Tea at Trianon: Sets of 'Belgravia'

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

Monday, May 25, 2020

Sets of 'Belgravia'

From Country Life:

So what are the real residents of Moray Place like? I knock on the door opposite where I am greeted by Elspeth and Tom Bostock, who are only too happy to show me around the secret garden across the street.

‘The thing I enjoyed the most about Belgravia was the horses,’ says Tom. He leads me across the road to the black cast iron gate. ‘They seemed to be a crack team, and also the coaches… these were props, and because of this they didn’t seem to care about them that much!’

The gate swings open and I’m surrounded by immaculate lawn fringed by mature shrubs and tall trees. We crunch across a gravel path and Tom points out the new children’s play area and fixed barbecue. ‘People with dogs and children use it regularly — more so in the summer. They have picnics and sit in the sun.’

Even on a crisp winter morning, as the trees are just beginning to blossom, I can see how special these gardens must be. Tom lives in an apartment, though some of the buildings in Moray Place have returned to single occupancy. Almost all are residential, so a lavish garden party had to be thrown before filming started to get the residents on-side. It seems to have worked, for everyone I meet seems charmed.

‘It was magical really,’ says one of the neighbours. ‘There were people in costume sitting just here on the steps. I hope my cat will be featured because he was certainly trying to be the star of the show!’ (Read more.)