Renaissance Royals - Laurel A. Rockefeller

The 15th and 16th centuries were a time of great change for western Europe. With completion of the Hundred Years War, House Lancaster and House York vied for power in England in a conflict known as the War of the Roses. A new Tudor dynasty emerged, touching the lives of countless millions.

Among those caught up in this Renaissance were eight royal women. Though we know less about their lives than we do Queen Elizabeth I Tudor, Mary Queen of the Scots, or even Catherine de Valois, their life stories are equally worth exploring. From queens of France, Scotland, and England to lesser known noble women, these eight stories speak to the transformations that moved our world into the modern age.