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Catherine de Médicis
1519-1589
Historical FigurePatron
The mother of three kings of France, Catherine de Médicis held the kingdom together during the Wars of Religion. Born in Florence, she married the future Henri II in 1533 and became queen of France in 1547.
As regent during the minority of Charles IX, she tried to broker peace between Catholics and Protestants before the conflict overtook her efforts. Her name remains tied to the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre.
A prolific builder, she commissioned Philibert Delorme to design the Tuileries palace, expanded Chenonceau, and had the Hôtel de la Reine erected, of which only the Médicis Column survives today.
