Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France, (Paperback)

Name: Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France, (Paperback)
Brand: Leonie Frieda
SKU: 4015715
Price: 11.48 USD
Availability: InStock
Rating: 4 (2 reviews)

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Publishers Weekly,In 1533, 14-year-old Catherine de Medici arrived in France to marry the future king Henri II; over the next 16 years, she endured the dominance of Henri's mistress, Diane de Poitiers, and the disdain of courtiers for her family's merchant background. The sudden death of Henri launched Catherine into three decades as regent and chief adviser to three sons who ruled in succession. Frieda navigates the twists and turns of the French royal court and family with particular attention to the formation of Catherine's political skills. From her lonely childhood as a tool in the diplomacy of her powerful uncles to her carefully cultivated relationship with her father-in-law and maneuvering through shifting family alliances, the queen learned self-possession, deception and strategy. While Catherine has been maligned for her role in France's wars of religion and in particular the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, Frieda argues that Catherine attempted to reach compromise in the religious strife of her adopted country. While trying to flesh out Catherine, Frieda occasionally paints others with a too-broad brush. At times, her descriptions of Catherine's actions as emotionally or politically motivated seem arbitrary. But Frieda's portrait of Catherine is multifaceted, and her presentation of the complicated narrative of five tumultuous reigns is compelling. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Specs

Book format
Paperback
Fiction/nonfiction
Non-Fiction
Genre
Biography & Memoirs
Publication date
March, 2006
Pages
464
Reading level
Preschool

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The inspiration for the STARZ original series, The Serpent Queen -- second season premiering July 12th!

"A beautifully written portrait of a ruthless, subtle and fearless woman fighting for survival and power in a world of gangsterish brutality, routine assassination and religious mania. . . . Frieda has brought a largely forgotten heroine-villainess and a whole sumptuously vicious era back to life. . . . This is The Godfather meets Elizabeth." --Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar

Poisoner, besotted mother, despot, necromancer, engineer of a massacre: the dark legend of Catherine de Medici is centuries old. In this critically hailed royal biography, Leonie Frieda reclaims the story of this unjustly maligned queen of France to reveal a skilled ruler and master of Renaissance statecraft battling extraordinary political and personal odds.

Based on comprehensive research including thousands of Catherine's own letters, Frieda unfurls Catherine's story from her troubled childhood in Florence to her tumultuous marriage to Henry II of France; her transformation of French culture to her reign as a queen who would use brutality to ensure her children's royal birthright. Brilliantly executed, this enthralling historical biography goes beyond myth to paint a very human portrait of this remarkable figure.

How did a Florentine merchant's daughter become the most powerful woman in sixteenth-century France?

Political Intrigue: Uncover the intricate web of alliances and betrayals Catherine navigated, using her intelligence to survive a court where assassination was commonplace.
A Woman in Power: Explore the story of a queen who, denied power for years, ultimately seized control to protect her children's legacy and transform French culture forever.
Primary Source Research: Draws on thousands of Catherine's own letters, revealing her personal thoughts and strategies in her own words.
The Woman Behind the Myth: Separates fact from the dark legend of the poisoner and necromancer to present a human portrait of a complex and formidable ruler.

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Specifications

Book format

Paperback

Fiction/nonfiction

Non-Fiction

Genre

Biography & Memoirs

Publication date

March, 2006

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