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The Renaissance Warrior Woman Who Defied Powerful Popes
Caterina Sforza was one of the most exceptional figures of Renaissance Italy
Who was the bold and brave woman who forged powerful alliances to defend her lands, seize castles, and take revenge on her enemies for power? One of the greatest warrior women of her time, Caterina Sforza, fought battles and competed with her era’s most powerful men. Towards the end of her life, she reportedly told a monk: “If I could write everything that happened, I would shock the world.”
One moment that definitively shocked the world came toward the end of 1499. It made Caterina an icon and cemented her reputation as one of the most powerful woman warriors of all time. Standing atop the walls of the Rocca di Ravaldino in Forli — legend says — she lifted her skirt and screamed towards her rivals, attempting to storm the Rocca di Ravaldino, holding her children captive: “Kill them if you will, I have the means to make many more! You will never make me surrender.”
An exceptional figure of the Italian Renaissance
Born an illegitimate daughter to the Duke of Milan in 1463, Caterina Sforza grew up at the center of her father’s household and received an excellent education. She even studied military tactics and…
