WI - Matilda of Canossa has an heir.

OTL, la Gran Contessa, Matilda of Canossa, died without heir in 1115.

She controlled a very large domain in northern Italy within the Holy Roman Empire, but in the aftermath of her death, the Emperor did not name a succesor to her many estates and allowed the leading members in each of her cities to chose a leader from amongst their own, heralding the age of the Italian city-states.

WI she had had an heir to inherit her many lands and keep them together? Could we perhaps see an earlier breakup of Italy from the HRE, or an independent and united Italy centuries earlier?
 
The question is can she marry and still have a recognized heir, considering she did support the Pope against Henry, and I don't think even her own succession was entirely recognized.
 
The question is can she marry and still have a recognized heir, considering she did support the Pope against Henry, and I don't think even her own succession was entirely recognized.

You do realize Matilda was married twice, right? From what I can find she and her first husband, her stepbrother Godfrey the Hunchback of Lower Lorraine had a short-lived daughter, Beatrice. So have this daughter live or be born a boy. Then Matilda has an heir (or heiress).
 
You do realize Matilda was married twice, right? From what I can find she and her first husband, her stepbrother Godfrey the Hunchback of Lower Lorraine had a short-lived daughter, Beatrice. So have this daughter live or be born a boy. Then Matilda has an heir (or heiress).

I know, but would that satisfy the WI? Although it doesn't elaborate on looking a continued house of Canossa, so it might work.
 
You do realize Matilda was married twice, right? From what I can find she and her first husband, her stepbrother Godfrey the Hunchback of Lower Lorraine had a short-lived daughter, Beatrice. So have this daughter live or be born a boy. Then Matilda has an heir (or heiress).

The second marriage would not bring any heirs: Mathilda was a bit long in the tooth, Welf the Fat (who might very well be her son, there were more than 20 years difference in their age) was impotent.

The survival of Beatrice might be more interesting: there might be a line of female countesses in the Padan Valley and Tuscany (Beatrix of Bar, Mathilda and later Beatrice) which would be both unusual and very interesting.

The best bet would however be Godfrey and Mathilda staying together a little longer (Godfrey followed Mathilda to Italy after she left, and stayed there until 1073). It's just a few years (3 or 4), but there is a reasonable possibility that an heir or two might be born. However Mathilda, according to all sources, never relented and Godfrey never had access to the marital bed after the birth of Beatrice. It's a pity we don't know the reason for this persisting hate (when Godfrey was assassinated in February 1076, it was rumored that Mathilda had commissioned the murder. There is no proof one way or another, and Godfrey had a very large number of enemies).

There is a TL on this very subject, "Tuscan Sons", written by Shadowknight with some inputs from me. ITTL Mathilda would have 2 sons and two daughters from Godfrey, before parting their ways, and both sons would be very successful.
 
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