Harvard University Press Queen of Navarre: Jeanne d'Albret, 1528-1572

This is the first biography in a hundred years of jeanne d・ ・albret, a femme politique worthy of comparison with elizabeth of england (her ally) and catherine de medici (her opponent) in a period when all the political and ideological currents of reformation europe converged in france. Her career as a feudal ruler in southwest france illustrates the changing relations between the high nobility and the crown, while her role as co-leader, with coligny, of the calvinist party at its height contributes to an understanding of the failure of the french reformation. As the mother of henry iv, she was responsible for the political education of france・ ・s most popular king, some of whose problems were inherited from her along with the models for some solutions.