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Duchy of Milan
Duchy of Milan Ducato di Milano Ducatus Mediolani | |||||||||||
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| 1395–1796 | |||||||||||
 Coat of arms of the Duchy of Milan
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 Location of the Duchy of Milan (1494) | |||||||||||
| Capital | Milan | ||||||||||
| Common languages | Western Lombard and Italian | ||||||||||
| Religion | Catholic Church | ||||||||||
| Government | Principality | ||||||||||
| Duke of Milan | |||||||||||
• 1395–1402 | Gian Galeazzo Visconti | ||||||||||
• 1792–1796 | Francis I of Austria | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
• Foundation | 1395 | ||||||||||
| 1447–1450 | |||||||||||
| 1450–1499, 1521–1535 | |||||||||||
| 1499–1512, 1515–1521 | |||||||||||
| 1535–1706 | |||||||||||
| 1706–1796 | |||||||||||
• Dissolution | 1796 | ||||||||||
| Currency | Milanese scudo | ||||||||||
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The Duchy of Milan, also called the Milanesado or the State of Milan, was during the Middle Ages the principal power in the north of the Italian Peninsula.
The duchy was created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Lord of Milan. When the Visconti dynasty died out in 1447, Milan was declared a Republic, despite the claims of the Duke of Orléans, the legitimate heir. Orléans was unable to take possession of his inheritance, but the Republic was short-lived. The adventurer Francesco Sforza, married to the illegitimate daughter of the last Visconti,[1] took Milan in 1450 and proclaimed himself duke.
Disputes between the French Crown and the local dynasty
In 1498 the son of the Duke of Orléans became King of France as Louis XII and sought to enforce his father's claims to Milan, invading it and expelling Ludovico Sforza in 1499. This French rule lasted until 1513, when Swiss forces restored Ludovico's son, Massimiliano, to the throne. In 1515 the French, under Francis I of France, were victorious at the Battle of Marignano, capturing Massimiliano and retaking the duchy. They were expelled again in 1521, and this time Austrian forces crowned Massimiliano's brother, Francesco II Sforza.
After the decisive Spanish victory over France at the Battle of Pavia (1525), which left Charles I of Spain as the principal power in Italy, Francesco joined the League of Cognac, together with the republics of Venice and Florence, Pope Clement VII and the French, against Charles V. This led to Francesco's rapid expulsion from Milan by imperial forces, although he retained some control over other cities of the duchy, and he eventually recovered Milan through the Treaty of Cambrai (1529).
Spanish rule
When Francesco died without heirs in 1535, a struggle broke out between Francis I of France and King Charles I of Spain (Emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire) over his succession. After several wars the Emperor annexed the duchy, investing his son Philip with it. Finally, the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis of 1559 recognized the annexation of the Milanesado by Spain.
The Duchy of Milan remained under the control of the Spanish Habsburg monarchy for nearly 150 more years, until the War of the Spanish Succession at the beginning of the 18th century. After the death of King Charles II, who left no descendants, a succession conflict broke out in 1700 between Philip of Anjou and Archduke Charles of Austria. All the possessions of the Spanish Crown were in dispute, and that included the Duchy of Milan.
Austrian rule
On September 26, 1706, Austrian troops took the City of Milan, which passed into the hands of the Archduke of Austria. The Spanish Crown, which remained in the hands of Philip V, definitively lost control over the Duchy of Milan. The rule of the Austrian Habsburgs was legally confirmed in the Treaty of Utrecht and was ratified again by the Treaty of Baden of 1714.
Napoleonic rule
It remained so until its conquest by Napoleon Bonaparte during the Napoleonic Wars in 1796. The Duchy was ceded by the Treaty of Campo Formio to the nascent Cisalpine Republic.
Italian unification
The Restoration meant its return to Austria, although it soon became once again a target of Italian nationalism, being conquered by the Kingdom of Piedmont during the wars that led to the unification of Italy.
List of rulers of the Duchy of Milan
The following is a list of the rulers of Milan from the 13th century until 1859, when Milan and the rest of Lombardy were incorporated into the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia.
| Name | Term | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lords of Milan, houses of della Torre (also known as Torriani) and Visconti (1197–1395) | |||
| Pagano I della Torre | 1197–1241 | ||
| Pagano II della Torre | 1247–1257 | ||
| Manfredo Lancia | 1253–1256 | ||
| Martino della Torre | 1257–1259 | ||
| Oberto Pallavicino | 1259–1264 | ||
| Filippo della Torre | 1263–1265 | ||
| Napoleone della Torre | 1265–1277 | ||
| Ottone Visconti, Archbishop of Milan | 1277–1294 | ||
| Matteo I Visconti | 1294–1302 | ||
| Guido della Torre | 1302–1311 | ||
| Matteo I Visconti | 1311–1322 | (restored) | |
| Galeazzo I Visconti | 1322–1327 | ||
| Azzone Visconti | 1329–1339 | ||
| Luchino Visconti | 1339–1349 | ||
| Giovanni Visconti, Archbishop of Milan | 1349–1354 | ||
| Matteo II Visconti | 1349–1355 | ||
| Galeazzo II Visconti | 1349–1378 | ||
| Bernabò Visconti | 1349–1385 | ||
| Gian Galeazzo I Visconti | 1378–1395 | ||
| Dukes of Milan, house of Visconti (1395–1447) | |||
| Gian Galeazzo I Visconti | 1395–1402 | ||
| Giovanni Maria Visconti | 1402–1412 | Son of Gian Galeazzo I; assassinated | |
| Filippo Maria Visconti | 1412–1447 | Brother of Gian Maria | |
| Ambrosian Republic (1447–1450) | |||
| Ambrosian Republic | |||
| Dukes of Milan, house of Sforza (1450–1499) | |||
| Francesco I Sforza | 1450–1466 | married to the only (illegitimate) daughter of Filippo Maria | |
| Galeazzo Maria Sforza | 1466–1476 | son of Francesco | |
| Gian Galeazzo II Sforza | 1476–1494 | son of Galeazzo Maria | |
| Ludovico Sforza | 1494–1499 | son of Francesco I | |
| Dukes of Milan, alternation of the houses of Sforza and Valois – Spanish-French wars over Milan (1499–1540) | |||
| Louis XII of France | 1499–1500 | grandson of Valentina, daughter of Gian Galeazzo I Visconti | |
| Ludovico Sforza | 1500 | (restored) | |
| Louis XII of France | 1500–1512 | (restored) | |
| Maximilian Sforza | 1512–1515 | son of Ludovico | |
| Francis I of France | 1515–1521 | great-grandson of Valentina, daughter of Gian Galeazzo I Visconti | |
| Francesco II Sforza | 1521–1535 | son of Ludovico, brother of Maximilian | |
| Dukes of Milan, houses of Austria and Bourbon – Spanish rule (1540–1706) | |||
| Philip II of Spain | 1540–1598 | After the death of Francesco II, Emperor Charles V claimed the duchy for his son Philip. | |
| Philip III of Spain | 1598–1621 | son of Philip II | |
| Philip IV of Spain | 1621–1665 | son of Philip III | |
| Charles II of Spain | 1665–1700 | son of Philip IV | |
| Philip V of Spain | 1700–1706 | great-grandson of Philip IV | the War of Succession Archduke Charles took Milan |
| Dukes of Milan, house of Habsburg – Austrian rule (1706–1796) | |||
| Charles VI | 1706–1740 | great-grandson of Philip III | |
| Maria Theresa | 1740–1780 | daughter of Charles VI | |
| Joseph II of Habsburg | 1780–1790 | son of Maria Theresa | |
| Leopold II of Austria | 1790–1792 | brother of Joseph II | |
| Francis I of Austria | 1792–1796 | son of Leopold II | |
| Transpadane Republic (1796–1797) | |||
| Transpadane Republic | |||
| Cisalpine Republic (1797–1799) | |||
| Cisalpine Republic | |||
| Dukes of Milan, house of Habsburg – Austrian rule (1799–1800) | |||
| Francis I of Austria | 1799–1800 | (restored) | |
| Imperial Commission of the Count of Mantua | 1800 | ||
| Cisalpine Republic restored (1800–1802) | |||
| Extraordinary Commission of Government | 1800–1802 | ||
| Italian Republic (1802–1805) | |||
| Napoleon Bonaparte | 1802–1805 | President of the Italian Republic | |
| Kings of Italy, house of Bonaparte – French rule (1805–1814) | |||
| Napoleon Bonaparte | 1805–1814 | previously President of the Italian Republic | |
| Eugène de Beauharnais | 1805–1814 | Viceroy of the Kingdom of Italy | |
| Kings of Lombardy–Venetia, house of Habsburg – Austrian rule (1814–1859) | |||
| Francis I of Austria | 1814–1835 | previously Duke of Milan | |
| Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss-Greiz | 1814–1815 | Viceroy of Francis I | |
| Count Heinrich von Bellegarde | 1815–1816 | Viceroy of Francis I | |
| Archduke Anton Viktor of Austria | 1816–1818 | Viceroy of Francis I | |
| Archduke Rainer Joseph of Austria | 1818–1835 | Viceroy of Francis I | |
| Ferdinand I of Austria | 1835–1848 | son of Francis I | |
| Archduke Rainer Joseph of Austria | 1835–1848 | Viceroy of Ferdinand I | |
| Franz Joseph of Austria | 1848–1859 | cousin of Ferdinand I | |
| Count Joseph Radetzky von Radetz | 1848–1857 | Viceroy of Franz Joseph | |
| Archduke Maximilian of Austria | 1857–1859 | Viceroy of Franz Joseph | |
| Count Ferenc Gyulai | 1859 | Viceroy of Franz Joseph | |
| Baron Heinrich Hermann von Hess | 1859 | Viceroy of Franz Joseph | |
See also
- Governors of the Milanesado
- March of Eastern Liguria
- Austrian Empire
- Napoleonic Wars
- Unification of Italy
- History of Italy
- Lordship of Milan
- Milan
References
- ↑ Hollingsworth, Mary (April 12, 2002). El patronazgo artístico en la Italia del Renacimiento (in español). Ediciones AKAL. ISBN 9788446010678. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
