Tea at Trianon: The Marriage of Mary I and Philip of Spain

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, August 12, 2012

The Marriage of Mary I and Philip of Spain

The bride was happier about it than the groom, although at least he tried to behave himself.

He spent three days in Southampton, where he received members of the Council. On the 23rd, he finally rode to Winchester to meet his bride-to-be. He entered the city at about 6 o'clock and went straight to the cathedral, where he was welcomed by Gardiner. From there, he was led to his lodgings. Here, he ate and changed into a suit of white kid with a surcoat embroidered in silver and gold and a hat with a long plume. At 10'oclock, Philip, together with 12 Spanish and Flemish gentlemen, finally went to Wolvesey Palace to meet his future wife, Mary.

She was wearing a gown of black velvet with a silver underskirt and lots of jewels. "Modestly, she kissed her own hand before taking his, but he smiled and kissed her on the mouth 'in the English fashion'"*. Philip took his betrothed by the hand and led her to the presence chamber, where they talked for half an hour, while sitting on their thrones. Before leaving, he asked Mary to teach him how to say goodbye to the English lords, which positively impressed them. All too soon, Philip was gone. Two days later, they were married. (Read entire post.)