Margherita Gonzaga, Duchess of Lorraine

Margherita Gonzaga (2 October 1591 – 7 February 1632) was Duchess of Lorraine from 1606 until her husband's death in 1624.

Margherita Gonzaga
Portrait by Frans Pourbus the younger, 1606.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.
Born(1591-10-02)2 October 1591
Mantua
Died7 February 1632(1632-02-07) (aged 40)
Nancy
Spouse
​
(
m. 1606; died 1624)
Issue
HouseGonzaga
FatherVincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua
MotherEleonora de' Medici

Life

She was born in Mantua, the eldest daughter of Vincenzo I Gonzaga and Eleonora de' Medici;[1] she was also a sister of Francesco IV Gonzaga, Ferdinando I Gonzaga, Vincenzo II Gonzaga and Eleonora Gonzaga. Her brothers all succeeded their father as Duke of Mantua and Eleonora became Holy Roman Empress by her marriage to Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor.

She married Henry II, Duke of Lorraine on 24 April 1606.[2] He had previously been married to Catherine of Navarre, sister of King Henry IV of France, but the marriage was childless due to the bride's age (Catherine was forty years old at the time of her marriage).

Issue

Henry and Margherita had four daughters, two of whom survived infancy:

  • Stillborn daughter (February 1607);
  • Nicole of Lorraine (3 October 1608 – 23 February 1657), married her cousin, Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine,[2] separated in 1635;
  • A daughter (10 February 1611 - 11 February 1611);
  • Claude of Lorraine (15 October 1612 – 2 August 1648), married her cousin, Nicholas II, Duke of Lorraine[2]

Both of Margherita's two daughters married their cousins, who were Henry's successors due to the fact that he and Margherita did not have a son to inherit his estates.

Death

Margherita died in Nancy in 1632 at the age of forty. She had been a widow since 1624.

Ancestry
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References
  1. Parrott 1997, p. 22.
  2. Ward, Prothero & Leathes 1911, p. 88.

Sources
  • Parrott, David (1997). "The Mantuan Succession, 1627–31: A Sovereignty Dispute in Early Modern Europe". The English Historical Review. Oxford Academic. Volume CXII, Issue 445, February: 20–65. doi:10.1093/ehr/CXII.445.20.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Ward, Adolphus William; Prothero, G.W.; Leathes, Stanley, eds. (1911). The Cambridge Modern History. Volume 13. The Macmillan Co.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
Margherita Gonzaga, Duchess of Lorraine
Born: 2 October 1591 Died: 7 February 1632
Preceded by
Claude of Valois		 Duchess of Lorraine
1608–1624		 Succeeded by
Christina of Salm
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