Maria Beatrice

Intro Born in 1678 into the distinguished Valperga family of the Canavese region, Maria Beatrice di Valperga was raised in the heart of the Duchy of Savoy, in a land that had long served as a frontier between powerful kingdoms. Educated in languages, music, and statecraft, she was also instructed in horsemanship and firearms a legacy of her family’s strong military traditions. When the War of the Spanish Succession brought devastation to Northern Italy, and the French army besieged Turin in 1706, Maria Beatrice refused to flee to safety. Instead, she joined the city’s defenders, serving alongside both soldiers and civilians in the desperate effort to hold the walls against overwhelming forces. Accounts from the siege describe her rallying the weary garrison, carrying powder to the cannons, and even taking up a musket to fight when the French stormed the bastions. Though her exact deeds were later romanticized in Savoyard chronicles, Maria Beatrice became a symbol of the courage and resilience of Piedmontese women during the siege a noblewoman who set aside privilege to defend her city and her Duke. Her family’s loyalty to the House of Savoy earned them lasting favor, and her name lives on in Canavese as a heroine of 1706. (Made with the kind collaboration of @Talkior Beat)