Eleonora Gonzaga (23 September 1598 – 27 June 1655), was born a princess of Mantua as a member of the House of Gonzaga, and by marriage to Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, was Holy Roman Empress, German Queen, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia.
Nicknamed the Elder () to distinguish herself from her namesake great-niece, during her tenure, the Imperial court in Vienna became one of the centers of European Baroque music. As empress, Eleanora was a supporter of the Counter-Reformation.
Life
Early years
Eleonora was born in Mantua on 23 September 1598, as the youngest child of Vincenzo I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Monferrat, and his wife and first cousin, Eleanor de' Medici. On her father's side her grandparents were Guglielmo Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua and Montferrat and his wife Archduchess Eleanor of Austria, and on her mother's side her grandparents were Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and his first wife Archduchess Joanna of Austria.
200px|thumb|left|Eleonora as a child, ca. 1600/01, probably by [[Peter Paul Rubens. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.]]
Two months after her birth, on 22 November, the princess was baptized at the Basilica palatina di Santa Barbara with the names Eleonora Anna Maria, in honor of her mother and her two surviving full-siblings, Anna de' Medici (who died in 1584 aged 14) and Marie de' Medici, future Queen consort of France and Navarre. The ceremony was conducted by Francesco, Bishop of Mantua (born Prince Annibale Gonzaga, from the Gazzuolo branch), and her godparents were Ferdinand II, Archduke of Inner Austria (her future husband as Holy Roman Emperor) –who was represented by Jakob Prandtner– and Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain.
250px|thumb|right|Eleonora as a child, by [[Frans Pourbus the Younger, ca. 1605. Palazzo Pitti, Florence.]]
Eleonora spent her childhood at the ducal court in Mantua, which was one of the centers of European culture and science. When she was ten, her education was entrusted to her paternal aunt Margherita Gonzaga, Dowager Duchess of Ferrara and Modena, who, although she never took the veil, lived in a Clarissan monastery attached to the Church of Sant'Orsola, founded by herself. The dowager duchess saw to it that her niece received a good education, which included learning foreign languages, history, music and painting. The religious environment in which she grew up greatly influenced Eleonora, and was expressed in deeds of piety and charity.
In early 1610, Duke Vincenzo negotiated a marriage between his 12-year-old daughter and Marcantonio IV Colonna, Duke and Prince of Paliano, and in March of that year a contract was signed under which a dowry was stipulated for Eleonora of 130,000 scudi. However, the negotiations quickly ended because of a previous marriage agreement of the Colonnas with the Doria family. Then, negotiations began for the marriage of Eleonora with Victor Amadeus, Prince of Piedmont and heir of the Duchy of Savoy; however, the intended groom expected a large territorial gain as a dowry, which the House of Gonzaga refused. Duke Vincenzo died in 1612, before he could arrange his youngest daughter's marriage.
The official wedding ceremony took place in Innsbruck on 2 February 1622
In spite of the great age difference between them, Eleonora and Ferdinand II had a happy marriage. They had no children, but Eleonora was able to develop a close relationship with all her stepchildren, particularly with the youngest one, the Archduke Leopold Wilhelm, in whom she formed a taste for art and literature. Like her husband, she was deeply religious and a strong supporter of the Counter-Reformation, being a benefactress of churches and monasteries and taking great interest in matters of charity. The confessors of the emperor and empress were Jesuits. Eleonora and her husband also shared a love for hunting and music; some time later, the emperor amended the marriage contract in favor of his wife.
Eleonora was not greatly interested in politics, but she tried to be a good empress for her subjects. She often accompanied her husband to meetings with the imperial electors, and the heads of states of the Empire. Among the many contributions made by her, was the construction of the chapel of the Madonna of Loreto in the Augustinian Church. Consecrated on 9 September 1627, the chapel became the second one used by the Imperial court. Behind the chapel was built, the Herzgruft , which later contained the hearts of members of the House of Habsburg. With the blessing of Pope Urban VIII, the Empress built a monastery of Discalced Carmelites in Vienna, and in her will bequeathed 80,000 florins for prayers to be said for the salvation of her soul after her death. Together with her husband, she founded another monastery in Vienna, that of the Discalced Carmelites and she was a benefactress of the brotherhood which arranged for the burial of the homeless people. The Empress also supported the Discalced Carmelite in Graz. The Empress gave her patronage to Italian musicians and dancers. Thanks to her, the Imperial court in Vienna became a center of European baroque music. She began the tradition of attending the opera and ballet performances during special celebrations in the Imperial family; the first one took place during Ferdinand II's birthday in 1625, and to this end, the Hofburg large wooden hall was built.
A source of deep concern for Eleonora was the War of the Mantuan Succession (1628–1631), which began after the deaths of her brothers Francesco IV (1612), Ferdinando (1626) and Vincenzo II (1627) without surviving legitimate male heirs. During the war between the Emperor, King Philip IV of Spain and Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy on one side (who supported Ferrante II Gonzaga, Duke of Guastalla) and King Louis XIII of France and the Republic of Venice (who supported Charles Gonzaga, Duke of Nevers) on the other side, the Imperial army captured and sacked Mantua, the Empress' homeland.
On 18 April 1637 the monetary amount which belonged to her as Dowager Empress was settled on her, although this amount was changed repeatedly. The jewellery that she received from her husband during their marriage, including the one of diamond with pearls, given to her on their wedding day, was returned to the treasury of the House of Habsburg. which was finally signed on 8 February 1651.
|5= 5. Eleanor of Austria
|6= 6. Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany
|7= 7. Joanna of Austria
|8= 8. Federico II Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua
|9= 9. Margaret Paleologa
|10= 10. Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor (=14)
|11= 11. Anne of Bohemia and Hungary (=15)
|12= 12. Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany