Pope Benedict XVI came into office with the reputation of a conservative hard-liner, a vigorous defender of orthodoxy who wanted to restore Tradition — yes, with a capital “T”– to a church that was seen as disturbingly undisciplined. Yet with the stunning announcement that he is resigning as the 264th successor to Saint Peter, Benedict Read more
Posts Tagged ‘Papacy’
Italian historian sees Borgias as victims of ‘bad press’
Tuesday, November 27th, 2012
The Borgias — the most infamous family in the history of the papacy — were victims of a “bad press”, according to a new book. As for Lucretia, she was innocent of incest and poisoning, and died a devout woman. Journalist and historian Mario Dal Bello drew on documents from the Vatican Secret Archive to Read more
The Borgias Sex, violence and men in frocks
Friday, October 14th, 2011The Borgias is family drama but not of the kind you’ll be letting the young ones stay up to watch.
Jeremy Irons is suitably ghoulish as Rodrigo Borgia, Pope Alexander VI and head of a vicious brood.
The Borgias, it goes without saying – this is historical drama with as much rumpy pumpy as pomp; the latter it does magnificently – will have plenty of silliness. And it has to because it is mostly populated by calculating old men in red frocks, so it requires rather a lot of sexing up to make it sexy viewing.
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