From the siege of Barga to the defeat at Caravaggio: his key battles
Ludovico III Gonzaga – called “il Turco” – Marquis of Mantua. Lord of Castiglione delle Stiviere, Castel Goffredo, Revere, Cavriana, Volta Mantovana, Quistello, Viadana (purchased from the Cavalcabò for 14,000 ducats), Rivarolo Mantovano, Bozzolo, Dosolo, Gazzuolo, Isola Dovarese, Pomponesco, Sabbioneta, San Martino dall’Argine, Cicognara, Suzzara, Luzzara, and Goito.
Son of Gian Francesco Gonzaga; brother of Carlo Gonzaga; father of Federico Gonzaga, Giovanni Francesco Gonzaga, and Rodolfo Gonzaga; brother-in-law of Leonello d’Este; father-in-law of Giberto da Correggio, Corrado da Fogliano, and Francesco Secco.
Born: 1414, June
Death: 1480, June
| Year, Month | State, Mercenary Co. | Opponent | Command | Area of Activity | Actions Undertaken and Other Salient Facts |
| Lombardy | He is educated by Vittorino da Feltre at the Cà Zoiosa. | ||||
| 1433 | |||||
| Sept. | Lombardy | He welcomes Emperor Sigismund of Hungary to Mantua. He is knighted. | |||
| 1436 | |||||
| Apr. | Venice | Veneto and Lombardy | He is hired by the Venetians. He asks to conduct a review of his men. The Serenissima wastes time, so he returns to Mantua. | ||
| Nov. | Milan | 100 lances | Lombardy | He leaves the Mantuan court with 17 horses and flees to Milan to Duke Filippo Maria Visconti. He enters the ducal service: in Mantua, his father disinherits him in favor of his brother Carlo. | |
| 1437 | |||||
| Feb. | Milan | Florence | Tuscany | He follows Niccolò Piccinino against the Florentines commanded by Francesco Sforza. He is given command of one of the camps with which the Visconti forces are besieging Barga: attacked by Sarpellione and Niccolò da Pisa, his mount is killed during the combat. He is wounded and taken prisoner. Freed by Sforza, he passes into the latter’s service. | |
| Oct. | Tuscany and Marche | He leaves Ponte a Signa and goes to Florence. He reaches Urbino accompanied by Cristoforo da Tolentino. In this year, he marries Barbara of Brandenburg, daughter of John the Alchemist. | |||
| 1438 | |||||
| Apr. | Sforza | Marche | At Montecassiano, where he had previously sent horses and carriages. | ||
| 1440 | |||||
| Mar. | Milan | Florence | Marche and Romagna | He leaves the Marche and returns to fight for Piccinino against Sforza. He crosses the Apennines, attacks Castrocaro Terme with 500 cavalry, and captures 40 infantrymen there. He meets in Forlì with Antonio Ordelaffi, heads for Faenza, and frees some prisoners there. | |
| Apr. | Emilia, Lombardy, Umbria, and Tuscany | He goes to Ferrara and Milan. Under pressure from the Duke of Milan, Filippo Maria Visconti, he reconciles with his father in Mantua. He moves to the Perugia area with Giovanni di Sesto, Francesco Vibi, Rodolfo Signorelli, and Tartaglia da Torgiano at the head of 1000 cavalry and 1000 infantry. He stops at Ponte San Giovanni, moves towards Lake Trasimeno, and raids the territory of Cortona: 150 prisoners are taken and much livestock is plundered. He stops at Montecolognola and Pian del Carpine (Magione), where he is met by Perugian ambassadors who have come to complain about the sackings. He leads the spoils to Cortona and continues to Borgo San Sepolcro (Sansepolcro). | |||
| May | Lombardy | In the Brescia area. At the end of the month, he goes to Milan. In the Arengo court, he gives power of attorney to Zambaldo di Brolio to obtain the feudal concession of Orzinuovi upon the death of Filippo Maria Visconti. | |||
| June | Lombardy | He is defeated at Soncino. He is driven out of Orzinuovi by Sforza. | |||
| Aug. | Lombardy | In the Mantua area, Sforza captures Guidizzolo, Volta Mantovana, Solferino, Castiglione delle Stiviere, and Lonato from him. | |||
| 1442 | |||||
| Apr. | Church | Sforza | Emilia, Romagna, and Umbria | He joins Piccinino in Bologna with 600 cavalry; he stops with Sacramoro da Parma and Filippo Schiavo near the Imola Gate of Faenza; he moves into the Forlì area, reaching Castiglione, Petrignone, Oriolo (Oriolo dei Fichi), and Meldola. At Piegaro. | |
| June | Umbria | In Perugia with Niccolò Piccinino at the head of 200 unarmed knights; he enters the city through the Porta di San Pietro. He leaves Marsciano, breaks into the Todi area, damages its crops, and takes many prisoners. He defeats the Sforza forces trying to penetrate Todi through the mountains of Bettona: he captures 250 infantrymen and sacks three castles. With Pietro Giampaolo Orsini, he reaches the papal camp at Assisi at the head of 2000 cavalry. He moves to the Marche. | |||
| 1444 | Lombardy | He becomes Marquis of Mantua. He strips his brother Carlo of all lordships within the marquisate. | |||
| 1445 | |||||
| Aug. | Lombardy | He is invested with the marquisate by Emperor Frederick of Austria. | |||
| Sept. | Milan | Lombardy | He receives in Milan the renewal of the investiture of the ducal lands already granted to his father by Filippo Maria Visconti. The ceremony takes place in the home of Francesco Piccinino, acting with the Duke’s power of attorney, located in the Arengo court. | ||
| 1446 | |||||
| Sept. | Milan | Venice | 700 cavalry and 300 infantry | Lombardy | He contributes with other condottieri to fueling the Duke of Milan’s suspicions against Bartolomeo Colleoni. His contract is reconfirmed for one year. |
| Oct. | Lombardy | He opposes Micheletto Attendolo near Romanengo. In the middle of the month, he enters Casalmaggiore. | |||
| 1447 | |||||
| Jan. | Florence, Venice | Milan | Captain General, 400 lances and 300 infantry | He is granted a contract for 400 lances and 300 infantry in wartime; 300 lances and 200 infantry in peacetime. The duration is set for one year of firm service and one of option; he is granted a personal provision of 600 florins per month and protection of his states, as well as those of his brothers within the marquisate. In return, he must serve anywhere in Tuscany, Lombardy, and the Veneto. | |
| Feb. | Veneto | In Venice, he is presented with the insignia of Captain General of the Florentines. | |||
| June- | Venice | The Doge Francesco Foscari informs him that his contract is at the expense of the Venetians. | |||
| 1448 | |||||
| Feb. | Tuscany | In Florence. He is honored with great festivities. | |||
| May | 500 lances and 400 infantry | ||||
| Sept. | Venice | Milan | Lombardy | He fights the militias of the Ambrosian Republic. He shares the prudent opinion of Micheletto Attendolo not to give battle to Sforza at Caravaggio, to abandon that castle to its fate, and to occupy Mozzanica. In the end, he accepts the general consensus. He is the second condottiero of the Serenissima to attack the Milanese. He clashes with Sforza’s company. His lance breaks; he finds himself isolated among the enemies; a servant of Sforza strikes him on the helmet with an iron mace, another strikes him in the throat. He is only lightly wounded thanks to the protection of his armor. A third Sforza follower kills his mount. He falls to the ground; he is rescued by his men-at-arms. Defeated, he fortifies himself in Mozzanica with Attendolo; with many armed men, he resists several enemy assaults. In the end, his men also give way and flee. The provveditore Ermolao Donato prefers, instead, to continue fighting and is thus taken prisoner. | |
| 1449 | |||||
| June | Naples | Venice | Lieutenant General | He is appointed by Alfonso of Aragon as his lieutenant general for Lombardy with Carlo di Campobasso: he has 900 lances and 900 infantry under his command. His salary amounts to 45,000 florins, of which 15,000 are paid by the Ambrosian Republic. | |
| Nov. | Naples | Bologna | Emilia | He moves with 3000 cavalry and 2000 infantry in the Ferrara and Bologna areas. He is at Malacompra in the territory of Cento, at Minerbio, and at Budrio; he sacks everything. | |
| Dec. | Emilia and Lombardy | He meets with Carlo di Campobasso at Medicina; he stops at Riccardina when he is informed that the Bolognese, commanded by Astorre Manfredi, Gregorio d’Anghiari, and Scariotto da Faenza, are about to attack him. He preempts the adversaries and puts them to flight; after a few days, he concludes a truce with Manfredi and leaves Riccardina. He arrives at Galliera and returns to the Mantuan territory. | |||
| 1450 | |||||
| Emilia | He is in Ferrara when Lionello d’Este lies on his deathbed. He aids his nephew Niccolò d’Este in his attempts to seize the Este lordship. | ||||
| Nov. | He allies himself at the expense of the Venetians with the new Duke of Milan, Francesco Sforza: at the same time, his brother Carlo is imprisoned. He is promised territorial expansions at Asola, Lonato, and Peschiera del Garda. | ||||
| 1451 | |||||
| Jan. | Lombardy | He offers his services to the Venetians in vain. | |||
| Feb.-Mar. | Milan | Lieutenant, 600 cavalry | Lombardy | He goes to Milan and is appointed lieutenant and governor of Milan by Sforza. In retaliation, the Serenissima strengthens the defenses of Ponte Molino. | |
| May | Lombardy | Mantua becomes a center of anti-Venetian resistance. Bartolomeo Colleoni, fleeing from Isola della Scala, also finds refuge there. | |||
| 1452 | |||||
| Jan. | Mantua | Venice | Lombardy and Emilia | The Venetians sack Castiglione delle Stiviere. Despite this, Ludovico Gonzaga goes to Ferrara to pay homage to Emperor Frederick of Austria. There he waits for Galeazzo Maria Sforza; he accompanies him first to Mantua and, later, to the Duchy of Milan. | |
| Feb. | Mantua, Milan | Venice | Lombardy | He goes to Casalmaggiore. To Milan for a war council with Sforza. A stop in Cremona follows, then a return to Mantua. | |
| Apr. | Lombardy | He joins Sforza in Milan at the head of 3000 cavalry and 1000 infantry. He is reported at Pontevico. | |||
| June | Lombardy | He moves from Canneto sull’Oglio; he forces the Venetians to retreat to nearby fortresses; Pralboino, Cigole, Gambara, Pavone, Seniga, San Gervasio Bresciano, and Alfianello fall into his power. | |||
| Nov. | Lombardy | He is at Montichiari: he is given general command of the troops in a canceled battle that was to take place in that locality following the delivery of the gauntlet of challenge by the Duke of Milan. Sforza ultimately prefers to renounce the contest and leaves Montichiari. Gonzaga returns to the Mantuan territory; at the end of the month, he defeats the adversaries at Castellaro: he is wounded in the clash. In the battle, there are 200 dead; the Gonzaga forces take 300 prisoners for ransom. | |||
| 1453 | |||||
| Jan. | Veneto | He breaks all hesitation, raids the Verona area, captures a castle there, and has all the livestock found in the border territories transferred to Cavriana and Volta Mantovana. | |||
| Mar. | Lombardy and Veneto | He leaves Ostiglia. At Castel d’Ario, he defeats his brother Carlo. He pursues him towards Legnago and beyond the Adige. | |||
| May | Veneto | With Tiberto Brandolini, he seizes a bastion near Ponte Molino. He has it destroyed. He assaults Nogara and captures Guido Benzoni there. | |||
| June | Lombardy | He clashes again with his brother Carlo at Villabona; he inflicts a new defeat on him (capturing more than 1000 horses): he does not pursue the fleeing adversaries, preferring that his men engage in looting. | |||
| July | Lombardy | He recovers the castles of Belforte and Piuforte (Bigarello) and has them razed to their foundations. He overcomes the resistance of six cavalry squadrons and 200 infantry commanded by Pollone; he signs a local truce with the Venetians and returns to Mantua. He takes the road to Carpenedolo and Montichiari, occupies a bastion near Ghedi with Brandolini, and forces Antonello da Forlì and Carlo Gonzaga, who are trying to bring aid to the besieged, to retreat. He devastates the countryside of Asola with 1000 cavalry and many infantry: Petacchia da Viterbo and Silvestro da Lucino, who are guarding the locality, take advantage of his men’s negligence, attack him, and force him to desist from his action. | |||
| Aug. | Lombardy | He joins Francesco Sforza; he fights alongside him in the battle of Ghedi: Jacopo Piccinino is defeated and the defenders surrender on terms. Gonzaga helps the Sforza forces to recapture Castelleone. During this period, he has profound disagreements on the conduct of the war with Sforza himself. The Mantuan soldiers at Marcaria raise the disturbing cry “Falcetta, falcetta,” which precedes insubordination. Gonzaga vents to Giovanni Conti about the Duke of Milan and is immediately approached by the Venetians. | |||
| Oct. | Lombardy | He defeats Giberto da Correggio near the tower of Bacanello. | |||
| Dec. | Lombardy | After the capture of Volta Mantovana by Jacopo Piccinino, he rides with Sforza to Marcaria; he attacks Asola again. The bad weather conditions convince him to return to the Mantuan territory to winter the troops. | |||
| 1454 | With the Peace of Lodi, he recovers only Castiglione delle Stiviere and Volta Mantovana, which had been occupied by the Venetians during the conflict; he must also return to his brother Carlo the assets he had confiscated from him. | ||||
| 1457 | |||||
| Apr. | Lombardy | He welcomes Federico da Montefeltro to Mantua with full honors. | |||
| 1459 | |||||
| Jan. | Milan | 300 cavalry and 100 infantry | Lombardy | He meets in Milan at Sforza’s palace with Roberto da San Severino, who has returned from his journey to the Holy Land. He is rehired by the Sforza forces with a personal provision of 300 ducats per month; he is granted 7,000 ducats for his men-at-arms. | |
| Apr. | Lombardy | He reaffirms his alliance with the ducal forces. | |||
| May | Lombardy | At the end of the month, Pope Pius II makes his entrance into Mantua, followed by practically his entire court, composed of cardinals, bishops and archbishops, chamberlains, fan-bearers, secret valets and subdeacons, protonotaries, orators, surgeons, grooms, guards, and jesters for a total of almost 1000 people. Gonzaga welcomes him outside the city gates, presents him with the keys to the city, and accompanies him in a procession to his residence. Plenipotentiaries from European states also begin to arrive in Mantua (for example, the envoy of the Duke of Burgundy with a retinue of 400 horses, dressed in a gold-woven garment worth 40,000 scudi). Other ambassadors arrive from the kings of France and England, the dukes of Savoy and Brittany, the duchy of Milan, Venice, the emperor, and the archdukes of Austria. The pontiff holds the congress in Mantua to prepare the crusade against the Turks. Gonzaga is awarded the Golden Rose and his son Francesco is named a cardinal. | |||
| 1460 | |||||
| Jan. | Lombardy | He declines, for health reasons, the command of the Sforza and papal militias destined to confront Jacopo Piccinino in the Kingdom of Naples. | |||
| May | Tuscany | He is reported at the thermal spas of the Sienese territory and in Florence. | |||
| 1461 | |||||
| Aug. | Emilia | In the middle of the month, he is in Ferrara. | |||
| 1462 | |||||
| Jan. | Milan | Piacenza | Lombardy and Emilia | He goes to Milan on the occasion of a serious illness of Sforza. An insurrection breaks out in Piacenza due to the news, which turns out to be unfounded, of the duke’s death. Gonzaga leads the ducal forces against the rebels; he enters the city, captures one hundred peasants, and has them hanged. He camps at Mezzanino and with Donato del Conte, he captures the castle of Grazzano Visconti. | |
| Feb. | Lombardy | He sends instructions to the vicars and podestàs of his territories to organize the local militias (1390 infantry) to intervene in the Piacenza area. At the end of the month, he goes to Milan. Awaiting him two miles from the city are Gaspare da Vimercate, the ambassador of the King of Naples in the duchy’s capital Antonio Cicinello, the chancellors of Federico da Montefeltro, the Florentine ambassadors, and many gentlemen and condottieri, including Tristano Sforza, San Severino, and Brandolini. He visits Sforza, who has not yet recovered from his ailments. | |||
| July | Emilia | He arrives in Ferrara with 100 cavalry; he is hosted in the city for a month by Borso d’Este: he occupies his time with pheasant and partridge hunts. | |||
| Aug. | He reconciles with the Venetians. | ||||
| 1463 | |||||
| Feb. | Lombardy | He makes an official visit to Milan with his son Federico. In Lodi, Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Federico Pallavicini, Sagramoro Visconti, and Princivalle Lampugnani come to pay him homage. He proposes to negotiate the marriage of his daughter Dorotea with the heir to the duchy, Galeazzo Maria. | |||
| Mar. | Lombardy | A reduction of his provision to 31,600 ducats in peacetime and 67,000 in wartime is proposed. His request for protection of the state in case of potential attacks by third parties is accepted. | |||
| May | Lombardy | He hosts William of Montferrat in Mantua during his visit to the city. | |||
| 1464 | |||||
| Jan.-Mar. | He sends a trusted man, Giacomo da Palazzo, to Milan to follow the developments of the marriage project between his daughter Dorotea and Galeazzo Maria Sforza. | ||||
| He renounces his contract with the Duke of Milan following the failure of negotiations concerning the marriage between Francesco Sforza’s son and his daughter Dorotea due to the latter’s evident hunchback. | |||||
| Tuscany | In the Lucca area, for the water cures. At the end of the year, through Bartolomeo Colleoni, he negotiates with the Venetians to enter their service. For the same purpose, in the spring of the following year, he is contacted by an emissary of Colleoni, Domenico Correr. | ||||
| 1466 | |||||
| Apr. | Milan, Naples | Ducal Lieutenant | Lombardy | After a new refusal by the Serenissima to have him in their service, he sends his wife Barbara of Brandenburg to Milan and enters the joint service of the Duke of Milan (with the title of ducal lieutenant) and the King of Naples (grand constable). He is granted a three-year contract and is promised possession of Verona, Vicenza, Asola, and Lonato in case of a victorious war with the Venetians. In the same days, he rides towards Parma where some disorders have arisen between the partisans of the Rossi and those of the da Correggio. He stops with his men at Viadana and Dosolo; he returns to Mantua when the turmoil ceases. | |
| Upon the death of his brother Alessandro, he inherits his possessions, which include Castiglione delle Stiviere and Castel Goffredo. | |||||
| 1467 | Milan | Venice | Emilia | He opposes Bartolomeo Colleoni in the Bologna area, who is trying to penetrate Tuscany from the Veneto. | |
| 1468 | |||||
| Jan. | Lombardy | He meets in Pavia with the new Duke of Milan, Galeazzo Maria Sforza. | |||
| Sept. | Emilia | Another meeting with Galeazzo Maria Sforza in Milan. He obtains an assignment on the revenues of that city. | |||
| Oct.-Nov. | Milan | da Correggio | Emilia | With Federico da Montefeltro, he attacks the lords of Brescello, Niccolò and Manfredo da Correggio. They are saved by the intervention in their favor of the Marquis of Ferrara, Borso d’Este. | |
| 1469 | |||||
| Jan. | Emilia | He goes to Ferrara to pay homage to Emperor Frederick of Austria. | |||
| July | Lombardy | In Milan, for another meeting with the Duke. On this occasion, he obtains an assignment on the revenues of Como. For both assignments in his favor (in Parma and Como), he suffers continuous delays in payment deadlines. | |||
| 1470 | |||||
| Apr. | Lombardy | The negotiations for the renewal of his contract with the Duke of Milan prove difficult: Ludovico Gonzaga seeks other possible employment. He keeps Galeazzo Maria Sforza’s envoys waiting. For his part, the Duke tries to limit his financial commitments as much as possible: he offers the Marquis the reconfirmation of the lieutenancy but does not want to grant him any loan. The contract is in any case signed at the end of the month. Gonzaga’s obligations are only virtual in the sense that no precise clauses are set regarding the number of men-at-arms and horses he must provide with his service. Officially, the Marquis declares to have 200 men-at-arms available in peacetime and 300 in wartime, with the relative following of men and horses. He is contracted with his son Federico. The term is set for three years, plus one of option. The annual provision is 36,000 ducats, of which 4,000 are destined for his son. | |||
| Sept. | Emilia | In Parma with Alessandro Sforza. There he meets with the Dukes of Milan and Ferrara (Borso d’Este, who has just obtained that title). | |||
| 1471 | Upon the death of Borso d’Este, he supports the right of succession in the Duchy of Ferrara of his nephew Niccolò d’Este against Ercole d’Este. | ||||
| 1472 | |||||
| June-Sept. | Milan | Lieutenant General of the Duchy | Lombardy | He asks the Sforzas for a salary of 36,000 ducats in peacetime and 80,000 in war: he is granted 32,000 and 82,000, of which 12,000 are for his son Federico. The term is set for three years. At the end of June, the ratification of the agreements takes place in Mantua. In July, the situation begins to become fluid and Gonzaga makes some attempts to evade his commitments: Galeazzo Maria Sforza promises him another 42,000 ducats annually. In September, he is asked to serve with 600 men-at-arms. Gonzaga does not agree to the demand; however, his neutrality is also valuable, so payments from Milan continue regularly. | |
| Oct.-Nov. | He is given 9,000 ducats, and in November he will receive another 6,000. | ||||
| Dec. | In Milan, the ducal secret council sets the order of precedence for lords and condottieri for official ceremonies: first comes the Marquis of Mantua, then the lord of Imola Taddeo Manfredi, then the lord of Forlì Pino Ordelaffi. They are followed by Roberto da San Severino, Giovanni Conti, and Giovanni Bentivoglio. | ||||
| 1473 | |||||
| Jan. | Lombardy | He takes part in a war council in Milan with Pino Ordelaffi, the Pope’s nephew Girolamo Riario, and Giovanni Conti. He enjoys general esteem. | |||
| Dec. | Lombardy | 3000 cavalry and 1000 provisioned soldiers serve under his command. | |||
| 1474 | |||||
| Mar. | Lombardy | He hosts his wife’s brother-in-law, King Christian of Denmark, in Mantua. He is knighted into the Order of the Elephant. | |||
| July | Marche | He goes on a pilgrimage to Loreto with a retinue of 160 horses. | |||
| 1475 | |||||
| Jan. | Lombardy | He receives the son of the King of Naples, Frederick of Aragon, in Mantua. | |||
| Feb. | Lombardy | He has the responsibility for the command of the Sforza troops tasked with remaining in the Duchy of Milan in case of invasion by third parties: this amounts to 1100 men-at-arms divided into 41 squadrons. For his part, Gonzaga has another 200 men-at-arms divided into eight squadrons under his direct command. The army designated to intervene outside the duchy is commanded by William of Montferrat (1115 men-at-arms for forty-six squadrons). | |||
| Apr. | Lombardy and Piedmont | In Milan, to meet with Galeazzo Maria Sforza. In the city, he is hosted in the Sforza Castle. At Acqui Terme for treatment. | |||
| July | Lombardy | He consolidates his rights over the castles of Viadana, Rivarolo Mantovano, Bozzolo, Dosolo, and Gazzuolo through an agreement with the Cremonese Emanuele Cavalcabò. | |||
| Dec. | Lombardy | He obtains Quistello from the monastery of San Benedetto di Polirone. | |||
| 1476 | |||||
| July | Milan | Burgundy | Piedmont | In dispute with the Duke of Milan over the delayed payment of his provision (only 4,000 ducats have been paid), he sends only 86 men-at-arms from his company to Piedmont against the allies of the Burgundians. When the remaining 36,000 ducats are delivered to him, he joins San Severino on the Sesia river. The conflict is due to the kidnapping in Geneva of Duchess Yolande of Savoy by Charles the Bold. | |
| Dec. | Lombardy | Upon hearing the news of the assassination of Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza in Milan, he immediately mobilizes his men and concentrates them at Marcaria and Canneto sull’Oglio. | |||
| 1477 | |||||
| Jan.-Mar. | Lombardy | In Milan, where he travels by litter. He gives valuable help to Duchess Bona of Savoy against her brothers-in-law who are trying to exclude her from the government of the duchy. He is designated by Lorenzo de’ Medici to govern Milan as lieutenant general of the duchy. In March, he leaves the city in discouragement due to the plots against Minister Cicco Simonetta. | |||
| He is invited by Emperor Frederick of Austria to lead an expedition against Milan; he is promised all help to recover the lands held by the Venetians. He does not accept the proposal, also due to his poor health. | |||||
| May | He is contacted by the Florentines to enter their service. He is offered a provision of 10,000 ducats a year. He bides his time. | ||||
| Aug. | Tuscany | At the baths of Pescia. He spends several months in that locality for treatment. | |||
| Nov. | Emilia | In Ferrara. He is hosted in the palace of Borso Pendaglio. | |||
| 1478 | |||||
| Apr. | Lombardy | From Graz, the emperor grants him allodial ownership of Bozzolo, Dosolo, Gazzuolo, Isola Dovarese, Pomponesco, Rivarolo Mantovano, Sabbioneta, San Martino dall’Argine, and Viadana. | |||
| Sept. | He is assigned 8,000 ducats by the Milanese senate to send 100 men-at-arms and 100 infantry to the Piacenza area. | ||||
| Lombardy | He is mobilized against the Swiss who are threatening the duchy. Having departed late from Mantua, he is reached in the Cremona area by a counter-order from the duchess. He is thus able to return to his domains. | ||||
| 1479 | |||||
| Florence | Church, Naples | Captain General | Emilia | He is appointed by the Florentines as captain general in the war against the Aragonese and the papacy in place of Ercole d’Este; he is granted a salary of 60,000 ducats. He moves to the Reggio area to prevent San Severino and the Sforza brothers, sent into exile by Duchess Bona, from crossing the Apennines. | |
| Mar. | Emilia | He is stationed in the Parma area. | |||
| May-July | Liguria, Emilia, Tuscany, and Umbria | He has 22 cavalry squadrons under his command. He links up with Ercole d’Este and leaves the Sarzana countryside to pursue San Severino, who is heading for La Spezia and Santo Stefano di Magra, with forty-five cavalry squadrons and 3000 infantry. He traps the adversary in a valley below the castle of Vezzano Ligure, until San Severino manages to break through his lines, penetrating the Milanese duchy. He moves to Tuscany and with Ercole d’Este, captures the castle of Casole d’Elsa in the Sienese territory. The action ends with the massacre of the 100-man garrison and a horrific sack of the town: the division of the booty, combined with the old grudge that divides the two dukes, causes strong conflicts between the Este and Gonzaga forces that end with the killing of a hundred men and the destruction of the Duke of Ferrara’s pavilion. Lorenzo de’ Medici and the Sforza ambassador Giovanni Luigi Bossi act as peacemakers. Ludovico Gonzaga is moved to the Perugia area where he links up with Roberto Malatesta. With this condottiero, he captures and burns the castles of Romazzano and Fratta Todina. | |||
| Nov. | Milan | Sforza | Tuscany, Lombardy | Dismissed by the Florentines due to his conflicts with the other captains who do not accept his authority, he heads towards the Milanese area to support, once again, the duchess’s cause against her brothers-in-law and San Severino, who have seized Tortona and other lands. | |
| 1480 | |||||
| May-June | Milan | 200 men-at-arms | Lombardy | Still in the service of the ducal forces. In June, his company heads towards Bologna to join with the men-at-arms of San Severino coming from the Parma area. | |
| Dec. | Lombardy | He dies of the plague in the middle of the month in the castle of Goito. He is buried in Mantua in the church of San Pietro, probably in the chapel dedicated to Saint Francis. He appointed (1460) Andrea Mantegna as court artist and commissioned him to paint the “Camera degli Sposi” in the Castle of San Giorgio: he appears there with his wife Barbara of Brandenburg and some of their children. Portrayed in a medallion by Pisanello. Humanists such as Guarino and Francesco Filelfo live at his court. He calls to Mantua artists like Luca Fancelli and Leon Battista Alberti who begin the construction of the churches of Sant’Andrea and San Sebastiano. He commissions Fancelli to purchase mulberry trees in Tuscany and to spread their cultivation in the marquisate, starting from Cavriana, where Gonzaga makes that castle his summer residence. In the area of Castiglione delle Stiviere and Castelgoffredo, the first activities related to the processing and manufacturing of silk are established. He has the Ducal Palace in Revere built, also by Fancelli. He has a summer residence built in Volta Mantovana, Palazzo Gonzaga-Guerrieri with an Italian garden. He strengthens the fortifications of Castiglione delle Stiviere and Castel Goffredo, employing the architect Giovanni da Padova. In Mantua, he has the Ospedale Grande di San Leonardo and the Corte Ghirardina in Monteggiano built, again by Luca Fancelli. He has an irrigation canal dug, which uses the waters of the Mincio from Goito to Mapello. Upon his death, his will is not found. His wife Barbara, asserting that she knew her husband’s wishes and perhaps to avoid disputes among the heirs, arranges the division of the territories among her five sons. This leads to the dismemberment of the Gonzaga state, thus giving rise to the various lordships of that family in the Mantuan territory. |
Sources
-“Uno dei primi d’Italia al tempo di un Colleoni e di un Francesco Sforza, su Ludovico militare non c’é da avere dubbi; sapeva il suo mestiere e lo faceva bene, attento al rendimento e alla cura delle sue truppe: vecchio, sarà sempre pronto alle fatiche del suo ufficio, e pronto al modo di farsi portare in lettiga quando per una crisi di gotta non potrà cavalcare: tanto egli non permetterà alle cose di vincerlo, lui nolente. D’altra parte è vero che egli militava non solo per obbedire agli impegni presi delle sue reazioni e per dovere di circostanze, ma anche per rinsanguare con l’aiuto di ben pesate condotte la cassa privata e la cassa pubblica sempre troppo esigue per la liberalità gonzaghesca.” BELLONCI
-“Uomo ambizioso e avido di potere…Tutte le sue attenzioni erano dedicate allo stato, allo splendore della casata e della città…Nell’insieme Ludovico poté curare poco la politica interna, che spesso per lunghi periodi fu affidata alla marchesa Barbara (di Brandeburgo). Egli si dedicò quasi interamente alla politica estera ed all’attività di condottiero, consolidando quella tradizione militare della famiglia, che si era formata soprattutto col padre Gianfrancesco…Anche Ludovico aveva le stesse deformità di Paola (Malatesta, la madre)..infermità che trasmise alla prole. Il figlio Federico infatti e le figlie Susanna e Dorotea presentarono la stessa deformità della nonna Paola: erano gobbi. A tale deformazione va attribuito il fallimento dei progetti matrimoniali prima di Susanna, che prese il velo per tale motivo, poi di Dorotea con Galeazzo Maria Sforza figlio di Francesco…Il periodo del (suo) governo fu uno dei più prosperi per il Mantovano che il 20 dicembre 1475 si accrebbe di Quistello, ceduto ai Gonzaga dal monastero di San Benedetto di Polirone che ne era stato investito l’11 ottobre 1475 da Sisto IV. L’ 11 luglio 1475 Ludovico consolidò i suoi diritti sui castelli di Viadana, Rivarolo, Bozzolo, Dosolo e Gazzuolo in seguito ad accordi col cremonese Emanuele Cavalcabò.. Nel 1477 ricevette la rosa d’oro. Il 22 aprile 1478 infine da Graz l’imperatore Federico gli concedeva il privilegio per cui gli era riconosciuto in proprietà allodiale il possesso di Bozzolo, Dosolo, Gazzuolo, Isola Dovarese, Pomponesco, Rivarolo, Sabbioneta, San Martino dell’Argine e Viadana. Erano i beni già appartenenti al fratello Carlo e passati a Ludovico per mancanza di eredi diretti legittimi. Egli li riunì al marchesato insieme a quelli degli altri fratelli già morti da tempo.” CONIGLIO
-“E fu home da bene e de gran consilio, come multe amice et amatore dal culto devino.” BERNARDI
-“Fu questo signore huomo grato, affabile, liberale, e quanto ad huomo militare eloquentissimo, e religioso.” ALBERTI
-“Carissimo fu questo egregio principe non solo a gli suoi popoli, ma anche da tutta Italia era amatissimo e tenuto in grandissima veneratione..Havea persona alta e forte membri; il volto bianco, gli occhi azzurri, chiari e i capelli castagnicci.” ROSCIO
-“Costui fu prudente, in le arme ecelento.” CORPUS CHRONIC. BONOMIENSUM
-“Fu huomo grato, affabile, liberale, e quanto alla militia si conviene, eloquentissimo e religiosissimo.” EQUICOLA
-“Per molte degne attioni, insigne e cospicuo..Fu huomo grato, affabile, liberale, osservatore della fede e nell’arte militare esperto.” LOSCHI
-“Quem nomen aetate nostra in hac misera Italia principatu dignum animus, magnitudine animi, fide, ac constantia.” G. CAPPONI
-“E’ stato uno dignissimo signore, et de grande prudentia et governo.” dal carteggio di Ercole d’Este a Giovanni Bentivoglio, riportato dal DALLARI
-“Uomo di moltissimo senno, non si dimenticò mai dei doveri del suo stato, onde riuscì uno dei migliori principi del suo tempo.” LITTA
-“Fece molte degne opere..Fu questo signore huomo grato, affabile, liberale e quanto ad huomo militare eloquentissimo e religiosissimo.” SANSOVINO
-“Principe e Capitano di chiarissimo nome.” SPINO
-“Fu di molta esperentia nell’armi, generosissimo e splendidissimo, e dotato di tante virtù che ne era per ciò generalmente da ogn’uno amato, e il chiamavano arbitro delle cose di Lombardia.” TARCAGNOTA
-“Fu..huomo bellicoso e di animo generoso, e molto liberale, et per ciò amato molto da ogni uno.” ULLOA
-“Dux tum militari scientia, tum et in primis sapientia, et magnanimitate praestantissimus.” PORCELLIO
-“Erudito nelle lettere e..esercitato nelle cose militari fu in questo gran principe un’armonia di tutte le virtù e un odio di tutti i vitii.” MAFFEI
-“Costui fo experto nile arme.” NOTAR GIACOMO
-“Come condottiero, Ludovico si barcamenò al solito tra Milano e Venezia, nella politica pendolare che in pratica aveva contraddistinto anche i suoi predecessori.” RENDINA
-“Egli lasciò dietro di sé il ricordo di un principe abile nelle armi, colto e prudente, ma soprattutto integro e leale, che poneva il proprio onore, la propria fedeltà agli impegni presi e il bene della sua casata e della sua città sopra ogni considerazione. Nella storia della dominazione gonzaghesca di Mantova, gli oltre trent’anni del suo principato rappresentano, dopo un sessantenio di convulsi moti di guerra, una lunga fase di stabilità e una costruzione istituzionale e sociale la cui profondità ben si riflette nell’immagine urbanistica che ancora connota in modo distintivo la città.” LAZZARINI
-“Havea persona alta: e forti membri: il volto bianco: gli occhi azurri chiari: e i capelli castagnicci..Carissimo fu questo egregio Principe non solo a gli suoi popoli; ma anche da tutta Italia era amatissimo, e tenuto in grandissima veneratione. Onde acquistato havea nome di arbitro delle contese fra Principi di Lombardia.” CAPRIOLO
-“Fu uomo grato, affabile, liberale ed osservatore della sua fede; meritò per la sua prudenza e valore di essere soprannominato il “Turco”.” MAINARDI
-“Ospitò nella sua reggia i più grandi artisti contemporanei e vi iniziò l’arte della stampa. E’ vero che restrinse ogni potere pubblico assommandolo in sé; ma la sua opera di governo fu gagliarda e sicura: tanto che pochi principi lasciarono così profonda traccia.” ARGEGNI
-“Fu uomo di governo, non meno abile e non meno energico dei suoi predecessori; cercò quanto poté di limitare, anzi ridurre al niente le poche libertà che ancora restavano ai cittadini… Gli abbellimenti che Lodovico fece nella città.. furono molti e magnifici. Fra le porte Pusterla e Cerese costruì un argine che fosse anche mezzo di comunicazione, ma soprattutto sanasse parte del lago; ingrandì la Reggia Gonzaga e l’arricchì di pitture; è a lui che si devono il palazzo del Mercato in Piazza dell’Erbe e la Torre dell’Orologio, e i Portici del Palazzo della Ragione; eresse, su disegno di Leon B. Alberti, la Chiesa di S. Sebastiano col suo sotterraneo di sette navate, e iniziò quella di S. Andrea; innalzò palazzi e castelli nelle campagne soprattutto a Goito e a Cavriana, dove fece anche costruire due ville. Non trascurò l’agricoltura, l’industria e il commercio, ma si circondò soprattutto di artisti e di letterati. Oltre al Mantegna e all’Alberti, ospitò il Platina, il Poliziano e Pico della Mirandola. Come è noto, proprio a Mantova il Poliziano compose in tre giorni quel gioiello che è la favola d’Orfeo, la quale fu rappresentata nel ’72.. quando il Card. Francesco Gonzaga, uno dei figli di Lodovico, fece il suo ingresso solenne nella città per prender possesso di Sant’Andrea. Nello stesso anno fu iniziata a Mantova l’arte della stampa, e vi fiorì così rapidamente che presto vi furono tre stamperie. Ed è cosa degna di nota che nella città più pagana d’Italia fosse pubblicato come primo libro, il libro più corrotto della letteratura italiana, il Decamerone.” CIAMPINI
–“It was not his exploits in imperial politics or his reputation on the battlefield for which Lodovico is remembered; rather, he is best known for his patronage of the artist Andrea Mantegna, who painted a lasting image of Lodovico’s family in the so-called “Camera degli Sposi”, a “Room of the Betrothed”. BARTLETT
–“Il matrimonio di Lodovico con Barbara di Hohenzollern ebbe il risultato di allargare le relazioni estere della casa di cui si vede l’indizio in nuovi matrimonii: così Federico (il figlio) sposò Margherita di Baviera e due sue sorelle entrarono nelle case di Wurtemberg e di Gorizia: sua figlia Clara sposò Gilberto di Montpensier, ma per fortuna suo figlio e successore (sempre di Federico) Francesco, fu ancor giovanotto, fidanzato ad Isabella d’Este che diverrà una delle più illustri principesse del Rinascimento e darà tanto lustro alla piccola ma raffinata corte mantovana.” SIMEONI
-“Alla sua morte “La divisione dello Stato lo indeboliva, suddividendolo in piccoli principati e signorie, poiché dalla partizione (fatta ora dal Gonzaga), col procedere del tempo, originarono i vari principati di Castiglione delle Stiviere, di Bozzolo e di Sabbioneta, i marchesati di Gazzuolo, di Luzzara e di Castel Goffredo, nonché le signorie di S. Martino e di Solferino.” CIPOLLA
Featured image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ritratto_di_Ludovico_Gonzaga.jpg
