Alfonso d'Este (10 March 1527 – 1 November 1587) was an Italian nobleman.

Biography

Born at

Ferrara Ferrara (, ; egl, Fràra ) is a city and ''comune'' in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital of the Province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream ...

, he was the illegitimate son of

Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara Alfonso d'Este (21 July 1476 – 31 October 1534) was Duke of Ferrara during the time of the War of the League of Cambrai. Biography He was the son of Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara and Eleanor of Naples and became duke on Ercole's death in ...

by his lover Laura Dianti. In 1523 his father gave him

Montecchio Emilia Montecchio Emilia ( Reggiano: or ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Reggio Emilia in the Italian region Emilia-Romagna, located about northwest of Bologna and about west of Reggio Emilia. Montecchio Emilia borders the follow ...

and turned it into a feudal inheritance for cadet members of his family – in 1569 it was promoted to a marquessate by

Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II (31 July 1527 – 12 October 1576) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1564 until his death in 1576. A member of the Austrian House of Habsburg, he was crowned King of Bohemia in Prague on 14 May 1562 and elected King of Germany (King ...

. Alfonso was legitimated in 1532 by cardinal

Innocenzo Cybo Innocenzo Cibo (25 August 1491 – 13 April 1550) was an Italian cardinal and archbishop. Family and education From the Genoese family Cibo, in 1488 the Cybo family purchased Florentine citizenship for a considerable sum of money I ...

and in 1533 by his father Alfonso I. His first marriage followed on 3 January 1549, to

Giulia della Rovere Giulia della Rovere (1531, Casteldurante – 4 April 1563, Ferrara) was an Italian noblewoman. A portrait of her by Titian survives in the Palazzo Pitti in Florence. Life She was the daughter of Francesco Maria I della Rovere, Duke of Urbino and E ...

, daughter of

Francesco Maria I della Rovere, Duke of Urbino Francesco Maria I della Rovere (25 March 1490 – 20 October 1538) was an Italian condottiero, who was Duke of Urbino from 1508 to 1516 and, after retaking the throne from Lorenzo II de' Medici, from 1521 to 1538. Biography He was born ...

and Eleonora Gonzaga. In 1584 he married Violante Signa (1546–1609), though that marriage remained childless.http://www.geneall.net/I/per_page.php?id=46795 He died at Ferrara in 1587.

Issue

Alfonso had by Giulia della Rovere the following children: *

Alfonso d'Este Alfonso d'Este (21 July 1476 – 31 October 1534) was Duke of Ferrara during the time of the War of the League of Cambrai. Biography He was the son of Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara and Eleanor of Naples and became duke on Ercole's death in ...

(1560–1578), married

Marfisa d'Este Marfisa d'Este (c.1554 in Ferrara – 16 October 1608 in Ferrara) was a Ferrarese noblewoman. She was the illegitimate daughter of Francesco d'Este and Maria Folch de Cardona. She and her sister Bradamante (born 1559) were legitimised by both ...

; *

Cesare d'Este Cesare d'Este (8 October 1562 – 11 December 1628) was Duke of Modena and Reggio from 1597 until his death. Biography Born in Ferrara, Cesare was the son of Alfonso d'Este, Marquis of Montecchio, fourth son of Alfonso I d'Este and the ...

(1562–1628), married

Virginia de' Medici Virginia de' Medici (29 May 1568 – 15 January 1615) was an Italian princess, a member of the House of Medici and by marriage Duchess of Modena and Reggio. Regent of the Duchy of Modena and Reggio in 1601 during the absence of her husband, s ...

. The legitimacy of the succession was recognized by the

Emperor Rudolph II Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–1608). He was a member of the Hous ...

but not by

Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII ( la, Clemens VIII; it, Clemente VIII; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born ...

: thus, as Ferrara was nominally a Papal fief, the city was returned to the Papal States, despite the attempts of the young duke, who sought help from the Major Powers to no avail. The Este family thus lost the

duchy of Ferrara The Duchy of Ferrara ( la, Ducatus Ferrariensis; it, Ducato di Ferrara; egl, Ducà ad Frara) was a state in what is now northern Italy. It consisted of about 1,100 km2 south of the lower Po River, stretching to the valley of the lower Re ...

. * Eleonora d'Este (1561–1637), married Carlo Gesualdo di Venosa; *Ippolita d'Este (1565–1602), married Federico Pico, duke of

Mirandola Mirandola ( Mirandolese: ) is a city and ''comune'' of Emilia-Romagna, Italy, in the Province of Modena, northeast of the provincial capital by railway. History Mirandola originated as a Renaissance city-fortress. For four centuries it was ...

. He also had one illegitimate child: *

Alessandro d'Este Alessandro d'Este (1568–1624) was a Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' E ...

(1568–1624),

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Este, Alfonso 1527 births 1587 deaths Nobility from Ferrara

alfonso Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...