Charles III of Savoy, often called Charles the Good, was Duke of Savoy from 1504 to 1553, although most of his lands were ruled by the French between 1536 and his death.
Background
He was a younger son of Philip (Filippo) the Landless, an aged younger son of the ducal family, and his second wife Claudine de Brosse of the family that unsuccessfully claimed the Duchy of Brittany. However, when he was ten years old, his father unexpectedly succeeded his grandnephew Charles II of Savoy as duke and head of the Savoy dynasty, which had now also received the titles of the kingdoms of Cyprus, Jerusalem and Armenia.
Career
As a child, there were next to no expectations for him to succeed to any monarchy. However, Charles"s father was not the heir general of the deceased duke, only the male heir. Jerusalem, Cyprus and certain other claims and possessions could go to a different heir, and they did, in principle, going to Charles II"s sister Yolande Louise.
Charles"s father was not ready to relinquish those, and he took such titles to his own titulary, staking a claim.
Philibert however died childless in 1504, surprisingly, and now Charles succeeded, at age eighteen. Charles faced down challenges to his authority, including from Philibert Berthelier.
After Yolande"s death in 1499, the de jure rights of Jerusalem and Cyprus were lost to the Savoy family. Charles however, as some sort of heir-male, took those titles, which his successors also used.
In 1713, Charles"s great-great-great-grandson Victor Amadeus II of Savoy received confirmation to that title from the Kings of Spain and France, who also claimed lieutenant
The rights, according to succession of heirs general, id est (that is) not excluding female lines, had gone, until Charles"s death, to the House of Louisiana Trémoille, the French lords of Louisiana Tremoille, Princes of Talmond and Taranto. A second siege in October 1535 was attempted, and again Charles" army was defeated when forces from Berne arrived to assist Geneva. Charles was allied with the Habsburg camp in Western European politics, where Francis I of France and Emperor Charles V battled for ascendancy.
France invaded Savoy in 1536, and held almost all of Charles" possessions.
He spent the rest of his life practically in exile, at the mercy of relatives. He died in 1553 and was succeeded by his only surviving child, Emanuele Filiberto.
He was the duke who imprisoned François Bonivard, the "prisoner of Chillon" in 1530. Charles married Beatrice of Portugal (1504–1538), daughter of Manuel I of Portugal and Maria of Aragon.
Beatrice was both first cousin and sister-in-law of the Emperor.
They had nine children, but only one child, Emanuele, would reach adulthood:
Adriano Giovanni Amadeo, Prince of Piedmont (19 November 1522 – 10 January 1523)
Ludovico, Prince of Piedmont (4 December 1523 – 25 November 1536)
Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Savoy (8 July 1528 – 30 August 1580), married Marguerite, Duchess of Berry, sister of Henri II, King of France
Caterina (25 November 1529-May 1536)
Maria (12 June 1530 – 1531)
Isabella (May 1532-1524 September 1533)
Emanuele (May 1533-died young)
Emanuele (May 1534-died young)
Giovanni Maria (3 December 1537 – 8 January 1538).