Marie de' Medici

Queen of France (1575-1642); second wife of King Henry IV of France

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Lived 1575–1642, aged 67France

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Wikipedia
65 languages
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Era
1575–1642
Aged 67

Summary

Updated 2026-06-21

A Medici banker's daughter who married into French royalty for her dowry, seized power when her husband was stabbed the day after her coronation, and then refused to let go — even after her own son staged a coup to pry her out.

Biography

About

Marie de' Medici came from the grand ducal branch of Florence's richest family, and Henry IV of France married her in 1600 for exactly that reason: Medici money. When he was assassinated on 14 May 1610 — the day after her coronation as queen — she became regent for the child king Louis XIII. Her son reached legal majority in 1614, ending her mandate, but she kept control of the royal council and refused to step down. For three more years she ran France through ceaseless intrigue and favourites like Concino Concini, until Louis forcibly removed her in a 1617 coup. She spent her last years in ex…

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