Tea at Trianon: Louis XVI in Louisville, Kentucky

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

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Louis XVI in Louisville, Kentucky

Here is the beautiful statue of Louis XVI in the American city named in his honor.

The statue was sculpted in France in 1829, nearly destroyed during the 2nd French Revolution, kept in a warehouse in disrepair, and finally gifted to the city of Louisville in 1966. Louisville gets its name from Louis XVI, for his support of the American Colonies during the revolutionary war

Unknown said...: Very interesting to read the history of that statue and the name of the town :-)

My history blog can now be found here: http://historyandvonfersen.com/; September 26, 2010 at 9:33:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Thank you! Can't wait to check out your new blog!; September 26, 2010 at 10:08:00 AM EDT
May said...: It is indeed a beautiful statue. The King deserves this and more.; September 26, 2010 at 10:52:00 PM EDT
lara77 said...: Matterhorn you are so right!! This man, so inherently good and only wanting the best for his people deserves more than a statue! Of course it will never happen in France because the French would have to see their revolution stripped of its republican propaganda! They would rather believe a myth than explore the truth. Rest in peace good King Louis!; September 27, 2010 at 8:47:00 AM EDT
Julygirl said...: Interesting....I did not know which Louis they were honoring.; September 27, 2010 at 9:03:00 AM EDT
Natalie | Make Today Great said...: Interesting. I never thought about the origin of which Louis was Louisville... I should probably have given it more thought; September 27, 2010 at 1:52:00 PM EDT