Charles Gonzaga, Duke of Nevers

Portrait of Charles of Gonzaga-Nevers from Matthäus Merian's Theatrum Europaeum

Charles II Gonzaga (1609–1631) was the son of Charles I, Duke of Mantua and Catherine of Mayenne, he was the Duke of Nevers and Rethel.

In 1627 he married his cousin Maria Gonzaga, inheritor to the Duchy of Mantua and the Marquisate of Montferrat. However, Cesare II Gonzaga, Duke of Guastalla and emperor Ferdinand II did not accept this succession line, leading to the War of Mantuan Succession (1628-1631).

Charles was never the proper Duke of Mantua since he died at Cavriana six years before his father. When the latter died in 1637, Charles's eight year old son, Charles II, became Duke of Mantua, his widow Maria acting as regent. His daughter Eleonora became Holy Roman Empress.

Family

In December 1627 he married his cousin Maria Gonzaga, the marriage being arranged by Vincenzo II Gonzaga.

Charles and Maria had three children:

• Maria
• Charles (1629–1665), Duke of Mantua.
• Eleonora (1630–1686), who married in 1651 Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor.

Ancestry