Olimpia Maidalchini remains one of the most controversial figures of seventeenth-century Rome. Rising from provincial obscurity to become the dominant influence within the Pamphilj family and the papal court of Innocent X, she was praised by some as an able administrator and condemned by others as a usurper of clerical power.
Much of what survives about her life comes from deeply biased sources—satirists, rivals, and political enemies—making it difficult to separate fact from accusation. This book examines the most reliable evidence surrounding Olimpia’s rise, her role in Roman politics, and the events that shaped her lasting reputation. It offers a measured assessment of a woman whose influence over the Vatican challenged the expectations of her age.
