Francesco II Sforza (4 February 1495 – 1 November 1535) was Duke of Milan from 1521 until his death. He became duke of Milan after Emperor Charles V reconquered it from the French. He fought at Bicocca against the French, but in 1526 joined the League of Cognac with Francis I of France. Surviving a poisoning, he married Christina of Denmark, but died childless. He was the last member of the Sforza family to rule Milan.

Biography

Francesco was the second son of

Ludovico Sforza Ludovico Maria Sforza (; 27 July 1452 – 27 May 1508), also known as Ludovico il Moro (; 'the Moor'), and called the "arbiter of Italy" by historian Francesco Guicciardini,

and Beatrice d'Este. Following his father's removal from Milan in the course of the

Italian Wars The Italian Wars were a series of conflicts fought between 1494 and 1559, mostly in the Italian Peninsula, but later expanding into Flanders, the Rhineland and Mediterranean Sea. The primary belligerents were the House of Valois, Valois kings o ...

, he was brought to the court of the Emperor Maximilian I, who had married Francesco's cousin,

Bianca Maria Sforza Bianca Maria Sforza (5 April 1472 – 31 December 1510) was Queen of Germany and Empress of the Holy Roman Empire as the third spouse of Maximilian I. She was the eldest legitimate daughter of Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza of Milan by his secon ...

. Francesco briefly lived at court in Innsbruck, but later was assigned a tutor and lived at the castle of Steyr, along with twenty-one followers. His ambition for an ecclesiastical career, as canon in Cologne, was backed by Maximilian. Despite imperial support the Cologne chapter rejected him from their chapter. In August 1512, Francesco placed his judicial studies on hold following his brother Massimiliano's election as duke of Milan at the Diet of Mantua. His conversation with a Mantuan envoy was expressed as, "''younger Sforza spoke with Capilupi "with few words", but good ones. He resembles his father, but is less lordly; he will not be as large a person, but is bulkier than the Duke, with full shoulders, hair similar to the Duke’s, and the black clothes of a priest in the German style''". In 1521,

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) ...

, re-conquered Milan from the French, and Francesco was appointed its duke, the last of the family to hold that title. His sovereignty, however, remained circumscribed by the military occupation of Milan by Spanish troops. He returned to his state, depleted by twenty years of combat, promoting a cultural and economic recovery. Francesco fought at the Battle of Bicocca, on the side of the emperor, in 1522. In 1526, he switched sides, joining the League of Cognac, together with

Francis I of France Francis I (; ; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once removed and father-in-law Louis&nbs ...

Pope Clement VII Pope Clement VII (; ; born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the most unfortunate o ...

and the Republic of Florence, and was besieged in the Castello Sforzesco. On 4 May 1534, Francesco married the 12-year-old niece of Charles V,

Christina of Denmark Christina of Denmark (; November 1521 – 10 December 1590) was a Denmark, Danish princess, the younger surviving daughter of Christian II, King Christian II of Denmark and Norway and Isabella of Austria. By her two marriages, she became List ...

, the daughter of

Christian II of Denmark A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

and

Isabella of Austria Isabella of Austria (''Isabel''; 18 July 1501 – 19 January 1526), also known as Elizabeth, was born an Archduchess of Archduchy of Austria, Austria and Infanta of Castile from the House of Habsburg, and subsequently became List of Danish consor ...

. By this time, Francesco, a survivor of a poisoning attempt, was using a cane to walk and had paralyzed hands. The union remained childless. His death on 1 November 1535, sparked the Italian War of 1535. His half-brother Giovanni Paolo reclaimed briefly the Duchy of Milan after his death, but died in the same year under mysterious circumstances.

References

Sources

* * *90 * * * * 1495 births 1535 deaths 16th-century dukes of Milan Francesco 2 Sforza Military leaders of the Italian Wars Italian Roman Catholics People of the War of the League of Cognac {{lombardy-politician-stub