Young Queens

June 5, 2023
Historian Chang (Portraits of the Queen Mother) highlights complicated mother-daughter relationships in this sympathetic study of the 16th-century French queen Catherine de’ Medici; her daughter, Elisabeth de Valois; and her daughter-in-law, Mary, Queen of Scots. Following Mary’s betrothal at the age of five to Elisabeth’s brother, Francis II, the three women bonded while living in the same household for 13 years. Elisabeth married Spain’s king, Philip II, in 1559; two years later, Mary, recently widowed, returned to Scotland to rule in her own right, having inherited the throne when she was six days old. Meanwhile, Catherine strove to influence both young women to benefit France. Relations between the queens devolved when Catherine blocked Mary’s remarriage to Philip II’s heir, his son by an earlier marriage. Still, the Scottish queen begged both Catherine and Elisabeth for help after she was imprisoned by Elizabeth I of England in 1568. Chang wisely adds context by also delving into the motivations of Elizabeth I and Philip II, but ignores previous examples of powerful medieval queen mothers whose experiences may have emboldened Catherine’s far-ranging ambitions. Nevertheless, this sheds valuable light on interpersonal feelings and familial relations often missed in more traditional accounts of political power.

August 1, 2023
Historian Chang examines the "interlaced lives" of three queens central to the history of early modern Europe in this well-written, detailed book. Catherine de' Medici, Elisabeth de Valois, and Mary, Queen of Scots, were Catholic queens united by blood and marriage. Gender defined their queenships; the "future of ... kingdoms'' depended upon their bodies. Chang brings these women to life with insight and empathy, skillfully revealing "patterns about women and power." Each dealt with the political and religious turmoil that defined the sixteenth century--Catherine de' Medici as Queen Mother of France, Elisabeth de Valois as Queen Consort of Spain, and Mary Stuart as the sovereign Queen of Scotland. They participated in a complicated dance of shifting loyalties between their respective countries, navigating conflict with different levels of success. In contrast to their contemporary, Elizabeth I, Queen of England, each married strategically and gave birth to heirs--essential duties for a queen. By centering these queens' reigns and their relationships with one another, Chang gives readers new insight into their lives and legacies.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from June 15, 2023
A celebration of the lives of three significant European queens. For centuries, dispatches from royal courts around the world have reflected only the male perspective. In this thorough historical excavation, Chang, a former professor of French literature and culture, immediately ensnares readers with her painstakingly rendered, intertwined narrative about three royal women in 16th-century Europe: Catherine de' Medici, Elisabeth de Valois, and Mary, Queen of Scots. Refreshingly, the author doesn't merely rehearse her subjects' daily lives. By using intimate, personal accounts gleaned from her extensive research, Chang transports readers directly into their world. She shows how, despite limitations on their power, they used what little they had to help shape events around them. Born into wealth and privilege, all three shared the same fate of being married off at a young age, often traded for land or peace and goodwill treaties. As young brides, their bodies were not their own; rather, they were considered property of their families or the nation at large. "Their bodies, passed across borders, became symbolic capital," writes the author, "the vector of peace, alliance, wealth or empire." Fertility was paramount, and primitive women's health rituals haunted them as they attempted to produce heirs for their husbands. Though Chang highlights their similarities, she also allows their distinct personalities to shine through, demonstrating the evolution of each woman: Catherine emerges as a skilled power seeker; Elisabeth, as a queenly wife and mother beloved by her husband and her nation; and Mary, as an embattled widow who "spent half her life a prisoner." Chang vividly captures the importance of religion and war, both of which had profound effects on the decision-making of all three women and everyone within the royal orbit. In addition, the author delineates many intriguing details about extravagant weddings, celebrations, and other courtly matters, ably balancing the personal and the universal. A delightful historical study of women coming to the forefront in a world dominated by men.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.