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Francesco IV Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua

Mantua, 7 May 1586 – Mantua, 22 Dec 1612

10 facts3 sources

Facts and their sources

  • Born7 May 1586, Mantuanot verified1 source
  • TitleDuke of Màntua, 1612or Duke of Montferrat, 1612not verified1 source
  • TitleDuke of Montferrat, 1612or Duke of Màntua, 1612not verified1 source
  • Died22 Dec 1612, Mantuanot verified1 source
  • FatherVincenzo I Gonzaganot verified1 source
  • MotherEleanor de' Medicinot verified1 source

A life in time

  1. 7 May 1586

    Born in Mantua

  2. 29 Jul 1609

    A daughter is born

  3. 1612

    Duke of Màntua

  4. 1612

    Duke of Montferrat

  5. 22 Dec 1612

    Dies in Mantua, aged 26

Family

See the tree

Parents

Partner

Children · 1

During his lifetime

He lived through 4 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like around Mantua.

General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.

The 1580s · Francesco IV is born in Mantua

In the news1576–1586

Plague hits Chambéry

Between 1576 and 1586, a plague outbreak struck Chambéry and the Petit Bugey region, severely impacting the local population.

At the table

Introduction of liquid chocolate to society

In 1587, Duke Emanuele Filiberto introduced liquid chocolate to society in honor of moving the capital from Chambéry to Turin.

What people wore

Ordinary People Wore Fashionable Silk Garments

Ordinary people, including shoemakers and tailors, often wore fashionable items like silk breeches, velvet berets, and garments decorated with silk ribbons, sometimes defying strict sumptuary laws.

Getting around

Travel was primarily on foot

For the vast majority of people in the Duchy of Savoy, traveling meant going on foot, as they lacked the means for other forms of transport.

What it cost

Wheat price surge in Parma

The controlled price of wheat in Parma's public market surged from 117.18 soldi in 1588 to a peak of 402 soldi per unit in 1592 during a severe subsistence crisis.

Music

The Popular Pavane Dance

The solemn, slow-moving pavane was a popular dance used by nobles for grand entries and festivities, often accompanied by drums, oboes, trombones, and violins.

Daily life

Schooling for children in Savoy towns

Towns such as Chambery and Montmelian paid schoolmasters, supported by ecclesiastical institutions or private patronage.