Tea at Trianon: Margaret of Austria

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, October 13, 2013

Margaret of Austria

Margaret of Austria in white mourning

Has anyone ever written a novel about Margaret? Hers was an astonishing life. Like Katherine of Aragon, she was an aunt of Emperor Charles V. From Susan Abernethy:

Charles began to realize he had lost his wisest councilor and asked Margaret to return to the council in 1517. After a few important members died, Charles allowed Margaret to sign all state papers and to control the finances. He also gave her an annuity of twenty thousand pounds. She eventually regained the title of Regent. A campaign was begun to name Charles Holy Roman Emperor. Margaret cajoled and bribed the Electors. In January of 1519, Margaret’s father Emperor Maximilian died. By June, Charles was elected Holy Roman Emperor as Charles V. Margaret was now his deputy. She had to deal with insurrection, lack of funds and war. She did her best to keep the Low Countries out of costly conflicts. She had to deal with the Protestant Reformation and its consequences. All the hard work and loneliness had taken its toll on Margaret’s health, mind and body. She was having some trouble with her leg and had to surrender some of her authority to other councilors. (Read more.)