FRANCIS I /ANGLAIS - Hardcover

FRIEDA LEONIE

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0297852116 ISBN 13: 9780297852117

Publisher: LITTLE BROWN US, 2018

Synopsis

'A captivating biography ... This rollicking story is packed with anecdotes'The Times

Francis I was inconstant, amorous, hot-headed and flawed. Yet he was also arguably the most significant king that France ever had. This is his story.

A contemporary of Henry VIII of England, Francis saw himself as the first Renaissance king, a man who was the exemplar of courtly and civilised behaviour throughout Europe. A courageous and heroic warrior, he was also a keen aesthete, an accomplished diplomat and an energetic ruler who turned his country into a force to be reckoned with.

Yet he was also capricious, vain and arrogant, taking hugely unnecessary risks, at least one of which nearly resulted in the end of his kingdom. His great feud with his nemesis Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor, defined European diplomacy and sovereignty, but his notorious alliance with the great Ottoman ruler Suleiman the Magnificent threatened to destroy everything.

With access to never-before-seen private archives, Leonie Frieda's comprehensive and sympathetic account explores the life of the most human of all Renaissance monarchs - and the most enigmatic.

About this title

About the Author

Swedish by birth, but educated in Britain, France and Germany, Leonie Frieda speaks five languages and is a member of the Institute of Linguists. She is the author of a bestselling biography of Catherine de Medici, andThe Deadly Sisterhood: A Story of Women, Power and Intrigue in the Italian Renaissance. She lives in London and has two children.
http://www.leoniefrieda.com/

Review

Good English biographies of French kings are rare. So Leonie Frieda's life of Francis I is welcome. Leonie Frieda has done her hero such justice as is possible. She tells his story in great detail... I can't suppose that there has been a better English biography of Francis, or indeed is likely to be one -- Alan Massie * CATHOLIC HERALD * A superb and vivid biography ... that brings the world of Francis I to life, skillfully delineating the moves and major players in both European and domestic politics ... and also gives the reader wonderful glimpses of the often licentious court life of that time ... Ms Frieda suggests that, under Francis I, France preserved its political power, greatly increased its cultural influence, and positioned itself for the Grand Siecle that his Bourbon successors would soon preside over -- John Steele Gordon * WALL STREET JOURNAL * Frieda paints a surprisingly funny account of a king obsessed by power and sex, who took Renaissance France in directions that his predecessors would never have dared but was nearly undone by his own hubris. Frieda maintains a fine balance between psychological insight, the intricacies of 16th-century diplomacy and uproarious anecdotes of bad behaviour -- Alexander Larman * OBSERVER * A thoughtful, vivid and well-paced telling of a complex story; and it is set against an even more complex background of European power-politics, which Frieda picks apart with admirable skill -- Noel Malcolm * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH * A captivating biography ... [Frieda] does herself proud. Battle scenes are vividly drawn and the intricacies of statecraft reconstructed with admirable clarity. She also has a fine eye for detail - this rollicking story is packed with anecdotes -- Gerard DeGroot * THE TIMES *

About this edition

• Publisher: LITTLE BROWN US
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 0297852116
• ISBN 13: 9780297852117
• Binding: Hardcover