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Unexpected Heirs in Early Modern Europe

Potential Kings and Queens

  • Book
  • © 2017

Overview

Editors:
  1. Valerie Schutte

    1. Beaver Falls, USA

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  • Contributes to the study of dynasty in early modern Europe by highlighting the key role of the heir in the political and cultural history of Europe
  • Demonstrates the significance of heirs as agents of change in early modern Europe through patronage, education, marriage, and religion
  • Presents a unique focus on the training of possible heirs, especially on humanist educations and the preparation of daughters to be mothers and wives
  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Part of the book series: Queenship and Power (QAP)

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Table of contents (11 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xi
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  2. Introduction

    • Valerie Schutte
    Pages 1-7

  7. Back Matter

    Pages 271-280
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Keywords

About this book

There were many surprising accessions in the early modern period, including Mary I of England, Henry III of France, Anne Stuart, and others, but this is the first book dedicated solely to evaluating their lives and the repercussions of their reigns. By comparing a variety of such unexpected heirs, this engaging history offers a richer portrait of early modern monarchy. It shows that the need for heirs and the acquisition and preparation of heirs had a critical impact on sixteenth- and seventeenth-century culture and politics, from the appropriation of culture to the influence of language, to trade and political alliances. It also shows that securing a dynasty relied on more than just political agreements and giving birth to legitimate sons, examining how relationships between women could and did forge alliances and dynastic continuities.

Reviews

“Unexpected Heirs in Early Modern Europe, in bringing together a range of unexpected heirs from this period, collectively makes us more aware of just how frequently succession deviated from the ideal. … the collection brings together an array of interesting and well-researched chapters that collectively enhance our understanding of monarchical succession.” (Aidan Norrie, Royal Studies Journal, Vol. 6 (1), 2019) “Unexpected Heirs illustrates a key issue in monarchy—that the designated or expected heir frequently did not end up occupying the throne. Untimely deaths or political upheaval could create circumstances which brought these unexpected heirs to the fore. This collection is a wonderful addition to the field of royal studies with an excellent mix of papers which consider the cases of younger sons, regnant queens and the struggle of some consorts to produce the heirs required.” (Elena Woodacre, Senior Lecturer in Early Modern European History, University of Winchester, UK)

“We tend to buy the line that monarchies have smooth successions, until we think about it. This innovative set of essays offers a fresh perspective on monarchies and royal succession issues.” (Katherine Crawford, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies and History, Vanderbilt University, USA)

Editors and Affiliations

  • Beaver Falls, USA

    Valerie Schutte

About the editor

Valerie Schutte earned her PhD in History from the University of Akron. She is author of Mary I and the Art of Book Dedications: Royal Women, Power, and Persuasion (2015) and co-editor of The Birth of a Queen: Essays on the Quincentenary of Mary I (2016). She has published several articles on the Tudors and book dedications.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Unexpected Heirs in Early Modern Europe

  • Book Subtitle: Potential Kings and Queens

  • Editors: Valerie Schutte

  • Series Title: Queenship and Power

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55294-1

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham

  • eBook Packages: History, History (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-55293-4Published: 08 November 2017

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-85620-9Published: 23 August 2018

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-55294-1Published: 24 October 2017

  • Series ISSN: 2730-938X

  • Series E-ISSN: 2730-9398

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XI, 280

  • Number of Illustrations: 1 illustrations in colour

  • Topics: History of Early Modern Europe, Gender Studies, History of Britain and Ireland, History of Medieval Europe

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