María Josefa Pimentel, Duchess of Osuna

Doña María Josefa Alonso-Pimentel y Téllez-Girón iure uxoris Duchess of Osuna, suo jure 12th Duchess of Benavente (26 November 1752 – 5 October 1834), was a Spanish aristocrat, famous for her patronage of artists, writers and scientists.

The Most Excellent

The Duchess of Osuna

GE
Portrait by Francisco de Goya, 1785
Personal details
Born
María Josefa Pimentel, Duchess of Osuna

(1752-11-26)26 November 1752
Madrid, Spain
Died5 October 1834(1834-10-05) (aged 81)
Madrid, Spain
Spouse(s)Pedro Téllez-Girón, 9th Duke of Osuna
ChildrenJosefa Téllez-Girón
Francisco Téllez-Girón
Pedro Téllez-Girón
Joaquina Téllez-Girón
Manuela Téllez-Girón

Biography

She married Pedro Téllez-Girón, 9th Duke of Osuna in 1771. The couple had many children; her possessions and noble titles were absorbed thereto by the Osuna family.[1] One of her children was Joaquina Téllez-Girón, Marchioness of Santa Cruz, who was also portrayed by Goya.

The Duchess and her husband were among the most important aristocrats who became patrons of the painter Francisco de Goya. The Duchess not only purchased one of the first editions of Los Caprichos, but also commissioned a series of cabinet paintings on the subject of witchcraft from Goya, amongst them El aquelarre (Witches' Sabbath). In the famous portrait Goya painted of her, she is shown standing with noble reserve, and dressed according to the fashion initiated by Queen Marie Antoinette in Paris at that time. In another famous painting, Goya portrayed the ducal family.

Palace of the Dukes of Osuna

The Duchess was interested in landscape gardening and from the 1780s she developed a garden at El Capricho, the family estate at Alameda de Osuna, near Madrid. The garden, which survives in good condition, shows English and French influence.

Full name and title

In full, her Spanish name and titles were: Doña María Josefa de la Soledad Alonso Pimentel Téllez-Girón Borja y Centelles, décimo quinta condesa y décimo segunda duquesa de Benavente, décimo tercera duquesa de Béjar, décimo tercera duquesa de Plasencia, décimo segunda duquesa de Arcos, décimo cuarta duquesa de Gandia, novena duquesa de Mandas y Villanueva, octava marquesa de Jabalquinto, décimo quinta marquesa de Gibraleón, novena marquesa de Terranova, décimo segunda marquesa de Lombay, décimo sexta marquesa de Zahara, décimo octava condesa de Mayorga, décimo sexta condesa de Luna, décimo tercera condesa de Bañares, séptima condesa de Belalcázar, décimo cuarta condesa de Oliva, décimo primera condesa de Mayalde, décimo segunda condesa de Bailén, décimo segunda condesa de Casares, décimo quinta vizcondesa de la Puebla de Alcocer, 6 veces Grande de España, principessa di Anglona, duchessa di Monteagudo, marchesa di Marguini, contessa di Osilò e di Coguinas en Cerdeña, dama de la Orden de María Luisa.

Ancestry

Additional information

Images by Francisco Goya
  • The 9th Duke of Osuna (1798)
  • The Duchess of Osuna (1785)
  • The 9th Duke of Osuna and his young family (1788)
  • The Marchioness of Santa Cruz (1805)
  • The Duchess of Abrantes (1816)
  • The 10th Duke of Osuna (1816)

Paintings by Francisco Goya for the Duke and Duchess
  • Witches Flight 1797-1798
  • Witches Spells 1797-1798
  • Witches Sabbath 1797-1798
  • The Witches Kitchen 1797-1798
  • The Bewitched Man 1798
  • The stone Guest 1797-1798

References
  1. Palau Ducal dels Borja: The History and Characters
  • Hobbs, Nicolas (2007). "Grandes de España" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 29 November 2006. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  • Instituto de Salazar y Castro. Elenco de Grandezas y Titulos Nobiliarios Españoles. periodic publication.
Spanish nobility
Preceded by
Francisco Pimentel		 Countess-Duchess
of Benavente
1763-1834		 Succeeded by
Pedro Téllez-Girón
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.