Assassin’s Creed is a series built around the true history, showing how the assassins and Templars struggled against each other over time. The franchise has consistently placed interesting twists on different eras such as the American Revolution and ancient Greece.
The first Assassin’s Creed set the precedent, but it was first Assassin’s Creed 2 that the series really started playing with history. From friendship with Leonardo da Vinci to a fistfight with the pope, Assassin’s Creed 2 was an experience.
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Some of the historical figures in the game are obvious, but Assassin’s Creed 2 goes much deeper than the surface. Here is every historical figure in Assassin’s Creed 2.
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo Da Vinci is the most obvious historical figure in Assassin’s Creed 2, and easily the most famous. The ingenious inventor is one of the most brilliant individuals who ever lived, and he becomes one of Ezio’s best friends in Assassin’s Creed 2. Da Vinci constantly helps Ezio with his pursuit and even gives him inventions to use, such as the flying machine.
Rodrigo Borgia (Pope Alexander VI)
The main villain of Assassin’s Creed 2 is Rodrigo Borgia, who eventually becomes Pope Alexander VI. Borgia is a fairly infamous historical figure, known for disregarding many aspects of his office, including celibacy. As pope, he uses political forces to gain power and take back the papal states, but Rodrigo is generally known for his ruthlessness, which made him the perfect fit as the villain of the game.
Lorenzo de ‘Medici
Lorenzo de ‘Medici was one of the most influential figures in the Italian Renaissance and the leader of the Florentine Republic. Historically, Medici was one of the main reasons for peace between the various Italian states, and in Assassin’s Creed 2 he is an important ally of the assassins and the Auditore family.
Caterina Sforza
Caterina Sforza was another key figure of the Renaissance, who amassed great political power through the use of diplomacy, warfare, and sex. Her character in Assassin’s Creed 2 is a direct version of her historical accounts, and she even becomes something of a romantic interest to Ezio.
Niccolo Machiavelli
Niccolo Machiavelli is someone many people have probably heard of since he was a famous diplomat, philosopher and writer. By many he is considered the father of modern political science. As a result, Machiavelli was a perfect match for an important member of the assassins, who worked as a mentor to the Italian Brotherhood.
Giuliano de’Medici
Giuliano is the brother of Lorenzo de’Medici, though not as famous as his brother or sister, and as such he worked as a co-ruler of Florence. Unfortunately, Giuliano does not play much of Assassin’s Creed 2 while being killed by the conspirators during an attempt on Lorenzo’s life.
Angelo Ambrogini
Angelo Ambrogini was an Italian scholar and poet, more commonly known by his nickname Poliziano. He was an important ally for the Medici family, and in Assassin’s Creed 2 he helps stop the Pazzi conspiracy attempting to assassinate Lorenzo.
Agostino Barbarigo
Agostino Barbarigo was the daughter of Venice from 1486-1501, and he began as an ally of the assassins, unlike his brother Marco who joined the Templars. Eventually, however, Agostino became a victim of the swing of the Templars and turned on the Assassins, who in turn killed him in turn.
Marco Barbarigo
Unlike his brother Agostino, Marco is a cruel and ruthless person in Assassin’s Creed 2. Historically, Marco Doge was from Venice from 1485-1486, with his reign after he mysteriously died. Of course, that made him a perfect target for Ezio.
Bartolomeo d’Alviano
Bartolomeo was a renowned captain who gained notoriety by defending Venice against the Holy Roman Empire. She rolls in Assassin’s Creed 2 is of course a bit decorated. He is an important character in the game, as well as a leader of a group of mercenaries and as a member of the Italian Brotherhood.
Jacopo de’Pazzi
Jacopo de’Pazzi is one of the main villains of Assassin’s Creed 2, and the chief architect of the Pazzi Conspiracy, which is actually a historical event and not just a story in the game. The Pazzi family planned to kill the Medici brothers and take over the government of Florence, but they failed in real history and Assassin’s Creed 2. The Pazzi are insulted in Florence, and Jacopo is eventually chased and hanged, though it is Rodrigo Borgia in the game who kills him due to his failure.
Francesco de’Pazzi
Francesco de’Pazzi is the cousin of Jacopo, and he is one of the most important members who carried out the assassination of the Medicis. While Giuliano successfully killed the attempt, Francesco was killed in the process. In Assassin’s Creed 2 it is Ezio who does the deed. It is interesting to note that Francesco has a son named Vieri in the game, although he is not actually a real historical person.
Bernard de Baroncelli
Bernard de Baroncelli was still a member of the Pazzi conspiracy and aided in the assassination of Giuliano de’Medici. Unlike Francesco, he escaped the scene, but was later hunted down. In real history, he was found in Constantinople and escorted back to Florence to be hanged while in Assassin’s Creed 2 Ezio hunts him down in San Gimignano.
Stefano Da Bagnone
Stefano Bagnone was the chaplain of Jacopo de’Pazzi, and as expected another member of the Pazzi conspiracy. Bagnone had the task of killing Lorzeno de’Medici on April 26, 1478 when he attended the Holy Mass in Santa Maria del Fiore. Historically, Bagnone fails and is shamed and hanged, but Ezio stops the attempt by merging with the other monks.
Archbishop Francesco Salviati
Francesco Salviata was the Archbishop of Pisa in 1474, and he used his station and influence to organize the Pazzi conspiracy. He was another conspirator who could not kill Medici, and Ezio chased him Assassin’s Creed 2.
Giovanni Mocenigo
Giovanni Mocenigo was from 1478-1485 as the doge of Venice. The Templars of the Pazzi conspiracy desperately seek his marriage Assassin’s Creed 2, but as soon as Ezio Auditore arrives in Venice, the group decides they are too late and decides to kill Mocenigo.
Checco and Ludovico Orsi
The Orsi family does not have much history about them, but they played a role in the overall Pazzi Conspiracy. In 1488, Checdco and Ludovico Orsi conspired against Girolamo Riario, the husband of Caterina Sforza. In Assassin’s Creed 2 Caterina hires the Orsis to kill Riario, and the brothers are later hired by the Borgia to kill Caterina.
Antonio Maffei
Antonio Maffei was a Florentine monk who helped with the assassination of Lorenzo in Santa Maria del Fiore. Historically, Maffei was cut in the throat during the attempt, but in Assassin’s Creed 2 Maffei manages to escape and hide in San Gimignano. Of course, it does not take long before his time comes through Ezio Auditore.
Girolamo Savonarola
Girolamo Savonarola was an Italian preacher and preacher known during the Italian Renaissance. He was known for speaking out about the exploration of the poor and campaigning for repentance and reform. Savanarola was protected by Lorzeno de’Medici, and he was even seen as a kind of prophet. Eventually, Savanarola’s work caught up with him because his prophecies did not come true. The brother was hanged in public, but it is much more played in Assassin’s Creed 2, as Savanarola is a bit of a tyrannical ruler.
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