Guglielmo Gonzaga (24 April 1538 – 14 August 1587) was

Duke of Mantua During its history as independent entity, Mantua had different rulers who governed on the city and the lands of Mantua from the Middle Ages to the early modern period. From 970 to 1115, the Counts of Mantua were members of the House of Canoss ...

from 1550 to 1587, and of Montferrat from 1574 to 1587. He was the second son of Federico II Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and

Margaret Palaeologina Margaret Palaeologa ( it, Margherita Paleologa; 11 August 1510 in Casale Monferrato – 28 December 1566 in Mantua), was the ruling Marquise regnant of Montferrat in her own right between 1533 and 1536. She was also Duchess of Mantua by marr ...

of Montferrat. In 1574, Montferrat was elevated to a

Duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a Middle Ages, medieval country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition. There once exis ...

and Guglielmo became its first duke. He was succeeded as Duke of both duchies by his son

Vincenzo Vincenzo is an Italian male given name, derived from the Latin name Vincentius (the verb ''vincere'' means to win or to conquer). Notable people with the name include: Art * Vincenzo Amato (born 1966), Italian actor and sculptor *Vincenzo Bell ...

Patron of music

Guglielmo was particularly interested in sacred vocal music, and is known particularly to music historians for his extensive correspondence with the composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. He built a large new church in Mantua, dedicated to Santa Barbara. He engaged in an unprecedented negotiation with the Papacy to create his own rite for Mantua, and devoted considerable resources to developing a musical repertoire for the church, commissioning works by Giaches de Wert and Palestrina. Part of his correspondence with Palestrina discusses the work commissioned in detail, stipulating Guglielmo's requirements, and therefore giving a sense of his musical preferences. Guglielmo's musical tastes were conservative for the day. He enjoyed imitative contrapuntal music but was concerned to maintain clarity of text, thereby showing the influence of Tridentine reforms. Upon his death, his son Vincent invited followers of the more modern trends to his court. Three months before his death, Gonzaga wounded the organist of the ducal basilica,

Ruggier Trofeo Ruggier Trofeo (c. 1550 - September 19, 1614) was an Italian composer and organist. His name is sometimes rendered as Ruggiero De Trofeis. Trofeo appears to have been a native of Mantua; an anthology of music by natives of that city contains one m ...

, in an encounter over a woman; the latter survived his injuries.

Marriage and children

On 26 April 1561 William married

Eleonora of Austria Archduchess Eleanor of Austria (2 November 1534 – 5 August 1594) was Duchess of Mantua by marriage to William I, Duke of Mantua. She was the daughter of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor and Anna of Bohemia and Hungary. Life Eleanor was the ...

, sixth daughter of

Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I ( es, Fernando I; 10 March 1503 – 25 July 1564) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1556, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary, Hungary, and List of rulers of Croatia, Croatia from 1526, and Archduke of Austria from 1521 until his death in 1 ...

and Anna of Bohemia and Hungary. They had: * Vincenzo I (21 September 1562 – 9 February 1612). Married

Eleonora de' Medici Eleanor de' Medici (28 February 1567 – 9 September 1611) was a Duchess of Mantua by marriage to Vincenzo I Gonzaga. She served as regent of Mantua 1595, 1597 and 1601, when Vincenzo served in the Austrian campaign in Hungary, and in 1602, whe ...

* Margherita Gonzaga (27 May 1564 – 6 January 1618). Married

Alfonso II d'Este Alfonso II d'Este (24 November 1533 – 27 October 1597) was Duke of Ferrara from 1559 to 1597. He was a member of the House of Este. Biography He was the elder son of Ercole II d'Este and Renée de France, the daughter of Louis XII of France an ...

Anna Caterina Gonzaga Anna Caterina Gonzaga, later Anna Juliana O.S.M. (16 November 1566 – 3 August 1621) was an Archduchess of Austria who became a Religious Sister of the Servite Order after the death of her husband, the Archduke Ferdinand II of Austria. A c ...

(17 January 1566 – 3 August 1621). Married her maternal uncle Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria

Patron of music

Marriage and children

Ancestry

References

Sources

Further reading