Cesare d'Este (8 October 1562 – 11 December 1628) was Duke of Modena and Reggio from 1597 until his death.

Biography

Born in

Ferrara Ferrara (, ; egl, Fràra ) is a city and ''comune'' in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital of the Province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream ...

, Cesare was the son of Alfonso d'Este, Marquis of Montecchio, fourth son of

Alfonso I d'Este Alfonso d'Este (21 July 1476 – 31 October 1534) was Duke of Ferrara during the time of the War of the League of Cambrai. Biography He was the son of Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara and Eleanor of Naples and became duke on Ercole's death i ...

and the cousin of

Alfonso II d'Este Alfonso II d'Este (24 November 1533 – 27 October 1597) was Duke of Ferrara from 1559 to 1597. He was a member of the House of Este. Biography He was the elder son of Ercole II d'Este and Renée de France, the daughter of Louis XII of Fran ...

, duke of Ferrara and Modena. When the latter died without heirs in the October 1597, Cesare inherited the duchy. The legitimacy of the succession was recognised by the Emperor Rudolph II but not by

Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII ( la, Clemens VIII; it, Clemente VIII; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born ...

: thus, as Ferrara was nominally a Papal fief, the city was returned to the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

, despite the attempts of the young duke, who sought help from the

major powers A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power inf ...

to no avail.. The capital was therefore moved to

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 ...

, which he entered on 30 January 1598. His first years were troublesome: he had to face the quarrels between the Modenese and Ferrarese nobles who had come with him, the attempt at independence of Maro Pio of Sassuolo, and a war against

Lucca Lucca ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its province has a population of 383,957. Lucca is known as one ...

for the possession of

Garfagnana The Garfagnana () is a historical and geographical region of central Italy, today part of the province of Lucca, in Tuscany. It is the upper valley or basin of the river Serchio, and thus lies between the main ridge of the Northern Apennines t ...

Marriage and issue

On 30 January 1586, he married

Virginia de' Medici Virginia de' Medici (29 May 1568 – 15 January 1615) was an Italian princess, a member of the House of Medici and by marriage Duchess of Modena and Reggio. Regent of the Duchy of Modena and Reggio in 1601 during the absence of her husband, sh ...

, daughter of

Cosimo I de' Medici Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was the second Duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first Grand Duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Life Rise to power Cosimo was born in Florence on 12 ...

, who suffered increasing symptoms of

madness Madness or The Madness may refer to: Emotion and mental health * Anger, an intense emotional response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat * Insanity, a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns * ...

until her death in 1615. He was succeeded by his son, Alfonso. * Giulia d'Este (1588–1645) died unmarried; * Alfonso III d'Este, Duke of Modena (1591–1644), father of Francesco I d'Este, Duke of Modena; * Laura d'Este (1594–1630) married Alessandro I Pico, Duke of Mirandola and had issue; * Luigi d'Este, Lord of Montecchio and Scandiano (1593/1594–1664), had issue; * Caterina d'Este (1595–1618) died unmarried; * Anna Eleonora d'Este (1597–1651), died unmarried, nun * Ippolito d'Este (1599–1647) died unmarried; * Niccolo d'Este (1601–1640) married Sveva d'Avalos, no issue; * Borso d'Este (1605–1657) married Ippolita d'Este (daughter of his brother Luigi) and had issue (including Maria Angela Caterina d'Este); * Foresto d'Este (1606–1639/1640);

External links

*
Il Castello Estense:
genealogical tree , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Este, Cesare 1562 births 1628 deaths Nobility from Ferrara Cesare Cesare Cesare 16th-century Italian nobility 17th-century Italian nobility Burials at the Corpus Domini Monastery, Ferrara