Tea at Trianon: The Courage of Louis XVI

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

Louis XVI was 'brave' on the scaffold, wrote executioner
By Robin Stummer
Published: 09 April 2006

http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article356654.ece

The last words of King Louis XVI - uttered only moments before a revolutionary guillotine removed his head - have come to light, more than 200 years after the monarch's ignominious death in Paris.

Although one of the most significant events at the dawn of the modern period of European history, Louis's execution for high treason has long been overshadowed by the beheading nine months later of his beautiful wife, Marie Antoinette.

Now, a first-hand account by a witness who should know better than anyone else - the monarch's executioner, Charles Henri Sanson - has come to light. Sanson, chief executioner in Paris during the bloody years of the French Revolution, penned a letter to convey what he called "the exact truth of what happened" weeks after he had presided over the beheading on 21 January 1793.

Writing to a revolutionary newspaper, Sanson - who oversaw nearly 3,000 executions - said Louis had shown considerable bravery and calmness of mind.

The Sanson manuscript is being auctioned by Christie's in June, and will be displayed between 30 May and 7 June in London. The letter is expected to sell for between £80,000 and £120,000.

See Also:

http://ledejeunersurlherbe.blogspot.com/2006/05/louis-xvis-last-words-before.html

Jeffrey Smith said...: There used to be a custom of saying "may God have mercy on his soul" after an execution. This is a case where it's much more appropriate to say it about the executioner.; January 9, 2007 at 6:02:00 PM EST
elena maria vidal said...: Amen!; January 9, 2007 at 6:04:00 PM EST
Anonymous said...: You see he is still remembered in France. 01.22.2006

Quelques Chouans de la Troupe pour le Requiem pour Notre bon Roi Louis XVI

http://lescoeursdechouans.free.fr/chapelle_expiatoire_2006.htm

De Brantigny; January 10, 2007 at 4:35:00 PM EST
elena maria vidal said...: Oh, I wish I could be there on that day.; January 10, 2007 at 5:23:00 PM EST
May said...: It was indeed a very brave, noble and holy death.

I have to admit, though, it was also brave of Sanson to set the record straight in this regard.; October 16, 2010 at 7:56:00 PM EDT