Ricciardia, Marchioness of Saluzzo (1410 – 16 August 1474, Ferrara) was an Italian noblewoman. She was the daughter of

Thomas III, Marquess of Saluzzo Thomas III of Saluzzo ( it, Tommaso III di Saluzzo) (1356–1416) was Marquess of Saluzzo from 1396 until his death. He was born in Saluzzo in north-western Italy to Frederick II del Vasto and Beatrice of Geneva. His maternal grandfather was Hug ...

and his French wife Marguerite de Pierrepont, daughter of

Ugo II de Pierrepont Ugo is the Italian form of Hugh, a widely used name of Germanic origin. Its diminutive form is Ugolino. It is also a Nigerian Igbo first name. It may refer to: People * Vgo (stonemason), medieval stonemason * Ugo Bassi, a Roman Catholic prie ...

, count of Roncy and Braine. In 1429 she married

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 ...

- she was his third wife, after

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 ...

and

Parisina Malatesta Laura Malatesta (140421 May 1425), better known as Parisina Malatesta, was an Italian marchioness. She was the daughter of Andrea Malatesta, lord of Cesena, and his second wife, Lucrezia Ordelaffi. She had an affair with her illegitimate stepson ...

. They had two children: * Ercole (1431 – 1505), future duke of Ferrara; * Sigismondo (1433 – 1507), lord of San Martino in Rio. After Niccolò's death in 1441, the ten-year-old Ercole could in theory have succeeded his father as his eldest legitimate child. However, her father instead left the title to his illegitimate son Leonello, who exiled Ricciardia and her two children to Naples. Leonello reigned for nine years, and then was succeeded by his brother Borso, who reigned for a further 21 years. However, in the meanwhile Ricciarda had forged alliances that meant that on Borso's death she succeeded in getting Ercole made duke of Ferrara.Rosa Stanton: TEA TIME
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References

{{Use dmy dates, date=August 2016 1410 births 1474 deaths House of Este 15th-century Italian nobility 15th-century Italian women