"He who had come as a cardinal to crown King Federigo, came now as a condottiero to depose him.".    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

Arezzo followed this up by summoning Vitelli, and the waiting, watchful condottiero was quick to answer the desired call.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

His great reputation as a condottiero, the fame of his wealth and his notorious liberality, stood him now in excellent stead.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

Whereupon the Republic, which at first had raised a feeble, make-believe protest at the action of her condottiero, now deemed it as well to find a pretext for supporting him.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

True, he had gone to offer himself to Spain as a condottiero when naught else was left to him; but he took no army with him -- he went alone, a servant, not an ally, as that false letter pretends.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

Alexander had ever shown himself the fondest of fathers to his children, and now he overflowed with pride in this son who already gave such excellent signs of his capacity as a condottiero, and justified his having put off the cassock to strap a soldier's harness to his lithe and comely body.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

Scarcely was Cesare gone from Perugia when into the hands of his people fell the person of the Lady Panthasilea Baglioni d'Alviano -- the wife of the famous Venetian condottiero Bartolomeo d'Alviano -- and they, aware of the feelings prevailing between their lord and the Government of Venice, bethought them that here was a valuable hostage.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

Above, a picture taken a couple weeks ago of one of my absolute favorite works of art in Venice: Andrea Verrocchio’s statue of the condottiero, Bartolomeo Colleoni.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Splendor of Colleoni] Reference

200,000 of whom knelt in the square before St. Peter's on Easter Day to receive the Pope's blessing -- was pouring vast sums of money into the pontifical coffers, and for money men were to be had in plenty by a young condottiero whose fame had been spreading ever since his return from the Romagna.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Life of Cesare Borgia]

A kind of general condottiero system.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Works of Lord Byron. Vol. 5 Poetry] Reference