The Tigress of Forli: Renaissance Italy's Most Courageous and Notorious Countess, Caterina Riario Sforza de' Medici - Rilegato

Lev, Elizabeth

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0151012997 ISBN 13: 9780151012992

Casa editrice: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011

Riassunto

“A rich, nuanced portrait of a highly controversial beauty and military leader, and her violent albeit glittering Italian Renaissance milieu.”—Publishers Weekly

A strategist to match Machiavelli; a warrior who stood toe to toe with the Borgias; a wife whose three marriages would end in bloodshed and heartbreak; and a mother determined to maintain her family’s honor, Caterina Riario Sforza de’ Medici was a true Renaissance celebrity, beloved and vilified in equal measure. In this dazzling biography, Elizabeth Lev illuminates her extraordinary life and accomplishments.
Raised in the court of Milan and wed at age ten to the pope’s corrupt nephew, Caterina was ensnared in Italy’s political intrigues early in life. After turbulent years in Rome’s papal court, she moved to the Romagnol province of Forlì. Following her husband’s assassination, she ruled Italy’s crossroads with iron will, martial strength, political savvy, and an icon’s fashion sense. In finally losing her lands to the Borgia family, she put up a resistance that inspired all of Europe and set the stage for her progeny—including Cosimo de’ Medici—to follow her example to greatness.

A rich evocation of Renaissance life, The Tigress of Forlì reveals Caterina Riario Sforza as a brilliant and fearless ruler, and a tragic but unbowed figure.

Su questo libro

Recensione:

"A rich account of a dramatic and tragic life: a tale of murder, childhood marriage, revenge, rape, accession to power by a Florentine woman, and a violent downfall. Lev offers a rich, nuanced portrait of a highly controversial beauty and military leader and her violent albeit glittering Italian Renaissance milieu." — Publishers Weekly

"An engrossing biography of one of Renaissance Italy’s most accomplished powerbrokers. The author writes with a light touch and an eye for the pageantry and drama of the time—her subject was known as one of the best-dressed women in Italy—while colorfully recounting weighty affairs of state. An inspiring tale of the courage and fortitude of an enigmatic and indomitable woman."—Kirkus

"Lev continues the recent biographical trend of unearthing extraordinary women from the historical dustpile. The Renaissance is hot right now, and this well-researched biography is a welcome addition to the reexamination of the era." —Booklist

Dalla quarta di copertina:

“Well-written and meticulously researched, The Tigress of Forlì recreates the world of Renaissance Italy in all its grandeur and violence. At the center stands a remarkable woman, Caterina Riario Sforza. Mother, warrior, and icon, Caterina is unforgettable, and so is the exciting story that Elizabeth Lev tells here.”—Barry Strauss, author of Masters of Command: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar and the Genius of Leadership

The legendary Countess loved and jousted with many men throughout her life, including

Pope Sixtus IV, Caterina’s benefactor and uncle by marriage, who commissioned the Sistine Chapel frescoes in which she is immortalized
Count Girolamo Riario, Caterina’s first husband and an originator of the Pazzi Conspiracy, whose corrupt ways led to their flight from Rome to Forlì
Niccolò Machiavelli, the Florentine political theorist who was humiliated by Caterina as a young diplomat, and later took revenge with his pen
Giacomo Feo, Caterina’s secret second husband, a jumped-up family retainer whose assassination led to a bloodbath on the streets of Forlì
Giovanni de’ Medici Il Popolano, Caterina’s beloved third husband, who provided Caterina entrance into Florence’s culture and society, and an heir worthy of her legacy
Cesare Borgia, nephew to the ruthless Borgia pope Alexander VI, who would bring Caterina’s rule to an end with unspeakable cruelty

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
• Data di pubblicazione: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0151012997
• ISBN 13: 9780151012992
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero edizione: 1
• Numero di pagine: 316