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Anna Sforza

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Anna Sforza
Hereditary Princess of Ferrara, Modena, and Reggio
Tenure12 January 1491 – 30 November 1497
Born21 July 1476
Milan, Italy
Died30 November 1497(1497-11-30) (aged 21)
Ferrara, Italy
SpouseAlfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara
Names
Anna Maria Sforza
HouseSforza
FatherGaleazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan
MotherBona of Savoy

Anna Maria Sforza (21 July 1476 – 30 November 1497) was Hereditary Princess of Ferrara as the first wife of Alfonso I d'Este, future Duke of Ferrara.[1][2] She was the second legitimate daughter of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, and his second wife, Bona of Savoy.[2]

Life

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Born in Milan, she was the second daughter and last legitimate child of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, by his second wife, Bona of Savoy.[2] Anna's paternal grandparents were Francesco I Sforza and Bianca Maria Visconti, for whom she was named. She had two older brothers: Gian Galeazzo Sforza and Hermes Maria Sforza, Marquis of Tortona, and a sister, Bianca Maria Sforza, second wife of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor.[3]

When Anna was an infant, her father was assassinated inside the Church of Santo Stefano in Milan on 26 December 1476, which was the Feast Day of St. Stephen.[4] He was stabbed to death by three high-ranking officials of the Milanese court.[5][6]

In 1477, Anna was formally betrothed to Alfonso I d'Este, the heir of Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara. Her wedding with Prince Alfonso d'Este took place fourteen years later, on 12 January 1491, amidst banquets, receptions, and theatrical representations. However, the marriage was said to be unhappy. Some sources made claims implying that Anna was attracted to women, suggesting that Anna was 'unfeminine' (perhaps even dressing in men's clothes), preferred the company of women, and refused to consummate her marriage with sex; additionally, mention was made of Anna's deep attachment to a Black girl who was part of her entourage.[7][better source needed][8][9] The supposed unhappiness of the marriage, however, may also have been due to Alfonso's well-known reputation for extramarital affairs.[10]

Only after six years of marriage, Anna became pregnant, but died in childbirth; while some sources reported that her child, a son, died immediately after being baptized; others,[11] said that he survived and was named Alessandro, dying in 1514 aged 17. She was buried in the monastery of San Vito, of which Anna was a benefactor. Her husband was unable to take part of her funeral because at that time his face was disfigured as a consequence of syphilis.[12]

Her death marked the end of the bond between the Sforza and Este families. Alfonso remarried, to Lucrezia Borgia, in 1502.

References

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  1. ^ Bloemendal, Jan; Norland, Howard (2013-09-19). Neo-Latin Drama in Early Modern Europe. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-25746-7.
  2. ^ a b c Turner, Jane (2000). Encyclopedia of Italian Renaissance & Mannerist Art: Abacco to Lysippus. Grove's Dictionaries. ISBN 978-0-333-76094-9.
  3. ^ Pastrnak, Patrik (2023-07-28). Dynasty in Motion: Wedding Journeys in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-91707-9.
  4. ^ Gagné, John (2021-01-01). Milan Undone: Contested Sovereignties in the Italian Wars. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-24991-2.
  5. ^ Dean, Trevor; Lowe, K. J. P. (2017-07-13). Murder in Renaissance Italy. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-13664-9.
  6. ^ Ray, Meredith K. (2023-12-22). Twenty-Five Women Who Shaped the Italian Renaissance. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-003-81389-7.
  7. ^ Geneviève Chastenet: Lucrezia Borgia (Spanish version) 1995, Javier Vergara Editorial, p. 200. [retrieved 19 December 2014].
  8. ^ Bindman, David; Gates (Jr.), Henry Louis; Dalton, Karen C. C. (2010). The Image of the Black in Western Art. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-05261-1.
  9. ^ Antichità viva (in Italian). Edam. 1982.
  10. ^ Frieda, Leonie (2012-11-22). The Deadly Sisterhood: A story of Women, Power and Intrigue in the Italian Renaissance. Orion. ISBN 978-0-297-85850-8.
  11. ^ Alessandro d'Este in: Genealogy Database by Herbert Stoyan Archived December 18, 2014, at the Wayback Machine [retrieved 17 December 2014].
  12. ^ Sarah Bradford, Lucrezia Borgia, Milano, Mondadori, 2005.
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