The Succession
As the Seventeenth Century drew to a close, Cosimo III became more and more concerned about Tuscany’s future and to whom the crown would ultimately devolve. He turned first to plans for the marriage of his eldest son and heir, Ferdinando, the Gran Principe, though Ferdinando was much too apathetic to show much interest. To begin, Ferdinando was offered the choice of five possible brides: the Portuguese Infanta, the sole daughter and heiress presumptive of the King of Portugal; a Bavarian princess; two daughters of the Elector Palatine; and, finally, a princess from Parma.
Louis XIV favored the union with the Infanta Maria Isabella, daughter of Pedro II, King of Portugal. Pedro II had no male heir and Louis wanted to find a husband for Maria Isabella from a friendly state. The conditions required by the Portuguese, however, made such a match impossible. First, they would have required Ferdinando to reside in Lisbon, renouncing any right to the Tuscan throne, unless Pedro married again and there were male heirs from that union. The second unacceptable condition was that if the Infanta became Queen of Portugal, and Cosimo III, Gian Gastone and Francesco Maria died without male heirs, then Tuscany should be annexed to the Portuguese crown and a viceroy would govern Florence.
A second choice was Princess Violante of Bavaria, the sister of Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria, La Grande Dauphine of France and wife of Louis, the son and heir of Louis XIV. After extensive negotiations, including a trip to Venice for Ferdinando, the contract for their marriage was signed on 24 May 1688. The Princess finally arrived in Florence on 29 December 1688, and was crowned on 9 January 1689. The marriage was celebrated with great fanfare, but Ferdinando was apparently not taken with his new German bride.
When Ferdinando’s marriage failed to produce an heir, Cosimo III turned his attention to the marriage prospects of Ferdinando’s younger brother, Gian Gastone. He too evinced no particular interest in marrying, but his father felt compelled to search for a suitable princess. Upon the advice of his daughter, Anna Maria Louisa, Cosimo III turned to Anna Maria Francesca, the Princess of Saxe-Lauenburg, the daughter of the last Duke of Saxe-Laurenburg, and widow of the Count Palatine, Philip of Neuberg. Her matrimonial alliance with Gian Gastone was settled on 4 March 1697 but on terms that were hardly satisfactory to the Tuscan prince. Aside from the princess’s unfortunate appearance and personality, Gian Gastone was required to live at Reichstadt, her castle located near Prague. Their marriage was tempestuous at best. His marriage, like that of his brother, produced no heirs.
As time passed and it became increasing more unlikely that a Medici would produce any heirs, Austria began looking for pretexts to occupy Tuscany. Determined to protect his family and his grand duchy, Cosimo III left no stone unturned. He turned to his brother, Cardinal Francesco Maria, convincing him that he should seek a dispensation from Holy Orders and then marry. The Pope granted his dispensation, and Francesco Maria, then forty-eight, turned to the young Princess Eleanora, daughter of Vincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Guastalla and Sabbioneta. She was twenty-five years his junior. They were married in 1709, but the Princess steadfastly refused to consummate their marriage. While she eventually consented, her husband died on 3 February 1711 after only two years of marriage – and no heir.
Meanwhile, much of Europe was in turmoil as the result of the War of the Spanish Succession that began in 1701 at the death of King Charles II of Spain, the last Habsburg king of Spain. The Emperor Joseph I of Austria claimed the Spanish throne on behalf of his second son, Charles, while Louis XIV claimed the throne for his grandson, Philip V. The ensuing war involved most of Europe, with England, the Dutch Republic, and Austria on one side and France on the other. Throughout the war, Cosimo struggled to maintain Tuscany’s neutrality between all these warring factions.
In the absence of a Medici heir, he finally came to believe that the best course of action was for Florence to be returned to her citizens in the form of the ancient republic. At the peace talks in Getruydenberg in 1709, Cosimo’s spokesman, Carlo Rinuccini, managed to convince the English and the Dutch to accept the idea of Florentine republicanism and they approved the project. Late in the negotiations, however, Cosimo demanded that the immediate succession must devolve upon his daughter, Anna Maria Luisa, the Electress Palatine. This demand was too much for the English and Dutch representatives and so the matter remained unresolved.
And it was still unresolved when the emperor Joseph I died in April 1711, but the question was shelved pending the resolution of more important matters. In December 1711, Anna Maria Luisa met with the new Emperor, Charles VI, to discuss her father’s plan for the succession. Charles VI notified Anna Maria on 9 January 1712 that he would accept Cosimo’s project, but only if he, Charles, were named as Anna Maria’s successor. Such a condition was unacceptable to both Cosimo and Anna Maria, and, once again, the matter was left unresolved.
With the death of Ferdinando, the Gran Principe, on 30 October 1713, the matter once again gained great importance. On 26 November 1713, Cosimo announced his intention regarding his daughter, the Electress Palatine. If Gian Gastone and he were to predecease her, she was to succeed to all the states of the Grand Duchy. The next day, he submitted his decree to the Florentine Senate for its approval and it was granted. When Charles VI received the news, he was indignant. He wrote immediately to the Elector Palatine saying that Cosimo had no right to make such a decree.
At the same time, Louis XIV informed Cosimo that he applauded his decision regarding the Electress, but he suggested that perhaps the time had come to look further into the future to guarantee the “glory of the Medici.” Cosimo was too clever to be tricked by Louis, however, and he replied that he could make no decisions until the peace between Charles VI and Philip V was settled.
To complicate matters, Philip V was now engaged to Elisabeth Farnese, the great-granddaughter of Margherita de’Medici (Ferdinando II’s sister) and thus a direct heir to Tuscany as well as the Farnese properties.
Suddenly, in May 1716, Charles VI changed tactics, notifying the Electress that he had no objection to her succeeding her father, provided that both Florence and Austria could agree on a suitable successor to the Electress. Cosimo was immediately attracted to the Austrian proposal, especially since he feared that otherwise a Farnese, with claims to the crowns of Spain and Tuscany, might unite the two, thus forfeiting Florence’s independence. Eventually, Cosimo declared that his choice fell on the Modenese House of Este. The Emperor informed Cosimo, however, that he would never agree to the union of Modena and Tuscany, and the deal fell through.
In the meantime, in London, the fate of Tuscany was being settled. England, France, and Holland, joined later by Austria, now decided that Philip V and Elisabeth Farnese’s first born – Don Carlos – should succeed to Parma, while Charles VI would have the right to freely dispose of Tuscany. This plan was not acceptable to Spain, and Cosimo did his best to play one side against the other.
On 2 August 1718, the Quadruple Alliance (between Great Britain, France, Holland, and Austria) was concluded in London. The Emperor was to get Sicily, while the House of Savoy was to receive Sardinia in exchange. The succession to Parma and Tuscany were granted to Elisabeth Farnese’s son, without consulting Cosimo, Gian Gastone, or Anna Maria Luisa. Three years of discussion followed at Cambray, while Cosimo continued to pit Spain against Austria.
When Cosimo III finally died on 31 October 1723, the matter seemed resolved, but with the death of Antonio Farnese in January 1731, a crisis arose. Charles VI occupied Parma, nominally on behalf of Don Carlos. In Tuscany, Gian Gastone and the Dowager Duchess of Parma were named as Don Carlos’s guardians since he was still a minor. Gian Gastone was apparently delighted with his heir whom he entertained in Florence. An observer at court said, “And he said some days ago, after he had signed his last Will and Testament, declaring Don Carlos, Infant of Spain, his successor: that he had just got a son and heir by the dash of a pen, which he had not been able to get in thirty-four years’ marriage.”
And then, on 1 February 1733, Augustus II of Poland died. What had seemed like a settled question for Gian Gastone once again the succession to the crown of Tuscany became a matter of great controversy.
The War of the Polish Succession opened anew a variety of questions of European sovereignty. This time the European powers decided the question without reference to Florence. As a settlement of the Polish question, Augustus III was confirmed as King of Poland. The Duchy of Lorraine passed to Louis XV’s father-in-law, Stanislas Leczinski, who had been a claimant in the Polish succession crisis. In compensation for the loss of Lorraine, Francesco Stefano, formally the Duke of Lorraine and fiancé of Maria Teresa, the Emperor’s daughter, was given Tuscany. The Duchy of Parma went to Austria whereas Charles of Parma (Don Carlo) took the crowns of Naples and Sicily, resulting in territorial gains for the Bourbons.
Gian Gastone was not completely without success in his negotiations. He failed to get the parties to agree that Tuscany was not an Imperial fief, but he did obtain a compensating clause that provided that if Francesco Stefano were to become Emperor, Tuscany would be settled on a younger member of his family, thus guaranteeing Tuscany a duke of its own.
With Gian Gastone’s death, the matter was finally settled, though Francesco Stefano, the new Grand Duke, did not enter Florence until 20 January 1739, and then he stayed only three months.
Harold Acton, The Last Medici, Thames and Hudson, 1980.
Louis XIV favored the union with the Infanta Maria Isabella, daughter of Pedro II, King of Portugal. Pedro II had no male heir and Louis wanted to find a husband for Maria Isabella from a friendly state. The conditions required by the Portuguese, however, made such a match impossible. First, they would have required Ferdinando to reside in Lisbon, renouncing any right to the Tuscan throne, unless Pedro married again and there were male heirs from that union. The second unacceptable condition was that if the Infanta became Queen of Portugal, and Cosimo III, Gian Gastone and Francesco Maria died without male heirs, then Tuscany should be annexed to the Portuguese crown and a viceroy would govern Florence.
A second choice was Princess Violante of Bavaria, the sister of Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria, La Grande Dauphine of France and wife of Louis, the son and heir of Louis XIV. After extensive negotiations, including a trip to Venice for Ferdinando, the contract for their marriage was signed on 24 May 1688. The Princess finally arrived in Florence on 29 December 1688, and was crowned on 9 January 1689. The marriage was celebrated with great fanfare, but Ferdinando was apparently not taken with his new German bride.
When Ferdinando’s marriage failed to produce an heir, Cosimo III turned his attention to the marriage prospects of Ferdinando’s younger brother, Gian Gastone. He too evinced no particular interest in marrying, but his father felt compelled to search for a suitable princess. Upon the advice of his daughter, Anna Maria Louisa, Cosimo III turned to Anna Maria Francesca, the Princess of Saxe-Lauenburg, the daughter of the last Duke of Saxe-Laurenburg, and widow of the Count Palatine, Philip of Neuberg. Her matrimonial alliance with Gian Gastone was settled on 4 March 1697 but on terms that were hardly satisfactory to the Tuscan prince. Aside from the princess’s unfortunate appearance and personality, Gian Gastone was required to live at Reichstadt, her castle located near Prague. Their marriage was tempestuous at best. His marriage, like that of his brother, produced no heirs.
As time passed and it became increasing more unlikely that a Medici would produce any heirs, Austria began looking for pretexts to occupy Tuscany. Determined to protect his family and his grand duchy, Cosimo III left no stone unturned. He turned to his brother, Cardinal Francesco Maria, convincing him that he should seek a dispensation from Holy Orders and then marry. The Pope granted his dispensation, and Francesco Maria, then forty-eight, turned to the young Princess Eleanora, daughter of Vincenzo Gonzaga, Duke of Guastalla and Sabbioneta. She was twenty-five years his junior. They were married in 1709, but the Princess steadfastly refused to consummate their marriage. While she eventually consented, her husband died on 3 February 1711 after only two years of marriage – and no heir.
Meanwhile, much of Europe was in turmoil as the result of the War of the Spanish Succession that began in 1701 at the death of King Charles II of Spain, the last Habsburg king of Spain. The Emperor Joseph I of Austria claimed the Spanish throne on behalf of his second son, Charles, while Louis XIV claimed the throne for his grandson, Philip V. The ensuing war involved most of Europe, with England, the Dutch Republic, and Austria on one side and France on the other. Throughout the war, Cosimo struggled to maintain Tuscany’s neutrality between all these warring factions.
In the absence of a Medici heir, he finally came to believe that the best course of action was for Florence to be returned to her citizens in the form of the ancient republic. At the peace talks in Getruydenberg in 1709, Cosimo’s spokesman, Carlo Rinuccini, managed to convince the English and the Dutch to accept the idea of Florentine republicanism and they approved the project. Late in the negotiations, however, Cosimo demanded that the immediate succession must devolve upon his daughter, Anna Maria Luisa, the Electress Palatine. This demand was too much for the English and Dutch representatives and so the matter remained unresolved.
And it was still unresolved when the emperor Joseph I died in April 1711, but the question was shelved pending the resolution of more important matters. In December 1711, Anna Maria Luisa met with the new Emperor, Charles VI, to discuss her father’s plan for the succession. Charles VI notified Anna Maria on 9 January 1712 that he would accept Cosimo’s project, but only if he, Charles, were named as Anna Maria’s successor. Such a condition was unacceptable to both Cosimo and Anna Maria, and, once again, the matter was left unresolved.
With the death of Ferdinando, the Gran Principe, on 30 October 1713, the matter once again gained great importance. On 26 November 1713, Cosimo announced his intention regarding his daughter, the Electress Palatine. If Gian Gastone and he were to predecease her, she was to succeed to all the states of the Grand Duchy. The next day, he submitted his decree to the Florentine Senate for its approval and it was granted. When Charles VI received the news, he was indignant. He wrote immediately to the Elector Palatine saying that Cosimo had no right to make such a decree.
At the same time, Louis XIV informed Cosimo that he applauded his decision regarding the Electress, but he suggested that perhaps the time had come to look further into the future to guarantee the “glory of the Medici.” Cosimo was too clever to be tricked by Louis, however, and he replied that he could make no decisions until the peace between Charles VI and Philip V was settled.
To complicate matters, Philip V was now engaged to Elisabeth Farnese, the great-granddaughter of Margherita de’Medici (Ferdinando II’s sister) and thus a direct heir to Tuscany as well as the Farnese properties.
Suddenly, in May 1716, Charles VI changed tactics, notifying the Electress that he had no objection to her succeeding her father, provided that both Florence and Austria could agree on a suitable successor to the Electress. Cosimo was immediately attracted to the Austrian proposal, especially since he feared that otherwise a Farnese, with claims to the crowns of Spain and Tuscany, might unite the two, thus forfeiting Florence’s independence. Eventually, Cosimo declared that his choice fell on the Modenese House of Este. The Emperor informed Cosimo, however, that he would never agree to the union of Modena and Tuscany, and the deal fell through.
In the meantime, in London, the fate of Tuscany was being settled. England, France, and Holland, joined later by Austria, now decided that Philip V and Elisabeth Farnese’s first born – Don Carlos – should succeed to Parma, while Charles VI would have the right to freely dispose of Tuscany. This plan was not acceptable to Spain, and Cosimo did his best to play one side against the other.
On 2 August 1718, the Quadruple Alliance (between Great Britain, France, Holland, and Austria) was concluded in London. The Emperor was to get Sicily, while the House of Savoy was to receive Sardinia in exchange. The succession to Parma and Tuscany were granted to Elisabeth Farnese’s son, without consulting Cosimo, Gian Gastone, or Anna Maria Luisa. Three years of discussion followed at Cambray, while Cosimo continued to pit Spain against Austria.
When Cosimo III finally died on 31 October 1723, the matter seemed resolved, but with the death of Antonio Farnese in January 1731, a crisis arose. Charles VI occupied Parma, nominally on behalf of Don Carlos. In Tuscany, Gian Gastone and the Dowager Duchess of Parma were named as Don Carlos’s guardians since he was still a minor. Gian Gastone was apparently delighted with his heir whom he entertained in Florence. An observer at court said, “And he said some days ago, after he had signed his last Will and Testament, declaring Don Carlos, Infant of Spain, his successor: that he had just got a son and heir by the dash of a pen, which he had not been able to get in thirty-four years’ marriage.”
And then, on 1 February 1733, Augustus II of Poland died. What had seemed like a settled question for Gian Gastone once again the succession to the crown of Tuscany became a matter of great controversy.
The War of the Polish Succession opened anew a variety of questions of European sovereignty. This time the European powers decided the question without reference to Florence. As a settlement of the Polish question, Augustus III was confirmed as King of Poland. The Duchy of Lorraine passed to Louis XV’s father-in-law, Stanislas Leczinski, who had been a claimant in the Polish succession crisis. In compensation for the loss of Lorraine, Francesco Stefano, formally the Duke of Lorraine and fiancé of Maria Teresa, the Emperor’s daughter, was given Tuscany. The Duchy of Parma went to Austria whereas Charles of Parma (Don Carlo) took the crowns of Naples and Sicily, resulting in territorial gains for the Bourbons.
Gian Gastone was not completely without success in his negotiations. He failed to get the parties to agree that Tuscany was not an Imperial fief, but he did obtain a compensating clause that provided that if Francesco Stefano were to become Emperor, Tuscany would be settled on a younger member of his family, thus guaranteeing Tuscany a duke of its own.
With Gian Gastone’s death, the matter was finally settled, though Francesco Stefano, the new Grand Duke, did not enter Florence until 20 January 1739, and then he stayed only three months.
Harold Acton, The Last Medici, Thames and Hudson, 1980.