Charles Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat (31 October 1629 – 14 August 1665) was the son of Charles of Gonzaga-Nevers (d. 1631) of

Rethel Rethel () is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture and third-most important city and economic center in the department. It is situated on the river Aisne, near the northern border of Champagne and 3 ...

Nevers Nevers ( , ; la, Noviodunum, later ''Nevirnum'' and ''Nebirnum'') is the prefecture of the Nièvre department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in central France. It was the principal city of the former province of Nivernais. It is ...

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...

, and Montferrat; and Maria Gonzaga. He followed his grandfather Charles I, Duke of Mantua, in 1637 as ruler of these lands, the first ten years under regency of his mother Duchess Maria. On 22 March 1657 Charles II receives the appointment as Imperial Vicar in Italy. Charles sold the Duchies of Nevers and Rethel in 1659 to Cardinal

Jules Mazarin Cardinal Jules Mazarin (, also , , ; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino () or Mazarini, was an Italian cardinal, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Louis XIII and Louis X ...

, the factual Regent of France, and they became part of France. On 7 November 1649 Charles II married Isabella Clara of Austria (12 August 1629 – 24 February 1685), a daughter of Leopold V, Archduke of Austria, and thus into the imperial family. The marriage was an act of diplomacy and they had only one child, his successor

Ferdinand Charles, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat Ferdinando Carlo Gonzaga (31 August 1652 – 5 July 1708) was the only child of Duke Charles II of Mantua and Montferrat, and the last ruler of the Duchy of Mantua of the House of Gonzaga. Biography Born in Revere, In 1665 Ferdinand Charles rec ...

(1652–1708). The relationship between husband and wife effectively ended, and Charles continued a relationship with a noblewoman Margherita della Rovere, and also had affairs with men including the

castrato A castrato (Italian, plural: ''castrati'') is a type of classical male singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto. The voice is produced by castration of the singer before puberty, or it occurs in one who, due ...

Atto Melani. In his book ''The Last Medici'' Harold Acton records that his death occurred in the midst of lascivious intercourse.Acton, Harold. ''The Last Medici''. p. 84. Charles tried to revive the tradition of his family as patrons of the arts and to rebuild his family's art collection, which had been largely sold off by his forebears. He appointed in 1657 the Flemish painter and printmaker Daniel van den Dyck as his official court painter, architect, surveyor of his building program and engineer for stage designs for the theatre. After van den Dyck's death he appointed on 4 April 1663 another Flemish painter called Frans Geffels as his new court painter.Anne-Marie Logan, 'Daniel van den Dyck (Daniel Vandich)', Wallraf-Richartz Jahrbuch 55 (1994), p. 95-104

Ancestry

Honours

Grand Master of the Order of the Redeemer

References

Sources

* , - {{Authority control 1629 births 1665 deaths Charles 2 Charles 2 Charles II, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat Charles III, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat Charles III, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat 17th-century LGBT people LGBT people from Italy LGBT Roman Catholics LGBT royalty 17th-century Italian nobility 17th-century peers of France LGBT history in Italy