Amadeus IX (1 February 1435 – 30 March 1472), nicknamed the Happy, was 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 ...

from 1465 to 1472. The Catholic Church venerates him with a liturgical feast on March 30.

Life

Amadeus was born at

Thonon-les-Bains Thonon-les-Bains (; ), often simply referred to as Thonon, is a subprefecture of the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. In 2018, the commune had a population of 35,241. Thonon-les-Bains is part of a ...

, the son of Louis, Duke of Savoy, and Anne de Lusignan, daughter of

Janus of Cyprus Janus (1375 – 29 June 1432) was King of Cyprus and titular King of Armenian Cilicia and King of Jerusalem, Jerusalem from 1398 to 1432. Early life Janus was born in Genoa, where his father, James I of Cyprus, was a captive. His mother, Hel ...

, King of Cyprus. In 1452, his mother arranged a political marriage to Yolande of Valois (1434–1478), sister of

Louis XI of France Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revolt known as the ...

and daughter of

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 ...

. Because of his epilepsy and retirement, she was left in control of the state.

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and the Holy Roman Empire competed to gain control of Savoy's strategically important Alpine mountain passes and trade routes. His sister, Charlotte of Savoy, became the second wife of

. French influence increased in Savoy and involved the country in the wars between France and the emperors. The Castle of Moncalleri in Piedmont, Italy had been built around 1100 as a hill fortress, to command the main southern access from Turin. In the mid-15th century Yolande turned it into a Renaissance Royal Palace. Amadeus was a particular protector of Franciscan friars. He also endowed other religious houses as well as homes for the care of the poor and suffering. He made a pilgrimage to Saint-Claude in 1471. He died the following year. Amadeus was an avid collector of

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...

s, adding over sixty items to the ducal library started by his great-grandfather Amadeus VII, Count of Savoy.

Family

Amadeus IX had ten children with Yolande of Valois: # Louis (1453) #

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), Annie a ...

(1455–1480), married

Frederick IV of Naples Frederick (19 April 1452 – 9 November 1504), sometimes called Frederick IV or Frederick of Aragon, was the last King of Naples from the Neapolitan branch of the House of Trastámara, ruling from 1496 to 1501. He was the second son of Ferdina ...

(1452–1504), prince of

Altamura Altamura (; ; ) is a town and ''comune'' of Apulia, in southern Italy. It is located on one of the hills of the Altopiano delle Murge, Murge plateau in the Metropolitan City of Bari, southwest of Bari, close to the border with Basilicata. , i ...

# Charles (1456–1471),

Prince of Piedmont The lordship of Piedmont, later the principality of Piedmont (), was originally an appanage of the County of Savoy, and as such its lords were members of the Principality of Achaea#Princes of Achaea, Achaea branch of the House of Savoy. The titl ...

# Maria (1460–1511) married Philip of Hachberg-Sausenberg (1454–1503) # Louise (1461–1503), married Hugh, Prince of Chalon and, later, became a Poor Clare

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

# Philibert (1465–1482) # Bernard (1467) #

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

(1468–1490) # James Louis (1470–1485), Count of Genevois,

# Gian Claudio Galeazzo (1472) His daughter Louise became a

of the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

Second Order after being widowed at a young age. She was also beatified.

Beatification

A miraculous reputation developed around a 1474 painting of Amadeus, housed in the Dominican church in Turin. Michel Merle suggests that the cult of Amadeus was part of a decades long effort on the part of the

House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

to enhance its political status. 1612 saw the publication in Turin of a brief text extolling Amadeus, by Girolamo Cordieri, canon of the cathedral chapter of Mondovi. Cordieri was later to be appointed theologian to

Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy Charles Emmanuel I (; 12 January 1562 – 26 July 1630), known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy and ruler of the Savoyard states from 30 August 1580 until his death almost 50 years later in 1630, he was the longest-reigning Savoyard monarch ...

. Also in 1612, a canon from Vercelli published a compendium of miracles attributed to Amadeus' intercession. In 1613, an ''Historia del Beato Amedeo terzo duca di Savoia'' was composed by Fr. Pietro-Francisco Malletta. Six years later, the Duke of Savoy issued nine-florin coins depicting Amadeus IX on one side. These appear to have been used as religious medals, particularly in the

Chablais The Chablais (; ; ) was a province of the Duchy of Savoy. Its capital was Thonon-les-Bains. The Chablais was elevated to a duchy in 1311 by Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor. This region is currently divided into three territories, the '' Chablais s ...

, where they were distributed by

Francis de Sales Francis de Sales, Congregation of the Oratory, C.O., Order of Minims, O.M. (; ; 21 August 156728 December 1622) was a Savoyard state, Savoyard Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Geneva and is a saint of the Catholic Church. He became n ...

. Presented as a holy prince known for his charity and concern for the poor, Amadeus IX was beatified on 3 March 1677 by

Pope Innocent XI Pope Innocent XI (; ; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 until his death on 12 August 1689. Political and religious tensions with ...

Ancestry

References

Sources

*220 {{DEFAULTSORT:Amadeus 09 of Savoy 1435 births 1472 deaths 15th-century dukes of Savoy 15th-century venerated Christians Burials at Vercelli Cathedral French beatified people Roman Catholic royal saints Italian people of Cypriot descent People from Thonon-les-Bains Royalty and nobility with epilepsy Italian royalty and nobility with disabilities 15th-century Italian nobility