Catherine de Medici lived in a century defined by the contributions of remarkable women, and she distinguished herself as one of the most remarkable of them all.
One of the first things Catherine did was take Chateau de Chenounceau back from her husband’s long-time mistress, Diane de Poitiers.
In this second part of Catherine’s story, we follow Queen Mother Catherine beginning as a close advisor to her son, King Francis II. No longer an apprentice or observer in the art of intrigue, when Francis died about a year and a half later, she was named the only regent to her young son, King Charles IX. How was that possible in a court full of men greedy for power? She was sharp, strategic, and brave in ways that defied cultural expectations. She would be this way for the rest of her life with one primary goal: to be the custodian of her family’s legacy on the throne of France against all opponents.
And there were plenty of opponents. For starters, for the rest of her life, the French Wars of Religion, 27 years and eight civil wars, were one battle after another between Catholics and Huguenots (French Protestants.) This long series of conflicts pitted noble families, like the House of Guise and the House of Bourbon in France, and involved other kingdoms, like Spain and England.
Catherine did her best to bring tolerance to her country. Some of her plans were a success, like several stretches of relative peace in France, and marrying her children into politically advantageous unions. Some, like the Saint Barthomew’s Day Massacre, were such violent failures that they polarized the country even further.
Catherine and her children: Charles, Margo, Henry, and the future Francis/Alençon by Francois Clouet via wikimedia
Catherine left her imprint on France and the world through art, architecture, and a number of trends that she introduced to the French court. She was also very interested in astrology –Nostrodamus was one of her personal advisors–and she employed a group of smart, attractive, and cunning women known as her Flying Squadron to act as her spies. Her character and actions led to the story of one of the most complex women in history. Love her or hate her, you have to be impressed with her ability to navigate a complicated period of time and keep her wits, and her head, about her.
Catherine de Medici was the mother of three kings and two queens, but, sadly, she buried all but two of her children before her own death at the age of 69 in 1589.
The same year Catherine died, her son, King Henry III, was assassinated. With no more Valois heirs, Henry of Navarre became Henry IV of France- the first Bourbon in a dynasty that would last another 250 years. He was able to do what neither Catherine nor any of her sons could: bring peace to France.
Good King Henry:Henry IV of France, Portrait of Henry IV as Hercules slaying the Lernaean Hydra by Toussaint Debreuil, circa 1600
Registration for our April 19-27, 2026, Field Trip to London is now open! Visit Like Minds Travel for more information and to sign up!
Time Travel With The History Chicks
Books!
By Leonie Frieda By Mary Holingsworthby Mark StrageThe love triangle between King Henry II, Diane de Poitiers, and Catherine de Medici by HRH Princess Michael of KentBy Nancy GoldstoneBy Estelle ParanqueBy VIncent PittsBy Paul StrathernBy Ian Wilson
Web!
The Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, was originally built as administrative offices for Cosimo and the Medici family. It became a museum in the 1700s, and now houses some of the family’s art collection- you should go!
You can still visit the gardens (although, for the most part, the ones you see were created after Catherine’s death) but here’s an article about the original Tuileries Palace!
While her remains are no longer there (or identifiable) here is a piece on the stunning rotunda and tombs Catherine had created for King Henry II, herself, and her family at the Basilica of Saint-Denis.
Moving Pictures!
The empire-building game, Civilization VIhas Catherine as a character complete with Flying Squadron and quotes! Impressive!
We aren’t fans of the television series Reign and find it hard to say anything nice about it other than it was a soap opera and Megan Follows was the best thing in it, but if it’s your thing, you can find it on streaming services, including Prime.
Finally, Starz series The Serpent Queen. It’s very violent (so was Catherine’s time) and there are enough truths to make Catherine recognizable to us, AND Samantha Morton is very well cast here…we aren’t the boss of you, watch it if you like (espeically if you’ve already listened to our episodes, at least it’s fun to pick out the historical truths of which there are many.
As the last legitimate heir to a powerful family, Catherine de Medici was married at only 14 into one of the most powerful royal houses in Europe. The two halves of her story are VASTLY different, and here in Part One, we’re going to tell you about how her only resources were INNER resources – and the character that developed from the circumstances in which she was placed.
In late June, 2025, 50 people gathered to tour places we’ve talked about on the podcast, and learn more about the women of the Philadelphia area. Here we are at one of the favorite stops: The Alice Paul Center for Gender Justice in Mount Laurel, New Jersey!
Our Field Trip to Philadelphia was what we call a “long weekend.” From Wednesday evening until Sunday morning, we packed a lot of learning, exploring, general merriment , and LOTS of women’s history into our days. In this episode, we let our travelers call in from the road, or after they returned home, to share their experiences.
Suzanne’s first self-portrait, 1883 age 18How Pierre-August Renoir painted her that same year, 1883 (You’ve seen this one, right?) How Renoir saw her two years later, 1885Casting the Nets, Suzanne Valadon, 1914
Shownotes are under construction, please come back later for all the things Beckett talked about in this episode!
Time Travel With The History Chicks
Books!
by Rosinsky Therese Diamond (The “small” biography)by June Rose (the “middle” book)by Catherine Hewitt ( the “big” book)by Henri Perruchot
Web!
You can visit one of her studios (and the original Le Chat Noir poster) at the Musée de Montmartre! It’s a “must-see” from us for a day spent in Montmartre!
The chateau she lived with Andre Utter, Château de Saint-Bernard, you can visit or even have your wedding there.
We have a Pinterest board for every subject, you should check it out and maybe start with Suzanne’s!
Moving Pictures!
Once again, we have the perfect subject for a movie and Suzanne’s is a story ripe for a biopic! Scandal! Relationships! The rise of an underdog! A woman in a man’s world! Art! Paris! A scoundrel son! Invite us to the premier, please and thank you! Until such a film exists, the only documentary we could find was one in French, Suzanne Valadon, peintre sans concession , here’s the IMDB page.
We left Alice as she completed the project that the leadership of NAWSA (National American Women’s Suffrage Association) didn’t think was possible: In just three months, organize a parade of thousands of suffragists from around the country to march down Pennsylvania Avenue the day before President Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration. While this dazzling feat of organization and spectacle was stunning for a couple of blocks, a large group of rowdy men violently disrupted the event. The parade limped to the finish line. What it did succeed in doing was put women’s suffrage, the purpose of the parade, in all the papers for several weeks which was a score for Alice and Lucy Burns’ mission to get the country talking, but they didn’t stop there and built on the mounting momentum for the cause.
What followed was six years of parades, rallies, growing suffrage groups around the county, lobbying strategy, campaigning for pro-suffrage politicians, and failed attempts to get President Wilson to put suffrage in front of Congress so they could vote it into law. Alice’s organization was kicked-out of NAWSA and created their own suffrage group, the National Women’s Party (NWP), whose sole purpose was to get women’s right to vote as a constitutional amendment. To that end, Alice dug into her toolkit and pulled out a bold demonstration, the first of its kind, picketing in front of the White House. Over two and a half years, approximately 2,000 women participated as silent sentinels all day, every day but Sunday, regardless of weather or public opinion.
The Silent Sentinel protest, circa 1917 LOCThe NWP paper, The Suffragist, was used to share news of the battle for women’s suffrage. This cover is during the Silent Sentinel protest circa 1918, LOC.
When emotions got dark during WWI, and Alice still had women on the picketline, things turned violent. Women were arrested and beaten, and Alice once again was force-fed. Eventually public opinion turned the tide of politics and the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote, was ratified into law in May of 1919.
Lucy Burns during one of her prison terms, this one was at the Occoquan Workhouse prison (where she also underwent violence and force-feeding) for the “crime” of blocking the sidewalk. LOC
But Alice was only in her mid-30s and her work was far from over. She set out to get an amendment guaranteeing equal rights for all into the Constitution and co-wrote what we know as the Equal Rights Amendment. She would live to see it passed in both houses of Congress.
She was not without mistakes, for instance, Alice didn’t land on the right side of history as far as the rights of Black Americans were concerned (we go into it in this, and several other episodes.) The W column was much longer than the L, and, all totaled, Alice and her NWP were involved in over 300 pieces of legislation that became laws.
Alice Paul died on July 9, 1977, at the age of 92.
The Equal Rights Amendment has yet to be ratified as of today, July 9, 2025- 48 years to the day after her death.
Alice Paul Memorial March for the ERA 1977, LOC
TIME TRAVEL WITH THE HISTORY CHICKS
Books!
by J.D. Zahniser and Amelia R. Fryby Tina Cassidyby Mary Waltonby Bernadette Cahillby Ellen Carol Duboisby Doris Stevens
by Susan Cambell Bartoletti and Ziyue Chenby Nancy Kennedy
Web!
You can visit Alice Paul’s family home, Paulsdale, in Moorestown, New Jersey, OR take a lovely virtual tour online (scroll down VISIT page for this): Alice Paul Center for Gender Justice
Have some questions about the ERA? Congress.gov might have some answers.
Here’s a timeline of the Women’s Right’s movement (you might have to scroll down the page…and not be tempted by any of the other subjects. Good luck with that, and an article on the 1977 memorial march for Alice Paul and the ERA, from The Smithsonian.
Mixed Media!
We mention several of our former episodes to give you more information about this era, including Mary Church Terrell, Ida B. Wells Barnett, Fannie Lou Hamer, and 50’s Housewives to name a few. YOu can find any of these on your favorite podcatcher! (Transparency: The audio may not be here on our website due to a behind-the-scenes move that disabled our podcast players.)
Suffs, a Tony Award-winning musical about Alice Paul, has closed on Broadway, where we saw it, BUT, it’s starting a large tour this year. We HIGHLY recommend that you see it if it comes to your area- it’s a delight. And, hello? How do we get this to come to Kansas City?? SUFFS TOUR SCHEDULE
2004 with Hilary Swank but why it’s also with Patrick Dempsey we just don’t know. (Ooooh…maybe because they couldn’t have a movie with an all-female, lead character cast? naaaw, couldn’t be that.)
