{"product_id":"the-creation-of-the-french-royal-mistress-from-agnes-sorel-to-madame-du-barry-paperback","title":"The Creation of the French Royal Mistress: From Agnès Sorel to Madame Du Barry - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eTracy Adams\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eChristine Adams\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eKings throughout medieval and early modern Europe had extraconjugal sexual partners. Only in France, however, did the royal mistress become a quasi-institutionalized political position. This study explores the emergence and development of the position of French royal mistress through detailed portraits of nine of its most significant incumbents: Agnès Sorel, Anne de Pisseleu d'Heilly, Diane de Poitiers, Gabrielle d'Estrées, Françoise Louise de La Baume Le Blanc, Françoise Athénaïs de Rochechouart de Mortemart, Françoise d'Aubigné, Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, and Jeanne Bécu.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeginning in the fifteenth century, key structures converged to create a space at court for the royal mistress. The first was an idea of gender already in place: that while women were legally inferior to men, they were men's equals in competence. Because of their legal subordinacy, queens were considered to be the safest regents for their husbands, and, subsequently, the royal mistress was the surest counterpoint to the royal favorite. Second, the Renaissance was a period during which people began to experience space as theatrical. This shift to a theatrical world opened up new ways of imagining political guile, which came to be positively associated with the royal mistress. Still, the role had to be activated by an intelligent, charismatic woman associated with a king who sought women as advisors. The fascinating particulars of each case are covered in the chapters of this book.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThoroughly researched and compellingly narrated, this important study explains why the tradition of a politically powerful royal mistress materialized at the French court, but nowhere else in Europe. It will appeal to anyone interested in the history of the French monarchy, women and royalty, and gender studies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eTracy Adams\u003c\/strong\u003e is Professor of French in the School of Cultures, Languages and Linguistics at the University of Auckland. She is the author of three books, including \u003ci\u003eChristine de Pizan and the Fight for France\u003c\/i\u003e, also published by Penn State University Press. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eChristine Adams\u003c\/strong\u003e is Professor of History at St. Mary's College of Maryland. She is the author or coeditor of four books, including \u003ci\u003eA Taste for Comfort and Status: A Bourgeois Family in Eighteenth-Century France\u003c\/i\u003e, also published by Penn State University Press.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 248\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.7 x 5.7 x 8.8 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e May 24, 2021\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48265590079709,"sku":"9780271085982","price":43.18,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0811\/9867\/8237\/files\/M1Aeh67LHM9780271085982.webp?v=1785170477","url":"https:\/\/handfulofbooks.com\/products\/the-creation-of-the-french-royal-mistress-from-agnes-sorel-to-madame-du-barry-paperback","provider":"Handful of Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}