Death is Bitter but Glory is Eternal
(Mors Acerba Fama Perpetua)
A History of the Sforza Dynasty
The Coat of Arms of the Sforza Dynasty
(Mors Acerba Fama Perpetua)
A History of the Sforza Dynasty
The Coat of Arms of the Sforza Dynasty
"Today the Peace of Italy has died”
- Pope Sixtus IV upon hearing of Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza’s assassination
"Having become libidinous and lustful beyond measure, putting aside all Ducal Dignity… Galeazzo Maria was doing things to be assassinated every day by his own courtiers”
- Benedetto Dei opinion on Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza’s assassination
The Italian Renaissance is a fascinating time period in European history with large scale cultural and literary changes happening against the backdrop of an ever-changing political landscape. Against this backdrop, five states, in particular, emerged as the dominant actors with Milan, Venice, Florence, Naples & the Papacy all playing an important and key role in the development of the Italian Renaissance. Among these states, Milan arguably possessed the most potential to emerge as the preeminent Italian state with large reserves of industry, wealth and manpower. Despite a succession of talented rulers, Milan squandered its brief window of opportunity and virtually ceased to be an independent actor by the start of the 16th century.
History has not been kind to Galeazzo Maria Sforza as he is often ignored or compared unfavorably to Francesco Sforza, his father, and Ludovico Maria Sforza, his younger brother. Although not as skilled or brilliant as the rulers listed above, Galeazzo Maria Sforza was not without talent. He was a ruler prone to fits of passion quick to love and hate his courtiers in equal measure and occasional of a mulish personality. Regardless of his flaws he inspired loyalty in those of his inner circle and was often referred to by contemporaries as: ‘Charming’, ‘Well Spoken’, ‘A Visionary’ and ‘Energetic’. All traits that if properly harnessed suggests the capacity for a successful rule. Despite his reign lacking any signature success, Galeazzo Maria Sforza maintained the Peace of Lodi and laid the groundwork for the Renaissance Court of Ludovico Maria Sforza.
Although his reign lacked signature successes, it is important to note that Galeazzo Maria Sforza died at age 32. He was the youngest ruling Prince in Europe during his reign as Lorenzo Medici was not an outright Prince-like Galeazzo Maria. His early reign was mostly a continuation of his father, Francesco’s policies. It was only toward 1474 onward that Galeazzo Maria began to chart his course through Italy’s delicate political climate. Many of his plans and reforms were either discarded in the chaos of his assassination or were unable to bear fruit before his demise.
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I have always been fascinated by Milanese and Italian history in general with the era of the Italian Renaissance producing numerous interesting figures and events with the potential to change history in both big and small ways. I have always had a soft spot for Milan and the Sforza Dynasty in particular after visiting the city many years ago. I decided that Galeazzo Maria Sforza would be an interesting focus for the start of this timeline given his mixed historical legacy as well as providing the longest possible time for the impact of a fully legitimatized Milanese ruler to be felt on Italian politics during the 1480’s and early 1490’s.
Please note that I am a firm believer in the butterfly effect but that the focus of the initial ripples will mostly be localized to Milan and the Italian Peninsula but due to the location and importance of the Italian peninsula during this time period it won't be long before they progressively spread out. Events related to the births or sudden illness/death of major European figures unrelated to Italy may happen without the story mentioning the details. I will strive to periodically produce a series of European snapshots to provide the context of the various changes over time.
In a similar vein to the periodic chapters discussing the various politics and wars across Europe. I will strive to also produce special ‘Portrait Series’ chapters that will go into depth on important figures rather than the primary focus on the Sforza Family.
This timeline diverges from our own in 1476, when Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza was assassinated during a Christmas time Mass at the church of Santo Stefano. The conspirators, Giovanni Andrea Lampugnai, Carlo Visconti and Gerlamo Olgiati, were motivated seemingly by personal slights from the Duke than any consistent ideology as Giovanni Andrea Lampugnai was motivated by the Duke nullifying a lease on a rural abbey and Carlo Visconti believed the Duke had taken his young sisters virginity. Although, Gerlamo Olgiati would confess under torture that they were motivated by the influence of the Humanist philosopher Cola Montano to restore the 'Republic'.
In this timeline, however, the Duke will survive his assassination attempt – Preventing the long regency council of Gian Galeazzo Sforza under Cicco Simonetta and later Ludovico Maria Sforza. Although Milan was largely at peace during this time period, it largely took a backseat to wider Italian politics until the late 1480s or early 1490s. The survival of Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza has introduced the first ripples to the timeline but they will grow with time.
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I've lurked a lot in the last few years and not commented as much as I should, this is my latest attempt at posting a timeline of my own. Although I feel this is my most mature and well-researched attempt so far. Right now I do have the major events and characters sketched out in advance but after the first couple of reigns, I will be writing blind. I hope to be able to churn out new chapters at a consistent rate but please be flexible. Also please leave any comments, criticisms, or insights into plausible and interesting ways in which the story could unfold as I am eager to develop my skills and learn some new and interesting history along the way.
First, up will be some historical background on the Visconti as well as Francesco Sforza and Galeazzo Maria Sforza leading up to his OTL assassination. This overview should provide the necessary context on the state of Dukedom of Milan and its role on the Italian Peninsula.
A note on footnotes:
1: Footnotes in regular type are “in-character” footnotes
2: Footnotes in italics are “out-of-character” footnotes, commenting on key differences from our own timeline.
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