The Duchy of Guastalla was an Italian state which existed between 1621 and 1748. It was bordered by the

Duchy of Modena and Reggio The Duchy of Modena and Reggio ( Emilian: ''Duchêt ed Mòdna e Rèz'', it, Ducato di Modena e Reggio, la, Ducatus Mutinae et Regii) was an Italian state created in 1452 located in Northwestern Italy, in the present day region of Emilia-Romagn ...

and the Po River to the north, on the opposite bank of the Duchy of Mantua.

History

On 2 July 1621, Emperor Ferdinand II elevated the

County of Guastalla The County of Guastalla was a feudal state in northern Italy, centered on Guastalla. The title of count was created in 1406 for Guido Torelli. The Torelli family ruled Guastalla until 1539 when it was purchased by Ferrante Gonzaga. Another bran ...

to the rank of a duchy.

Ferrante II Gonzaga Ferrante II Gonzaga (1563 – 5 August 1630) was Count of Guastalla and, from 1621, Duke of Guastalla. He was the son of Cesare I Gonzaga, Count of Guastalla and Duke of Amalfi, and Donna Camilla Borromeo. He succeeded his father in 1575. On ...

became the first duke of the city, hoping to succeed in the future to the great Duchy of Mantua. Ferrante II died of plague in 1630 and was succeeded by his son, Cesare II. With him, Guastalla expanded its territory with the annexation of the lands of Dosolo, Luzzara and

Reggiolo Reggiolo ( Guastallese: ) is a town in the province of Reggio Emilia, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. As of 31 December 2016 Reggiolo had an estimated population of 9,192. Carlo Ancelotti, the famous football manager, is a native of the town, and Formula ...

, until then owned by Mantua. In 1632, his son Ferrante III ascended to the throne. Having no male heir, he bequeathed the Duchy of Guastalla to his daughter's husband Ferdinand Charles, Duke of Mantua. Meanwhile, Guastalla modernized its defenses, owing to the frequent wars which swept over Italy at this time. Between 1689 and 1690, the city was attacked by the Spaniards, who managed to demolish the defensive walls, thus occupying the city, and destroyed the Visconti castle and the town tower. In 1692, the Duke of Guastalla was accused of felony, and Emperor Leopold I gave Guastalla and its territories to Vincenzo Gonzaga. During his reign, in 1702, there were violent clashes in the territory of Luzzara (see

Battle of Luzzara The Battle of Luzzara took place in Lombardy on 15 August 1702 during the War of the Spanish Succession, between a combined French and Savoyard army under Louis Joseph, duc de Vendôme, and an Imperial force under Prince Eugene. Conflict in ...

) between the French troops of

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...

and imperial forces led by Prince Eugene of Savoy. Shortly afterward, Guastalla was itself attacked. The city, although putting up a heroic defense, was forced to surrender. In 1714,

Antonio Ferdinando Gonzaga Antonio Ferrante Gonzaga (9 December 1687 – 16 April 1729) was the reigning Duke of Guastalla and a member of the House of Gonzaga. Early life He was the son of Vincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Guastalla and his second wife, who was also his cousi ...

inherited the duchy on the death of his father, but did not take an active role in politics. He died in 1729, having been severely burned in an accident. His brother

Giuseppe Gonzaga Giuseppe Gonzaga (20 March 1690 – 16 August 1746) was the last reigning Duke of Guastalla and a member of the House of Gonzaga. Early life He was the second son of Vincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Guastalla and his second wife, Princess Maria Vit ...

, the last duke of the city, took power in 1734 and saw the occupation by the Austrians in the so-called

Battle of Guastalla The Battle of Guastalla or Battle of Luzzara was a battle fought on 19 September 1734 between Franco-Sardinian and Austrian (Habsburg) troops as part of the War of the Polish Succession. Background Following the death in February 1733 of Ki ...

. Later, the city was sold to

Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy Charles Emmanuel III (27 April 1701 – 20 February 1773) was Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia from 1730 until his death. Biography He was born in Turin to Victor Amadeus II of Savoy and his first wife the French Anne Marie d'Orléans. H ...

until 1738. Giuseppe Gonzaga died without heirs in 1746, and the Duchy of Guastalla was incorporated into Austrian Lombardy under the government of

Maria Theresa of Austria Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position '' suo jure'' (in her own right) ...

in 1747. With the

Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) The 1748 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, sometimes called the Treaty of Aachen, ended the War of the Austrian Succession, following a congress assembled on 24 April 1748 at the Free Imperial City of Aachen. The two main antagonists in the war, B ...

, Guastalla was joined to the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, ruled by the Spanish

Bourbons The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spani ...

. It was annexed to the

Cisalpine Republic The Cisalpine Republic ( it, Repubblica Cisalpina) was a sister republic of France in Northern Italy that existed from 1797 to 1799, with a second version until 1802. Creation After the Battle of Lodi in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte organiz ...

in 1802 but became an autonomous duchy in 1806. It was returned in 1815 to the Duchy of Parma, and it remained until 1847 under Parma's rule. With the death in 1847 of Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla, the duchy then passed to the

Duchy of Modena A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between ...

and later on to the unified

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia was proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to an institutional referendum to abandon the monarchy and f ...

Territory

The

Gonzaga family ) , type = Noble house , country = , estates = Ducal Palace (Mantua)Ducal Palace (Nevers) , titles = * Prince of Arches * Duke of Montferrat * Duke of Mantua * Duke of Guastalla * Duke of Nevers * Duk ...

, at the maximum extent of the Guastalla duchy, also took control of the principality of Bozzolo and the annexed territories ( Rivarolo Mantovano, San Martino dall'Argine, Pomponesco, Commessaggio, Ostiano,

Isola Dovarese Isola Dovarese ( Cremunés: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cremona in the Italian region Lombardy, located about southeast of Milan and about east of Cremona. Isola Dovarese borders the following municipalities: Canneto sull ...

), and the Duchy of Sabbioneta.

History

Territory

See also