NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Duchy of Milan

The Duchy of Milan was a state in northern Italy from 1395 to 1797. It was part of the Holy Roman Empire, by then a decentralised entity, and was ruled by several dynasties, most of them major powers from outside Italy. Although the Duchy's territory varied over the centuries, it generally covered much of Lombardy, including both Milan and Pavia, the traditional centers of the old Kingdom of Italy. Parma was also a part of the Duchy until it was split off into its own Duchy in the 16th century. Events End of reign of Hungary by Capet-Anjou family. ... 1797 (MDCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The Holy Roman Empire and from the 16th century on also The Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation was a political conglomeration of lands in Central Europe in the Middle Ages and the early modern period. ... Lombardy (Italian: Lombardia) is a region in northern Italy between the Alps and the Po river valley. ... Country Italy Region Lombardy Province Milan (MI) Mayor Letizia Moratti Elevation 120 m Area 182 kmÂ² Population - Total (as of December 31, 2004) 1,308,311 - Density 6,988/kmÂ² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Coordinates Gentilic Milanesi Dialing code 02 Postal code 20100 Patron St. ... Church San Michele in Pavia The Old Bridge (Ponte Vecchio) on the Ticino river is a symbol of Pavia PavÃ¬a (the ancient Ticinum) (population 71,000) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its... The medieval Kingdom of Italy was a state originally comprising the northern two thirds of Italy, which formed from the break-up of the Carolingian Empire in the 9th century. ... Country Italy Region Emilia-Romagna Province Parma (PR) Mayor Elvio Ubaldi (since May 28, 2002) Elevation 55 m Area 260 kmÂ² Population - Total (as of December 31, 2004) 175,789 - Density 676/kmÂ² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Coordinates Gentilic Parmigiani (Parmensi are called the provinces inhabitants) Dialing code...

History

The Duchy was created in 1395 for Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Lord of Milan. When the Visconti became extinct in 1447, Milan declared itself a republic, despite the fact that the Duke of Orleans was the legitimate heir by treaty. Orleans proved unable to make good his claim, but the republic was nevertheless short-lived. The adventurer Francesco Sforza, who married the last Visconti's illegitimate daughter, seized Milan in 1450 and made himself Duke. Events End of reign of Hungary by Capet-Anjou family. ... A 19th century version of Giangaleazzo Visconti. ... Visconti was a noble family that ruled Milan during the Middle Ages and Early Renaissance period. ... Events March 6 - Nicholas V becomes Pope. ... Duke of Orléans is one of the most important titles in the French peerage, dating back at least to the 14th century. ... Portrait of Francesco Sforza, ca 1460, by Bonifazio Bembo: Sforza insisted on being shown in his worn dirty old campaigning hat. ... Events March - French troops under Guy de Richemont besiege the English commander in France, Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, in Caen April 15 - Battle of Formigny. ...

In 1498 the Duke of Orleans became King of France as Louis XII, and immediately sought to make good his father's claims to Milan. He invaded in 1499 and soon ousted Lodovico Sforza. The French ruled the Duchy until 1513, when they were ousted by the Swiss, who put Lodovico's son Massimiliano on the throne. Massimiliano did not last very long. The French, now under Francis I, again invaded in 1515 and reasserted their control at the Battle of Marignano, and making Massimiliano their prisoner. The French were again driven out in 1521, this time by the Austrians, who installed Massimiliano's younger brother, Francesco II Sforza. 1498 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Louis XII the Father of the People (French: Louis XII le PÃ¨re du Peuple) (June 27, 1462 â€“ January 1, 1515) was King of France 1498 â€“ January 1, 1515. ... 1499 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Ludovico Sforza (Ludovico il Moro, The Moor) (July 27, 1452–May 27, 1508), a member of the Sforza dynasty of Milan, Italy, was the second son of Francesco Sforza, and was famed as patron of Leonardo da Vinci and other artists. ... 1513 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Maximilian (Massimiliano) Sforza was Duke of Milan of the Sforza family between the occupations of Louis XII of France in 1500, and Francis I of France in 1515. ... Francis I (FranÃ§ois Ier in French) (September 12, 1494 â€“ March 31, 1547), called the Father and Restorer of Letters (le PÃ¨re et Restaurateur des Lettres), was crowned King of France in 1515 in the cathedral at Reims and reigned until 1547. ... 1515 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Combatants France, Republic of Venice Duchy of Milan Commanders Francis I, Gian Giacomo Trivulzio, Bartolomeo dAlviano, Louis de la TrÃ©moille Maximilian Sforza, Cardinal Matthaeus Schiner Strength 30,000 Unknown The Battle of Marignano, in the phase of the Italian Wars (1494â€“1559) that is called the War of... Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther in the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem. ...

Following the decisive French defeat at Pavia in 1525, which seemed to leave the Imperial forces of Charles V dominant in Italy, Francesco joined the League of Cognac against the Emperor along with Venice, Florence the Pope, and the French. This resulted quickly in his own expulsion from Milan by Imperial forces, but he managed to remain in control of various other cities in the Duchy, and was again restored to Milan itself by the peace concluded at Cambrai in 1529. Combatants France Holy Roman Empire, Spain Commanders Francis I of France Charles de Lannoy, Antonio de Leyva Strength 17,000 infantry 6,500 cavalry 53 guns[citation needed] 19,000 infantry 4,000 cavalry 17 guns[citation needed] Casualties 12,000 dead or wounded[citation needed] 500 dead or wounded... Events January 21 - The Swiss Anabaptist Movement was born when Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, and about a dozen others baptized each other in the home of Manzs mother on Neustadt-Gasse, ZÃ¼rich, breaking a thousand-year tradition of church-state union. ... Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Aragon and Castile. ... The League of Cognac of 1526 pitted France, England, Pope Clement VII, Venice, Florence, and elements of Milan against the Emperor Charles V. Categories: Stub ... The Most Serene Republic of Venice (Venetian: SerenÃ¬sima RepÃ¹blica VÃ¨neta; Italian: ) was a Venetian city-state in Northeastern Italy, based around the city of Venice. ... Florence (Italian, Firenze) is a city in the center of Tuscany, in central Italy, on the Arno River, with a population of around 400,000, plus a suburban population in excess of 200,000. ... For the antipope (1378â€“1394) see antipope Clement VII and other Popes named Clement see Pope Clement. ... The Treaty of Cambrai is also known as the Paix des Dames (Ladies Peace). ... Events April 22 - Treaty of Saragossa divides the eastern hemisphere between Spain and Portugal, stipulating that the dividing line should lie 297. ...

When Francesco died without heirs in 1535, the question of succession again arose, with both the Emperor and the King of France claiming the Duchy, leading to more wars. The Emperor held the Duchy throughout, eventually investing it on his son Philip. The possession of the Duchy by Spain was finally recognized by the French in the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis in 1559. Events January 18 - Lima, Peru founded by Francisco Pizarro April - Jacques Cartier discovers the Iroquois city of Stadacona, Canada (now Quebec) and in May, the even greater Huron city of Hochelaga June 24 - The Anabaptist state of MÃ¼nster (see MÃ¼nster Rebellion) is conquered and disbanded. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Peace of Cateau-CambrÃ©sis is an agreement reached between Elizabeth I of England and Henry II of France on April 2 and between Henry II and Philip II of Spain on April 3, 1559, at Le Cateau-CambrÃ©sis, around twenty kilometres south-east of Cambrai, that ended... Events January 15 - Elizabeth I of England is crowned in Westminster Abbey. ...

The Duchy of Milan remained in Spanish hands until the War of the Spanish Succession in the early 18th century, when it was conquered by the Austrians. The Treaty of Baden which ended the war in 1714 ceded Milan to Austria. The Duchy remained in Austrian hands until it was overrun by the French army of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1796. The Duchy was ceded by Austria in the Treaty of Campo Formio in 1797, and formed the central part of the new Cisalpine Republic. Charles II was the last Habsburg King of Spain. ... The Treaty of Baden was the treaty that ended hostilities between France and the Holy Roman Empire, who had been at war with one another since the War of the Spanish Succession. ... Battle of Gangut, by Maurice Baquoi, 1724-27. ... Napoleon I Bonaparte, Emperor of the French, King of Italy, Mediator of the Swiss Confederation and Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine (15 August 1769 â€“ 5 May 1821) was a general of the French Revolution, the ruler of France as First Consul (Premier Consul) of the French Republic from... 1796 was a leap year starting on Friday. ... The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed on October 17, 1797 (26 VendÃ©miaire, Year VI of the French Republic) by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Ludwig von Cobenzl as representatives of France and Austria. ... 1797 (MDCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The flag of the Cisalpine Republic was the Transpadane Republic vertical Italian tricolour, with the square shape of the Cispadane Republic The Cisalpine Republic (Italian: Repubblica Cisalpina) was a French client republic in Northern Italy that lasted from 1797 to 1802. ...

See also