Catherine_de'_Medici,_Governor_of_Siena

Caterina de' Medici, Governor of Siena

Caterina de' Medici, Governor of Siena

Governor of Siena from 1627 – 1629


Caterina de' Medici (2 May 1593  17 April 1629) was a Tuscan noblewoman of the Medici family. She became Duchess of Mantua and Montferrat as the second wife of Duke Ferdinando and Governor of Siena from 1627. She was the second daughter of Grand Duke Ferdinando I of Tuscany and his wife Christina of Lorraine.

Quick Facts Duchess consort of Mantua and Montferrat, Tenure ...

Biography

The second daughter and third child of Grand Duke Ferdinando I and Christina of Lorraine, Caterina, named after the eponymous Queen of France (who was also her great-grandmother) was born in Florence on 2 May 1593.

Caterina was considered as a potential spouse to Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, heir to the three Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland, but his Anglican religion presented an insurmountable barrier.

Eventually, she married in 1617 Ferdinando Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat;[1] the marriage, however, was childless.

Upon being made a widow in 1626, she returned to Tuscany. Her nephew, Grand Duke Ferdinando II, created her Governess of Siena in 1627, where she died of smallpox two years later.[2]

In later life, Caterina garnered a reputation for intense piety.[3] Historian Colonel G.F. Young asserts that she bore a striking resemblance to her brother Cosimo II and sister Claudia.[3] She was interred in the Medicean necropolis, the Basilica of San Lorenzo.[3]

Ancestors

More information Ancestors of Caterina de' Medici, Governor of Siena ...

References

  1. Young, p 530
  2. Young, p 387

Sources

  • Parrott, David (1997). "The Mantuan Succession, 1627–31: A Sovereignty Dispute in Early Modern Europe". The English Historical Review. CXII, Issue 445, February (445). Oxford Academic: 20–65. doi:10.1093/ehr/CXII.445.20.
  • Young, G.F.: The Medici: Volume II, John Murray, London, 1920
More information Italian royalty, Political offices ...

Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Catherine_de'_Medici,_Governor_of_Siena, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.