Duchy of Montferrat
Ducato del Monferrato (Italian)
1574–1708
StatusDuchy
CapitalCasale Monferrato
Common languages
Religion
Catholicism
GovernmentDuchy
Duke 
• 1574–1587
Guglielmo Gonzaga (first duke)
• 1665–1708
Ferdinando Carlo Gonzaga (last)
Historical eraModern Era
• March of Montferrat raised to a duchy
1574
1628–31
• Claims by House of Savoy confirmed
1648
• Annexed by Duchy of Savoy
1708
1713
CurrencyCavallotto, Ducat
Preceded by		Succeeded by
March of Montferrat
Duchy of Savoy

The Duchy of Montferrat was a state located in Northern Italy. It was created out of what was left of the medieval March of Montferrat after the last Palaeologus heir had died (1533) and the margraviate had been briefly controlled by the Emperor Charles V (until 1536). After that brief interlude, it passed by marriage of the last heiress, Margaret of Montferrat, to the House of Gonzaga, already dukes of Mantua. In 1574 the fief was elevated from Marquisat to Duchy.[1]

Its territory, located in southern Piedmont, is still known today as Montferrat.[2][3]

At that time, the state of Montferrat had an area of 2750 km2, and consisted of two separate parts bordered by the Duchy of Savoy, the Duchy of Milan, and the Republic of Genoa. Its capital was Casale Monferrato.

With the War of the Mantuan Succession (1628–1631), a piece of the duchy passed to Savoy; the remainder passed to Savoy in 1708, as Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, gained possession of the principal Gonzaga territory, the Duchy of Mantua.

See also

References

  • "Casale Monferrato". Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary Merriam-Webster, 1997 pg. 219
  1. ↑ wp_1307569 (2017-06-29). "Il ducato di Mantova". Marchesi del Monferrato (in Italian). Retrieved 2020-07-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ↑ Hetter, Katia. "UNESCO's newest World Heritage Sites". CNN. Retrieved 2020-07-01.
  3. ↑ Medievale, Italia (2017-04-08). "Facciamo chiarezza sulle origini del Monferrato Storico". Italia Medievale (in Italian). Retrieved 2020-07-01.

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