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

Charles of Gonzaga-Nevers Charles II Gonzaga (22 October 1609 – 30 August 1631) was the son of Charles I, Duke of Mantua, and Catherine de Lorraine-Guise-Mayen, Catherine de Lorraine-Guise (also known as Catherine de Mayenne). He was the Duke of Nevers and Rethel, togethe ...

(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 37& ...

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

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 Montferrat (, ; it, Monferrato ; pms, Monfrà , locally ; la, Mons Ferratus) is part of the region of Piedmont in northern Italy. It comprises roughly (and its extent has varied over time) the modern provinces of Alessandria and Asti. Mo ...

; and Maria Gonzaga. He followed his grandfather

Charles I, Duke of Mantua Charles Gonzaga ( it, Carlo I Gonzaga) (6 May 1580 – 22 September 1637) was Duke of Mantua and Duke of Montferrat from 1627 until his death. He was also Charles III Duke of Nevers and Rethel, as well as Prince of Arche and Charleville. Biograp ...

, 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 Leopold V, Archduke of Further Austria (October 9, 1586 – September 13, 1632) was the son of Archduke Charles II of Inner Austria, and the younger brother of Emperor Ferdinand II, father of Ferdinand Charles, Archduke of Further 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 to ...

Atto Melani Atto Melani (30 March 1626, in Pistoia – 4 January 1714, in Paris) was a famous Italian castrato opera singer, also employed as a diplomat and a spy. Life Melani was born in Pistoia, the third of seven sons of a local bell-ringer. He was cas ...

. In his book ''The Last Medici''

Harold Acton Sir Harold Mario Mitchell Acton (5 July 1904 – 27 February 1994) was a British writer, scholar, and aesthete who was a prominent member of the Bright Young Things. He wrote fiction, biography, history and autobiography. During his stay in Ch ...

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 Daniel van den Dyck, known in Italy as Daniel VandichDaniël van Dyck
at the

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 Frans Geffels, known in Italy as Francesco Geffels (25 August 1624 – 18 February 1694) was a Flemish painter, printmaker, architect, stage designer and designer of ephemeral structures for solemn and festive occasions.Miroslav Kindl, ''Die nied ...

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