Antonia Malatesta of Cesena

Antonia Malatest was born sometime after 1391 in Cesena and was the daughter[1] of the condottiero Andrea Malatesta[2][3] and Ricciarda (or Rengarda) Alidosi and the niece[4] of Carlo I Malatesta, Lord of Cesena, Fano, Pesaro, and Rimini.

Antonia's mother, Rengarda, died very young in 1401, allegedly repudiated by her husband Malatesta and then poisoned by her brothers on suspicion of adultery.

On May 16, 1412, while Giovanni Maria was on his way to the church of San Gottardo, a large group of conspirators, among whom belonged to the major Milanese noble families, stabbed him to death.

After Giovanni Maria's assassination in 1412, the succeeding Duke of Milan, Filippo Maria Visconti, permitted Antonia to continue sharing the governance of the duchy for a few months.

[8] Although she soon retired to Cesena, she retained her title, Duchess of Milan.