Giovanni della Rovere (1457 ? November 1501) was an Italian condottiero . He was a nephew of Pope Sixtus IV , and the brother of Giuliano della Rovere (1443?1513), Pope Julius II from 1503.

Biography [ edit ]

Giovanni della Rovere was born at Savona . In 1474, thanks to his uncle, Pope Sixtus IV , he became lord of the papal fiefs of Senigallia and Mondavio . He was also Prefect of Rome and Duke of Sora and Arce . In 1484, Pope Innocent VIII appointed him Captain-General of the Church . ^[2]

He married Giovanna da Montefeltro , daughter of Federico III da Montefeltro , and some of their descendants adopted the surname Montefeltro della Rovere . Their children included Francesco Maria I della Rovere , the first Duke of Urbino, who married Eleonora Gonzaga .

After Charles VIII of France had abandoned the Kingdom of Naples and the Aragonese had been restored there, a conspiracy was hatched against the latter at Isola di Sora , in Giovanni's territories. However, the plot was thwarted, although after it the Duchy of Sora followed a more anti-Spanish and pro-papal policy, and Giovanni led some pro-French expeditions in Campania and Abruzzo from 1494 to 1501. In 1495, he conquered Ceprano , Montecassino and the Terra Sancti Benedicti . In 1496, he defended the duchy against Prospero Colonna and Frederick IV of Naples , losing some territories, although most of them were later returned to him by Pope Alexander VI .

Giovanni della Rovere died in Rome in 1501.

See also [ edit ]

• Duchy of Sora

Notes [ edit ]

References [ edit ]

• Hollingsworth, Mary (2011): The Borgias. History's Most Notorious Dynasty . Quercus. ISBN   978-0857389169