Born 21 September 1562,[3] Vincenzo was the only son of Guglielmo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, and Archduchess Eleanor of Austria.

Vincenzo, to whom the atlas is dedicated, assisted him with this project and allowed for maps of the various states of Italy to be brought to Magini.

At the age of 46, Vincenzo was rumoured to have been impotent and he is said to have sent a secret expedition to the New World in order to obtain a legendary aphrodisiac.

[10] On 20 July 1588, Emperor Rudolf II granted Vincenzo the right to an escutcheon of Austria, surmounted by an archducal coronet.

For Vincenzo, this marriage had the political objective of warming the "cold" relations that existed between the two courts of Mantua and Turin.