Justine Firnhaber-Baker

About House of Lilies

The Capetians rank among the most influential royal families in medieval European history. From small beginnings around Paris in the late tenth century, Hugh Capet and his descendants expanded their power over a much larger territory, much closer to the France familiar to readers today. More than a narrative of great men, this is a story of how one family transformed a polity and sharpened an identity around it, expressed in part through the fleur-de-lys - the lily - as a lasting image of French royal power.

From holy wars to religious persecution, and adulterous affairs to heroic deeds, the Capetians offer something more than a distant family history. Their legacy lasted through successive dynasties, down to the French Revolution, as a family tasked by God to rule the kingdom. The Capetians' contribution is less their rule, and more their creation of France in the central Middle Ages. With the help of guile, ruthlessness, marriage - and luck - the Capetians neutralised the opposition and secured their place in history.

Join us for an evening in the bookshop with a leading historian of medieval France, not only to leaf through the branches of the Capetian family tree, but also to tour the political, religious, social, and intellectual contexts surrounding it. Whether you are a medieval historian by training, or enjoy a story of power and personality, we look forward to the pleasure of your company, with Professor Firnhaber-Baker.

About Justine Firnhaber-Baker

Justine Firnhaber-Baker is Professor of History at the University of St. Andrews. Her research focuses on law, power and violence in late medieval France, and the fourteenth century in particular. House of Lilies is her third book, having published previously Violence and the State in Languedoc, 1250-1400 (2014) and The Jacquerie of 1358 (2021).