Laura Malatesta (140421 May 1425), better known as Parisina Malatesta, was an Italian marchioness. She was the daughter of

Andrea Malatesta Andrea Malatesta (30 November 1373 – 20 September 1416
) was an

Cesena Cesena (; rgn, Cisêna) is a city and ''comune'' in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, served by Autostrada A14, and located near the Apennine Mountains, about from the Adriatic Sea. The total population is 97,137. History Cesena was o ...

, and his second wife, Lucrezia Ordelaffi. She had an affair with her illegitimate stepson,

Ugo d'Este Ugo d'Este, also known as Hugh Aldobrandino (1405 – May 21, 1425 in Ferrara), was the son of Niccolò III d'Este and his lover Stella de' Tolomei. Early life Although he was illegitimate, he was destined to succeed his father as Nicholò's eld ...

, and both were beheaded by her husband, Marquis

Niccolò III d'Este Niccolò is an Italian male given name, derived from the Greek Nikolaos meaning "Victor of people" or "People's champion". There are several male variations of the name: Nicolò, Niccolò, Nicolas, and Nicola. The female equivalent is Nicole. The f ...

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 ...

Edward Gibbon Edward Gibbon (; 8 May 173716 January 1794) was an English historian, writer, and member of parliament. His most important work, ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'', published in six volumes between 1776 and 1788, is k ...

acquainted English readers with the story in 1796, after which

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

wrote the poem ''

Parisina ''Parisina'' is a 586-line poem written by Lord Byron. It was probably written between 1812 and 1815, and published on 13 February 1816. It is based on a story related by Edward Gibbon in his '' Miscellaneous Works'' (1796) about Niccolò III d ...

'', which was followed by operas of the same name by

Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...

and Mascagni.

Biography

Parisina was only a few days old when her mother was poisoned by her father, Cecco Ordelaffi. She grew up in the court of her uncle,

Carlo Malatesta Carlo I Malatesta (June 1368 – 13 September 1429) (also Carlo of Rimini) was an Italian condottiero during the Wars in Lombardy and lord of Rimini, Fano, Cesena and Pesaro. He was a member of the powerful House of Malatesta. Carlo's wife ...

, in

Rimini Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...

. In 1418 in Ravenna, at the age of 13, she married

Niccolò III d'Este, Marquis of Ferrara Niccolò III d'Este (9 November 1383 – 26 December 1441) was Marquess of Ferrara from 1393 until his death. He was also a condottiero. Biography Born in Ferrara, the son of Alberto d'Este and Isotta Albaresani, he inherited the rule of t ...

, whose first wife

Gigliola da Carrara Gigliola da Carrara (1379–1416) was the Marchioness of Ferrara, daughter of Francesco Novello da Carrara, lord of Padua, son of Francesco I da Carrara, and Taddea d'Este. The 13 years old Marchioness of Ferrara married the Marquis Niccolò III ...

had died a few years before, and moved to Ferrara, which was ravaged by

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...

. She resided in the tower of Rigobello, in rooms under the library, and also in the Delizia di Consandolo, built by Niccolò. In 1419 she gave birth to twin daughters, and in 1421 to a son, who lived only a few months. According to some sources, during a trip in 1424 to visit her family, Parisina was accompanied, according to her husband's wishes, by

, illegitimate son of Niccolò by his lover, Stella de 'Tolomei. The two young people got to know each other in Ravenna and became lovers. The relationship continued secretly after they returned to Ferrara. They met in the delizie di Belfiore, Fossadalbero e Quartesana. Other sources report that to escape the plague of 1423 she took refuge in the castello di Fossadalbero accompanied by her stepson, and it was there that relationship started. Putting the couple under the surveillance of one of her maids, Niccolò discovered the affair. He imprisoned his wife and son in the castle's dungeon, and both were beheaded.

In culture

Her tragic story has inspired writers, musicians, and painters. The Renaissance Italian author

Matteo Bandello Matteo Bandello ( 1480 – 1562) was an Italian writer, soldier, monk, and, later, a Bishop mostly known for his novellas. His collection of 214 novellas made him the most popular short-story writer of his day. Biography Matteo Bandello wa ...

wrote the novel ''Ugo and Parisina''. Edward Gibbon briefly told the story in his '' Miscellaneous Works'' in 1796:

By the testimony of a maid, and his own observation, the Marquis of Este discovered the incestuous love of his wife Parisina, and Hugo his bastard son, a beautiful and valiant youth. They were beheaded in the castle, by the sentence of a father and a husband, who published his shame, and survived the execution. He was unfortunate, if they were guilty : if they were innocent, he was still more unfortunate : nor is there any possible situation in which I can sincerely approve the last act of the injustice of a parent.

published the 586-line poem ''

'' in 1816. In Byron's poem, Azo (his version of Niccolò) learns of the affair when Parisina mutters the name of Hugo (Ugo) in her sleep. In another embellishment by Byron, Parisina and Hugo were engaged to be married before Azo decided to marry her. Also, Azo sentences only Hugo to death; Parisina's fate is unknown, except for the fact that she is forced to witness Hugo's execution and utters a shriek that indicates approaching madness. Azo is tormented by his decision. A libretto by

Felice Romani Giuseppe Felice Romani (31 January 178828 January 1865) was an Italian poet and scholar of literature and mythology who wrote many librettos for the opera composers Donizetti and Bellini. Romani was considered the finest Italian librettist betw ...

inspired by Byron's poem was set to music by

Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...

in 1833 as ''

''.

Pietro Mascagni Pietro Mascagni (7 December 1863 – 2 August 1945) was an Italian composer primarily known for his operas. His 1890 masterpiece ''Cavalleria rusticana'' caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single-handedly ushered in the ' ...

composed a tragic opera ''

'' based on the lyric tragedy written by Gabriele D'Annunzio in 1912 as another adaptation of Byron's poem. There is also a lesser-known opera by

Tomás Giribaldi Tomás Giribaldi (1847-April 11, 1930) was an Uruguayan composer. His opera ''La Parisina'', premiered at the Solís Theatre in Montevideo on September 14, 1878, is considered the first Uruguayan national opera. It was composed in Italian, and ...

(1878) and a tragedy by

Antonio Somma Antonio Somma (28 August 1809, Udine – 8 August 1864, Venice) was an Italian playwright who is most well known for writing the libretto of an opera which ultimately became Giuseppe Verdi's ''Un ballo in maschera'' in 1859. While a student, his ...

. The story has been the subject of paintings by Girolamo Domenichini,

Thomas Jones Barker Thomas Jones Barker (19 April 1813 – 29 March 1882) was an English historical, military, and portrait painter. The Barkers of Bath Thomas Jones Barker was born at Bath in 1815, into a family of artists. His grandfather, Benjamin Barker, was ...

Ford Madox Brown Ford Madox Brown (16 April 1821 – 6 October 1893) was a British painter of moral and historical subjects, notable for his distinctively graphic and often William Hogarth, Hogarthian version of the Pre-Raphaelite style. Arguably, his mos ...

(a lost work),

Giuseppe Bertini Giuseppe Bertini (1825–1898) was an Italian painter, active in his native Milan. Biography He studied at the Brera Academy under Luigi Sabatelli and Giuseppe Bisi, and in 1845 was awarded the ''Gran premio di pittura dell'Accademia di Brera ...

Gaetano Previati Gaetano Previati (1852 – 1920) was an Italian Symbolist painter in the Divisionist style. Biography Previati was born in Ferrara. He relocated to Milan in 1876 and enrolled at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, studying under Giuseppe Bertini, G ...

, Bartolomeo Giuliano,

Domenico Morelli Domenico Morelli (4 August 182313 August 1901) was an Italian painter, who mainly produced historical and religious works. Morelli was immensely influential in the arts of the second half of the 19th century, both as director of the Accademia di ...

, Maria Orsola Castelnuovo, and Achille Funi.

Descendants

Parisina had twin daughters and a son: *

Lucia d'Este Lucia may refer to: Arts and culture * ''Lucía'', a 1968 Cuban film by Humberto Solás * ''Lucia'' (film), a 2013 Kannada-language film * '' Lucia & The Best Boys'', a Scottish indie rock band formerly known as ''LUCIA'' * "Lucia", a Swedish c ...

(1419–1437), who married Carlo Gonzaga and died young; *

Ginevra d'Este Ginevra d'Este (24 March 1419 - 12 October 1440) was an Italian noblewoman. She and her twin sister Lucia (died 1437) were daughters of Niccolò III d'Este and his second wife Parisina Malatesta - they also had a younger brother, who died aged a f ...

(1419–1440), who married Sigismund Malatesta and perhaps was killed by him; *Alberto (1421), who died a few months after birth.

References

External links

''Parisina''
the full text of Byron's poem {{DEFAULTSORT:Malatesta, Parisina 1404 births 1425 deaths 15th-century Italian nobility

Executed Italian people 15th-century Italian women