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The story of Francis I (1494-1547), Valois King of France. To Leonie Frieda, as a student of the Renaissance, he is the perfect Renaissance Knight, the movement's exemplar and its Gallic interpreter. Francis is the founder of modern France, whose sheer force of will and personality moulded his kingdom into the first European superpower. He did not always live up to his ideal and it is also the imperfect husband, father, lover and king who fascinate. In Leonie Frieda's estimation he is the most human of the monarchs of the period and his achievements are by far the most enduring. Francis was also the prototype Frenchman - a national identity was moulded on his character. So great was his stamp, that few countries even now are quite so robustly patriotic as is France. To write this biography, Leonie Frieda has the experience of researching the life of Catherine de Medici (her first book) and access to excellent sources, including private archives that have never been used in a study of Francis I.
