Reinas de Leyenda

"The official portraits that show the queens dressed in sumptuous dresses and covered in jewels hide lives marked by personal misfortunes and tragedies. Some of them were far from the throne at birth, but they managed to wear the crown by right and not by marriage. Elizabeth I of England, daughter of Anne Boleyn, went from being a bastard princess to giving name to the glorious century which she reigned in; Catherine the Great did not hesitate to lead an army to overthrow her husband and rule the Russian Empire with a firm hand, while Empress Cixi entered the Forbidden City as a concubine and ruled China hidden behind a silk curtain. There were also queens marked by fate who survived in a world of intrigue: Catherine of Aragon, daughter of the Catholic Monarchs and first wife of Henry VIII, was one of the most beloved sovereigns of England. Or the unhappy Charlotte of Mexico, a young and cultured Belgian princess who became empress of Mexico and lost her mind after the murder of her husband, Maximilian of Habsburg. Despots, libertines, heartless, harpies, crazies... are just some of the adjectives that added to the dark legend of these five sovereigns. Cristina Morato gives voice in this book to the women of flesh and blood who achieved power in a world of men thanks to their intelligence, courage and strength and she reveals to us that the best rulers were queens." --Translation of dust jacket