Italian Greens from Italian Queens: Difference between revisions

Line 22:

[[File:Bona Sforza (drzeworyt).jpg|thumb|upright|Bona Sforza d’Aragona (1494–1557), Queen of Poland]]

One of the wealthiest Italian city-states was the Duchy of Milan, which had been ruled for over a century by the forceful Sforza family descended from common mercenary soldiers. When Bona was born, it was her father, Gian Galeazzo Sforza, who was the Duke of Milan, although real power was held by his uncle, Ludovico Sforza. Bona’s mother, Isabella d’Aragona, fiercely competed with Ludovico’s wife, Beatrice d’Este, over whose children would inherit power in Milan. Since Isabella had the backing of her father, the King of Naples, Ludovico and Beatrice allied themselves with the King of France – who himself laid claim to the Neapolitan throne. Bona was only seven months old when French troops entered Italy, launching the so-called Italian Wars, which the Valois would mostly wage across a patchwork of Italian statelets with ever-shifting alliances and which would go on for decades until two years after Bona’s death.

One of the wealthiest Italian city-states was the Duchy of Milan, which had been ruled for over a century by the forceful Sforza family, originally descended from common mercenary soldiers. When Bona was born, it was her father, Gian Galeazzo Sforza, who was the Duke of Milan, although real power was held by his uncle, Ludovico Sforza. Bona’s mother, Isabella d’Aragona, fiercely competed with Ludovico’s wife, Beatrice d’Este, over whose children would inherit power in Milan. Since Isabella had the backing of her father, the King of Naples, Ludovico and Beatrice allied themselves with the King of France – who himself laid claim to the Neapolitan throne. Bona was only seven months old when French troops entered Italy, launching the so-called Italian Wars, which the Valois would mostly wage across a patchwork of Italian statelets with ever-shifting alliances and which would go on for decades until two years after Bona’s death.

Meanwhile, Isabella was forced to flee from Milan to the Kingdom of Naples, where her daughter Bona would be raised and come of age. Thanks to Isabella’s wide network of family ties, both she and Bona could still count on support from some powerful allies. Isabella’s brother-in-law was none other than Emperor Maximilian I Habsburg, who – true to the matrimonial politics of his dynasty – personally arranged Bona’s marriage to King Sigismund I of Poland. Sigismund was more than twice Bona’s age, though it would only be much later that he would come to be known as Sigismund the Old. The wedding took place on 6 December 1517, in Naples, where the not-so-young groom was represented, as was customary, by a proxy.

@@ Line 22: / Line 22: @@
 [[File:Bona Sforza (drzeworyt).jpg|thumb|upright|Bona Sforza d’Aragona (1494–1557), Queen of Poland]]
-One of the wealthiest Italian city-states was the Duchy of Milan, which had been ruled for over a century by the forceful Sforza family descended from common mercenary soldiers. When Bona was born, it was her father, Gian Galeazzo Sforza, who was the Duke of Milan, although real power was held by his uncle, Ludovico Sforza. Bona’s mother, Isabella d’Aragona, fiercely competed with Ludovico’s wife, Beatrice d’Este, over whose children would inherit power in Milan. Since Isabella had the backing of her father, the King of Naples, Ludovico and Beatrice allied themselves with the King of France – who himself laid claim to the Neapolitan throne. Bona was only seven months old when French troops entered Italy, launching the so-called Italian Wars, which the Valois would mostly wage across a patchwork of Italian statelets with ever-shifting alliances and which would go on for decades until two years after Bona’s death.
+One of the wealthiest Italian city-states was the Duchy of Milan, which had been ruled for over a century by the forceful Sforza family, originally descended from common mercenary soldiers. When Bona was born, it was her father, Gian Galeazzo Sforza, who was the Duke of Milan, although real power was held by his uncle, Ludovico Sforza. Bona’s mother, Isabella d’Aragona, fiercely competed with Ludovico’s wife, Beatrice d’Este, over whose children would inherit power in Milan. Since Isabella had the backing of her father, the King of Naples, Ludovico and Beatrice allied themselves with the King of France – who himself laid claim to the Neapolitan throne. Bona was only seven months old when French troops entered Italy, launching the so-called Italian Wars, which the Valois would mostly wage across a patchwork of Italian statelets with ever-shifting alliances and which would go on for decades until two years after Bona’s death.
 Meanwhile, Isabella was forced to flee from Milan to the Kingdom of Naples, where her daughter Bona would be raised and come of age. Thanks to Isabella’s wide network of family ties, both she and Bona could still count on support from some powerful allies. Isabella’s brother-in-law was none other than Emperor Maximilian I Habsburg, who – true to the matrimonial politics of his dynasty – personally arranged Bona’s marriage to King Sigismund&nbsp;I of Poland. Sigismund was more than twice Bona’s age, though it would only be much later that he would come to be known as Sigismund the Old. The wedding took place on 6 December 1517, in Naples, where the not-so-young groom was represented, as was customary, by a proxy.