Never mind the Borgias — the biggest murderers of the Italian Renaissance, it seems, were the leaders of the Most Serene Republic of Venice. Between 1415 and 1525 the worthies of its Council of Ten successfully commissioned an average of two assassinations a year. In 1513 a Brother John of Ragusa informed the Council of his rates for the job. He would do in “the Grand Turk” for 500 ducats, 150 ducats would see the end of the King of Spain, and a mere 100 would spell doom for the Pope. SponsoredMichael Burleigh’s Day of the Assassins is obviously enjoyable for the same prurient reasons

Source: The Times May 27, 2021 16:04 UTC