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The Confessions of Catherine de Medici
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Catherine de' Medici remembers an orphaned childhood in Florence, captivity during political revolt and an arranged marriage to the future Henry II of France. Marginalised by Henry’s devotion to Diane de Poitiers, she becomes indispensable after his death as the mother and adviser of successive Valois kings. Religious conflict between Catholics and Huguenots forces Catherine into negotiation, regency and increasingly desperate efforts to preserve the monarchy. The narrative follows the French Wars of Religion through court faction, the St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre and the collapse of her dynasty, reconsidering the reputation of a ruler long portrayed simply as a poisoner and schemer.
Historical periods
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