Birth of a Chess Queen: The Power and Triumph of Women Who Ruled the Board and Life
14.99 €
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Birth of a Chess Queen: The Power and Triumph of Women Who Ruled the Board and Life
14.99 €
The Queen is the most powerful piece on the chessboard. But it wasn’t always like that: chess existed for centuries without a queen, until she finally showed up on the pages of an ancient manuscript kept in an abbey in Switzerland. How did she end up on the chessboard? Which powerful medieval queen inspired this image? And how did its development reflect the position of women in power in real life?
In the narrative of the eminent historian and feminist Marilyn Yalom, influential rulers of the past come to life: Matilda of Tuscany and Doña Urraca, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Blanche of Castile, Sigrid the Proud and Catherine the Great. Yalom traces the amazing and unpredictable path of the queen on the chessboard, from the very first rare mentions of this piece to her brilliant rise during the reign of Isabella of Castile, from the chessmen of the Isle of Lewis and medieval poems to Through the Looking Glass. It is a multi-layered, gripping story of medieval royal courts, power struggles, political intrigue and love affairs. To this day, the power of the chess queen reflects how women have sought and achieved independence throughout the centuries.
In the narrative of the eminent historian and feminist Marilyn Yalom, influential rulers of the past come to life: Matilda of Tuscany and Doña Urraca, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Blanche of Castile, Sigrid the Proud and Catherine the Great. Yalom traces the amazing and unpredictable path of the queen on the chessboard, from the very first rare mentions of this piece to her brilliant rise during the reign of Isabella of Castile, from the chessmen of the Isle of Lewis and medieval poems to Through the Looking Glass. It is a multi-layered, gripping story of medieval royal courts, power struggles, political intrigue and love affairs. To this day, the power of the chess queen reflects how women have sought and achieved independence throughout the centuries.
See also:
- All books by the publisher
- All books by the author
- All books in the series Women in History