Marquis of Este, then Duke of Ferrara, Modena, and Reggio, born in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, N Italy. The son of Alfonso I and Lucrezia Borgia, he married Renata of France, daughter of Louis XII, in 1528. He joined the anti-imperial league with France and the Papal States in 1556, but then reached an agreement with Spain (1558) which guaranteed his domains, and was ratified the following year with the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis.
Ercole II d'Este (April 5, 1508 - October 3, 1559) was Duke of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio from 1534 to 1559.
Through his mother, Ercole was a grandson of Pope Alexander VI, nephew of Cesare Borgia, and cousin of Saint Francis Borgia. His half-siblings included Rodrigo Borgia of Aragon, Lucrezia’s son by Alfonso of Aragon, Duke of Bisceglie, and perhaps Giovanni Borgia, the “infans Romanus”.
In April 1528, he married Renée of France, the second daughter of Louis XII, King of France, and Anne of Brittany.
Once he became Duke in October of 1534, Ercole turned against the French at his court, finding them both too expensive and too influential, and by 1543 they had all been dismissed. Meanwhile, Duchess Renée was corresponding with a number of Protestants and was suspected to have converted, despite the presence of a special court of the Inquisition in Ferrara. Ercole brought accusations of heresy against his wife to King Henry II of France and Inquisitor Oriz in 1554, and she subsequently confessed.
Ercole sided with Pope Paul IV and France against Spain in 1556, but made a separate peace agreement in 1558.
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Preceded by: Alfonso I |
Duke of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio 1534–1559 |
Succeeded by: Alfonso II |
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