The Nun of Monza

Marianna de Leyva y Marino
La monaca di Monza, painting by Giuseppe Molteni
Born	Marianna de Leyva y Marino (1575-12-04)December 4, 1575 Milan, Duchy of Milan
Died	January 17, 1650(1650-01-17) (aged 74) Milan, Duchy of Milan
Nationality	Italian
Other names	The Nun of Monza, Virginia Maria
Occupation	Nun
Known for	Scandal in 1607 Character in the novel 'The Betrothed' by Alessandro Manzoni
Children	Alma Francesca Margherita

Sister Virginia Maria (born Marianna de Leyva y Marino; December 4, 1575 – January 17, 1650) was an Italian nun. She gave birth to two children fathered by a local aristocrat, and had connived in the murder of another nun to cover up the affair. This took place in Monza, in northern Italy, at the beginning of the 17th century. Following this scandal she became widely known as the Nun of Monza. Her life inspired one of the characters in Alessandro Manzoni's novel The Betrothed, which has also been dramatized several times. Mario Mazzucchelli's book The Nun of Monza (1963) presents a nonfictional account of Sister Viriginia's life, drawing upon historical records (including testimonies exacted by the Catholic Church during the investigation into Sister Viriginia's crimes).

The family name of De Leyva is allegedly of Sephardic origin, and of the Sephardic people who were descendants of Jewish settlers, originally part of the Tribe of Levi and were from Israel. But the Tribe of Levi had been scattered following the history of what happened in Spain with the Catholic Church and the Jews. During this time the Jews had mixed with the Spanish as well as the Portuguese and Italians too.^[1]