Catherine de Medici was notorious as the Black Queen of Renaissance France, a dark figure in her widow's weeds ruling in place of her largely inept sons.
For three decades she held power and history has judged her harshly. Her name is synonymous with corruption and megalomania. She's blamed for one of the worst massacres in French history and for poisoning anyone who stood in her way.
But a new biography demands a re-think. The author Leonie Frieda says Catherine has been misjudged - she was a "great prince and a great woman" she says.
Leonie Frieda joins Jenni to discuss the rehabilitation of Catherine de Medici. Catherine de Medici: A Biography, published by Weidenfeld & Nicholson history; ISBN: 184212725X
