The dark queens : the bloody rivalry that forged the medieval world / Shelley Puhak.
Material type: TextPublisher: New York : Bloomsbury Publishing, [2022]Copyright date: ©2022Description: xvi, 367 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps ; 25 cmContent type:- text
- unmediated
- volume
- 9781801109161
- 1801109168
- 9781635574913
- 1635574919
Item type | Home library | Collection | Call number | Materials specified | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adult Book | Main Library | NonFiction | 944.013 P978 | Available | 33111010772271 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
"Brunhild was a foreign princess, raised to be married off for the sake of alliance-building. Her sister-in-law Fredegund started out as a lowly palace slave. And yet -in 6th-century Merovingian France, where women were excluded from noble succession and royal politics - these two iron-willed strategists reigned over vast realms, changing the face of Europe. Award-winning writer Shelley Puhak resurrects two very real women in all their complexity, painting a richly detailed portrait of an unfamiliar time and striking at the roots of some of our cultures stubbornest myths about female power"--Publishers description.
The remarkable, little-known story of two trailblazing women in the Early Middle Ages who wielded immense power, only to be vilified for daring to rule. Brunhild was a foreign princess, raised to be married off for the sake of alliance-building. Her sister-in-law Fredegund started out as a lowly palace slave. And yet, in sixth-century Merovingian France, where women were excluded from noble succession and royal politics was a blood sport, these two iron-willed strategists reigned over vast realms, changing the face of Europe.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 277-346) and index.
A wedding in Metz -- Meeting the Franks -- The fall of Charibert -- New alliances -- A missive to Byzantium -- The slave queen -- All the king's men -- The siege -- The witch and the nun -- Back channels -- Uprising -- The laws of sanctuary -- Crime and punishment -- "Wise in counsel" -- Fredegund's grief -- Brunhild in the breach -- The regency -- Set ablaze -- Brunichildis Regina -- The King is dead -- The vexations of King Guntram -- The Gundovald affair -- The diplomatic arts -- The Dukes' revolt -- A royal engagement -- The defiant nuns -- Allies and assassins -- Forlorn little boys -- The fading of the kings -- The dual rule -- Brunhild's battles -- The fall -- Epilogue. Backlash.