Leo made Catherine Duchess of Urbino but annexed most of the Duchy of Urbino to the Papal States, only permitting Florence to keep the Fortress of San Leo. King Francis wanted Catherine to be raised at the French court, but Pope Leo refused, claiming he wanted her to marry Ippolito de' Medici. Within a month of Catherine's birth, both her parents were dead: Madeleine died on 28 April of puerperal fever, and Lorenzo died on 4 May. According to a contemporary chronicler, when Catherine was born, her parents were "as pleased as if it had been a boy". The young couple had been married the year before at Amboise as part of the alliance between King Francis I of France and Lorenzo's uncle Pope Leo X against the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I. Clement called Catherine's betrothal to Henry of Orléans "the greatest match in the world".Ĭatherine de' Medici was born on 13 April 1519 in Florence, Republic of Florence, the only child of Lorenzo de' Medici, Duke of Urbino, and his wife, Madeleine de la Tour d'Auvergne, the countess of Boulogne.
Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici, Pope Clement VII, by Sebastiano del Piombo, c.1531. According to Mark Strage, one of her biographers, Catherine was the most powerful woman in 16th-century Europe. Without Catherine, it is unlikely that her sons would have remained in power. Therefore, her policies may be seen as desperate measures to keep the Valois monarchy on the throne at all costs and her patronage of the arts as an attempt to glorify a monarchy (whose prestige was in steep decline). In practice, her authority was always limited by the effects of the civil wars. Some historians have excused Catherine from blame for the worst decisions of the crown, though evidence for her ruthlessness can be found in her letters. Bartholomew's Day massacre of 1572, during which thousands of Huguenots were killed both in Paris and throughout France. In return, she came to be blamed for the persecutions carried out under her sons' rule, and in particular, for the St. Later she resorted (in frustration and anger) to hard-line policies against them.
However, she failed to fully grasp the theological issues that drove their movement. At first, Catherine compromised and made concessions to the rebelling Calvinist Protestants, or Huguenots, as they became known. However, Catherine was able to maintain the monarchy and the state institutions functioning-even at a minimum level. The problems facing the monarchy were complex and daunting. He dispensed with her advice only in the last months of her life and outlived her by seven months.Ĭatherine's three sons reigned in an age of almost constant civil and religious war in France. After Charles died in 1574, Catherine played a key role in the reign of her third son, Henry III. When Francis II died in 1560, she became regent on behalf of her 10-year-old son King Charles IX and was thus granted sweeping powers. Henry's death in 1559 thrust Catherine into the political arena as mother of the frail 15-year-old King Francis II. Henry excluded Catherine from participating in state affairs and instead showered favours on his chief mistress, Diane de Poitiers, who wielded much influence over him. Catherine's marriage was arranged by her uncle Pope Clement VII. In 1533 at the age of fourteen, Catherine married Henry, second son of King Francis I and Queen Claude of France. Ĭatherine was born in Florence to Lorenzo de' Medici, Duke of Urbino, and Madeleine de La Tour d'Auvergne. The years during which her sons reigned have been called "the age of Catherine de' Medici" as she had extensive, if at times varying, influence in the political life of France. She was Queen of France from 1547 until 1559, by marriage to King Henry II, and mother of French kings Francis II, Charles IX and Henry III. Caterina Maria Romula di Lorenzo de' MediciĬatherine de' Medici ( Italian: Caterina de' Medici, pronounced French: Catherine de Médicis, pronounced 13 April 1519 – 5 January 1589) was an Italian noblewoman born into the Medici family.