Overview
Los retratos oficiales que muestran a las reinas ataviadas con suntuosos vestidos y cubiertas de joyas ocultan unas vidas marcadas por las desdichas y las tragedias personales.
Algunas de ellas se encontraban lejos del trono al nacer, pero consiguieron ceñir la corona por derecho propio y no por matrimonio. Isabel I de Inglaterra, hija de Ana Bolena, pasó de ser una princesa bastarda a dar nombre al glorioso siglo en que reinó; Catalina la Grande no dudó en ponerse al frente de un ejército para derrocar a su esposo y dirigir con mano firme el imperio ruso, mientras que la emperatriz Cixí entró en la Ciudad Prohibida como concubina y gobernó China oculta tras una cortina de seda. Hubo también reinas marcadas por la fatalidad que sobrevivieron en un mundo de intrigas: Catalina de Aragón, hija de los Reyes Católicos y primera esposa de Enrique VIII, fue una de las soberanas más amadas de Inglaterra. O la infeliz Carlota de México, una joven y culta princesa belga que se convirtió en emperatriz de México y perdió la razón tras el asesinato de su esposo, Maximiliano de Habsburgo.
Déspotas, libertinas, desalmadas, arpías, locas... son solo algunos de los adjetivos que engrosaron la leyenda negra de estas cinco soberanas. Cristina Morató da voz en este libro a las mujeres de carne y hueso que alcanzaron el poder en un mundo de hombres gracias a su inteligencia, valor y fortaleza y nos descubre que los mejores reyes fueron reinas.
ENGLISH DESCRIPTION
After the success of Reinas malditas [Damned Queens], Cristina Morató is back with the stories of five queens who left their marks on history.
The official portraits depicting monarchs decked out with sumptuous dresses and jewels conceal lives marked by personal tragedy and misfortune.
Several of these five women were born far from the seat of power but claimed the crown on their own right rather than through marriage. Elizabeth I, daughter of Anne Boleyn, rose from illegitimate princess to ruler of England’s Golden Age. Catherine the Great led an army to defeat her husband and guided the Russian Empire with a strong hand. Empress Cixí entered the Forbidden City as a concubine and governed China from behind a silk curtain. The two other women covered in this volume survived reigns marked by fateful intrigue: Catherine of Aragon, daughter of Spain’s Ferdinand and Isabel, was the first wife of Henry VIII and one of England’s most beloved queens; and the unfortunate Charlotte of Belgium, the educated young princess who became Empress of Mexico, slipped into insanity after the assassination of her husband, Maximilian of Austria.
Despots, libertines, coldhearted, harpies, lunatics: These are just some of the terms that have been used to slander these five flesh and blood women who seized power in a male-dominated world, thanks to their intelligence, courage, and strength. In Cristina Morató’s exploration of their lives, we discover that the best rulers were often queens.
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