Four Queens : the Provencal sisters who ruled Europe by Nancy Goldstone
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Nancy Goldstone has created a very readable nonfiction book about the lives of four sisters in 13th century Europe. Marguerite married Louis IX of France, Eleanor married Henry III of England, Sanchia (Cynthia) married Richard, Earl of Cornwall, who later became King of the Romans, and Beatrice married Louis IX’s brother Charles, King of Sicily.
Goldstone does a wonderful job depicting the plights of the sisters. Women of noble or rich birth were used as pawns by their families to gain power or wealth. The only power women held was through their husbands or their sons. This is a time when a husband’s decision can lead a sister to war with her own sister. But it can also lead to sisters working together to work out problems between countries. The roles of these women in their time is presented in a very readable book. - mingh