Catherine de Medici: A Biography - Rilegato

Frieda, Leonie

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 184212725X ISBN 13: 9781842127254

Casa editrice: Orion, 2004

Riassunto

Catherine de Medici was half French, half Italian. Orphaned in infancy, she was the sole legitimate heiress to the Medici family fortune. Married at fourteen to the future Henri II of France, she was constantly humiliated by his influential mistress Diane de Poitiers. When her husband died as a result of a duelling accident in Paris - Leonie Frieda's magnificient, throat-grabbing opening chapter - Catherine was made queen regent during the short reign of her eldest son (married to Mary Queen of Scots and like many of her children he died young). When her second son became king she was the power behind the throne.

She nursed dynastic ambitions, but was continually drawn into political and religious intrigues between catholics and protestants that plagued France for much of the later part of her life.. It had always been said that she was implicated in the notorious Saint Barthlomew¿s Day Massacre, together with the king and her third son who succeeded to the throne in 1574, but was murdered ¿ he was left standing with his assassin¿s dagger in one hand, and his own entrails in the other.

Her political influence waned, but she survived long enough to ensure the succession of her son-in-law who had married her daughter Margaret.

Leonie Frieda has returned to original sources and re-read the thousands of letters left by Catherine. There has not been a biography in English of Catherine for many years and she believes that the time has come to show her - like Queen Elizabeth I of England - as one of the most influential women in sixteenth-century Europe.

Su questo libro

Recensione:

'This intelligent and well-researched biography of her is a worthy testament to Catherine's formidable strength. CATHERINE DE MEDICI reveals Frieda, a first-time biographer, to be a writer of tremendous talent and skill (Amanda Foreman THE OBSERVER)

'Leonie Frieda has handled the history of this complex period with skill. Without skimping on the drama and debauchery of the court of the Valois, she has defended, but not whitewashed, Catherine and produced a fascinating picture of a remarkable woman. (Sarah Bradford THE EVENING STANDARD)

it is narrative history at its best, both scholarly and as captivating as a thriller. She has brought a largely forgotten heroine-villainess and a whole sumptuously vicious era to life again. She is equally at home in the luxurious debauchery of the royal court as she is in the blood-reeking gutters of Paris: this is The Godfather meets Elizabeth. (Simon Sebag Montefiore THE MAIL ON SUNDAY)

'As Leonie Frieda shows in this absorbing biography, Catherine was a well-intentioned woman who resorted to extreme measures only under pressure. With its engaging style and deft handling of complex events, this accomplished account of Catherine¿s career is an engrossing tale, compellingly narrated.¿ (Anne Somerset THE SPECTATOR)

¿As Leonie Frieda relates in this well-researched and immensely readable first biography, from her turbulent home in Florence Catherine found herself presiding over perhaps the nastiest period in all French history. Frieda is much to be praised for painting a wonderfully rich canvas.¿ (Alistair Horne THE TIMES)

¿Frieda succeeds in making her subject interesting and coherent, and shows her operating in a political context that left no room for squeamishness or scruple.¿ (Charles Nicholl THE SUNDAY TIMES)

'Capably she re-creates the rivalries within the royal family and the marital and dynastic negotiaitons on which the fate of kingdoms hung. She conveys, too, vividly at times, the outsize style of Renaissance rule.' (Blair Worden SUNDAY TELEGRAPH)

¿Mrs Frieda¿s book is a well-written and colourful journey through 16th century France, entertaining to read as well as frequently illuminating.¿ (Simon Heffer COUNTRY LIFE)

A real historical treat. (SAINSBURY'S MAGAZINE)

¿This admirable new biography ... Leonie Frieda gives a vivid picture ... Leonie Frieda does this remarkable woman full justice. Refusing to play judge, she reveals her to us through the best of means, which is narrative. The skill with which Frieda finds her way through the maze of this confusing period is exemplary. You read on eagerly. An enthralling book.¿ (Allan Massie LITERARY REVIEW)

Descrizione del libro:

Revisionist biography of one of the great women of the 16th century, not the incarnation of evil, as portrayed by Dumas, but a heroine who held her adopted country together in times of Catholic/Protestant strife and preserved the monarchy.

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Orion
• Data di pubblicazione: 2004
• ISBN 10: 184212725X
• ISBN 13: 9781842127254
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero edizione: 1
• Numero di pagine: 464