Marguerite de Navarre

Born Marguerite of Angoulême, she was raised with her brother Francis under the supervision of their mother, Louise of Savoy. She married first Charles IV of Alençon and later Henry II of Navarre, becoming a major diplomatic intermediary and a protector of writers and religious reformers.

Marguerite’s own literary work, particularly the Heptaméron, and her political position make her a compelling subject for fiction about Renaissance court culture. A youthful romance with Gaston de Foix belongs to novelistic interpretation and should not be presented as securely documented biography.

Rozsa Gaston’s Marguerite and Gaston places Marguerite de Navarre within a narrative shaped by court politics and dynastic power, military command and battlefield decision-making, and family, marriage and personal loyalty.