Ferdinando Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua

The Duke of Mantua and Montferrat.

Ferdinand I Gonzaga (April 26, 1587 – October 29, 1626) was Duke of Mantua and Duke of Montferrat from 1612 until his death.

Biography

Born in Mantua, he was the son of Vincent I Gonzaga and Eleonora de' Medici.

Appointed as cardinal at 20, he renounced to the ecclesiastical career when his elder brother, Duke Francis IV, died in 1612 without heirs. He succeeded him in both the Duchy of Mantua and the Duchy of Montferrat.

In 1616 he secretly married Camilla Faà di Bruno, whom, he divorced in the same year. Their son Giacinto Teodoro Giovanni, although accepted at court, was not made Ferdinando’s heir; he died of the plague—or was murdered—during the 1630 siege of Mantua. On February 16, 1617 he married to Catherine de' Medici (1593–1629), the daughter of Ferdinand I, Grand Duke of Tuscany.

Ferdinand Gonzaga died in 1626. His younger brother Vincent II inherited the duchy.

Ancestry

Preceded by Francis IV	Duke of Mantua 1612–1626	Succeeded by Vincent II
	Duke of Montferrat 1612–1626