Rodrigo Borgia: The Corrupt Pope Who Bought the Papacy In 1492, Rodrigo Borgia secured his position as Pope Alexander VI through bribes and political maneuvering, becoming one of the most notorious popes in history during the height of the Italian Renaissance. His election came at a pivotal moment when the Catholic Church wielded immense temporal power across Europe, making the papacy as much a political office as a spiritual one. Alexander VI's reign coincided with the age of exploration and th