A new episode of the Daily Mail podcast Queens, Kings and Dastardly Things examines a long-running anecdote that Catherine de Medici, the 16th-century French queen, ordered or popularised high-heeled shoes to look taller than her husband King Henry II's mistress, Diane de Poitiers.
Historians Kate Williams and Robert Hardman frame the episode as an all-female showdown between Catherine — often dubbed the "Serpent Queen" — and Mary Tudor, known as "Bloody Mary," measuring the two monarchs against the seven deadly sins. Jealousy emerges as a central theme in the account of Catherine's relations with Diane de Poitiers, whom the queen resented for the influence and gifts she received from Henry II. Catherine herself wrote in a letter, "Never has a woman who loved her husband, liked his whore."
Robert Hardman tells listeners that the anecdote about the high-heeled shoe has been repeated in histories of the court, saying, "Catherine took great pride in her appearance. It's often said she actually invented the high-heeled shoe. She wanted to stand taller than her husband's mistress Diane de Poitiers." The podcast recounts how, after Henry II's sudden death in 1559, Catherine—acting as regent for their young sons from 1560 to 1574—swiftly removed Diane from the privileges she had enjoyed, demanding the return of jewels and ordering her out of the Loire Valley chateau into smaller lodgings.
Catherine de Medici (1519–1589) was queen consort from 1547 until Henry's death and later regent for three of her sons. She was a member of the powerful Medici family and has long been associated with courtly innovations and fashions; she is sometimes credited in legend with introducing forks to France and with other household or sartorial shifts. Hardman and Williams use the rivalry with Diane to illustrate how personal animosities intersected with power at the French court.
Scholars note that while the tale remains popular, the claim that Catherine "invented" high heels is unlikely to be literal. Elevated footwear existed in various cultures before the mid-16th century and had been seen in Europe earlier, used for practical and status-related reasons. Nonetheless, the story persists as a vivid example of the way appearance, status and influence were contested in Renaissance courts.
Beyond court gossip and fashion lore, the episode acknowledges Catherine's record as a political actor. Modern historians frequently emphasise her role as a pragmatic regent who sought to preserve the Valois dynasty amid the religious wars that convulsed France. She played a part in the recovery of Calais from England and managed complex dynastic and factional challenges during her children's reigns. The more lurid characterisations of Catherine that circulated in her lifetime and in later centuries were shaped in part by xenophobic and sexist attitudes toward a powerful Italian-born woman operating in a volatile political landscape.
The podcast episode places the high-heel anecdote within that wider historical frame, contrasting sensational stories with evidence of Catherine's administrative and diplomatic work. The programme is available through the Daily Mail's Queens, Kings and Dastardly Things series wherever podcasts are distributed.