Vitellozzo Vitelli

Vitellozzo Vitelli (c. 1458 –31 December 1502) was an Italian condottiero. He was lord of Montone, Città di Castello, Monterchi and Anghiari.

Together with his father, Niccolò, who became lord of Città di Castello, and his brothers, who all at one time or other were condottieri (mercenary captains), this family instituted a new type of infantry armed with sword and pike to resist the German men-at-arms, and also a corps of mounted infantry armed with arquebuses. Vitellozzo served the Medici of Florence in their war against Pisa, and later with the French in Apulia in 1496 and with the Orsini faction against Pope Alexander VI.^[1]

In 1500 Vitellozzo and the Orsini made peace with the pope, and the latter's son Cesare Borgia, being determined to crush the tyrants of Romagna and consolidate papal power in that province, took the condottieri into his service. Vitellozzo distinguished himself in many engagements, but in 1501 he advanced against Florence, moved as much by a desire to avenge his brother Paolo, who while in the service of the Republic, had been suspected of treachery and put to death (1499), as by Cesare's orders. While Borgia was actually negotiating with the republic, Vitelli seized Arezzo. He was forced by Borgia and the French to give up the city, to his chagrin, and he began from that moment to nurture hostile feelings towards his employer and to aspire to overthrow Cesare's rule. Vitellozzo Vitelli wanted revenge for his brother's death. Seizing Arezzo prompted the Florentines to fear attack, and almost forced Cesare to attack Florence, but this action was in conflict with the wishes of Louis d'Orleans, king of France.^[1]

شارك فيتيلي مع أورسيني وأوليفيروتو دا فيرمو وقادة آخرين في مؤامرة ماجيوني ضد بورجيا ^{[ 2 ]} (كان فيتيلي متزوجًا من بورزيا، ابنة باولو أورسيني )، لكن انعدام الثقة المتبادل وعجز القادة أمام حماسة سيزار ووعده بالمساعدة الفرنسية، أدى إلى فشل المؤامرة، واستولى فيتيلي وغيره من قادة المرتزقة، على أمل استعادة ود سيزار، على سينيغاليا باسمه. وهناك، خدعهم سيزار وأُسروا بينما كانت قواتهم بعيدة عن متناوله. وخُنق فيتيلي وأوليفيروتو في الليلة نفسها ، 31 ديسمبر 1502. ^{[ 1 ]} ربما تكون هذه الحادثة قد أدت إلى نفور ليوناردو دا فينشي من بورجيا (الذي كان الفنان يعمل لديه)، لأنه كان صديقًا لفيتيلي. ^{[ 3 ]}