Isabella Fieschi (''

floruit ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

'' 1356), was a

lady of Milan Lady of Milan Early consorts ''The name wives and consorts of the early Della Torre lords of Milan are not known. But Napoleone della Torre may have been married to a Margherita di Baux.'' House of Visconti, 1277–1302 House of della T ...

by marriage to

Luchino Visconti Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo (; 2 November 1906 – 17 March 1976) was an Italian filmmaker, theatre and opera director, and screenwriter. He was one of the fathers of Italian neorealism, cinematic neorealism, but later ...

, lord of

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

Life

She was the daughter of the Genuese noble Carlo Fieschi, count of

Savignone Savignone () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Genoa in the Italian region Liguria, located about north of Genoa. Savignone borders the following municipalities: Busalla, Casella, Crocefieschi, Mignanego, Serra Riccò ...

, while mother was Teodora of Bourbon allegedly a relative of

Charles II of Naples Charles II, also known as Charles the Lame (; ; 1254 – 5 May 1309), was King of Naples, Count of Provence and Forcalquier (1285–1309), Prince of Achaea (1285–1289), and Count of Anjou and Maine (1285–1290); he also was King of Albania ( ...

. Isabellas other important family connections included being a great-niece (through her father) of the pope

Adrian V Pope Adrian V (; – 18 August 1276), born Ottobuono de' Fieschi, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 July 1276 to his death on 18 August 1276. He was an envoy of Pope Clement IV sent to England in May 1 ...

.Isabella was also a maternal cousin of Beatrice d’Este, the widow of

Galeazzo I Visconti Galeazzo I Visconti (21 January 1277 – 6 August 1328) was lord of Milan from 1322 to 1327. After being chosen Captain of Milan, he defeated two papal armies and was excommunicated by Pope John XXII. Temporarily imprisoned for murder, Galeazzo re ...

and mother of

Azzone Azzone (; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Bergamo in the Italian region of Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about northeast of Bergamo. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 458 and an area of .All dem ...

the ruling lord of Milan. Marriage The marriage was arranged as an alliance between Genoa and Milan, and the ceremony took place in Milan in 1331. Isabellas husband had been married twice before and was also much older than her. While Luchino had no legitimate children he had fathered several illegitimate sons. As Azzone, her husband Luchinos nephew was the lord of Milan, Isabella only became Lady of Milan on her husbands assuming the title after Azzones death in 1339. Isabella was known for her beauty and her love life, and reportedly had several lovers. In 1347, she made an official visit to Venice. During her visit, she participated in an orgy during which she had sexual intercourse with three men at the same time, among them being

Andrea Dandolo Andrea Dandolo (13067 September 1354) was the 54th doge of Venice from 1343 to 1354. He was elected to replace Bartolomeo Gradenigo who died in 1342. Early life Trained in historiography and law, Dandolo studied at the University of Padua, w ...

, the Doge of Venice, and the nephew of her spouse,

Galeazzo II Visconti Galeazzo II Visconti ( – 4 August 1378) was a member of the Visconti of Milan, Visconti dynasty and a ruler of Milan, Italy. His most notable military campaigns were against Pope Gregory XI, around 1367. These battles fought between the pap ...

. Tuchman, Barbara W. (Swedish): ''En Fjärran Spegel. Det stormiga 1300-talet'' ('' A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century'') Atlantis, Stockholm, 1994. , p. 150 When her husband eventually found out about this, he swore to punish her cruelly. When he died shortly thereafter, he was rumoured to have been poisoned by Isabella in self-defence. After the death of Visconti, Isabella was forced to give up her son's rights to power in Milan and was placed under house arrest. In 1356, Isabella managed to escape from Milan. Reportedly, she returned to her family in Savignone.

Issue

Orsina (b. 1343-?) married to Balzarino Pusterla Luca (b.4 August 1346 -1399)also known as Luchino Novello or "Luchinetto", married first an unknown woman, and married secondly to Maddalena

Strozzi Strozzi is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Numerous members of the Strozzi family, an ancient later ennobled family from Florence ** Alessandra Macinghi Strozzi (c. 1408–1471), an Italian businesswoman and aristoc ...

Giovanni (b.4 August 1346 -?)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fieschi, Isabella 14th-century Genoese people 14th-century Italian nobility 14th-century Italian women Fieschi family Ladies of Milan