Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy
Encyclopedia
Victor Amadeus I (8 May 1587, Turin
, Piedmont
– 7 October 1637) was the Duke of Savoy from 1630 to 1637. He was also titular King of Cyprus and Jerusalem. He was also known as the Lion of Susa
to Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy
and Catherine Micaela of Spain. He spent much of his childhood at the Spanish court in Madrid
. When his brother Filippo Emanuele, Prince of Piedmont died, he became legitimate heir to the duchy and received the loyalty swore of the court at Racconigi
on 21 January 1607.
After a crisis with relationships with Spain, he was married to Henry IV of France
's daughter Christine Marie
in 1619.
Victor Amadeus became Duke of Savoy after his father's death in 1630. Charles Emmanuel's policies had brought a great instability in the relationships with both France and Spain, and troops were needed to defend the Duchy. As money was lacking to recruit mercenaries or train indigenous soldiers, Victor Amadeus signed a peace treaty with Spain. With the Treaty of Cherasco, Savoy was given back Pinerolo
, although, according to a secret point of the agreement, that important stronghold was to remain with France in exchange for Geneve.
Subsequently, under the direction of Cardinal Richelieu, Victor Amadeus attempted to create an anti-Spanish league in Italy
. He achieved two victories against the Spanish: In 1636 in the Battle of Tornavento
and on September 8, 1637 in the battle of Mombaldone.
On 25 September of that year, Victor Amadeus fell ill after a dinner offered by the Duke of Créqui. Carried to Turin, he died here on 7 October.
(1606–1663), Regent of the Duchy from 1637 to 1663 and a daughter of Henry IV of France
and Marie de' Medici
. They had children including:
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
– 7 October 1637) was the Duke of Savoy from 1630 to 1637. He was also titular King of Cyprus and Jerusalem. He was also known as the Lion of Susa
Biography
He was born in TurinTurin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
to Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy
Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy
Charles Emmanuel I , known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy from 1580 to 1630...
and Catherine Micaela of Spain. He spent much of his childhood at the Spanish court in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
. When his brother Filippo Emanuele, Prince of Piedmont died, he became legitimate heir to the duchy and received the loyalty swore of the court at Racconigi
Racconigi
Racconigi is a town and comune in Piedmont, Italy. It is located in the province of Cuneo, south of Turin, and north of Cuneo by rail.The economy is mostly based on agriculture, production of milk and meat, and industrial working of metal sheets....
on 21 January 1607.
After a crisis with relationships with Spain, he was married to Henry IV of France
Henry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
's daughter Christine Marie
Christine Marie of France
Christine of France was the sister of Louis XIII and the Duchess of Savoy by marriage. At the death of her husband Victor Amadeus I in 1637, she acted as regent of Savoy between 1637 and 1648....
in 1619.
Pinerolo
Pinerolo is a town and comune in north-western Italy, 40 kilometres southwest of Turin on the river Chisone.-History:In the Middle Ages, the town of Pinerolo was one of the main crossroads in Italy, and was therefore one of the principal fortresses of the dukes of Savoy. Its military importance...
, although, according to a secret point of the agreement, that important stronghold was to remain with France in exchange for Geneve.
Subsequently, under the direction of Cardinal Richelieu, Victor Amadeus attempted to create an anti-Spanish league in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. He achieved two victories against the Spanish: In 1636 in the Battle of Tornavento
Battle of Tornavento
The Battle of Tornavento was a battle fought in Italy on June 22, 1636 during the Thirty Years' War.In 1636, Cardinal Richelieu had persuaded the Duke of Savoy to launch an offensive on the Spanish Duchy of Milan....
and on September 8, 1637 in the battle of Mombaldone.
On 25 September of that year, Victor Amadeus fell ill after a dinner offered by the Duke of Créqui. Carried to Turin, he died here on 7 October.
Marriage and issue
He married Christine Marie of FranceChristine Marie of France
Christine of France was the sister of Louis XIII and the Duchess of Savoy by marriage. At the death of her husband Victor Amadeus I in 1637, she acted as regent of Savoy between 1637 and 1648....
(1606–1663), Regent of the Duchy from 1637 to 1663 and a daughter of Henry IV of France
Henry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
and Marie de' Medici
Marie de' Medici
Marie de Médicis , Italian Maria de' Medici, was queen consort of France, as the second wife of King Henry IV of France, of the House of Bourbon. She herself was a member of the wealthy and powerful House of Medici...
. They had children including:
- Stillborn son (1621)
- Prince Louis Amadeus of Savoy (TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 1622 - TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 1628) - Princess Louise Christine of Savoy (TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 27 July 1629 - TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 14 May 1692), married her uncle Prince Maurice of SavoyMaurice of SavoyMaurice of Savoy was a Prince of Savoy and an 17th century cardinal.-Life:He was the son of Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy and Infanta Catherine Michelle of Spain. Aged 14, in 1607, he became cardinal and bishop of Vercelli... - Prince Francis Hyacinth of SavoyFrancis Hyacinth, Duke of SavoyFrancis Hyacinth was the Duke of Savoy from 1637 to 1638 under regency of his mother Marie Christine.-Biography:...
(TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 14 September 1632 - Castello del ValentinoCastello del ValentinoThe Castle of Valentino is an historic building in the north-west Italian city of Turin. It is located in Valentino Park, and is the seat of the Architecture Faculty of the Polytechnic University of Turin...
, 4 October 1638), Duke of Savoy - Prince Charles Emmanuel of SavoyCharles Emmanuel II, Duke of SavoyCharles Emmanuel II was the Duke of Savoy from 1638 to 1675 and under regency of his mother Christine Marie of France until 1663. He was also Marquis of Saluzzo, Count of Aosta, Geneva, Moriana and Nice, as well as claimant king of Cyprus and Jerusalem...
(20 June 1634 - Palace of VenariaPalace of VenariaThe Palace of Venaria is a former royal residence located in Venaria Reale, near Turin, in Piedmont, northern Italy...
, 12 June 1675), Duke of Savoy; married first his first cousin Françoise Madeleine d'OrléansFrançoise Madeleine d'OrléansFrançoise Madeleine d'Orléans was born a Princess of France and was the Duchess of Savoy as the first wife of Charles Emmanuel II. She was a first cousin of Louis XIV as well of her husband...
and had no issue; secondly married another first cousin Marie Jeanne of Savoy and had issue; - Princess Margaret Yolande of SavoyPrincess Margaret Yolande of SavoyMargaret Yolande of Savoy was Princess of Savoy from birth and later Duchess consort of Parma. A proposed bride for her first cousin Louis XIV of France, she later married Ranuccio Farnese, son of the late Odoardo Farnese and Margherita de' Medici...
(TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 15 November 1635 - ParmaParmaParma is a city in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna famous for its ham, its cheese, its architecture and the fine countryside around it. This is the home of the University of Parma, one of the oldest universities in the world....
, 29 April 1663), married Ranuccio II Farnese, Duke of ParmaRanuccio II Farnese, Duke of ParmaRanuccio II Farnese was the sixth Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1646 until his death nearly 50 years later.-Birth and Succession:...
; had two stillborn children; died giving birth to her last child; - Princess Henrietta Adelaide Marie of Savoy (TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 6 November 1636 - MunichMunichMunich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, 18 March 1676), married Ferdinand MariaFerdinand Maria, Elector of BavariaFerdinand Maria, Elector of Bavaria was a Wittelsbach ruler of Bavaria and an elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 1651 to 1679.-Biography:He was born in Munich...
of WittelsbachWittelsbachThe Wittelsbach family is a European royal family and a German dynasty from Bavaria.Members of the family served as Dukes, Electors and Kings of Bavaria , Counts Palatine of the Rhine , Margraves of Brandenburg , Counts of Holland, Hainaut and Zeeland , Elector-Archbishops of Cologne , Dukes of...
, Elector of BavariaBavariaBavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
and had issue - Princess Catherine Beatrice of SavoyPrincess Catherine Beatrice of SavoyCatherine Beatrice of Savoy was a Princess of Savoy by birth. She was the youngest daughter born to Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy and his French consort Princess Christine Marie of France.-Biography:...
(TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 6 November 1636 - TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, 26 August 1637) twin of the above
Ancestry
Titles and styles
- 8 May 1587 – 21 January 1607 His Highness Victor Amadeus of Savoy
- 21 January 1607 – 26 July 1630His Highness the Prince of Piedmont
- 26 July 1630 – 7 October 1637 His Highness the Duke of Savoy