Tea at Trianon: Crucifix of Louis XVI

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 30, 2015

Crucifix of Louis XVI

From Rome Reports:

The Vatican Museums has re-opened one of its most famous rooms, the so called "Sala degli Indirizzi,” which roughly translates to the room of messages. After undergoing a two year restoration, it's now open for the world to see.

GUIDO CORNINI

Vatican Museums

"Years ago, they used to store messages in that room, hence the name. Gifts and cards that dignitaries and heads of state would give to the Pope were kept there. So, everything from medals to diplomas and whatnot. The room represents the international reach of the Vatican's diplomatic relations.”

The room has collections from the Vatican Library's Museum. Inside one can find chalices, patens and other liturgical items that go back centuries.

One of the most unique objects is this crucifix. French King Louis XVI was actually clutching it, as he was sent to his death.

GUIDO CORNINI

Vatican Museums

"It is a devotional crucifix. A small cross that was painted and showed the personal piety of Louis XVI. He held it in his hands when he was incarceration during the French Revolution. He also held it on his way from his cell to the gallows where he was killed.”

It was the last object he laid eyes on. He prayed with it, just moments before his execution. (Read more.)