Rinaldo Ariosto

A cousin of the poet, was tied to him by immense affection since when, in 1489, Niccolò Ariosto and his family moved to Modena and the adolescent Ludovico, after a short stay in Modena, was probably entrusted to his uncles in Ferrara. In this period of his life the company of his rich and dashing cousin enlivened  young Ludovico’s life, distracting him from his studies in law.  Rinaldo served Ercole I d’Este , till 1505, when the Duke died, together with other members of the Ariosto family such as his uncle Francesco and his distant relative Antonio. He had a good relationship with Isabella d’Este Gonzaga, as appears from correspondence, to the point that when, in January 1507, she gave birth to her son Ferrante, future Viceroy of Sicily, the House of Este sent him and Ludovico as emissaries. For sure Ludovico was with his cousin Rinaldo, in February 1507, when he returned from his first embassy to Mantua and Marchioness Isabella. Rinaldo held many posts, such as that of the captaincy of Reggio in 1505-1506, commissioner of Garfagnana in 1507-1509, commissioner of Montagnana in 1510 and of Romagna in 1514-1516. He lastly held the prestigious post of ambassador for the House of Este at the Medici court in 1518. He married three times: the first with Bianca di Lando, the second with Creusa Strozzi and the third with Contarina Farnese, this last quite a spendthrift. He had two daughters from his first wife, Lucrezia and Costanza, with the second he had only one, Bianca, and the third bore him no children. After years of illness he died on 7 July 1519 in the house at Santa Maria di Bocche in Ferrara, without leaving any legitimate mail heirs. The matter of Rinaldo Ariosto’s conspicuous inheritance was a source of great torment for Ludovico, because it caused a family feud and a series of interminable court cases.