Isabella of Savoy (2 March 1591 – 28 August 1626) was a daughter of

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 ...

and Catherine Michelle of Spain. Her maternal grandparents were

Philip II of Spain Philip II (21 May 152713 September 1598), sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent (), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and List of Sicilian monarchs, Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He ...

and

Elisabeth of Valois Elisabeth of France, or Elisabeth of Valois (; ; 2 April 1546 – 3 October 1568), was Queen of Spain as the third wife of Philip II of Spain. She was the eldest daughter of Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici. Early life Elisabeth was ...

, and her paternal grandparents were

Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy Emmanuel Philibert (; ; 8 July 1528 – 30 August 1580), known as (; "Ironhead", because of his military career), was Duke of Savoy and ruler of the Savoyard states from 17 August 1553 until his death in 1580. He is notably remembered for resto ...

and

Margaret of France, Duchess of Berry Margaret of Valois, Duchess of Berry (French: ''Marguerite de Valois'') (5 June 1523 – 15 September 1574) was Duchess of Savoy by marriage to Duke Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy. She was the daughter of King Francis I of France and Claude, Duche ...

. She was a Hereditary Princess of Modena who died before her husband became Duke of Modena in 1628.

Life

Isabella was born in Turin to

and his wife

Infanta Catherine Michelle of Spain Catalina Micaela of Spain (10 October 1567 – 6 November 1597) was Duchess of Savoy by marriage to Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy. She ruled the duchy several times as regent in Charles Emmanuel's absence, notably during his campaign in 1594 ...

, a daughter of

and Elisabeth of France.

Marriage

On 22 February 1608, Isabella married Alfonso, Hereditary Prince of Modena (a son of Cesare d'Este and

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, s ...

) in Turin. This was a happy marriage; Alfonso was loving and loyal towards his wife. Within a year and a half, Isabella bore Alfonso a son, Cesare. The couple were more devoted to each other than to their children; the death of their first child and son in 1613 was not even painful for his parents, who did not attend his funeral. Their second son

Francesco Francesco, the Italian language, Italian (and original) version of the personal name "Francis (given name), Francis", is one of the List of most popular given names, most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name inclu ...

would one day succeed his father as Duke of Modena and Reggio. When Isabella died in childbirth on 28 August 1626, Alfonso was heartbroken; he never remarried and died in 1644. Like her mother, Isabella had been constantly pregnant during much of her marriage, giving birth almost once (and sometimes twice) per year. She died before her husband became duke, so she was never a Duchess of Modena.

Issue

Isabella and Alfonso had 14 children in just 17 years, but only nine of them lived to adulthood: *Cesare d'Este (14 August 1609 – 14 October 1613), died in childhood; * Francesco d'Este (6 September 1610 – 14 October 1658), Duke of Modena; he married Maria Farnese,

Vittoria Farnese d'Este Vittoria Farnese (29 April 1618 – 10 August 1649) was an Italian noblewoman. She was born in Parma, the daughter of Ranuccio I Farnese, Duke of Parma and Margherita Aldobrandini, niece of Pope Clement VIII. On 12 February 1648 she married Frances ...

and

Lucrezia Barberini Lucrezia Barberini (24 October 1628 – 24 August 1699) was an Italian nobility, Italian noblewoman and, by marriage, Duchess of Modena. Born into the Barberini family, she was the third wife of Francesco I d'Este, Duke of Modena. Biography ...

*Obizzo d'Este (24 September 1611 – 24 August 1644), Bishop of Modena; *Caterina d'Este (2 February 1613 – 1635), a nun; *Cesare d'Este (1614 – 20 September 1677) *Alessandro d'Este (1615), died in infancy; *Carlo Alessandro d'Este (1616–1679), an

imbecile The term ''imbecile'' was once used by psychiatrists to denote a category of people with moderate to severe intellectual disability, as well as a type of criminal.Fernald, Walter E. (1912). ''The imbecile with criminal instincts.'' Fourth editio ...

* Rinaldo d'Este (10 August 1617 – 30 September 1672), Cardinal *Margherita d'Este (12 September 1618 – 12 November 1692), who married

Ferrante III Gonzaga Ferrante III Gonzaga (4 April 1618 – 11 January 1678), was a Duke of Guastalla. He was the son of Cesare II Gonzaga, Duke of Guastalla and Duke of Amalfi and Isabella Orsini. Life Ferrante succeeded his father in 1632. In 1638 he sold all th ...

Duke of Guastalla This is a list of rulers of Guastalla, a town in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, on the right bank of the Po River. The County of Guastalla was established in 1406 for the Torelli family. In 1456, the county was partitioned, with county of Montechiarugolo ...

*Beatrice d'Este (7 November 1619 – 23 January 1622), died in childhood; *Beatrice d'Este (14-15 February 1622), died in infancy; *Filiberto d'Este (14 January 1624 – September 1645), a novice in the

Capuchin order The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. OFMCap) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFMObs, now OFM), the o ...

who died of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

; *Bonifazio d'Este (18 December 1624), died shortly after birth; *

Anna Beatrice d'Este Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna of East Anglia, King (died c.654) * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th c ...

(21 July 1626 – 25 September 1690), who married

Alessandro II Pico della Mirandola Alessandro II Pico della Mirandola (Mirandola, 30 March 1631 – Concordia sulla Secchia, 2 February 1691) was an Italian nobleman, soldier and patron of the arts, second Duke of Mirandola and third Marquis of Concordia from 1637 until his death ...

Ancestry

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Isabella Of Savoy Princesses of Savoy 1591 births 1626 deaths Nobility from Turin Deaths in childbirth House of Este Hereditary princesses of Modena 17th-century Italian nobility 17th-century Italian women Daughters of dukes Mothers of Italian monarchs