Laura Martinozzi (27 May 1639 – 19 July 1687) was a Duchess consort of Modena by marriage to

Alfonso IV d'Este, Duke of Modena Alfonso IV d'Este (2 February 1634 – 16 July 1662) was Duke of Modena and Reggio from 1658 until his death. He was the father of Mary of Modena, consort of James II of England. Alfonso was born in Modena, the eldest son of Francesco I d'E ...

. She served as regent of Modena during the minority of her son

Francesco Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis", is the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Francesco * Francesco I (disambiguation), seve ...

from 1662 until 1674.

Biography

Early life

Laura was born in

Fano Fano is a town and '' comune'' of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort southeast of Pesaro, located where the '' Via Flaminia'' reaches the Adriatic Sea. It is the third city in the region by ...

to Cardinal Mazarin's eldest sister, also named Laura, and her husband Count Girolamo Martinozzi da

, a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

noble of an ancient family. She was one of the

Mazarinettes The Mazarinettes were the seven nieces of Cardinal Jules Mazarin, (1639–1661), chief minister to the Kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV of France from 1642 until his death. They were the daughters of the cardinal's two sisters, Laura Margheri ...

: the seven nieces of the Cardinal, that he brought to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in order to arrange for them rich and politically advantageous marriages, including Hortense and

Olympia Mancini Olympia Mancini, Countess of Soissons (French: ''Olympe Mancini''; 11 July 1638 – 9 October 1708) was the second-eldest of the five celebrated Mancini sisters, who along with two of their female Martinozzi cousins, were known at the court of Ki ...

. For two years Laura lived in France under the guardianship of her uncle and "''quasi'' stepmother",

Anne of Austria Anne of Austria (french: Anne d'Autriche, italic=no, es, Ana María Mauricia, italic=no; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was an infanta of Spain who became Queen of France as the wife of King Louis XIII from their marriage in 1615 unt ...

Duchess of Modena

On her sixteenth birthday, 27 May 1655, she was married to the Duke of Modena, Alfonso IV d'Este. The wedding by proxy occurred at the Palace of Compiègne with the Count of Soissons acting as the Duke of Modena. They had three children, two of which survived infancy.

Regent of Modena

Upon the death of her spouse in 1662, she became regent of Modena during the minority of her son, Francesco d'Este, Duke of Modena. She discontinued her regency in 1674.

Later life

Laura was abandoned by her son The mentally and physically weak Francesco II came under the influence of his half-brother Cesare, and thus Laura moved to Rome with her mother. She died in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in 1687, shortly before the birth of her grandson, James, Prince of Wales. She was buried in the Este chapel of the Church of San Vincenzo at

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label= Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and '' comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. A town, and seat o ...

Issue

*Francesco d'Este, Hereditary Prince of Modena (1657–1658) died in infancy; * ''Maria Beatrice'' Anna Margherita Isabella d'Este (1658–1718) married

James II of England James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Glorious Re ...

and had issue; known as ''Mary of Modena''; * Francesco d'Este, Duke of Modena (1660–1694) married Margherita Maria Farnese, no issue.

Ancestry

References

*Alessandro Cont, ''"Sono nato principe libero, tale voglio conservarmi”: Francesco II d’Este (1660-1694)'', “Memorie Scientifiche, Giuridiche, Letterarie”, Accademia Nazionale di Scienze Lettere e Arti di Modena, ser. 8, 12 (2009), 2, pp. 407–459, https://www.academia.edu/6412388/_Sono_nato_principe_libero_tale_voglio_conservarmi_Francesco_II_dEste_1660-1694_
The Peerage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinozzi, Laura 1639 births 1687 deaths People from Fano House of Este Laura Laura 17th-century Italian nobility 17th-century Italian women 17th-century women rulers Regents of Modena Hereditary Princesses of Modena