Legenda

The Real Women Behind the Myths That Shaped Europe

By: Janina Ramirez

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Paperback | 11 November 2025

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A brilliant reappraisal of the medieval women whose lives have been misrepresented and co-opted over centuries for political, nation-building ends. By Professor Janina Ramirez, bestselling historian and author of FEMINA

From the bestselling author of FEMINA, a brilliant reappraisal of the medieval women whose lives have been exploited over centuries for political, nation-building ends.

In LEGENDA, bestselling historian Professor Janina Ramirez peels back the layers of time to reveal how the lives of women have been co-opted by those intent on crafting national identities. Their names are well known, and summaries of their achievements have been recited in classrooms for decades, but medieval women like Joan of Arc, Lady Godiva and Isabella of Castile have been misrepresented, their stories twisted and weaponised. Meanwhile, ground-breaking 18^th- and 19^th-century women who blazed a trail through revolutionary Europe have been forgotten, their legacies too easily dismissed or ignored.

Questioning established narratives and searching for the real women behind the legends, Ramirez interrogates what defines a nation and who gets to build it, shining a light on how history is so often hijacked to serve the ideological and political interests of the present.

PRAISE FOR JANINA RAMIREZ-

'Ramirez blasts a powerful spotlight into the so-called Dark Ages and reveals a vibrant world, awash with colour and character' DAN SNOW, host of History Hit

'Skillfully brings out from the shadows the lives of women who ruled, fought, traded, created, and inspired' CAT JARMAN, author of River Kings

'Like the interlace stonework on an Anglo-Saxon cross, Janina Ramirez's themes are interwoven with a conssumate skill' TOM HOLLAND, author of Dominion and host of The Rest is History

'Ramirez makes us look into the mists of history in new, exciting and provocative ways' PETER FRANKOPAN, author of The Silk Roads

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