| The system of succession to the throne is closely linked to the continuation of dynasties,and in France lineal family succession was the main form of succession in the dynasties.The pattern of royal succession,with political considerations,established the primacy of the eldest son over the youngest and the rule that male have priority over women.The break in the direct line of the Capetian family in 1328 further focused the issue of succession on gender,leaving women and their descendants completely isolated from the throne,kingship was always passed on to male members of the paternal line.However,even with the establishment of primogeniture and the exclusion of women and their descendants from the line of succession,the succession to the throne was not foolproof and tragedies caused by the young age of the monarch are commonplace.It was therefore necessary to appoint a person to govern the country when the king was underage,absent or in captivity,and the regency system developed as a complementary mechanism to the succession to the throne.From the king’s cronies to the royal uncles and then to the king’s mother,the regency system eventually achieved an extraordinary fit between royal and maternal power,and female regency became a customary institution in the 16 th and 17 th centuries.The regencies of Catherine de Medici,Marie de Medici and Anna of Austria not only ensured the legal continuity and stability of the state,but also extended the authority of the crown and secured France’s international status through successful crisis management.Even after the king had come of age,they were in a position to hold on to power and maintain considerable influence.There are complicated reasons behind the acceptance of female regency in practice in a country like France,which had never had a queen,in terms of institutions,customs and attitudes.The frequent female regency in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was not an accidental event in French political history,but the product of a compromise between political realities,gender attitudes and ethics.However,women regents were always vulnerable to criticism.On the one hand,the transfer of power was not always smooth;on the other,female regencies were subject to prejudice and mistrust because of their gender,and the office of regent was somewhat of a usurper.The need for legitimacy for both regency and female rule added to the difficulty of female regency.Regency was,however,a time for women,and these women regents established their authority and ensured the longevity of regency rule through proximity to the king,the development of networks of power relations,selfimage building and cultural propaganda.Their policies and methods of rule were inevitably feminine and in some cases turned their weaknesses into strengths.The frequent female regencies in the 16 th and 17 th centuries,when the political space for women was constantly being reduced,prompts us to further examine the advantages and disadvantages of their regency,as well as their responses,and to try to analyze the nature of female regency.In short,the issue of female regency in France was specific to the times and did not imply the advancement of women,but rather existed as an emergency strategy.The regency was in fact an extension and a variation of the male kingship,the fundamental aim of which was to ensure the legitimacy and continuity of the kingship,which was to be "returned" to the king when the young king grew up or when the king returned to his country. |