New Books In French Studies

Despite being one of the most influential women of 17th century France, Marie de Vignerot has been largely forgotten. The niece, heiress, and advisor to the infamous Cardinal Richelieu, Marie was deeply motivated by her Catholic faith, yet never re-married after she became a widow at 18. She shaped France and the French empire's political, religious, and cultural life as the unconventional and independent Duchesse d’Aiguillon, a position exceedingly uncommon for a woman to possess in her own right. Bronwen McShea joins Madison's Notes to discuss her book, La Duchesse: The Life of Marie de Vignerot―Cardinal Richelieu's Forgotten Heiress Who Shaped the Fate of France (Pegasus Books, 2023), the first modern biography of Marie de Vignerot, which discusses her life, motivations, and how and why she was written out of history. Bronwen McShea is a Visiting Assistant Professor in History at the Augustine Institute Graduate School. She earned her B.A. and M.T.S. at Harvard University and her Ph.D. in history at Yale U