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51st out of 395 books
—
141 voters
Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France
Poisoner, despot, necromancer -- the dark legend of Catherine de Medici is centuries old. In this critically hailed biography, Leonie Frieda reclaims the story of this unjustly maligned queen to reveal a skilled ruler battling extraordinary political and personal odds -- from a troubled childhood in Florence to her marriage to Henry, son of King Francis I of France; from h...more
Paperback, 464 pages
Published
March 14th 2006
by Harper Perennial
(first published January 1st 2002)
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This book was really rough for me to get through which, given the reviews and my fondness for historical biographies, was a surprise. It may be one of those cases that it just wasn't the right time for me to read this book. However, there was also a sort of bloodlessness and pedantry about the way the text read that was off-putting. The events were quite exciting, and sometimes even scandalous, but the dry tone of the narration put them at a remove and made them read like a textbook. Frieda also...more
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‘I wonder that she did not do worse’
I very much enjoyed this biography. Catherine deMedici is so often painted in the blackest of terms that it is actually a delight to read a more balanced account.
This is a biography of Catherine de Medici (1519 -1589). Her husband became King Henri II of France, and three of their sons in their turn became Kings of France after Henri’s death in 1559. As Queen Mother, Catherine was both important and powerful in France for thirty years.
Catherine was orphaned as...more
I very much enjoyed this biography. Catherine deMedici is so often painted in the blackest of terms that it is actually a delight to read a more balanced account.
This is a biography of Catherine de Medici (1519 -1589). Her husband became King Henri II of France, and three of their sons in their turn became Kings of France after Henri’s death in 1559. As Queen Mother, Catherine was both important and powerful in France for thirty years.
Catherine was orphaned as...more
4 likes · like · see review
Catherine de Medici has always had a pretty bad historical reputation. Like pretty much all women who wielded even a little bit of power, she has been often portrayed as greedy, power-hungry, manipulative, and a general psycho bitch. Add that to the fact that she came from a family known for their Machiavellian power grabs (Machiavelli literally wrote the book on despotism for the Medici family), and then there's the little detail of one of the worst religious massacres in history happening on h...more
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Very interesting biography of famous "black queen" who was remembered chiefly as a mean and manipulative influence from the backstage on her family of rulers (three of her sons were kings).
Leonie Frieda did some excellent research all over the France and came up with slightly different modern view on this fascinating subject - as expected,she places Catherine de Medici right into proper historical surrounding and by explaining situation around her makes her motives and deeds somehow understandab...more
Leonie Frieda did some excellent research all over the France and came up with slightly different modern view on this fascinating subject - as expected,she places Catherine de Medici right into proper historical surrounding and by explaining situation around her makes her motives and deeds somehow understandab...more
Because the life of Catherine de Medici overlapped with so many current events of 16th-century France, it is hard to tell if this is a biography or a history book. Daughter of a wealthy Italian merchant, disdained by many for her lack of noble blood, she took hold of the reins of power at the premature death of her husband (Henri II, killed in a tournament) and guided three successive sons as kings through a precarious time in French history. After the assassination of her last son, the kingdom...more
This book has more drama than Us Weekly and Star combined---and all of it is true. (Well, I am sure in the next life we'll discover parts that were not true, but that's for another day.)
Catherine Medici, wife of a cheating king (who dies after a large splinter enters his eye) and mother of three kings of France, is best known for her involvement or lack of involvement (it's a complicated situation, especially since all of her solutions were for the moment) in the St. Bartholmew's Day Massacre in...more
Catherine Medici, wife of a cheating king (who dies after a large splinter enters his eye) and mother of three kings of France, is best known for her involvement or lack of involvement (it's a complicated situation, especially since all of her solutions were for the moment) in the St. Bartholmew's Day Massacre in...more
From 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 atten...more
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 atten...more
After reading The Dark Queen, a historical fiction novel in which Catherine de Medici is portrayed as the titular dark queen and an evil witch, I was left wanting to know more about the historical basis for the story. In The Dark Queen Catherine is accused of everything from poisoning her rivals to employing beautiful seductresses to control her courtiers to engineering a massacre. This non-fiction account is largely intended to dispel such rumors and show what an impressive woman Catherine de M...more
Long, long ago in a youth far, far away, I read a biography of Catherine de Medici; so I was already familiar with her story. I have to admit, the details were hazy: I remembered something about poison, religious wars and that she was Mary, Queen of Scots’ mother-in-law. Then a couple of years ago, my husband and I took a biking vacation in the Loire valley and visited numerous castles and gardens along way, several associated with Catherine and her rival Diane de Poitiers; so I was reacquainted...more
A sympathetic, but not over so, biography of Catherine de Medici. The author did an excellent job of pulling in the varied and complex political and historical framework this period in order to give weight and meaning to the actions of the subject. Historically informative yet most often read with the ease of a novel. A fascinating subject written in a very accessible way. My only criticisms: I think the author could have done a better job with the complicated genealogies as the beginning of the...more
What a delightfully gripping biography. The story telling is so masterful ( not in the ubiquitously over-used way, but in the "how the hell is this intensely documented and bibliographed work of non-fiction so gripping and urgently page-turning?!?" kind of way).
I may have been an easy target because I'm a sucker for historical fiction, even the bad stuff. From Phillipa Gregory and The Borgias to the heavenly series of Dorothy Dunnett (oh my god, read them but if you don't like them and I like yo...more
I may have been an easy target because I'm a sucker for historical fiction, even the bad stuff. From Phillipa Gregory and The Borgias to the heavenly series of Dorothy Dunnett (oh my god, read them but if you don't like them and I like yo...more
Catherine de Medici was the daughter of a rich merchant, not born very rich since her parents were died. She was also of no royal blood. She was no beauty either. However, she did end up being one of the most famous Queens of France. She understood that she's no beauty and there was nothing she could do to change that,so she practiced on her manner, her elegancy, her way of speaking. All of those made it up for her. Moreover, she always acted humble. During the reign of her husband Henri II, she...more
Always fascinated by the Medicis and Borgias with their central role in not only Italian but also French and German history, I found this particular biography interesting. The research was so thorough and the biography contained a great deal of information and actual letters. Catherine was the mother of 10 children, 3 of whom ruled as Kings of France, but at her death there were only two still living. Like most casual readers, I was surprised that Catherine was not the "Black Queen" as popularly...more
Wife of one king and mother of three...what a life. I'm not certain she's a woman to be admired for her political beliefs but she certainly can be admired for her fortitude and political acumen. My realization is how little I knew about 16th Century French politics, which are given short shrift in most text books...perhaps because of the complexities of the religious conflicts and the personalities of the times. And what times they were, led in part by a ..." King, or the 'Prince of Sodom' as he...more
For a random book I picked up on a whim I absolutely love this book. I gave it away to a friend while I was on a second read through shortly after I finished my first read through. Confusing? I believe it's the first biography I've ever read and so when I bought it I was worried it would be a bit of a chore when I picked it up. You know, endless dates being thrown around, archaic names and just dry writing. Instead of all this I found a great narrative detailing a young girl's journey from the f...more
I chose to read this book after a trip to Italy. Our tour guide at the Uffizi in Florence waxed eloquent about the "wonderful" de Medici family. Everything I'd read about the family to date painted a very different picture from the one our tour guide painted, so I thought perhaps I should read more about the family. As the author of this book is European, I thought I might get a more favorable view from this book. I did not. Nothing here changed my perception of the de Medici family.
I did learn...more
I did learn...more
This was a long biography about Catherine de Medici,very long indeed. It was at times difficult to keep track of all of the people involved, partly b/c there were so many Henris, or Françoises etc and they all have titles to go with their names, and they sometimes changed whose side they were one. Catherine had a very long life in the 16th century and a very long reign as Queen/Queen Mother. I don't know if she really came alive for me in this biography. It was like reading a long book on French...more
An excellent, intricate portrait of one of the most (in)famous women in European history. Frieda takes pains to give a fully rounded account of, among other things, the Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre that forever stained Catherine's name. She also is skilled in weaving nuanced characterizations of Catherine's children, including the three kings she gave birth to and her ill-treated daughter Margot. Some of the court machinations can be a bit tricky to follow at times, but never to the point of...more
Prior to reading this book, all I knew about Catherine de Medici is what I had gleaned from a number of historical novels, and more or less accepted her as "Madame Serpent", the evil Queen Mother of France.
This well researched and interesting biography shoots down the wicked Queen mythos. Yes, she did do many things that at this remove we are horrified by, but Leonie Frieda's book explains WHY she did the things she did.
Ms Frieda also explains the way the French monarchial and governmental syste...more
This well researched and interesting biography shoots down the wicked Queen mythos. Yes, she did do many things that at this remove we are horrified by, but Leonie Frieda's book explains WHY she did the things she did.
Ms Frieda also explains the way the French monarchial and governmental syste...more
I'd read a little about Catherine de Medici in passing when she was mentioned in other historical works, but I'd never read an entire biography. I'd read about her dark reputation and the whispers of her using witchcraft and poison but it was incredibly interesting to read about her as a person, not just a dark figure. She is painted in as dark a light as Richard III has been to English history, and it is refreshing to read a work that presents her in a more realistic way.
Frieda accepts that Ca...more
Frieda accepts that Ca...more
There is much more to Catherine de Medici than just her adversity to her husband’s popular mistress (Diane de Poitiers) or her involvement with the St. Bartholomew Day Massacre. Not only was she an important political figure for over 30 years; but she also has “fun facts” (such as introducing and popularizing nicotine, handkerchiefs, female pantaloons, forks, and side saddles) and had two VERY interesting children amongst her 10 (transvestite –tendency induced Henri III and independent but scand...more
2 likes · like · see review
Nov 01, 2009
Christy S
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
memoir-biography,
nonfiction
A wonderfully written history and biography, this book was a highly entertaining presentation of the life of Catherine de Medici and her significance in French and European history. Frieda has taken an enormous body of research and used it to confirm and deny various pieces of the Queen’s reputation and record. In doing so, she reveals not only dates and lineages, but eccentricities of various royal personalities, the reality and cultural significance of their relationships, and the relevance of...more
I have been drawn to Catherine de Medici's story for some time. After reading Susan Carroll's fictional account of her in her Cheney Sisters books, I became even more interested in her. Catherine was a fascinating sixteenth century woman. She was the Italian-born Queen of France, wife of Henri II.
Catherine Maria Romola di Lorenzo de Medici was born in Italy in 1519. She endured a lonely childhood, isolated in convents most of the time, exiled from her rightful place in her own country. Like many...more
Catherine Maria Romola di Lorenzo de Medici was born in Italy in 1519. She endured a lonely childhood, isolated in convents most of the time, exiled from her rightful place in her own country. Like many...more
Really a good read! Well documented and reads like a novel. Certainly on par with Alison Weir. Would recommend to anyone interested in the Wars of Religon in France in the 16th century as Leonie's insight into the personalities of the main players eludidates the struggle between the Protestants and the Catholics.Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France
I really enjoyed this book. It is written based on historical facts with some non-fiction for dramatic elements and ideas based on the author's biased views of Catherine de Medici. It seems the author went to great lengths to try to paint a portrait of Catherine as more of a human than a tyrant and with some compassion. Probably better to be read as a novel rather than something to study by. Regardless of the relevence of fact or fiction...it is a good read.
This book took me a long time to get through. The subject matter was heavy but interesting. One thing that was difficult was keeping track of everybodies names! And sometimes their relations. It helped that there was a family tree at the beginning of the book but I think it could have included more people.
This was a fasinating book about how France was and survived during a difficult time in her history. On thing that is repeated over and over and I believe proven is that Catherine was more tha...more
This was a fasinating book about how France was and survived during a difficult time in her history. On thing that is repeated over and over and I believe proven is that Catherine was more tha...more
After a trip to through the Loire Valley, I was very curious about Catherine de Medici as her name is associated with so many of the chateaux. Frieda's book is well-written, such that what could be very dry subject matter is told in an engaging style. She presents a well-rounded portrait of Catherine.
A sympathetic but pragmatic look at the life of Catherine de' Medici, Queen of France, also known as "The Black Queen" due to her involvement in the St Bartholomew's Day massacre and other royal intrigues. The book provides an insightful account of events from Catherine's perspective, without making any excuses for her behaviour. I didn't know too much about this period in history before but I certainly do now! An excellent book if this subject matter interests you.
First I have to say I like biography and history (including historical fiction) so this book had an advantage from the start. Well written and accessible, I can understand the complicated relationship and appreciate the troubles Catherine had to endure. I feel guilty saying I enjoy the book because the life she lead was filled with unpleasant event, but I will say it is satisfying reading.
Alright, so I had difficulties with this book. I liked the subject, I liked the size and scope of it, but I didn't much enjoy the way the author would handle her subjects. At one point, she called Catherine "dumpy." Honestly. The handling of King Henry III in particular rankled me. I guess I felt there was too much interjection of opinion in the text, and in all the wrong places.
Still, this book must stand out as being the best biography of Catherine (simply because there is no other to this sca...more
Still, this book must stand out as being the best biography of Catherine (simply because there is no other to this sca...more
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Swedish by birth, but educated in Britain, Germany and France, Leonie Frieda speaks five languages. Her researches on Catherine de Medici has taken her to Paris, Florence and Rome, as well as the châteaux of the Loire. Her next book is a biography of the Great War soldier and letter-writer Edward Horner. She lives in London with her daughter Elisabeth and son Jake.
More about Leonie Frieda...
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