Obizzo III d'Este

Obizzo III d'Este
Obizzo III depicted in the Genealogia dei principi d'Este (1470s)
Born14 July 1294
Died20 March 1352(1352-03-20) (aged 57)
Noble familyHouse of Este
SpousesElisabeth of Saxe-Wittenberg
Lippa Ariosti
Issue
Detail
Albert V d'Este
FatherAldobrandino II d'Este
MotherAlda Rangoni

Obizzo III d'Este (14 July 1294 – 20 March 1352) was the Marquess of Ferrara from 1317 until his death. He initially shared the lordship of Ferrar with his brothers, but ended up as the sole ruler. Obizzo expanded his family possessions by acquiring the cities of Modena and Parma.

Life

Obizzo was the son of Aldobrandino II d'Este and Alda Rangoni.[1] He was lord of Ferrara with his brothers Rinaldo and Niccolò, and his cousin Folco II, but in the end reigned as sole ruler. He managed to enlarge the family possessions with their restoration by consilia generale communis et populi of Modena in 1336,[2] while Parma was sold to Obizzo in 1344.[3]

In May 1317, Obizzo married firstly Giacoma Pepoli,[1] daughter of Romeo de' Peppoli from Bologna, with whom he had no children. There are also reports that he married Princess Elisabeth of Saxony, Angria, and Westphalia, daughter of Albert II, Duke of Saxony.

In 1347, Obizzo married secondly Lippa Ariosti, known as la Bella, and his long-time mistress.[4] The marriage took place shortly before Lippa's death on 27 November 1347 to legitimize their many children:

In addition, Obizzo had another illegitimate son by an unknown mistress, Giovanni (1324–1389), later Governor of Frignano, who was also legitimized.

References

  1. ^ a b Hyde 1966, p. 70.
  2. ^ Cochrane 2019, p. 100.
  3. ^ Allen 1910, p. 279.
  4. ^ Bestor 1996, p. 562.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Bestor 1996, p. 560.

Sources