Amalia Giuseppina d'Este (28 July 1699 – 5 July 1778) was an Italian noblewoman and princess of Modena and Reggio by birth.

Biography

Amalia was the daughter of the Duke Rinaldo d'Este and Duchess Charlotte of Brunswick-Lüneburg, daughter of

John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Calenberg John Frederick (german: Johann Friedrich; 25 April 1625 in Herzberg am Harz – 18 December 1679 in Augsburg) was duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. He ruled over the Principality of Calenberg, a subdivision of the duchy, from 1665 until his death. T ...

. One of seven children, she was the second daughter of the family. Her parents' marriage had required papal dispensation because of the close interrelationships of the ducal families of Brunswick and Modena. Her mother died in 1710 after giving birth to a dead daughter, leaving five small children behind. Amalia grew up in the

Ducal Palace of Modena The Ducal Palace of Modena is a Baroque palace in Modena, Italy. It was the residence of the Este Dukes of Modena between 1452 and 1859. It currently houses a portion of the Italian Military Academy. History The palace occupies the site of ...

alongside her siblings

Benedetta Benedetta is a feminine given name of Italian origin, the feminine equivalent of the masculine name Benedetto, a cognate of Benedict. Persons having the name include: * Benedetta Barzini (contemporary), Italian actress and model *Benedetta Bianchi ...

Francesco Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name " Francis", is the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Francesco * Francesco I (disambiguation), sev ...

, Gian Federico (who died young) and Enrichetta. In 1723, her portrait was painted by

Rosalba Carriera Rosalba Carriera (12 January 1673 – 15 April 1757) was a Venetian Rococo painter. In her younger years, she specialized in portrait miniatures. Carriera would later become known for her pastel portraits, helping popularize the medium in eigh ...

during the painter's stay in Modena at the request of her father. The portrait is currently kept in the

Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister The Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister (, ''Old Masters Gallery'') in Dresden, Germany, displays around 750 paintings from the 15th to the 18th centuries. It includes major Italian Renaissance works as well as Dutch and Flemish paintings. Outstand ...

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

. After the death of her father in 1737, her brother Francesco succeeded him as Duke of Modena. While her brother was fighting in the

Russo-Turkish War The Russo-Turkish wars (or Ottoman–Russian wars) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European histo ...

, Amalia and her sister Benedetta assumed the regency of the duchies.

Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia Charles Emmanuel III (27 April 1701 – 20 February 1773) was Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia from 1730 until his death. Biography He was born in Turin to Victor Amadeus II of Savoy and his first wife the French Anne Marie d'Orléans. H ...

was proposed as a possible husband for her, but the marriage never materialized. Amalia secretly married an adventurer, the "Marquis de Villeneuf" (¿?-1739), who died fighting at the Battle of Futach in 1739. The couple had no children. Amalia died on July 5, 1778, shortly before her seventy-ninth birthday. She was buried in the Church of San Vincenzo, Modena.

References

{{Authority control House of Este 1699 births 1778 deaths 18th-century Italian people Nobility from Modena 18th-century Italian women Daughters of monarchs