Micheletto Corella (1470-January 1508), also known as Miguel de Corella, was a Spanish condottiero in the service of the House of Borgia during the Italian Wars. Corella was a feared hitman under Cesare Borgia, serving as his secret weapon for years; he was known for strangling his victims and dumping their bodies in the Tiber. Corella also served as a general of Cesare Borgia, assisting him in his conquest of Romagna as one of his lieutenants. From 1502 to 1505, Corella served as Governor of Piombino, and he fought as one of Borgia's generals until the last of his campaigns in 1503. After Cesare Borgia's downfall, he was arrested, later serving in the army of the Republic of Florence. Corella was murdered in Milan in 1508 by unknown assailants.
Biography[]
Early career[]
Micheletto in Florence, 1498
Micheletto Corella was born in Valencia, Spain in 1470, and he studied at the University of Pisa. He befriended Cesare Borgia as a child, having studied with him, and he became Borgia's personal hitman during the 1490s. In 1492, he earned Borgia's trust by assassinating Cardinal Orsino Orsini by using Orsini's own poisoned cup against him at a banquet; Orsini had planned on using the poison to kill Borgia's father, Pope Alexander VI. Corella proceeded to kill two assassins who had been sent to kill the Borgia family at their home.
Secret weapon[]
Borgia and Micheletto
Corella's allegiance to Cesare was kept a secret, becoming his secret weapon. He was then whipped by Borgia so that it would appear as if he had been captured while trying to kill the Pope, and he was sent to infiltrate the inner circle of Cardinal Giuliano Della Rovere, an enemy of the House of Borgia. Corella showed the cardinal his scars, and he became one of the Cardinal's allies. In 1494, Corella was sent to assassinate the Cardinal at a mineral bath in Naples, where he was hoping to ally with King Ferrante I of Naples. Corella was recognized by his scars, and the Cardinal and the other bathers fled, while Corella stabbed a guard dead in the bath before fighting his way out of Naples. Corella began to lose Cesare's trust, as he repeatedly failed to kill the Cardinal; his fellow assassin, Brother Giancarlo, was killed by the cardinal in Florence after he failed to eavesdrop on him.
Cesare's hitman[]
Corella in 1502
Micheletto would once more become Cesare's trusted accomplice, carrying out assassinations on his orders. Some of his high-profile assassinations included Giulio Cesare da Varano, lord of Camerino and three of his sons; Alfonso of Aragon, Duke of Bisceglie and Lucrezia Borgia' second husband; Oliverotto da Fermo and Vitellozzo Vitelli, who were strangled simultaneously; Astorre III Manfredi, the Lord of Faenza; and Francesco Troche, Papal Secretary. Several more murders went unrecorded, and he was possibly the most deadly killer in Italy. Micheletto was notorious for strangling his victims quietly and disposing of the bodies, making him a fearsome enforcer for the Borgia family. In 1502, Micheletto Corella was appointed Governor of Piombino by Cesare Borgia during his campaigns in the Romagna.
In 1503, he was tasked with the execution of Pietro Rossi, an actor who was having an affair with Lucrezia (who was also having an affair with her own brother Cesare). However, Micheletto failed to kill him, as he was stabbed by Ezio Auditore da Firenze, who needed the key to the Castel Sant'Angelo in order to assassinate the Pope. Micheletto was spared because his killing would lead to Ezio's downfall.
In November 1503, Micheletto Corella led 700 horsemen north to support Cesare Borgia's campaigns in the Romagna, but his army was defeated, and he was captured. Micheletto was held in Florence, where he was tortured; nevertheless, he refused to give up any secrets about the Borgia family. In 1505, Pope Julius II arranged for Corella's release, and Niccolo Machiavelli's meditation led to Corella being hired as a captain of the Republic of Florence; he served in this post until 1507. In 1508, he travelled to Milan, where he was killed by some of his own countrymen for unknown reasons.
Gallery[]
