event was greeted by great pomp and ceremony, befitting an heir, something that had been denied to Isabella's son. On 2 February 1494 in Vigevano, the Duchess gave birth to another daughter, Bona Maria (named after her paternal grandmother Bona of Savoy). Ludovico was now openly pursuing his ambition for absolute control over Milan. An important aspect of this was foreign policy, and his anti-Aragonese policy was far from favourable to Isabella or her Neapolitan family. In response to Ludovico's actions, Isabella's father had encouraged French ambitions over Milan. Understanding the weight of this threat, Ludovico severed diplomatic ties with the Neapolitan court and built an alliance with Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor. The reason for this particular alliance was that the Emperor had the power to grant the Dukedom to Ludovico. Meanwhile, Isabella and her husband found themselves confined to Castello Visconteo in Pavia, where they were essentially prisoners. Ludovico encouraged Charles VIII of France to attack Naples and remove the threat of Isabella's father. When the French King arrived in the Duchy of Milan in October 1494, on his way to Naples, he was well received by Ludovico and Beatrice. Around this time, Isabella made a move and appealed to Charles VIII. She tearfully pleaded for the King to have mercy on her father; Charles VIII was embarrassed by Isabella's actions but he did have sympathy for her husband, who was dying. Isabella's pleading was in vain, the Italian Wars were underway and her father would be ousted from his throne by the French in 1495. In his infamous work The Prince, Niccolò Machiavelli blamed Ludovico for the devastation, claiming that he invited the French to attack Naples. When Isabella appealed to the French King, the historian Philippe de Commines had been a part of his retinue. He had the following to say about her actions: "She had better have prayed for herself, who was still a young and fair lady". This quote has particular relevance when observing that the fall of Naples was not the only tragedy to befall her at this time: the sickly Gian Galeazzo experienced a relapse of his stomach ailments, which, after several days of agony, led to the death of the young Duke on 21 October 1494. The very next day, the nobility proclaimed Ludovico Sforza as the new ruler of Milan. Widowhood Difficult times after her husbands's death Isabella, who was