Queenship in Medieval Europe

Theresa Earenfight is Professor Emerita of History at Seattle University, USA. She is the author of Catherine of Aragon: Infanta of Spain, Queen of England (2021) and The King’s Other Body: María of Castile and the Crown of Aragon (2009). She is also the editor of Elite and Royal Households in Medieval and Early Modern Europe (2018), Women and Wealth in Late Medieval Europe (2010) and Queenship and Political Power in Medieval and Early Modern Spain (2005), which won the Society for the Study of Early Modern Women's book prize for best edited collection.

• List of IllustrationsIntroduction: Not Partial, Prejudiced or Ignorant: The Study of Queens and Queenship in Medieval Europe1. Themes and Variations: Roman, Barbarian and Christian Societies in the Fashioning of Medieval Queenship, c. 300-7002. Legitimizing the King’s Wife and Bed-Companion, c. 700-11003. ‘The Link of Conjugal Troth’: Queenship as Family Practice, c. 1100-13504. Queenship in a Crisis of Monarchy, c. 1350-15005. The Transformation of Queenship from Medieval to Early Modern EuropeNotesFor Further ReadingBibliographyIndex

"The author skilfully employs current research from such fields as history, literary analysis and art history to improve understanding of the subject. Perhaps the most salient fearture of the study is its juxtaposition of specific examples of queens' lives and careers with theories, both modern and medieval, of medieval queenship. The result is a convincing argument that, regardless of where or when, queens' roles centered on family, religion, and culture, but political circumstrances altered cases. Moreover, the bibliography, suggestions for further reading and rsearch, and footnotes are extensive. Recommended." - Choice "Pleasurable and stimulating to read. The book is very well-researched; the author has mastered the most recent bibliography of what constitutes queenship studies, and constructs a vivid and believable portrayal of its evolution. It has the potential to be adopted in different types of courses - including medieval European history survey classes and history seminars focusing on political power, gender, etc." - Nuria Silleras-Fernandez, University of Colorado at Boulder, USA