Tea at Trianon: Portraits of the Duchesse d'Angoulême

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

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Portraits of the Duchesse d'Angoulême

There are several rare portraits of the daughter of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette on an interesting site called Grand Ladies. There is also an article in French about the visit of Marie-Thérèse to Nîmes in 1823, HERE.

Mercury said...: Elena, I've noticed several portraits from that period where a woman poses like the lady here does in the bottom picture, hand on the breast. Is there some sort of meaning to this?

By the way, at the risk of sounding effeminate, I like women's fashion from this period - is that the "Empire" style?; August 9, 2011 at 1:55:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Yes, Mercury, it means there is the hope of being with child.; August 9, 2011 at 10:11:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Oh, and yes, it is the "Empire" style or the "Regency" style in England.; August 9, 2011 at 10:12:00 AM EDT
Lorraine said...: The poor thing experienced so much heartache.
Greetings from NY state,
Lorraine; August 9, 2011 at 12:56:00 PM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Welcome, Lorraine! Thank you for visiting!; August 9, 2011 at 1:02:00 PM EDT
Anna Gibson said...: Lovely portraits! I've always been fond of the first portrait, in the striped dress because, in my opinion, you can see much of her parents in her face.; August 9, 2011 at 5:52:00 PM EDT
Unknown said...: OMG this portraits are so beautiful.!!!; August 31, 2011 at 1:34:00 AM EDT