"Lev offers a rich, nuanced portrait of a highly controversial beauty and military leader and her violent albeit glittering Italian Renaissance milieu." (Publishers Weekly)"
A rich, nuanced portrait of a highly controversial beauty and military leader, and her violent albeit glittering Italian Renaissance milieu.Publishers Weekly
A strategist to match Machiavelli; a warrior who stood toe to toe with the Borgias; a wife whose three marriages would end in bloodshed and heartbreak; and a mother determined to maintain her familys honor, Caterina Riario Sforza de Medici was a true Renaissance celebrity, beloved and vilified in equal measure. In this dazzling biography, Elizabeth Lev illuminates her extraordinary life and accomplishments.
Raised in the court of Milan and wed at age ten to the popes corrupt nephew, Caterina was ensnared in Italys political intrigues early in life. After turbulent years in Romes papal court, she moved to the Romagnol province of Forlì. Following her husbands assassination, she ruled Italys crossroads with iron will, martial strength, political savvy, and an icons fashion sense. In finally losing her lands to the Borgia family, she put up a resistance that inspired all of Europe and set the stage for her progenyincluding Cosimo de Medicito follow her example to greatness.
A rich evocation of Renaissance life, The Tigress of Forlì reveals Caterina Riario Sforza as a brilliant and fearless ruler, and a tragic but unbowed figure.
From the Back Cover
Well-written and meticulously researched, The Tigress of Forlì recreates the world of Renaissance Italy in all its grandeur and violence. At the center stands a remarkable woman, Caterina Riario Sforza. Mother, warrior, and icon, Caterina is unforgettable, and so is the exciting story that Elizabeth Lev tells here.Barry Strauss, author of Masters of Command: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar and the Genius of Leadership
The legendary Countess loved and jousted with many men throughout her life, including
Pope Sixtus IV, Caterinas benefactor and uncle by marriage, who commissioned the Sistine Chapel frescoes in which she is immortalized
Count Girolamo Riario, Caterinas first husband and an originator of the Pazzi Conspiracy, whose corrupt ways led to their flight from Rome to Forlì
Niccolò Machiavelli, the Florentine political theorist who was humiliated by Caterina as a young diplomat, and later took revenge with his pen
Giacomo Feo, Caterinas secret second husband, a jumped-up family retainer whose assassination led to a bloodbath on the streets of Forlì
Giovanni de Medici Il Popolano, Caterinas beloved third husband, who provided Caterina entrance into Florences culture and society, and an heir worthy of her legacy
Cesare Borgia, nephew to the ruthless Borgia pope Alexander VI, who would bring Caterinas rule to an end with unspeakable cruelty
About the Author
ELIZABETH LEV is a scholar of Renaissance art and culture and professor of Art History in Rome, where she lives with her family. This is her first book.