Description

A beautifully thorough examination into the complicated relationship between Elizabeth I and Catherine de Medici two of the most powerful women in Renaissance Europe who shaped each other as well as the course of history

Sixteenthcentury Europe was a hostile world dominated by court politics and patriarchal structuresand yet against all odds two women rose to power Elizabeth I and Catherine de Medici Much has been written about these shrewd and strategic sovereigns but though their l legacies have been heavily scrutinized nothing has been said of their complicated relationshipthirty years of camaraderie competition and conflict that forever changed the face of Europe

In Blood Fire and Gold historian Estelle Paranque offers a new way of looking at two of historys most powerful women through the eyes of the other Whether engaged in bloody battles or peaceful accords Elizabeth and Catherine admired the force and resilience of the other while never forgetting that they were first and foremost each others true rival

This is a story of love and rivalry of war and wisdom andabove all elseof the courage and sacrifice it takes to secure and sustain power as a woman in a maledominated world

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