Francis IV, Duke of Modena

Francis IV Joseph Charles Ambrose Stanislaus (Italian: "Francesco IV Giuseppe Carlo Ambrogio Stanislao d'Absburgo-Este"; 6 October, 1779 - 21 January, 1846) was Duke of Modena, Reggio, and Mirandola (from 1815), Duke of Massa and Prince of Carrara (from 1829), Archduke of Austria-Este, Royal Prince of Hungary and Bohemia, Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He was a grandson of Maria Theresa of Austria, head of the House of Habsburg, and was heir to the Modena branch of the House of Este through his mother. He thus became the first member of the House of Habsburg-Este to rule the Este inheritance in Northern Italy.

Francis was born in Milan. His father was Archduke Ferdinand of Austria-Este, Duke of Breisgau, his mother Maria Beatrice Ricciarda d'Este, Duchess of Massa and Princess of Carrara, Lady of Lunigiana.

Francis is distinguished for his bloody and tyrannic rule by which he repressed all the democratic movements appearing during his reign. The atrocities of the Ducal policies are illustrated in the book "Ciro Menotti e i suoi compagni" written by the Garibaldine officer Taddeo Gaddi in 1880, in particular the hanging of Menotti for an attempted insurrection against the Duke (1831).

Family

In 1812 Francis married the Princess Maria Beatrice of Savoy, who was the daughter of King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia and his sister Archduchess Maria Teresa of Austria-Este. The couple had four children:

* Maria Theresa (1817-1886), married Henri, comte de Chambord.
* Francis V, Duke of Modena (1819-1875), married Princess Adelgunde of Bavaria.
* Ferdinand Karl (1821-1849), married Archduchess Elisabeth Franziska of Austria. Father of Maria Theresia, Archduchess of Austria-Este.
* Maria Beatrix (1824-1906), married Juan, Count of Montizón.

Ancestry

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1= 1. Francis IV, Duke of Modena
2= 2. Archduke Ferdinand of Austria-Este
3= 3. Maria Beatrice Ricciarda d'Este
4= 4. Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor
5= 5. Maria Theresa of Austria
6= 6. Ercole III d'Este, Duke of Modena
7= 7. Maria Teresa Cibo-Malsapina, Duchess of Massa
8= 8. Leopold, Duke of Lorraine
9= 9. Élisabeth Charlotte of Orléans
10= 10. Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
11= 11. Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
12= 12. Francesco III d'Este, Duke of Modena
13= 13. Charlotte Aglaé of Orléans
14= 14. Alderano Cibo-Malsapina, Duke of Massa
15= 15. Ricciardia Gonzaga of Novellara
16= 16. Charles V, Duke of Lorraine
17= 17. Eleonora Maria Josefa of Austria
18= 18. Philippe I, Duke of Orléans
19= 19. Elizabeth Charlotte, Princess Palatine
20= 20. Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
21= 21. Eleonore-Magdalena of Neuburg
22= 22. Louis Rudolph, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
23= 23. Princess Christine Louise of Oettingen-Oettingen
24= 24. Rinaldo III, Duke of Modena
25= 25. Charlotte Felicity of Brunswick-Lüneburg
26= 26. Philippe II, Duke of Orléans
27= 27. Françoise-Marie de Bourbon
28= 28. Carlo II Cibo-Malsapina, Duke of Massa
29= 29. Teresa Pamfili
30= 30. Camillo II Gonzaga, Count of Novellara
31= 31. Matilde d'Este

ee also

*List of Dukes of Modena
*House of Este
*Modena