Author Archives: oraziamortimer

Excerpt from Pharaohs, Emperors, and Other Women who Ruled. Urraca: León and Castile, 1109-1126 If we were to write about royal women who had to marry men they didn’t want to, we would need several more books. But Urraca of León and Castile went to war to be free of her husband.  Urraca was theContinue reading “It’s not ME – it’s YOU”

Excerpt from Pharaohs, Emperors, and Other Women who Ruled. Shajar al Durr: Egypt, 1250 In one of the greatest rags-to-riches stories in history, Shajar al Durr went from slave girl to sultan of Egypt. We know very little about Shajar’s early life, which is not surprising: no one keeping records would have cared much aboutContinue reading “Pearls Are Made of Grit”

Isn’t it pretty? I made it myself (publishing on zero budget…) So, I think it’s pretty obvious that the book is about women who, well, ruled. I can’t remember why, but one evening years ago I got to wondering about women who were official leaders with actual power. Not women with influence, or pulling stringsContinue reading “It’s a book!”