YOUNG QUEENS: Three Renaissance Women and the Price of Power, by Leah Redmond Chang (Bloomsbury, $39.99) is out now in ebook and audiobook, in print on August 1.
Young Queens is the latest in a recent flurry of books by female historians seeking to highlight significant but often overlooked women in history: queens and consorts, wives and mothers, who for centuries have been relegated to the footnotes while male historians wrote of kings and battles.
The three queens highlighted by Leah Redmond Chang are Catherine de' Medici (1519-89), Queen of France and mother of two kings, who "changed the face of France", ruling for 30 years in all but name; Catherine's eldest daughter, Elisabeth de Valois (1545-68), who became Queen of Spain; and Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-87), whose chaotic reign ended in her long imprisonment and eventual execution. All were queens during the Renaissance, "an unprecedented era of female rule... women pushed the limits of their political power far beyond what was normally expected of them". The ties formed during the years the three women lived at the French court, while often sorely tested, would bond them together throughout their lives. Mary described Elisabeth as "the best sister and friend that I had in this world".
Bu hikaye New Zealand Listener dergisinin May 27 - June 2 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye New Zealand Listener dergisinin May 27 - June 2 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
First-world problem
Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.
Applying intelligence to AI
I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.
Nazism rears its head
Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.
Staying ahead of the game
Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?
Grasping the nettle
Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.
Hangry? Eat breakfast
People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.
Chemical reaction
Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.
Me and my guitar
Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.
Time is on my side
Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?
The kids are not alright
Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.