Tea at Trianon: The Golden Lilies of France

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

The Golden Lilies of France

A lovely post about the history of the fleur de lys, greatly loved by the daughter of Louis XVI, as is told in Madame Royale. To quote:

The entry of the fleur de lis on the arms of France is miraculous. Legend says that the lily was the emblem of the Virgin who sent her flower by an angel to Clovis, the Frankish king, at his conversion in 493. The golden lilies on an azure ground came to symbolise the all the Christian Frankish Kings, most famously Charlemagne.

Julygirl said...: Just watched a thing on the History Channel about Charles Martel, who kept France Christian by driving out the Moslems.; September 23, 2009 at 12:30:00 PM EDT
tubbs said...: Very interesting! I think Mary wanted to give the 'Elder Daughter' something special.

The rose was the more preeminent icon of the Blessed Virgin thru the medieval period. The lily, as her symbol, gained more popularity during the Renaissance and Counter-Reformation.; September 23, 2009 at 1:05:00 PM EDT
lara77 said...: The three golden lilies on the azure shield can still be seen throughout France and a magnificent one overlooks the gilded gates of the Palace of Justice in Paris.It to me will always symbolize eternal France, Eldest Daughter of the Church;the first kingdom of Europe. No republic can or will ever compare.; September 24, 2009 at 7:52:00 AM EDT
Jackie Hodson said...: Many thanks for the link Elena Maria. It is much appreciated :)
Jackie@weaveagarland; September 26, 2009 at 2:26:00 AM EDT