The Milanese War of Succession was a

war of succession A war of succession is a war prompted by a succession crisis in which two or more individuals claim to be the Order of succession, rightful successor to a demise of the Crown, deceased or deposition (politics), deposed monarch. The rivals are ...

over the

Duchy of Milan The Duchy of Milan (; ) was a state in Northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti of Milan, Visconti family, which had been ruling the city since 1277. At that time, ...

from the death of duke

Filippo Maria Visconti Filippo Maria Visconti (3 September 1392 – 13 August 1447) was the duke of Duchy of Milan, Milan from 1412 to 1447. Reports stated that he was "paranoid", but "shrewd as a ruler." He went to war in the 1420s with Romagna, Republic of Florenc ...

on 13 August 1447 to the

Treaty of Lodi The Treaty of Lodi, or Peace of Lodi, was a peace agreement to put an end to the Wars in Lombardy between the Venetian Republic and the Duchy of Milan, signed in the city of Lodi, Lombardy, Lodi on 9 April 1454. The historical relevance of the ...

on 9 April 1454.

Summary

Many pretenders claimed to be the rightful successor to Filippo Maria Visconti, who died without a male heir. These included the capable

condottiero Condottieri (; singular: ''condottiero'' or ''condottiere'') were Italian military leaders active during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The term originally referred specifically to commanders of mercenary companies, derived from the ...

Francesco Sforza Francesco I Sforza (; 23 July 1401 – 8 March 1466) was an Italian condottiero who founded the Sforza dynasty in the duchy of Milan, ruling as its (fourth) duke from 1450 until his death. In the 1420s, he participated in the War of L'Aqui ...

(husband of Visconti's illegitimate daughter), King Alfonso V of Aragon and Naples (to whom Visconti had bequeathed the Duchy in his will) supported by the influential Bracceschi family, Duke Charles of Orléans (son of Visconti's half-sister), Duke Louis of Savoy (brother of Visconti's widow), archdukes Albert IV and

Sigismund of Austria Sigismund (26 October 1427 – 4 March 1496), a member of the House of Habsburg, was Duke of Austria from 1439 (elevated to Archduke in 1477) until his death. As a scion of the Habsburg Leopoldian line, he ruled over Further Austria and the ...

(great-grandchildren of

Bernabò Visconti Bernabò or Barnabò Visconti (1323 – 19 December 1385) was an Italian soldier and statesman who was Lord of Milan. Along with his brothers Matteo and Galeazzo II, he inherited the lordship of Milan from his uncle Giovanni. Later in 1355, he ...

), and Emperor Frederick III (who declared the Duchy should revert to the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

on the extinction of its male line of succession). However, the citizens of Milan and several Lombard towns loyal to Milan proclaimed the

Golden Ambrosian Republic The Golden Ambrosian Republic (; ; 1447–1450) was a short-lived republic founded in Milan by members of the University of Pavia with popular support, during the first phase of the Milanese War of Succession. With the aid of Francesco Sforza th ...

(1447–1450) on 14 August 1447, which rejected any

hereditary succession An order, line or right of succession is the line of individuals necessitated to hold a high office when it becomes vacated, such as head of state or an honour such as a title of nobility.Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...

, Lodi, and

Piacenza Piacenza (; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Piacenza, eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with more ...

, and the invading

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

(which had already been at war with Milan before Visconti's death). The initial phase of the war may thus be characterised more as a struggle between republics rather than between rival claimants to a throne. Nevertheless, in October 1448 Sforza defected to Venice in exchange for Venetian support for his claim as duke of Milan. Sforza quickly became a successful conquering warlord, whom the Venetians started to fear. Seeking to claim Milan for himself, the

Duke of Savoy The titles of the count of Savoy, and then duke of Savoy, are titles of nobility attached to the historical territory of Savoy. Since its creation, in the 11th century, the House of Savoy held the county. Several of these rulers ruled as kings at ...

interfered in support of the Ambrosian Republic in 1449, but they were defeated by the Sforzan–Venetian forces under

Bartolomeo Colleoni Bartolomeo Colleoni (; 1400 – 2 November 1475) was an Italian condottiero who served as the captain-general of the Republic of Venice. Colleoni gained a reputation as one of the foremost tacticians and disciplinarians of the 15th century.'' ...

at the Battle of Borgomanero (22 April 1449). To prevent Sforza from becoming too powerful, the Venetians abandoned Sforza and allied themselves with the Ambrosians in subsequent battles. But it was too late: Sforza conquered the city of Milan after a siege in early 1450, ended the Ambrosian Republic, and was recognised as duke by the senate with support of the population. Then Venice instead allied itself with

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

(an Aragonese possession), which also claimed Milan. Sforza rallied

Cosimo de' Medici Cosimo di Giovanni de' Medici (27 September 1389 – 1 August 1464) was an Italian banker and politician who established the House of Medici, Medici family as effective rulers of Florence during much of the Italian Renaissance. His power derive ...

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

and

Charles VII of France Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious () or the Well-Served (), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461. His reign saw the end of the Hundred Years' War and a ''de facto'' end of the English claims to ...

to his side. The latter sent

René of Anjou René of Anjou (; ; 16 January 1409 – 10 July 1480) was Duke of Anjou and Count of Provence from 1434 to 1480, who also reigned as King of Naples from 1435 to 1442 (then Aragonese conquest of Naples, deposed). Having spent his last years in Aix ...

(claimant to the Neapolitan throne, which he lost in 1442) with an expeditionary force to Italy around 1452 on the condition that Sforza would later aid him to regain Naples. The Milanese War of Succession ended with the

(9 April 1454), which recognised Sforza as the new duke of Milan (and established a balance of power in Italy, especially through the

Italic League The Italic League or Most Holy League was an international agreement concluded in Venice on 30 August 1454, between the Papal States, the Republic of Venice, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples, following the Tr ...

formed in August 1454). The Holy Roman Emperor would not do so until 1494, when

Emperor Maximilian I Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death in 1519. He was never crowned by the Pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed hi ...

formally invested Francesco's son,

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,

, as duke of Milan.

Battles

* 11 October 1447: Battle of Bosco Marengo.

(Ambrosian Republic) defeats Charles, Duke of Orléans (France) * 1447: Capture of Pavia. Sforza (Ambrosian Republic) captures Pavia (which had proclaimed independence) * 1447: Siege and sack of Piacenza. Sforza (Ambrosian Republic) captures Piacenza (Venice) * October 1447 – September 1449: Siege of Lodi. Lodi (Venice) holds out against the Piccinino brothers (Ambrosian Republic) and joins Sforza * End July – 15 September 1448: Siege of Caravaggio. Sforza (Ambrosian Republic) captures Caravaggio (Venice) * 15 – 16 July 1448: River Battle of Casalmaggiore. Sforza (Ambrosian Republic) defeats Venice * 15 September 1448:

Battle of Caravaggio A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

. Sforza (Ambrosian Republic) defeats Venice and Mantua * 22 April 1449: Battle of Borgomanero. Colleoni (Venice and Sforza) defeats Savoy and the Ambrosian Republic * 25 April – 1 May 1449: Siege of Melegnano. Sforza (for himself) captures Melegnano (Ambrosian Republic, supported by Venice) * 6 July 1449: Battle of Castione. Ambrosian Republic defeats Swiss canton of Uri * December 1449: Battle of Monte di Brianza. Sforza (for himself) defeats the Ambrosian Republic and Venice * January 1450: Battles of

Cantù Cantù (; Brianzöö: ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Como, located at the center of the Brianza zone in Lombardy. It is the second largest city in Brianza. History The name could stem from that of the Canturigi, a population of I ...

and

Asso Asso ( Valassinese ) is an Italian ''comune'' in the province of Como, in Lombardy, Italy. It has 3,524 citizens and an area of , with a density of . Main sights Significant historic buildings are: * the castle, built in the 12th century; nowada ...

. The Ambrosian Republic and Venice defeat Sforza * 1449 – 24 February 1450: Siege of Milan. Sforza (for himself) conquers Milan and destroys the Ambrosian Republic * 1450: Battle of Castiglione Olona. * 1453: Battle of Ghedi. Sforza (Duchy of Milan) defeats Venice

References

Sources

* {{cite book, last1=Ady , first1=Cecilia M. , last2=Armstrong, first2=Edward , author-link2=Edward Armstrong (historian) , publisher= Methuen & Co., year= 1907, title=A History of Milan under the Sforza, url=https://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=4776025 1440s in the Holy Roman Empire 1450s in the Holy Roman Empire 15th century in Italy 15th century in the Republic of Florence 15th century in the Republic of Venice Battles involving Savoy History of Mantua Wars involving the Duchy of Milan Wars involving the Kingdom of France (987–1792) Wars involving the Republic of Florence Wars involving the Republic of Venice Wars involving the Kingdom of Naples Wars of succession involving the states and peoples of Europe 1440s conflicts 1450s conflicts 15th-century military history of France