Marguerite de Navarre was born on the 11th of April 1492 in Angoulême, a region where Italian culture had already taken root and Boccaccio was revered as a near-divine figure. Her early life was marked by a classical education that included Latin, a rarity for women of her time, and a close bond with her brother Francis, who would later become King Francis I of France. The family moved to Cognac, where the Italian influence reigned supreme, shaping her intellectual and cultural outlook. Her mother, Louise of Savoy, was only nineteen when widowed and ensured that Marguerite received a rigorous education, preparing her to be a patron of the learned. At the age of ten, Marguerite was proposed to marry the Prince of Wales, who would become Henry VIII of England, but the alliance was courteously rebuffed. Her first love was Gaston de Foix, Duc de Nemours, who died a hero at the Battle of Ravenna, leaving a void that would shape her future relationships and political ambitions.
The First Marriage and Political Expediency
At the age of seventeen, Marguerite was married to Charles IV of Alençon, a man described as practically illiterate, in a union arranged by King Louis XII to keep the County of Armagnac within the royal family. The marriage was a political maneuver, and Marguerite was forced to marry a man who was a laggard and a dolt, despite her radiant youth and violet-blue eyes. There were no offspring from this marriage, and it was a source of personal and political frustration for her. Following the death of Queen Claude, Marguerite took in her two nieces, Madeleine and Marguerite, and continued to care for them during her second marriage. This period of her life was marked by her growing influence in France, especially after her brother acceded to the crown as Francis I in 1515. Her salon, known as the New Parnassus, became famous internationally, and she emerged as the most influential woman in France during her lifetime.The Queen Who Freed a King
After the death of her first husband in 1525, Marguerite married Henry II of Navarre in January 1527 at St. Germain-en-Laye. Her most remarkable adventure involved freeing her brother, King Francis I, who had been held prisoner in Spain by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, after being captured in the Battle of Pavia in 1525. During a critical period of the negotiations, Queen Marguerite rode horseback through wintry woods, twelve hours a day for many days, to meet a safe-conduct deadline, while writing her diplomatic letters at night. Her efforts were instrumental in securing her brother's release, and a Venetian ambassador of that time praised her as knowing all the secrets of diplomatic art. This period of her life was marked by her growing political influence and her ability to navigate the complex web of European politics.