Sutherland Menzies assembled this collection of biographical essays on women who exercised real political power in European history — among them Catherine de’ Medici, Maria Theresa, and Catherine the Great. Writing against the grain of Victorian conventions that confined women to the domestic sphere, Menzies presents these figures as shrewd, formidable actors in dynastic and diplomatic affairs.
The essays blend narrative biography with political analysis and offer an early example of women’s history as a serious scholarly enterprise. Readers interested in early modern European politics or the history of women in power will find this a stimulating and often surprising collection.