for the 'chalk in hand' remark about Charles VIII's invasion.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/characters/alexander_vi
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_prince_se/characters