Costanza d'Avalos (1460–1541), Duchess of Francavilla, was an Italian ruler. She was the ruler of the Duchy of Francavilla between 1501 and 1541.

Life

She was the daughter of Innico I d'Avalos of the Spanish d'Avalos family, count of Monteodorisio, and Antonella d'Aquino, heiress to the marquisate of

Pescara Pescara (; nap, label= Abruzzese, Pescàrë; nap, label= Pescarese, Piscàrë) is the capital city of the Province of Pescara, in the Abruzzo region of Italy. It is the most populated city in Abruzzo, with 119,217 (2018) residents (and approxim ...

. Her father had come to Italy with Alfonso V of Aragon in 1442. She was given in marriage to Federico del Balzo, Prince of

Altamura Altamura (, ; nap, label= Barese, Ialtamùre) is a town and ''comune'' of Apulia, in southern Italy. It is located on one of the hills of the Murge plateau in the Metropolitan City of Bari, southwest of Bari, close to the border with Basilic ...

and Duke of

Venosa Venosa ( Lucano: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Potenza, in the southern Italian region of Basilicata, in the Vulture area. It is bounded by the comuni of Barile, Ginestra, Lavello, Maschito, Montemilone, Palazzo San Gervasio, ...

, son of Pietro del Balzo and brother of the Queen of

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Isabella Isabella may refer to: People and fictional characters * Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Isabella (surname), including a list of people Places United States * Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpor ...

Mona Lisa, by Leonardo da Vinci, from C2RMF retouched

Duchess of Francavilla

After she was widowed without children, in 1483, King

Frederick of Naples Frederick (April 19, 1452 – November 9, 1504), sometimes called Frederick IV or Frederick of Aragon, was the last King of Naples from the Neapolitan branch of the House of Trastámara, ruling from 1496 to 1501. He was the second son of Ferdinan ...

granted her the Duchy of Francavilla in 1501. She then followed her brother, Innico II d'Avalos, to

Ischia Ischia ( , , ) is a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It lies at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples, about from Naples. It is the largest of the Phlegrean Islands. Roughly trapezoidal in shape, it measures approximately east to west ...

, where he died in 1503. Later that year, she defended Ischia against the French for four consecutive months, with great skill and bravery. Her services were rewarded by the settlement of the civil and military government of the island on the d'Avalos family, which power it retained until 1734, when its military command was transferred to Naples. She established her court at Ischia, which was frequented by many Neapolitan intellectuals of the period. On 13 June 1507, she signed a marriage contract between her nephew Fernando Francesco d'Ávalos and

Vittoria Colonna Vittoria Colonna (April 149225 February 1547), marchioness of Pescara, was an Italian noblewoman and poet. As an educated, married noblewoman whose husband was in captivity, Colonna was able to develop relationships within the intellectual circl ...

. The marriage took place on Ischia in December 1509. Vittoria, shortly after her marriage, spent her time on Ischia with Costanza. In 1523

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infan ...

granted to Costanza the land which nowadays forms

. She died in 1541, after Charles V had given her the title of Princess of Francavilla.

Literary influence

On Ischia, Costanza established a circle of literary friends around her, among which were the poet

, the wife of her nephew,

Sannazaro Jacopo Sannazaro (; 28 July 1458 – 6 August 1530) was an Italian poet, humanist and epigrammist from Naples. He wrote easily in Latin, in Italian and in Neapolitan, but is best remembered for his humanist classic ''Arcadia'', a masterwork tha ...

Paolo Giovio Paolo Giovio (also spelled ''Paulo Jovio''; Latin: ''Paulus Jovius''; 19 April 1483 – 11 December 1552) was an Italian physician, historian, biographer, and prelate. Early life Little is known about Giovio's youth. He was a native of Com ...

Tansillo Luigi Tansillo (1510–1568) was an Italian poet of the Petrarchian school. Born in Venosa, he entered the service of Pedro Álvarez de Toledo in 1536 and in 1540 entered the Accademia degli Umidi, soon renamed Accademia Fiorentina. He was asso ...

and

Bernardo Tasso Bernardo Tasso (11 November 14935 September 1569), born in the Republic of Venice, was an Italian courtier and poet. Biography He was, for many years, secretary in the service of the prince of Salerno, and his wife Porzia de Rossi was closely c ...

. She also became a follower of

Juan de Valdés Juan de Valdés (c.1490 – August 1541) was a Spanish religious writer and Catholic reformer. He was the younger of twin sons of Fernando de Valdés, hereditary ''regidor'' of Cuenca in Castile, where Valdés was born. He has been confuse ...

and attended his lectures and discussions at his house in

Chiaia Chiaia (, ) is an affluent neighbourhood on the seafront in Naples, Italy, bounded by Piazza Vittoria on the east and Mergellina on the west. Chiaia is one of the wealthiest districts in Naples, and many luxury brands have shops on its main street. ...

Legacy

Scholarly as well as amateur speculation has assigned the

Mona Lisa The ''Mona Lisa'' ( ; it, Gioconda or ; french: Joconde ) is a half-length portrait painting by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. Considered an archetypal masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance, it has been described as "the best known ...

's name to Costanza (among other women) - she was referred to as La Gioconda.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Costanza D'avalos, Duchess Of Francavilla D'Avalos family 1460 births 1541 deaths 16th-century women rulers Women in 16th-century warfare 16th-century Italian women