[4] From 1445 to 1450 Ludovico served as condottiero for Milan, Florence, Venice, and Naples, switching his allegiance to grant a higher level of peace for his lands.

However, Francesco Sforza, the new Duke of Milan, enticed him into an alliance with the promise of turning over to him Lonato, Peschiera and Asola, formerly Mantuan territories but then part of Venice.

Carlo Gonzaga invaded his brother Ludovico's Mantuan territories on 9 March 1453 with 4,000 soldiers, seizing Castelbelforte (then known as Castelbonafisso) and Bigarello.

Ludovico gathered an army of 3,000 horse and 500 infantry and along with a detachment of Milanese troops led by the condottiere Tiberio Brandolini defeated Carlo at Castellaro Lagusello near Monzambano.

[5] However, he obtained his brother's land after Carlo's childless death in 1456.The moment of highest prestige for Mantua was the Council, held in the city from 27 May 1459 to 19 January 1460, summoned by Pope Pius II to launch a crusade against the Ottoman Turks, who had conquered Constantinople some years earlier.

[7] However, the pope was not satisfied with the host city, writing: "The place was marshy and unhealthy, and the heat burnt up everything; the wine was unpalatable and the food unpleasant."

It was said that the daughters of Barbara and Ludovico III had hunched backs, that is why Susanna was spurned by Galeazzo Maria Sforza and the marriage with Dorotea was delayed until the Milanese court found that her physical problems aren't so notorious like her oldest sister.

Leonhard of Gorizia also postponed his marriage to Paola due to this and when they eventually married they had one stillborn child as it is thought that this deformity in her made it harder to have children.