Tea at Trianon: Lemon Balm

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

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Lemon Balm

A wonderfully versatile herb that makes a delicious cup of tea. It is also a nice garnish for wine coolers and punch. Share

2 comments:

Alexandra said...: Thanks for the link. When I was searching lemon balm I found a recipe for Carmelite water, a forerunner to Eau de Toilette. I've been meaning to post about this, but haven't gotten around to it. Apparently the Benedictines introduced or made lemon balm popular. I think you can still buy Carmelite water somewhere in Germany. The lemon balm in the Carmelite water was/is a remedy to melancholy. I guess it can be drunk as well as worn.

Lemon balm tea is helping with my gastritis, sorry TMI. ;) I get it from time to time from too much caffeine. It sneaks up on me.; May 9, 2009 at 11:15:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Lemon balm is a balm for many ills! ;-); May 9, 2009 at 1:35:00 PM EDT