Tea at Trianon: Retro style...

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

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Retro style...

...Is here to stay. It seems that many young ladies are fascinated by the feminine styles of the 40's and 50's and are adopting the vintage look, with a contemporary flair, of course. In the long run, I guess, the desire of women to look pretty for men will overcome every "ism" and ideology. (From Lew Rockwell) Share

7 comments:

Anonymous said...: Does this mean men will start dressing like Cary Grant?

(Please, God!)

C.O.; June 28, 2007 at 11:40:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: And acting like Cary Grant, suave and debonair, which would be even better.....; June 28, 2007 at 11:49:00 AM EDT
Anonymous said...: :-) Yeah!; June 29, 2007 at 1:57:00 PM EDT
Anonymous said...: and maybe they would 'dress up' their manners as well.; June 30, 2007 at 3:15:00 AM EDT
Michelle Therese said...: My husband already wears a hat! He bought it in Australia and he often laments the loss of mens' hats. I wear hats too! I hope they come back! I've been watching this return to retro...I like it!! I would love for the poodle skirts to come back hehehehehehe; June 30, 2007 at 5:49:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: I'm waiting to wear a crinoline.; June 30, 2007 at 9:11:00 AM EDT
Anonymous said...: One thing that has improved from my generation is that young men wear tuxedos to their High School Prom and that was not done when I was in High School, at least not the school where I went even though it had a classy, wealthy Student Body.; June 30, 2007 at 11:37:00 PM EDT