Lucrezia Borgia, the noblewoman portrayed in Victor Hugo’s drama, was Italian.
She was born in 1480 at Subiaco, near Rome, and belonged to the powerful Borgia family. Her father, Rodrigo Borgia, later became Pope Alexander VI, while her brother Cesare became a major Renaissance military and political figure. Lucrezia spent much of her life in Italian courts, especially Ferrara, where she became duchess after marrying Alfonso I d’Este.
Victor Hugo’s play Lucrèce Borgia premiered in Paris in 1833. Although Hugo was French and wrote the drama in French, its central historical figure was an Italian Renaissance noblewoman. The play drew heavily on the dark legends surrounding the Borgia family, including stories of intrigue, poison, and political corruption.
The character is also familiar through Gaetano Donizetti’s opera Lucrezia Borgia, whose Italian libretto was adapted from Hugo’s play. A common mix-up is identifying her as Spanish because the Borgia family originated in the Kingdom of Valencia, in present-day Spain. However, Lucrezia was born and politically active in Italy, making Italian the standard answer to this question.