Francesco d'Este, Marchese di Massa Lombarda (1 November 1516,

Ferrara Ferrara (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) 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 ...

– 12 February 1578, Ferrara) was an Italian nobleman from the

House of Este The House of Este ( , , ) is a European dynasty of North Italian origin whose members ruled parts of Italy and Germany for many centuries. The original House of Este's elder branch, which is known as the House of Welf, included dukes of Bavaria ...

. He was the eighth child and fifth son of

Alfonso I d'Este Alfonso d'Este (21 July 1476 – 31 October 1534) was Duke of Ferrara from 1504 to 1534, during the time of the War of the League of Cambrai. Biography He was the son of Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara and Eleanor of Naples and became du ...

and his second wife

Lucrezia Borgia Lucrezia Borgia (18 April 1480 – 24 June 1519) was an Italian noblewoman of the House of Borgia who was the illegitimate daughter of Pope Alexander VI and Vannozza dei Cattanei. She was a former governor of Spoleto. Her family arranged ...

Life

He grew up in Ferrara and lost his mother at age three when she died giving birth to Isabella Maria d'Este. As was customary for a younger son, he was given a military education. After spending time in France, his brother

Ercole II d'Este Ercole II d'Este (4 April 1508 – 3 October 1559) was Duke of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio from 1534 to 1559. He was the eldest son of Alfonso I d'Este and Lucrezia Borgia. Biography Through his mother, Ercole was a grandson of Pope Alexand ...

invited him to help

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (as Charles I) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy (as Charles II) ...

in Lombardy in May 1536 as a captain of light cavalry. He also took part in the 1541 Algiers expedition. He married Maria de Cardona, marchioness of

Padula Padula ( Cilentan: ''A Parula'') is a ''comune'' in the Province of Salerno, located in the Campania region of south-western Italy. The town is best known for the Carthusian monastery of Certosa di San Lorenzo, it is one of the largest monaster ...

and countess of

Avellino Avellino () is a city and ''comune'', capital of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy. It is situated in a plain surrounded by mountains east of Naples and is an important hub on the road from Salerno to Benevento. ...

, who had been a widow since the death of her cousin and first husband Artale de Cardona in 1536. Charles V backed her marriage to Francesco in a letter to Maria. The couple had no children but Francesco had two illegitimate daughters by one mother, whose name is unknown -

Marfisa Marfisa (also translated as "Marphisa") is a character in the Italian romantic epics ''Orlando innamorato'' by Matteo Maria Boiardo and ''Orlando Furioso'' by Ludovico Ariosto. She is the sister of Ruggiero but was separated from him in early chi ...

(c.1554-16 August 1608) and

Bradamante Bradamante (occasionally spelled Bradamant) is a fictional knight heroine in two epic poems of the Renaissance: ''Orlando Innamorato'' by Matteo Maria Boiardo and ''Orlando Furioso'' by Ludovico Ariosto. Since the poems exerted a wide influence o ...

(1559–1624). Both Marfisa and Bradamante were made legitimate a few years after their birth by

Pope Gregory XIII Pope Gregory XIII (, , born Ugo Boncompagni; 7 January 1502 – 10 April 1585) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 May 1572 to his death in April 1585. He is best known for commissioning and being the namesake ...

and by

Alfonso II d'Este Alfonso II d'Este (22 November 1533 – 27 October 1597) was Duke of Ferrara from 1559 to 1597. He was a member of the House of Este. Biography Alfonso was the elder son of Ercole II d'Este and Renée de France, the daughter of Louis XII of F ...

. Marfisa married her cousin

Alfonsino The alfonsino (''Beryx decadactylus''), also known as the alfonsin, longfinned beryx, red bream, or imperador, is a species of deepwater berycid fish of the order Beryciformes. It can be found in temperate and subtropical ocean waters nearly wor ...

in 1578, but he died only months after the marriage - in 1580 she remarried to Alderano Cybo-Malaspina. Bradamante married count Ercole Bevilacqua, Count of Maccastorna. In 1544

Pope Paul III Pope Paul III (; ; born Alessandro Farnese; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death, in November 1549. He came to the papal throne in an era follo ...

nominated Francesco marquess of

Massa Lombarda Massa Lombarda () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Ravenna in the Italian region Emilia-Romagna, located about east of Bologna and about west of Ravenna. Notable people * Angiolo Torchi (1856-1915), painter Twin towns Massa ...

(also known as Massa), with instructions to pass the title onto his male heirs and a faculty to mint coins. A mint has been found near the fortress at Massa, with intense activity that ended in 1573. In 1547 Francesco and his wife were given permission to open ironworks in the feudal lands of Avellino and Candida. They were also authorized to hold an annual fair in Avellino by Charles V. Francesco was later in the service of

Henry II of France Henry II (; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was List of French monarchs#House of Valois-Angoulême (1515–1589), King of France from 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I of France, Francis I and Claude of France, Claude, Du ...

, who made him his lieutenant and ordered him to defend the republic of

Montalcino Montalcino is a hill town and ''comune'' in the province of Siena, Tuscany, central Italy. The town is located to the west of Pienza, close to the Crete Senesi in Val d'Orcia. It is from Siena, from Florence and from Pisa. Monte Amiata is l ...

, last bulwark of the

Republic of Siena The Republic of Siena (, ) was a historic state consisting of the city of Siena and its surrounding territory in Tuscany, Central Italy. It existed for over 400 years, from 1125 to 1555. During its existence, it gradually expanded throughout south ...

. Francesco later returned to his birthplace, acquired a palace, remodelled its gardens and added several buildings, most notably the so-called

Palazzina di Marfisa d'Este The Palazzina Marfisa d'Este is a Renaissance-style small palace, once suburban, and sometimes referred to as a villa, located on Corso Giovecca #170, just east of Central Ferrara, region of Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It was constructed in 1559 by the ...

, built in 1559 and left to his eldest daughter in his will. He died on 12 February 1578 aged 62 and as stipulated in his will was buried in the church of San Paolo in Massa. He had no surviving male heir and so the marquisate was re-incorporated into the duchy of Ferrara.Tabanelli, p. 259

Bibliography

*Lorenzo Bellesia, ''Le monete di Francesco d'Este'', Astarte, Lugano 1997. *Luciano Chiappini, ''Gli Estensi, dall'Oglio'', Milano 1967. *Sarah Bradford, ''Lucrezia Borgia'', Mondadori, Milano 2005 . *Mario Tabanelli, ''Questa è <>'', Lega, Faenza 1972.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:dEste, Francesco 1516 births 1578 deaths 16th-century Italian nobility

Francesco Francesco, the Italian language, Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis (given name), Francis", is one of the List of most popular given names, most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name inclu ...

Sons of dukes Children of Lucrezia Borgia