especially she showed affection towards Ferrante, with whom she had grown up in Naples, and towards Alfonso, who came several times to visit her in Milan. With her sister Isabella the relationship was already more complicated because, although the two felt a sincere affection for each other, for a certain period they moved away because of the envy of Isabella, who already from the very day of the wedding began to nourish mixed feelings towards Beatrice, to whom she envied both the lucky marriage, both the enormous wealth, and, above all, the two sons in perfect health born a short distance from each other, while she tried for years in vain to procreate an heir to her husband Francesco. However, over time the envy subsided, and then dissolved completely at the premature death of her sister, an event for which Isabella showed a deep and sincere pain. The two sisters were however very different, although sharing the same ambitions, in fact unlike Isabella, who nuded resentment towards her daughters for being born females and poured the blame on her husband Francesco (who was instead very proud of his daughters), Beatrice was, despite her young age, a wife and an exemplary mother, loved her children very much and dedicated to them many attentions of which are witnesses the tender letters sent to her mother Eleonora in which she described the good health and growth of the little Ercole. Passions Just like the grandfather Ferrante, Beatrice loved animals very much and her husband often gave them to her: among the many there are numerous horses, dogs, cats, foxes, wolves, a monkey and even sorcetti, also at the park of the castle of Milan there was a menagerie with numerous species of exotic animals. Nevertheless, Beatrice appreciated hunting just as much, especially that with the falcon, and was an excellent horseman: the French marveled to see her riding "all straight, no more and no less than a man would be". This leads us to believe that she used to mount like a man, contrary to the custom of the time which required women to proceed with both legs on one side. She showed above all on these occasions to possess a swaggering and reckless character, so much so as to put her life in danger more than once, as when in the summer of 1491 during a hunting trip her mount was hit