Historical Figure
Marie de' Medici
1575–1642
King of France from 1589 to 1610
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Biography
Henry IV, also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarch of France from the House of Bourbon, a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty. He pragmatically balanced the interests of the Catholic and Protestant parties in France, as well as among the European states. He was assassinated in Paris in 1610 by a Catholic zealot, and was succeeded by his son Louis XIII.
Timeline
The story of Marie de' Medici, told in moments.
Marries Henry IV of France by proxy. She brings a dowry of 600,000 ecus. Henry needs the money. He's already got a favorite mistress. Marie arrives in France to a husband who barely looks at her.
Henry IV is assassinated. Marie becomes regent for her nine-year-old son Louis XIII. She reverses Henry's foreign policy, leans toward Spain, spends lavishly, and promotes her favorites. Her son grows up resenting every decision.
Stages a confrontation with Cardinal Richelieu, demanding Louis XIII choose between his mother and his minister. Louis chooses Richelieu. The "Day of the Dupes." Marie is exiled. She'll never hold power again.
Dies in Cologne, destitute and alone. She'd fled France, been expelled from Brussels and Amsterdam. The woman who commissioned Rubens to paint her life in 24 enormous canvases ended up in a rented house with almost nothing.
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