John George, Marquess of Montferrat

John George, Marquess of Montferrat
Marquis of Montferrat
Reign	1530 - 1533
Predecessor	Boniface IV of Montferrat
Successor	Margaret Palaiologina
Spouse(s)	Julia Trastamara of Naples
Noble family	House of Palaiologos
Father	Boniface III, Marquess of Montferrat
Mother	Marija Branković
Born	(1488-01-20)20 January 1488 Casale Monferrato
Died	April 30, 1533(1533-04-30) (aged 45) Casale Monferrato

John George of Monferrat (20 January 1488 – 30 April 1533) was the last Marquess of Montferrat of the Palaeologus dynasty.

He was son of Boniface III, Marquess of Montferrat and his third wife Marija Brancović, daughter of prince Stefan III of Serbia.

Reign

John George was Bishop of Casale, when his nephew Boniface IV, Marquess of Montferrat unexpectedly died in 1530 without an heir.

As the last of his family and despite his poor health, John George had no option than to become the new Marquess. In a desperate attempt to produce an heir, he married the 41-year-old Julia, daughter of Frederick IV of Naples, on 21 April 1533. He died 9 days later.

After a Spanish occupation of 3 years, Montferrat came under Federico II Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, who had married his niece Margaret Paleologa in 1531.

Descendants

John George had an illegitimate son, Flaminio, from the Paleologo-Oriundi line descends and is extant today.^[1]

Ancestry

References