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Name: Leonello d'Este

Achievements: Introduced humanist scholarship and art to Ferrara.

Born: 1407; Ferrara, Italy

Died: 1450; Ferrara, Italy (Aged 43)

Field & Discipline: Royalty; Ruler

Language:  Italian

Father: Nicolò III (1393-1441, son of Alberto V of Ferrara)

Mother: Gigliola (daughter of Francesco Novello da Carrara, the lord of

Padua)

Siblings: Niccolo (older brother); Borso (younger brother and successor,

reigned 1450-71)

Spouse: 1) Margherita Gonzaga (m. 1435); 2) Maria of Aragon (illegitimate daughter of Alfonso the Magnanimous, m. 1444)

Children: None

Education: From a succession of tutors, mainly in warfare (to 1424); humanist education from great scholar and teacher Guarino da Verona (from 1429)

Life & Times: 

Leonello d’Este was born in not only turbulent times, but into a family with a chequered background.  For centuries, the Este family had been successful soldiers and politicians.

Under the reign of his father, Nicolò III, the family’s domination of the Ferrara area, together with its expanding influence in Italian politics, reflected Nicolò’s strong leadership, particularly in his successful struggle to prevent the Paduans from taking control.

At the time of Leonello’s birth, it was considered essential that a prospective ruler be thoroughly trained in warfare, so the boy spent his formative years, up until 1424, learning the rules of battle from the mercenary Braccio da Montone, in Umbria and Tuscany.

In that year, Leonello returned to the family home, Este Castle in Ferrara, where his father had founded an important library, which drew many scholars, including, in 1429, Guarino da Verona,  who was to be his personal tutor.  This was the beginning of Leonello’s transformation into a humanist.

One of Leonello’s  great acts was to resurrect Ferrara University.  Just three weeks after becoming the Lord of Ferrara, on January 17, 1442 he appointed a university commission to prevent abuses.  He also provided substantial funds and solicited his many friends to recruit teachers and pupils.

As a result, the university flourished, increasing its student intake by a factor of 10 across the rest of the decade, allowing Leonello to develop relationships with a great many poets and scholars.

This generous spirit came as a result of the continuing influence of Guarino, who taught him to love all things artistic, instilling in him, particularly, an appreciation of the work of Pisanello,  who in his many visits to Ferrara,  not only painted Leonello a number of times, but also worked on decorations in the palace.

Leonello became a collector of paintings by Rogier  van der Weyden, hanging them in his palace at Belfiore.  As a result of this the oil painting technique was introduced to Ferrara.  Leonello brought to Ferrara artists [patron of] Mantegna* and [patron of] Alberti*. 

Politically, Leonello also inherited the diplomatic abilities of his father, whose long-standing alliance with Venice was then maintained throughout Leonello’s reign. 

Throughout his reign Leonello cared for the poor and repealed many repressive taxes.  He also formed an alliance with Bishop Giovanna da Tossignano to establish the Hospital of Santa Anna, a medical hospital free to the people of Ferrara and, to this day, the city’s main medical facility.

After only nine years of benign rule, Leonello suffered a premature death, to be succeeded by his brother Borso, in 1450.

Extra Connections:  Knew the work of [knew work of] Della Francesca*

His sister planned to marry [sister was to marry] Federigo di Montefeltro*

The flourishing of cultural movements later in Ferrara was mainly attributed to the efforts of Leonello. Today, the University of Ferrara continues to be one of the top universities in Europe.

The building activities of Leonello essentially made Ferrara into a humanistic center as the reformation of the University of Ferrara not only attracted students, scholars, and philosophers from all over Europe, but the burgeoning of artistic advancements in art and architecture also allowed artists to fully develop themselves within the city. Its environment naturally became an artistic center for later artists, which led to further developments in art and music in the 15th century. The gradual series of reformation ultimately turned Ferrara into a significant heritage site in Europe and now Ferrara is listed as one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites

Assessment: Leonello put Ferrara on the literary map of Europe and made it a center of language and philology , with a thriving university and a court that was a refined gathering place of cultivated humanists and renowned artists.

Oneliner: Leonello d’Este, Renaissance ruler of Ferrara

Bibliography:

• Gundersheimer, Werner L., Ferrara: The Style of a Renaissance Despotism, Princeton University Press: Princeton, N.J., 1973.

Leonello d'Este, Marquis of Ferrara - Wikipedia