Gian Maria Visconti
| Gian Maria Visconti | |
|---|---|
| Duke of Milan | |
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| Duke of Milan | |
| Reign | 3 September 1402 – 16 May 1412 |
| Predecessor | Gian Galeazzo |
| Successor | Filippo Maria |
| Born | 7 September 1388 Abbiategrasso |
| Died | 16 May 1412 (aged 23) Milan |
| Spouse | Antonia Malatesta of Cesena |
| House | Visconti |
| Father | Gian Galeazzo Visconti |
| Mother | Caterina Visconti |
Gian Maria Visconti (or Giovanni Maria; 7 September 1388 – 16 May 1412) was the second Visconti Duke of Milan, the son of Gian Galeazzo Visconti and Caterina Visconti. He was known to be cruel and was eventually assassinated. He had no children.
Biography
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Visconti was born in Abbiategrasso.
Gian Marias birth was met with celebration as the long-awaited son and heir to Gian Galeazzo and his wife Caterina who had long been trying to conceive.
His parents had even made a vow to add the epicene name "Maria" – usually considered a feminine name – to their sons' names if the Virgin Mary would grant them children,[1] hence he was named Gian Maria. His birth was the origin of this family custom (one that has recurred in various European cultures at various time periods, into the contemporary period).
Gian Marias birth was also important in that it helped cement his fathers rule over Milan. Gian Galeazzo, while admittedly a Visconti - the family who had ruled over Milan since 1277, had gained control over Milan after overthrowing, imprisoning and then murdering his predecessor and uncle, Bernabo Visconti[2] and his two eldest sons.[3]
Gian Marias mother Caterina was a daughter of Bernabo and thus the parents of Gian Maria were first cousins.
Following his father's death of plague in 1402, he 14-year old Gian Maria assumed the title of duke at the age of thirteen, under his mother's regency. The Duchy of Milan soon disintegrated: among the various parties contending its lands, the condottiero Facino Cane prevailed.
Taking advantage of Gian Maria's cruelty, he managed to create in him doubts about Caterina and even went so far as to accuse her of being the lover of a certain Francesco Barbavara[4] who was said to have been a body servant of Gian Galeazzo. Eventually she was imprisoned in Monza, where she died on 17 October 1404, probably murdered.[5] The duke was famous for his dogs, which were trained to slaughter men.
In 1408, Gian Maria married Antonia Malatesta of Cesena, daughter of Andrea Malatesta[6] They had no issue.[7]
A plot by a party of Milanese Ghibellines was raised against the Duke when Facino Cane was terminally ill in Pavia, and Gian Maria was assassinated in front of the church of San Gottardo in Milan.[5] The dying Facino had his officers swear to support Filippo Maria, Gian Maria's brother, who in fact succeeded him.
In literature
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Fenlon, Iain (19 March 2009). Early Music History: Studies in Medieval and Early Modern Music. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-10440-1.
- ^ Blandin de Cornoalha, A Comic Occitan Romance. Medieval Institute Publications. 1 September 2022. ISBN 978-1-58044-525-2.
- ^ Bartlett, Kenneth (15 November 2019). The Renaissance in Italy: A History. Hackett Publishing. ISBN 978-1-62466-820-3.
- ^ Sismondi, Jean-Charles-Léonard Simonde (1835). A History of the Italian Republics: Being a View of the Rise, Progress, and Fall of Italian Freedom. Carey, Lea & Blanchard.
- ^ a b Adams, John (1794). A defence of the constitutions of government of the United States of America, against the attack of M. Turgot in his letter to Dr. Price, dated the twenty-second day of March, 1778. London: John Stockdale. pp. 153–155. OCLC 2678599. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
... the duke John Maria grew every day more cruel: he imprisoned his own mother, Catharine Visconre, in the castle of Monza, and caused her to be there strangled. ... John Maria Visconte, duke of Milan, while he was at mass, was murdered by Trivulcio, Guerrino, and Baruchino, and other conspirators of several conspicuous families, ...
- ^ Zazzeri, Raimondo (1890). Storia di Cesena: Dalla sua origine fino ai tempi di Cesare Borgia (in Italian). Vignuzzi. p. 263.
- ^ Rossi, Antonio Domenico (1830). Ristretto di storia patria ad uso de'Piacentini (in Italian). Maino. p. 245. OCLC 163149045.
- ^ Sabatini, Raphael (1926). Bellarion the fortunate: a romance. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. OCLC 1170948.
External links
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