Introduction
Catherine de’ Medici, the queen consort of Henry II of France, was arguably one of the most influential personalities of Renaissance era France. Catherine was a great queen whose power only increased following the death of her husband in 1559. She was orphaned as an infant, used as a pawn in Europe’s power games and left with an unfaithful husband. Yet she somehow managed to maintain the true power of the French throne in her efforts to protect herself, her family and her birth right. She did many things that would be deemed ‘evil’ if only she didn’t have a cause. This powerful woman was a victim of circumstance and overcame adversity and the mockery of the French people who called her ‘The Black Queen’ and labelled her as a witch.…show more content… To delve into and establish the circumstances of Catherine’s birth and early life and how this may have affected her.
• To look at the marriage of her parents and the reasons behind this such as societal hierarchy and the rivalry of the continental superpowers that would have been contributing factors to her parent’s marriage.
• To uncover her early life in Italy and her political and societal standing.
2. To analyse and reflect on Catherine’s time in French court up to and including her marriage to Henry II as well as her reign as Queen consort of France.
• To establish her status in French court as the consort and then wife of Henry II.
• The look her reign as Queen consort and to uncover any information regarding her political and social standing as Henry’s wife. Also, to determine whether or not she played an active role in his rule.
3. To look at her life after he death of her husband - under the reigns of her three sons: Francis, Charles and Henry – and the impact that this had on her and the country of France.
• To research her position in the brief rule of her eldest son, Francis II.
• The research her roles in the reigns of her children - Charles and Henry III -particularly her role as Queen…show more content… Her father Lorenzo II de Medici – the Duke of Urbino at the time of Catherine’s birth – held little to no respect from his peers and the peasants since his he and his family were commoners who had risen from the now ruling merchant class. Her mother, Madeleine de la Tour d’Auvergne was the French Countess of Auvergne and was a blood relation to Francis I of the house of Valois and the current King of France. The marriage of Catherine’s parents was none other than a marriage of convenience and was perceived as part of Francis I’s efforts to gain power in Italy; hence the marriage of a noble of royal descent (Madeleine) to a merchant of lower class (Lorenzo). This enabled Francis to maintain a strong alliance with Giovanni de Medici -Lorenzo’s uncle - whom just so happened to be the Pope at the time, Leo X. This marriage solidified the relationship between the two and granted them the opportunity that they both needed in order to strengthen their rules. Francis needed Papal authority in order to reinforce his claims on the throne of Naples, and Giovanni required one of the two pre-dominate superpowers at his side during the inevitable struggle for hegemony between France and Spain. Both parties got what they desired as Francis was granted Leo’s support in his bid for the control of Naples when he and Pope Leo X met in December 1515 where they signed a treaty of friendship that ensured
