he infant
heir of the house of Sforza received the name of his renowned
great-grandfather, Francesco, together with the title of Count of Pavia.

Meanwhile Lodovico felt that it was time to think of his own marriage,
and to keep the troth which he had pledged to the child-princess of
Este. His actions, as he well knew, were narrowly watched at the court
of Ferrara. Duchess Leonora was beginning to feel anxious about her
daughter's future, and the marriage of Anna Sforza with young Alfonso
d'Este had also to be arranged. Accordingly in May, 1489, when the Duke
of Milan's wedding was safely over, the Ferrarese envoy Giacomo Trotti
was sent back to his master duly acquainted with Signor Lodovico's
wishes and intentions respecting these important matters.

On the 10th of May, the articles of the marriage contract were finally
drawn up and signed at the Castello of Ferrara. They were on the same
basis as the marriage treaties which had lately been drawn up between
the Marquis Mantua and Isabella d'Este and the Duke and Duchess of
Milan. Lodovico was to receive 40,000 gold crowns and 2000 more in
jewels as Beatrice's portion. A sum equal to three-parts of the bride's
dower was to be chargeable on the goods and lands of Signor Lodovico. If
the most illustrious Madonna were to die without children, this dowry
was to be returned, as was stipulated in the case of the Duchess of
Milan. With regard to the choice and arrangement of the bride's
household, and the number of her women, Lodovico was content to leave
all particulars to the Duke and Duchess of Ferrara, trusting to their
goodness and prudence to settle all these matters on a scale suitable to
the birth and rank of a princess of this illustrious house. But he
especially begged Duke Ercole to see that Madonna Beatrice was well
supplied with clothes and other necessary articles of toilet fitting the
position which she would occupy at Milan as wife of the Duke of Bari and
Regent of the State. Last of all, the date of the marriage was
positively fixed for the month of May, 1490, Lodovico promising to
defray all the expenses of the wedding festivities. At the same time it
was also decided that Madonna Anna's marriage should take place in July,
1490, by which time Signor Alfonso would have completed his fourteenth
year, and the sum due to Messer Lodovico for Beatrice's dowry was to be
deducted from that of his niece, who, as a princess of Milan, was to
receive a portion of 100,0