Jessica O’Leary is Senior Lecturer, School of Philosophical, Historical and Indigenous Studies, Monash University

One of the most interesting aspects emerging here relies on the double identity of Eleonora as a member of both the Aragonese and the Este families. Rather than a weakness, this double identity was critical for mediating between different parties.[...][T]his book sheds a light on the often-neglected role of dynastic women in the broader political and diplomatic network of Renaissance Europe. Thanks to the existing letters, the examples of Eleonora and Beatrice of Aragon reveal the strategies dynastic women pursued independently from their fathers, husbands, and other relatives to meet their own agendas, and in turn to what extent those strategies contributed to their families’ diplomatic and political relationships.

• Introduction1. Dynastic Wives, War, and Mediation2. Sisterly Negotiation3. A Family Divided4. Female Agency in ExileConclusionChronologyBibliographyIndex

Jessica O’Leary is Senior Lecturer, School of Philosophical, Historical and Indigenous Studies, Monash University

One of the most interesting aspects emerging here relies on the double identity of Eleonora as a member of both the Aragonese and the Este families. Rather than a weakness, this double identity was critical for mediating between different parties.[...][T]his book sheds a light on the often-neglected role of dynastic women in the broader political and diplomatic network of Renaissance Europe. Thanks to the existing letters, the examples of Eleonora and Beatrice of Aragon reveal the strategies dynastic women pursued independently from their fathers, husbands, and other relatives to meet their own agendas, and in turn to what extent those strategies contributed to their families’ diplomatic and political relationships.

• Introduction1. Dynastic Wives, War, and Mediation2. Sisterly Negotiation3. A Family Divided4. Female Agency in ExileConclusionChronologyBibliographyIndex