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hmalagisi's review against another edition
5.0
When one thinks about strong women in the sixteenth century, many turn their attention towards women like Elizabeth I, Isabella of Castile, Katherine of Aragon, Mary I and Catherine de Medici. These seemed like extraordinary examples of the power that stretched the boundaries on what was right and acceptable for women of the time. That, however, couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, the sixteenth century in Europe was filled with powerful women who do not get the attention that they deserve. In Sarah Gristwood’s book “Game of Queens: The Women who made Sixteenth-Century Europe”, we are shown that it really wasn’t the men who had control, but their wives and daughters.
Diplomacy is often described as a chess game and in the case of the sixteenth century, that could not be more accurate. This was the century of political games, the importance of marriages, wars galore and religious reforms. It all started off with women like Isabella of Castile of Spain and Anne de Beaujeu of France; powerful women who would not only influence their own children but girls who would come into their homes to learn how to be strong royal wives. Anne of Beaujeu wrote a manual for noblewomen, including this piece of advice:
“And nothing is firm or lasting in the gifts of Fortune; today you see those raised high by Fortune who, two days later, are brought down hard.”
This would come to describe the lives of the women who would follow throughout the rest of the sixteenth century. Most of them had to act as regents for their sons or male relations. Others were wives of kings who tried to change their countries for the better and either succeeded or failed miserably. It was the women at the beginning and the middle of the century that would pave the way for the more infamous queens like Katherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Mary Tudor, Elizabeth Tudor, and Mary Queen of Scots.
Sarah Gristwood was able to combine this complex game of women political chess with sixteen protagonists into a masterful biography to give a better understanding of how sixteenth-century Europe worked. This was a sisterhood of queens with mothers teaching daughters on how to survive in the courts. These women were connected by blood and by marriage, however, it was how they used the lessons of those who came before them which would define them.
Sarah Gristwood could have made sixteen separate biographies, but by combining all of these stories into one book, it shows how each country and each ruler truly depended on one another. In a world where male heirs were few or died young, it was the women who had to step in and make Europe ready for the future. The sixteenth century was the changing point for European history and it was the women who had to navigate the complex field to keep Europe from completely falling apart. This book is the story of powerful women who helped make Europe the powerhouse it would become in the sixteenth century and how they did it.
Diplomacy is often described as a chess game and in the case of the sixteenth century, that could not be more accurate. This was the century of political games, the importance of marriages, wars galore and religious reforms. It all started off with women like Isabella of Castile of Spain and Anne de Beaujeu of France; powerful women who would not only influence their own children but girls who would come into their homes to learn how to be strong royal wives. Anne of Beaujeu wrote a manual for noblewomen, including this piece of advice:
“And nothing is firm or lasting in the gifts of Fortune; today you see those raised high by Fortune who, two days later, are brought down hard.”
This would come to describe the lives of the women who would follow throughout the rest of the sixteenth century. Most of them had to act as regents for their sons or male relations. Others were wives of kings who tried to change their countries for the better and either succeeded or failed miserably. It was the women at the beginning and the middle of the century that would pave the way for the more infamous queens like Katherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Mary Tudor, Elizabeth Tudor, and Mary Queen of Scots.
Sarah Gristwood was able to combine this complex game of women political chess with sixteen protagonists into a masterful biography to give a better understanding of how sixteenth-century Europe worked. This was a sisterhood of queens with mothers teaching daughters on how to survive in the courts. These women were connected by blood and by marriage, however, it was how they used the lessons of those who came before them which would define them.
Sarah Gristwood could have made sixteen separate biographies, but by combining all of these stories into one book, it shows how each country and each ruler truly depended on one another. In a world where male heirs were few or died young, it was the women who had to step in and make Europe ready for the future. The sixteenth century was the changing point for European history and it was the women who had to navigate the complex field to keep Europe from completely falling apart. This book is the story of powerful women who helped make Europe the powerhouse it would become in the sixteenth century and how they did it.
whatjuliareads's review against another edition
4.0
Lots of information and very accessible - I'm not an expert in this subject matter at all, but I found this a great jumping off point (I have a list of all sorts of interesting things that I need to look into from this). Parts of this reminded me of Natalie Zemon Davis' work - trying to read intention, emotion, and motivation into situations that we have limited records of. If you enjoyed The Return of Martin Guerre, this definitely has aspects of that. Sometimes I felt that the conclusions seemed tenuous (but this was usually prefaced with Sarah Gristwood stating that it was possible interpretation, or something of that general nature) but I though overall the research seemed solid, interpretations clear, and the whole thing was presented in a really engaging way. I plan on picking up more of her books over time.
pocketvolcano's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this. I knew the famous names like Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Mary Stuart and Queen Catherine Di Medici but I learned about women like Mary of Hungary, Margaret of Austria, Louise of Savoy among others. The 1500s were a time for strong women and those covered in this book paved the way by showing women were just as capable of ruling as men.
thevalkyriereader's review against another edition
5.0
This is a great book for someone wanting to get into the women who moved medieval Europe and used their power to propel it forward. It was a wonderful history book.
quercus707's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoyable book, filled in my knowledge of the history of the time period (1500s) very nicely. I especially liked how it linked events in England, France, and the Holy Roman Empire - Spain, the Netherlands, the German states, and covered the role of religious dispute and reformation in a very clear and nonpartisan way.