Alfonso I Gonzaga, Count of Novellara and Bagnolo from 1540 to 1589, was born in Turin in 1529.

In 1533 he was appointed to rule the County of Novellara and Bagnolo, together with his brothers Francesco and Camillo. In 1545, he arrived in Rome at the court of his uncle, Patriarch Giulio Cesare Gonzaga, to undertake an ecclesiastical career. During the conclave of 1550 that elected Pope Julius III, Alfonso was appointed secretary; however, in that same year his bishop relative died, and Alfonso abandoned the clerical path, began living a more worldly life, and returned to Novellara.

In 1567, he married Vittoria of Capua, daughter of the Marquis of Torre di Francolise. After the death of his brother Francesco in 1577, Alfonso’s life was constantly threatened by his nephew Claudio, Francesco’s son, who held a legitimate claim to the county.

Alfonso I Gonzaga died in Novellara in 1589. During his rule he promoted major architectural projects for the County, including the embellishments of the Rocca - commissioned to Lelio Orsi - and the construction of the Collegiate Church of Santo Stefano, built on the occasion of his marriage to Vittoria of Capua.