The life and times of Catherine de' Medici—the most powerful woman in sixteenth-century Europe—as seen through her often controversial role in religion andthe arts. During an age of heightened religious conflict, Catherine de' Medici lived her life at the center of sixteenth-century European and French politics. Daughter of Lorenzo II, the Medici ruler of Florence—and then wedded to a French prince by papal decree at the age of fourteen—Catherine first became queen consort of France and then mother to three French kings (Francis II, Charles IX, and Henry III) who reigned in an era of almost continuous civil and religious strife. A lavish promoter of the arts, Catherine patronized poets, painters, and sculptors; lavished ruinous sums on the building and embellishment of monuments and palaces; and masterminded spectacular entertainments and tournaments that prefigure the splendor and ritual of the court of Versailles. Catherine maintained eighty ladies-in-waiting at court; it was rumored she used these women as bait to seduce courtiers for her political ends. Her admiration for the seer Nostradamus fueled claims of her love for the occult and the dark arts. Posterity has condemned her as the epitome of the scheming royal matriarch, her reputation tainted forever by her role in instigating the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre of Protestants in 1572. Catherine de' Medici: The Life and Times of the Serpent Queen is Mary Hollingsworth's evocative, authoritative biography of the most extraordiary woman of the sixteenth-century.
- 432 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
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Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Maps
- Dedication
- Dramatis Personae
- Family Trees
- Note on Money
- Prologue: The Serpent Queen
- Chapter 1: The Little Duchess 1519–1531
- Chapter 2: Bride 1530–1533
- Chapter 3: Dauphine 1533–1547
- Chapter 4: Queen 1547–1559
- Chapter 5: Widow 1559–1560
- Chapter 6: Regent 1561–1563
- Chapter 7: Grand Tour 1563–1566
- Chapter 8: Civil War 1567–1571
- Chapter 9: St Bartholomew’s Day 1572
- Chapter 10: Jealousies 1572–1577
- Chapter 11: Rivalries 1578–1584
- Chapter 12: Anguish 1584–1589
- Epilogue: Paris is Worth a Mass
- Photographs
- Acknowledgements
- About the Author
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
- Image Credits
- Copyright
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Yes, you can access Catherine de' Medici by Mary Hollingsworth in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in History & Historical Biographies. We have over 1.5 million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.