Amalia Giuseppina d'Este (28 July 1699 – 5 July 1778) was an Italian noblewoman and princess of Modena and Reggio by birth. She served as Regent of the Duchy of Modena and Reggio in October-December 1737 during the absence of her brother Francesco III.

Biography

Amalia was the daughter of the Duke

Rinaldo d'Este Rinaldo d'Este may refer to: * Rinaldo d'Este (1221-1251) (1221-1251), son of Azzo VII d'Este *Rinaldo d'Este (1618-1672) (1618–1672), cardinal between 1641 and 1672 *Rinaldo d'Este (1655–1737) Rinaldo d'Este (26 April 1655 – 26 Octob ...

and

Duchess Charlotte of Brunswick-Lüneburg Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ...

, daughter of

John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Calenberg John Frederick (; 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. The third son of George ...

. 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 t ...

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. Notable people with the given name include: * Benedetta Barzini (born 1943), Italian actress and model * Benedet ...

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 ...

, 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 an Italians, Italian Rococo painter. In her younger years, she specialized in portrait miniatures. Carriera would later become known for her pastel portraits, helping popularize the medium ...

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

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

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

. After the death of her father in October 1737, her brother Francesco succeeded him as Duke of Modena in his absence. Since her brother was absent from Modena fighting in the

Russo-Turkish War The Russo-Turkish wars ( ), or the Russo-Ottoman wars (), began in 1568 and continued intermittently until 1918. They consisted of twelve conflicts in total, making them one of the longest series of wars in the history of Europe. All but four of ...

, Amalia and her older sister

assumed the regency of the duchies until the return of their brother in December.

Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia Charles Emmanuel III (27 April 1701 – 20 February 1773) was Duke of Savoy, King of Sardinia and ruler of the Savoyard states from his father's abdication on 3 September 1730 until his death in 1773. He was the paternal grandfather of the l ...

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

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amalia d'Este, Princess House of Este 1699 births 1778 deaths 18th-century Italian nobility Nobility from Modena 18th-century Italian women Daughters of dukes 18th-century women regents 18th-century regents