Representing the Life and Legacy of Renée de France:From Fille de France to Dowager Duchess (Queenship and Power)

by: Kelly Digby Peebles (Editor),Gabriella Scarlatta(Editor)

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Publication Date: 24 July 2021

Language: English

Print Length: 417 pages

ISBN-10: 3030691209

ISBN-13: 9783030691202

Book Description

This book considers the life and legacy of Renée de France (1510–75), the youngest daughter of King Louis XII and Anne de Bretagne, exploring her cultural, spiritual, and political influence and her evolving roles and actions as fille de France, Duchess of Ferrara, and Dowager Duchess at Montargis. Drawing on a variety of often overlooked sources – poetry, theater, fine arts, landscape architecture, letters, and ambassadorial reports – contributions highlight Renée’s wide-ranging influence in sixteenth-century Europe, from the Italian Wars to the French Wars of Religion. These essays consider her cultural patronage and politico-religious advocacy, demonstrating that she expanded upon intellectual and moral values shared with her sister, Claude de France; her cousins, Marguerite de Navarre and Jeanne d’Albret; and her godmother and mother, Anne de France and Anne de Bretagne, thereby solidifying her place in a long line of powerful French royal women.
From the Back Cover This book considers the life and legacy of Renée de France (1510–75), the youngest daughter of King Louis XII and Anne de Bretagne, exploring her cultural, spiritual, and political influence and her evolving roles and actions as fille de France, Duchess of Ferrara, and Dowager Duchess at Montargis. Drawing on a variety of often overlooked sources – poetry, theater, fine arts, landscape architecture, letters, and ambassadorial reports – contributions highlight Renée’s wide-ranging influence in sixteenth-century Europe, from the Italian Wars to the French Wars of Religion. These essays consider her cultural patronage and politico-religious advocacy, demonstrating that she expanded upon intellectual and moral values shared with her sister, Claude de France; her cousins, Marguerite de Navarre and Jeanne d’Albret; and her godmother and mother, Anne de France and Anne de Bretagne, thereby solidifying her place in a long line of powerful French royal women.
About the Author
Kelly Digby Peebles is Associate Professor of French and Director of Language and Inteational Health at Clemson University, USA.Gabriella Scarlatta is Professor of French and Italian and Associate Dean in the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters at The University of Michigan-Dearbo, USA.