Tea at Trianon: The Queen's Necklace

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, January 19, 2009

The Queen's Necklace

Catherine Delors reviews Frances Mossiker's book about the diamond necklace scandal. Although it is called The Queen's Necklace, the necklace in question never belonged to Marie-Antoinette; she never ordered it or even wanted it. She was an innocent victim of the swindle. However, there are deeper layers to the debacle than most historians care to represent, which are explored in Trianon as well. Share

6 comments:

Lucy said...: Elena, I will be ordering your book shortly, as it is on my pressing 'to read' list. This necklace ordeal has had me fascinated for a while now...MA was dragged into this unnecessarily, setting the stage to her tragic end.; January 19, 2009 at 10:51:00 AM EST
elena maria vidal said...: You'll enjoy it, Lucy!; January 19, 2009 at 1:59:00 PM EST
May said...: The poor Queen, she was so maligned.; January 19, 2009 at 2:00:00 PM EST
Catherine Delors said...: Many thanks for the link, Elena!; January 19, 2009 at 4:01:00 PM EST
elena maria vidal said...: Yes, she was, hummingbird.

Catherine, thank you for the great review!; January 19, 2009 at 4:02:00 PM EST
Jean Vitrano said...: wonderful blog, will be back!
www.brewcitytea.com
www.readingthetealeaf.com; January 19, 2009 at 6:24:00 PM EST