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Ranuccio II Farnese

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Ranuccio II Farnese
Portrait of Ranuccio II by Jacob Denys
Duke of Parma and Piacenza
Reign11 September 1646 – 11 December 1694
PredecessorOdoardo
SuccessorFrancesco
Regents1646–1648:
Francesco Maria Farnese
Margherita de' Medici
Born(1630-09-17)17 September 1630
Parma, Duchy of Parma and Piacenza
Died11 December 1694(1694-12-11) (aged 64)
Parma, Duchy of Parma and Piacenza
Burial
Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Steccata
SpouseMargaret Yolande of Savoy
Isabella d'Este
Maria d'Este
IssueMargherita Maria, Duchess of Modena
Odoardo, Hereditary Prince of Parma
Francesco, Duke of Parma
Antonio, Duke of Parma
HouseFarnese
FatherOdoardo Farnese, Duke of Parma
MotherMargherita de' Medici

Ranuccio II Farnese (17 September 1630 – 11 December 1694) was the sixth Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1646 until his death nearly 50 years later. He was also the Duke of Castro from 1646 until 1649.

Biography

Birth and Succession

Ranuccio was the eldest son of Odoardo Farnese, the fifth sovereign duke of Parma, and his Tuscan wife, Margherita de' Medici. After his father's sudden death, Ranuccio succeeded as duke. As he was a minor and had not yet reached his majority, he ruled the first two years of his reign under the regency of his uncle, Francesco Maria Farnese and his mother.

Ranuccio belonged to the House of Farnese, whose duchy were founded by his patrilineal ancestor, Pope Paul III, formerly Alessandro Farnese. The Farnese Dukes had been ruling Parma and Piacenza since Pope Paul's illegitimate son Pier Luigi Farnese was given it as a possession. Pier Luigi was also Duke of Castro, a title he was bestowed upon by his father, after the latter created it from the lands recovered after the death of Ranuccio the Elder, Pier Luigi's younger brother.

Conflicts with the Papacy

Pope Innocent X, conqueror and destroyer of Castro

During Odoardo's reign the declining Duchy had been involved in the Wars of Castro, over the above-mentioned duchy of Castro, which was a Farnese fief in the Papal States, north of Rome, which the powerful Pope Urban VIII's family, the Barberini, was eager to acquire. They found the excuse when Odoardo was unable to repay his creditors, from whom he had incurred debts. Urban responded to the creditors' plea for help and had Castro occupied. However, the first war ended with Papal defeat.

Ranuccio refused to repay the debts incurred by his father, despite the latter having a signed peace treaty agreeing to do so. He also refused to recognize the new bishop of Castro, appointed by Urban's successor, Innocent X. In 1649, the new bishop, Cardinal Cristoforo Giarda, was murdered on his way to Castro. Innocent accused Ranuccio of the murder and in retaliation, forces loyal to the Pope besieged Castro, and then razed it to the ground. In August of that same year, the Parmense troops had been crushed not far from Bologna, and Ranuccio remained with no means to gain back his fief, despite his attempts to buy it back with money.

In 1672 he bought the principate of Bardi and Compiano from Gianandrea Doria Landi, giving the Duchy its final shape. In the last days of his reign, the Duchy suffered heavily from the presence of Imperial troops, who were fighting in the dispute between Victor Amadeus II of Savoy and France.

Family

Margaret Yolande, Ranuccio's first wife

Ranuccio II was married three times:

On 29 April 1660, Ranuccio married firstly Marguerite Yolande of Savoy (b. 15 November 1635 – d. 29 April 1663), a daughter of Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy and Christine Marie of France. They had two children:

Name of child Lifespan Marriages and Issue
unnamed daughter 14 December 1661 – 14 December 1661 None
unnamed son 27 April 1663 – 28 April 1663 None

On 18 February 1664 Ranuccio married secondly Isabella d'Este of Modena (b. 3 October 1635 – d. 17 August 1666), a daughter of Francesco I d'Este and his cousin. They had three children:

Name of child Lifespan Marriages and Issue
Margherita Maria Farnese 24 November 1664 – 17 June 1718 Francesco II d'Este, Duke of Modena, no issue
Teresa Farnese 10 October 1665 – 9 November 1702 Never Married; Benedictine nun in Sant’ Alessandro Monastery of Parma
Odoardo Farnese, Hereditary Prince of Parma 12 August 1666 – 6 September 1693 Countess Palatine Dorothea Sophie of Neuburg,[1] had issue

On 1 January 1668 he married Maria d'Este of Modena, (b. 8 December 1644 – d. 20 August 1684), his second wife's sister. They had nine children:

Name of child Lifespan Marriages and Issue
Isabella Francesca Maria Lucia Farnese 14 December 1668 – 9 July 1718 Never Married; Benedictine nun in Santa Maria di Campagna Monastery of Piacenza.
Vittoria Maria Francesca Farnese 24 December 1669 – 15 September 1671
Unnamed son 24 June 1671 – 28 June 1671
Vittoria Farnese 19 November 1672 – 19 November 1672
Caterina Farnese 19 November 1672 – 19 November 1672
Unnamed son 26 December 1674 – 26 December 1674
Eleonora Farnese 1 September 1675 – 3 November 1675
Francesco Farnese, Duke of Parma 19 May 1678 – 26 February 1727 Countess Palatine Dorothea Sophie of Neuburg,[1] no issue
Antonio Farnese, Duke of Parma[1] 29 November 1679 – 20 January 1731 Enrichetta d'Este, no issue

Ancestry

References

  1. ^ a b c Gamrath 2007, p. 204.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ranuccio II Farnese.

Sources

  • Gamrath, Helge (2007). Farnese: Pomp, Power and Politics in Renaissance Italy. L'Erma di Bretschneider.
  • https://web.archive.org/web/20050204142743/http://www.comune.piacenza.it/english/history/Ifarnese.htm (Retrieved January 23, 2005)
  • http://www.italycyberguide.com/History/factspersons/wxyz.htm (Retrieved January 23, 2005)
  • http://page.freett.com/mako_vl/name/hausf.html (Retrieved January 23, 2005)


Ranuccio II Farnese
Born: 17 September 1630 Died: 11 December 1694
Regnal titles
Preceded by Duke of Parma
1646–1694 		Succeeded by
Duke of Piacenza
1646–1694


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