(1519-1589) Queen of France

By birth she belonged to famous family Florentine rulers who ruled the city for more than two hundred years. Its founder, Giovanni Medici, was one of the richest citizens of the city. In 1409, he became a banker at the papal court, which further strengthened his power in Europe. Giovanni's wealth opened the way to power for his son Cosimo de' Medici, whom the Florentines called "father of the fatherland."

He was an educated man, a keen connoisseur of sciences and arts. Philosophers, poets, and artists gathered at his villa. They read excerpts from the works of Plato and recited ancient odes to the accompaniment of the lyre. During one of these readings, Cosimo de' Medici, the uncrowned ruler of Florence, unexpectedly died. After Cosimo's death, power in Florence passed to his grandson Lorenzo.

Lorenzo also went down in history as a patron of the arts, science and philosophy. The largest cultural figures of the Renaissance gathered at his court - the artist and sculptor Benvenuto Cellini, the sculptor Michelangelo, the humanist Pico Mirandola and others. Lorenzo continued the traditions laid down by Cosimo, and under him Florence earned the glory of the capital of world culture. Fellow citizens nicknamed Lorenzo the Magnificent.

After the death of Lorenzo, his son Pietro, a handsome and frivolous man, became the ruler of Florence. He had a cruel and arrogant character. In a short time, Pietro earned everyone's hatred for himself. That is why on November 14, 1494, he was deposed and expelled from the city. His daughter, and therefore the granddaughter of Lorenzo the Magnificent, was Catherine de Medici. However, most of her life was spent far from Florence, because she was married to French king Henry II Valois.

After the death of Henry in 1559, the young and sick son of Henry and Catherine, Francis, first became the French king, and after the death of Francis, his brother Charles IX. But virtually all power was in the hands of Catherine de Medici. Even during her husband's lifetime, the queen actively participated in government affairs.

Catherine was always distinguished by cunning and prudence. She sought to have undivided control of her power. Therefore, it is no coincidence that it was under her that open clashes began in France between Catholics and Protestants, who were called Huguenots.

In 1560, a palace conspiracy was uncovered, after which the executions of the Huguenots began. They were specially staged as performances at court and a large number of spectators were invited. But the most terrible episode was the so-called St. Bartholomew's Night.

In August 1572, the wedding of Henry of Navarre from the Bourbon family with the king’s sister Margaret was magnificently celebrated at court. True, this marriage subsequently turned out to be unsuccessful: in 1599, Henry IV separated from his first wife and married Maria de Medici, daughter of Fernando de Medici, Cosimo’s nephew. The luxurious wedding of Henry and Margaret took place in the presence of numerous guests, including Huguenot nobles. They wanted to convince King Charles IX to help the government of the Netherlands, where at that time there was a war against Spanish intervention.

Catherine decided to use the cluster of Huguenots for reprisals. On the night of August 24, Catholics dedicated to the cause marked the houses in which the Huguenots were located. The conspiracy was led by Heinrich Guise, who convinced the Queen Mother of the legality and necessity of future reprisals.

With the night alarm, armed Catholics attacked the peacefully sleeping Huguenots. Thus began the massacre. It lasted three days, and it was later determined that at least thirty thousand people died during this time. After this, war broke out between Catholics and Huguenots with new strength. The youngest son of Catherine de Medici, Henry III, and Duke Henry of Guise, and many high-born nobles fell victim to her.

Therefore, in 1589, Henry IV, the husband of Margaret, who went down in history as Queen Margot, became king of France. The new king was no longer subject to the influence of Catherine de Medici and saw his main task in the reconciliation of Catholics and Huguenots. True, for this he had to convert to Catholicism.

He ensured that the so-called Edict of Nantes was adopted - the law on religious tolerance. This happened in 1598. After this, Catholicism remained the dominant religion in France, but the Huguenots received equal rights with Catholics.

The future wife of the French king was born into the family of the ruler of Florence, Lorenzo II, and Margarita de Auvergne, a noble French aristocrat. Catherine's parents died almost immediately after her birth in 1519. She ended up being raised by her aunt Clarissa Strozzi.

In 1527, the Medici family was overthrown in Florence. An eight-year-old girl became a hostage of rioting townspeople. At the same time, the city was besieged by the troops of the German Emperor Charles V. Among the rebels there were calls to hang Catherine on the gates or send her to a brothel.

Fortunately for the girl, Florence surrendered to the imperial troops, and Catherine went to Rome. Her uncle, Pope Clement VII, was waiting for her there. Almost immediately he began searching for a groom for her. Catherine was married to the second son of the French king Francis I - Henry, Duke of Orleans.

Catherine de' Medici - Queen of France. Biography

Unloved wife

At first, everything turned out favorably for Catherine. A large dowry was given for her; Francis I needed the support of the Pope in the fight against the German emperor. But in 1534 Pope Clement VII dies. The dowry was only partially received. Catherine was disliked at court. Red-haired and short, Catherine was called a merchant's wife behind her back. An even greater humiliation for the young girl was the relationship of her handsome husband with Diane de Poitiers, who was 19 years older than him.

In 1536, under strange circumstances, the heir to the throne died. Many courtiers believed that Catherine poisoned him, thereby clearing the way for her husband. For 10 years she could not give birth to an heir, which also did not add to her popularity.

But since 1545, to the delight of her husband, she begins to give birth to children. A total of 9 babies were born, 7 of whom survived. To her disappointment, this did not secure her husband's love.

Francis I died in 1547. Catherine's husband became King Henry I of France.

Black Queen

In 1559, in honor of the peace treaty between Henry I and Charles V, a knightly tournament was organized. During the tournament, Henry II was wounded by a piece of a spear and died in terrible agony 10 days later. The queen, who despite everything loved her husband very much, wears black mourning for the rest of her life, and receives the nickname “black queen” or “black viper.”

At the age of 15, Francis II becomes king. The Dukes of Giza and Catherine head the regency council. A year later, Francis dies, most likely from tuberculosis. Under the ten-year-old Charles IX, Catherine actually began to rule France.

St. Bartholomew's Night

At this time, the country is on the threshold civil war. All of France was divided into two camps. The north and center adhered to Catholicism (the Dukes of Giza), against them was the ever-rebellious south, where Protestants-Huguenots lived (Calvinists, led by Admiral Henry of Coligny, King of Navarre).

In order to reconcile Protestants and Catholics, Catherine agrees to marry Henry (King of Navarre) to her daughter Margaret. At the same time, an attempt is made on the life of Admiral Coligny, the leader of the Huguenots. Everyone suspects the “black queen”.

Fearing for her own life and convinced that it was impossible to come to an agreement with the Huguenots, she started a rumor that a conspiracy was being prepared. On the night of St. Bartholomew 1572, (August 24), a terrible massacre takes place. In Paris alone, no less than three thousand Huguenots were slaughtered.

The massacres only spurred Protestants to resist. Religious wars will rage in the country for almost a quarter of a century.

Henry III, last years

Charles IX died in 1574. Catherine's beloved son arrives from Poland and becomes the last king of the Valois dynasty - Henry III. Henry moves away from his mother and pushes her into the shadows.

In an effort to regain her son's favor, Catherine travels through the lands of the Huguenots trying to reconcile them with the king. She maintained numerous correspondence with the royal courts of Europe and Protestant leaders. On the trip she dies, in the city of Blois near Paris.

After death, she also did not know peace. The residents of Paris refused to allow the coffin with her body to pass through. Much later, the urn with her remains was transferred to Saint Denis, the tomb of the kings. But, as in life, she found no place next to her husband. The urn was buried away from his grave.

Catherine de Medici can be called the most “hated” woman in history. “The Black Queen”, poisoner, child killer, instigator of St. Bartholomew's Night - contemporaries did not spare epithets for her, although some of them were unfair.

Child of death

The sinister image of Catherine de Medici was not the invention of Dumas. She was born under a terrible star. It’s no joke, immediately after birth in 1519 the child was dubbed “the child of death.” This nickname, like a trail, will accompany her throughout her future life. Her mother, 19-year-old Duchess Madeleine de la Tour, died six days after giving birth, and her father, Lorenzo de' Medici II, died two weeks later.

Catherine de' Medici is credited with poisoning her husband's elder brother, Francis, the Queen of Navarre, Jeanne Dalbret, and even her son, Charles IX. Her most terrible prank was St. Bartholomew's Night.

However, she did not become the “Black Queen” because of her reputation. Catherine wore black mourning for the first time. Before this, in France, white was considered a symbol of grief. In some ways, and in fashion, she was the first at court. Catherine mourned for her deceased husband Henry II for 30 years, she made broken spears as her emblem, and her motto was “This is the reason for my tears and my pain,” but more on that a little later.

According to the marriage lottery, Catherine was chosen as the wife of the second son of the French king, Henry of Valois. But the marriage became virtually fictitious. The king already had the love of his life - his children's teacher Diane de Poitiers. He had been in love with her since he was 11 years old. She already had an illegitimate son from the king, and Catherine, on the contrary, could not get pregnant. The situation was complicated by the fact that the Medici loved her husband. Subsequently, in one of her letters to her daughter, she wrote: “I loved him and will be faithful to him all my life.”

The French court rejected her, as did Henry. They kept saying behind my back: “Merchant’s wife! Where does she care about the noble Valois! Poorly educated, ugly, barren. When, after the death of the first contender for the throne, Francis, she became the wife of the Dauphin, the situation did not improve.

There were rumors that Francis I, Henry's father, had practically agreed to annul his son's marriage to Catherine.

Meanwhile, the cult of Diana flourished at court. Henry II adored his favorite until his death, when she was already 60. He even performed at tournaments under her flowers. The queen next to her is just a shadow. In order to somehow gain her husband’s favor after the birth of such long-awaited children, she gave them to Diana to raise. At court, Catherine completely dissolved in the politics that the king and his Diana were engaged in. Perhaps, if this had happened in Russia, she would have ended her days in a monastery.

Trendsetter

But during the life of Henry II, Catherine remained with her own path, in which she had no equal: she was the main trendsetter in all of Europe. The entire aristocracy of France listened to her taste.

It was to her that the fair sex of Europe owed subsequent fainting spells - she set a limit for the waist - 33 cm, which was achieved with the help of a corset.

She also brought with her from Italy heels that concealed the shortcomings of her short stature.

Ice cream came with it to France. It first appeared at her wedding, which lasted 34 days. Italian chefs served a new dish every day, a new variety of these “ice pieces.” And after that, their French colleagues mastered this dish. Thus, the first thing that Catherine de Medici brought to France became the only thing that took hold there. The dowry was quickly squandered, all her political contributions led only to the fall of Valois, but the ice cream remained.

Nostradamus is a favorite

The position of shadow with the king's favorite did not suit Catherine. She did not give free rein to her emotions and patiently endured all the insults of the court, but universal contempt only fueled her vanity. She wanted her husband's love and power. To do this, Catherine needed to decide the most main problem- give birth to an heir for the king. And she resorted to an unconventional path.

Even as a child, when she studied at a monastery in Siena, Catherine became interested in astrology and magic.

One of the main confidants of the French queen was the predictor Nostradamus.

Contemporaries said that it was he who cured her of infertility. I must say, traditional traditional methods, which she used were very extravagant - she had to drink a tincture of mule urine, wear cow pus and fragments of deer antlers on her stomach. Some of it worked.

From 1544 to 1556 she continuously gave birth to children. In 12 years she gave birth to ten children. Just a fantastic result.

Francis, Elizabeth, Claude, Louis, Charles Maximilian, Edward Alexander, who would later be Henry III, Margaret, Hercule, the last adored son, and in 1556 the twins Victoria and Jeanne, but the latter died right in the womb.

The name of Nostradamus is also associated with the most important prediction in Catherine’s life. Historian Natalya Basovskaya says that once the queen came to him with the question “How long will her sons rule?” He sat her down by the mirror and began to spin a wheel. According to young Francis, the wheel turned once, he really ruled less than a year, according to Charles the Ninth - the wheel spun 14 times, he reigned for 14 years, according to Henry the Third - 15, and he ruled for 15.

With family

On July 10, 1559, Henry II died due to wounds received at the tournament. The enemy's spear slid across his helmet and pierced his eye, leaving a splinter in his brain. Catherine de Medici put on her famous black mourning, made herself a symbolic emblem of a broken spear and prepared to fight her way through her children to power. She succeeded - she achieved the status of “governess of France” under her sons. Her second heir, Charles IX, solemnly declared right at the coronation that he would rule together with his mother. By the way, his last words were also: “Oh, mom.”

The courtiers were not mistaken when they called Catherine “uneducated.” Her contemporary Jean Bodin subtly noted: “the most terrible danger is the intellectual unsuitability of the sovereign.”

Catherine de Medici could be anyone - a cunning intriguer, an insidious poisoner, but before understanding all the subtleties of internal and international relations she was far away.

For example, her famous confederation in Poissy, when she organized a meeting of Catholics and Calvinists in order to reconcile the two faiths. She sincerely believed that all the problems of the world could be resolved through emotional negotiations, so to speak, “within the family circle.” According to historians, she could not even understand the true meaning of the speech of Calvin’s close associate, who stated that eating bread and wine during communion is only a remembrance of the sacrifice of Christ. A terrible blow to Catholic worship. And Catherine, who had never been particularly fanatical, only watched in amazement as the conflict flared up. All that was clear to her was that for some reason her plan was not working out.

Her entire policy, despite Catherine’s terrible reputation, was painfully naive. As historians say, she was not a ruler, but a woman on the throne. Its main weapon was dynastic marriages, none of which were successful. She married Charles IX to the daughter of Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg, and sent her daughter Elizabeth to Philip II, a Catholic fanatic who broke last life, but did not bring any benefit to France and Valois. She wooed her youngest son to Elizabeth I of England, the main enemy of the same Philip. Catherine de Medici believed that dynastic marriages were the solution to all problems. She wrote to Philip: “Start arranging marriages for children, and this will make it easier to resolve the religious issue.” Catherine intended to reconcile the two conflicting faiths with one wedding of her Catholic daughter Margaret with the Huguenot Henry of Navarre. And then, immediately after the wedding, she carried out a massacre of the Huguenots invited to the celebration, declaring them in a conspiracy against the king. It is not surprising that after such steps the Valois dynasty sank into oblivion along with its only surviving son, Henry III, and France fell into the nightmare of the Civil War.

Crown of thorns?

So, how should you treat Catherine de Medici? Was she unhappy? Undoubtedly. An orphan, an abandoned wife, a humiliated “merchant’s wife” at court, a mother who outlived almost all her children. An energetic, always-busy queen mother whose political activities were, for the most part, meaningless. At her combat post, she traveled and traveled around France until ill health overtook her in Blois, where she died during her next visit.

Her “loyal subjects” did not leave her alone even after her death. When her remains were taken to Paris to be buried in Saint-Denis, the city's citizens promised to throw her body into the Seine if the coffin appeared at the city gates.

After a long time, the urn with the ashes was moved to Saint-Denis, but there was no place next to the husband, just as during his lifetime. The urn was buried aside.

Recently, historian Gulchuk Nelya published a book called “The Crown of Thorns of Catherine de Medici.” She, of course, had a crown, but can it be compared to a crown of thorns? An unhappy life does not justify her methods - “everything for the sake of power.” It was not fate, but her terrible but naive policy that destroyed in one generation the prosperous Valois dynasty, as it was under her father-in-law Francis I.

Deprived of love

Catherine was born in Florence in 1519. The daughter of Lorenzo, Duke of Urbino, she was orphaned from birth and was raised at the court of her grandfather, Pope Clement VII. Many of those who knew Catherine back in the papal palace noted the sharp intelligence and ruthlessness in the girl’s gaze. Alchemists and magicians were the main favorites among her entourage even then. For Clement, the granddaughter was large map in the political game - he methodically looked for the best groom for her ruling houses Europe.

In 1533, the wedding of Catherine de Medici and Henry of Orleans, the son of the French king, took place. Apparently, she was ready to sincerely love her young husband, but he did not need her love, giving his heart to Diane de Poitiers, who was twenty years older than him.

Catherine's life was sad. Although she behaved modestly and outwardly did not interfere in state affairs, the French did not like the “stranger”, who was not distinguished by either beauty or pleasantness in communication. Prickly eyes, stubbornly clenched thin lips, nervous fingers, always fiddling with a handkerchief - no, this is not how cheerful France wanted to see its queen. In addition, the Medici family has long and rightly had a dark reputation as sorcerers and poisoners. But what especially spoiled Catherine’s life was that for ten years she and Henry had no children. The threat of divorce hung over her all this time.

What gave Catherine de Medici the strength to endure her husband’s neglect, the machinations of a successful rival, and the ridicule of the courtiers? Undoubtedly, the confidence that her time will come.

Nature endowed Catherine with the gift of foresight, although she tried to hide it from strangers. Evidence remains only from those closest to him. Her daughter, Queen Margot, glorified by Alexandre Dumas, said: “Every time her mother was about to lose someone from her family, she saw a huge flame in her dreams.” She also dreamed about the outcomes important battles, impending natural disasters.

However, Catherine was not content with only her own gift. When an important decision needed to be made, she turned to the help of astrologers and sorcerers, many of whom she brought with her from Italy. Card fortune telling, astrology, rituals with magic mirrors - everything was at her service. As Catherine once admitted to the same Margot, more than once she was on the verge of asking her husband for a divorce and return to Italy. She was held back only by the image that appeared in the magic mirror - she with a crown on her head and surrounded by a dozen children.

Patroness of Nostradamus

Catherine's life changed little in 1547, when Henry ascended the throne. Diana continued to rule her husband’s heart and state affairs, and the unloved wife continued to seek solace from the masters of the occult sciences.

Catherine had already heard about the famous predictor Nostradamus when the thirty-fifth quatrain (quatrain) from his “Prophecies” came to her attention. It was about the fate of the French king: “The young lion will surpass the old one on the battlefield in a single duel, he will pierce his eye through the golden cage. Two wounds in one, then die a painful death.”

This was the second "bell". The first one sounded a little earlier - another astrologer, Luke Gorick, warned Catherine that her husband was in mortal danger from being wounded at a certain tournament. Concerned, Catherine insisted: Nostradamus must be invited to the court to clarify the details of the prophecy. He arrived, but the queen’s anxiety from communicating with him only intensified.

Celebrations were planned for July 1, 1559 in honor of the marriage of Princess Elizabeth, Catherine's daughter, to the Spanish King Philip II. Henry ordered the removal of part of the pavement from the Parisian street Saint-Antoine in order to organize a lists there.

Catherine already knew that the hour of trouble had come. She had a dream: there was fire again, a lot of fire. When she woke up, the first thing she did was send a note to her husband: “I conjure you, Henry! Refuse to fight today!”

He calmly crumpled the paper into a ball, not having the habit of listening to the advice of his hateful wife.

The celebration is grand! The crowd applauds and screams deafeningly. Of course, all precautions were taken: the spears were blunted, the participants were clad in steel armor, and strong helmets were on their heads. Everyone is excited. And only Catherine’s fingers tug at the scarf with such force that a huge hole appears on it.

As soon as the king entered the field, the signal was given for the start of the tournament. Here Henry sent his horse towards one knight, here he crossed a spear with another. “The king is an excellent fighter,” Catherine convinces herself. “And today he is especially inspired.” But my heart sank in anticipation of tragedy.

Henry orders the Earl of Montgomery, a young captain in the Scottish army, whose shield bears an image of a lion, to take up a spear. He hesitates - he remembers too well how his father almost killed another French king, Francis I, hitting him in the head with a burning torch during a game. But Henry is adamant, and the count submits.

The rivals rush towards each other. And - horror! - Montgomery's spear breaks with a crash, hitting the king's golden helmet. One fragment falls into the opened gap of the visor, piercing the eye, the second one digs into the throat.

After suffering for ten days, Henry died. And many people remembered the prophecy of Nostradamus. The cardinals wanted to send him to the stake. Peasants who believed that the prediction was actually a curse burned images of the seer. Only Catherine's intercession saved him from reprisals.

Having become regent under her minor son Francis II, she gained the coveted power. Nostradamus remained at court, receiving the position of physician. There is a story that, at Catherine’s request, he had to make another prediction for the royal house, which turned out to be no less sad.

Summoning an angel named Anael, Nostradamus asked him to reveal the fate of the queen's children in a magic mirror. The mirror showed the reign of her three sons, and then the entire 23 years in power of her despised son-in-law, Henry of Navarre. Depressed by this news, Catherine stopped the magical action. She was filled with the readiness to fight fate using any means.

Black mass

At least two episodes are reliably known when Catherine de Medici resorted to the most terrible form of black magic - the “prophecy of the Bleeding Head.”

The first episode happened in the cold May night 1574. Francis, the eldest of the Queen Mother's sons, had long since been buried in the grave. And now the second son was dying - King Charles IX, stricken by an inexplicable illness. His situation worsened every day. Catherine had only one option left - a black mass.

The sacrifice required an innocent child, which, however, was not difficult to find. The courtier in charge of distributing alms prepared the child for his first communion. On the night of the sacrifice, the apostate monk, who had defected to the priests of black magic, celebrated a black mass in Karl’s chambers. In a room where only trusted persons were allowed, in front of the image of a demon, at whose feet an inverted crucifix was placed, he blessed two wafers - black and white. The white one was given to the child, the black one was placed at the bottom of the paten. The boy was killed with one blow immediately after his first communion. His severed head was placed on a black wafer and transferred to a table where candles were burning.

Dealing with evil demons is difficult. But that night things turned out especially bad. The king asked the demon to give a prophecy. And when he heard the answer that came from the little martyr’s head, he shouted: “Take that head away!”

“I suffer from violence,” the head said in Latin in a frighteningly inhuman voice.

Karl shook in convulsions, foam flew out of his mouth in clumps. The king is dead. And Catherine, who had never previously questioned her abilities for magic, was horrified: had even the devil turned away from her offspring?

However, the failure of the terrible ritual did not change her attitude towards witchcraft. Catherine still counted on the help of magicians. When a few years later her next son, King Henry III, fell ill, she, without hesitation for a long time, again turned to those who had not so long ago served a black mass to save Charles.

Catherine was sure: you can fight against magic only with the help of magic. It was her political opponents, the Guise family approaching the throne, who condemned the young king to death. The cards told her about the damage caused by them. Her court astrologer warned her about her. And later, a servant-witness trembling with fear told Catherine about how all this happened.

A wax figure of the king was placed on the altar, at which the priest Guizov celebrated mass. They pierced her with a needle during a prayer full of threats and anathemas. They asked for Henry's death. “Because His Majesty did not die quickly enough, they decided that our king was also a sorcerer,” the narrator whispered, drawing his head into his shoulders.

Catherine just shrugged her shoulders contemptuously. Is Heinrich a sorcerer? Only fools can believe this. He is weak and weak-willed, his spirit is not ready for such tests. And communication with dark forces is, as she knows very well, a cruel, strength-consuming test. It was obvious to her: she would have to take on the monstrous sin again.

And again the child was brought into the sick room. The candle flames went out again for a moment. But this time Catherine turned out to be stronger. Death touched the king's face and retreated, Henry survived.

No matter how hard Catherine tried, she could not deceive her fate.

One of her many astrologers warned the queen "against some Saint Germain." Since then, Catherine stopped visiting her castle in Saint-Germain-en-Laye and the Louvre - after all, the Church of Saint-Germain is located next to the Louvre. When making travel plans, she vigilantly ensured that her path ran as far as possible from the churches of the same name and settlements. The queen settled in the castle of Blois, which she had not previously loved, just to protect herself from any surprises.

Once, having fallen ill, she reassured the ladies-in-waiting: “Nothing threatens me in Blois, don’t worry. You heard, I will die next to Saint-Germain. And here I will certainly recover.”

But the disease progressed. And Catherine ordered to call a doctor. A doctor unfamiliar to her came, examined her and decided to watch at her bedside until the morning while she slept.

You are too tired, Your Majesty. You just need to have a good rest,” he said.
“Yes,” the queen nodded. - But who are you? What's your name?
“My name is Saint-Germain, madam,” the aesculapian bowed deeply.
Three hours later, Catherine de Medici passed away.

“I was crushed by the rubble of the house,” these dying words of the “black queen” turned out to be prophetic. A few months later, the last of her sons, Henry, followed his mother into the grave. Instead of the House of Valois, the Bourbon dynasty reigned in France.

In the history of Europe, the time of Catherine de Medici was one of the most brutal. Everywhere in Europe the fires of the Inquisition burned, famine and plague raged, and endless wars broke out. The Church split into warring Catholics and Protestants. In Italy, foreign invasions added to the civil unrest. In Florence, the dominance of the Medici family fell.

With the support of Rome, Lorenzo de' Medici returned to power in 1513. After 1.5 years, Giovanni Medici was elected Pope, who in 1518 married 26-year-old Lorenzo to 16-year-old Madeleine de la Tour, niece of Francis I of France. Madeleine gave birth to a girl, who was named Catherine, and died of fever 15 days later. A week later, Lorenzo also passed away.

Catherine was taken in by her aunt, Clarissa Strozzi. In 1527, Italy was captured by the German Emperor Charles. Catherine, at the age of 9, was taken hostage. With great difficulty, they managed to get Catherine out of the city; she was hidden in a monastery, then sent to Rome, where Pope Clement VII took the girl under his wing.

In October 1533, Clement married 14-year-old Catherine to the 14-year-old heir to the French throne, Prince Henry, giving the bride a generous dowry. In Paris, Henry spent considerable time with Diane de Poitiers, who, from the age of 12, was raising the prince and captivated him with her extraordinary mastery of the art of love.

In order not to be bored alone, Catherine, like men, entertained herself by hunting wild boars and deer. After 9 years of marriage, Catherine became pregnant and gave birth to children every year since then. But only 4 sons and 3 daughters survived. All this time, Catherine had to endure her husband's mistress, Diane de Poitiers.

In 1547 Francis I died and Henry II took his place on the throne. Catherine was proclaimed queen, but this did not add power to her. Henry spent a lot of money on endless wars and his mistress. In 1559, the war between France and Spain ended. 14-year-old Elizabeth, Catherine's eldest daughter, was married to the Spanish King Philip II. On this occasion, a knightly tournament took place in Paris, in which Henry took part. On July 9, in a duel with the captain of the Scottish Guard, Gabriel de Montgomery, the king was wounded by a Scotsman's spear, the tip of which pierced Henry's left eye. The king died a few days later. 15-year-old Francis, the son of Catherine, was declared monarch, who died a year later, and the throne went to the young Charles IX. But France was ruled by Catherine, who was appointed regent. Religious schism threatened to tear the country apart.

At this time, Catherine appeared in the image of a strict but fair ruler before her subjects. She sent Diane de Poitiers into exile, and the fires of the Inquisition went out on her orders. But she preferred to deal with her enemies using poison. Catherine listened to the advice of astrologers and believed in omens, loved to have fun and eat delicious food. After the death of her husband, she began to wear black clothes, for which people called her the “Black Queen.”

In 1565, Catherine, accompanied by King Charles and his courtiers, set off to travel around France. A new war was brewing, and in order to prevent it, Catherine decided to marry her 19-year-old daughter Margarita to the Protestant Henry of Navarre. The wedding took place in August 1572 in Paris. Conflicts between the Huguenots and Catholics immediately began. On St. Bartholomew's Day, a 3-day massacre began that claimed 2,500 lives. There was complete discord in the royal family; by 1576, only Henry and the depraved Margarita, whom her mother imprisoned in Ussel Castle, were the only survivors of Catherine’s children.

In 1588, the royal family fled the city to Blois. De Guise really threatened their throne, but was killed, and his supporters announced non-recognition of the Valois dynasty. But Catherine could no longer do anything - on January 5, 1589, Catherine de Medici died.