[3] Bianca was born at the Palazzo Corsini in Rome, the eldest child and only daughter of Caterina Sforza and her first husband, Girolamo Riario.

Bianca's early years were turbulent, marked by the violence, treachery, family rivalry amongst the city-states, and continuous warfare which were salient features of life in Renaissance Italy.

Her mother immediately took command of the fortress, and began a siege in order to supervise the election of the new Pope, and coerce the Cardinals to negotiate with her.

Pope Sixtus's successor, Giovanni Battista Cybo, was not the preferred candidate of the Riarios, but instead, a long-standing opponent who took the name Innocent VIII.

[5] Their lives were constantly in peril, but the Riarios were eventually released after Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan, who was Caterina's uncle, came to their assistance.

He was created marquis by King Louis XII of France on 15 August 1502, in gratitude for his military services in the conquest of the Duchy of Milan.

Upon the death of her husband on 3 June 1521, Bianca acted as regent of the marquisate and county of San Secondo for her son Pier Maria during his minority.

Surrounded by hostile neighbours and numerous enemies which included relatives of her husband Troilo, she summoned the assistance of her half-brother, Giovanni dalle Bande Nere, who helped protect her own interests and those of her children.