Tea at Trianon: State Dinner at the White House, April 2018

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

Friday, April 27, 2018

State Dinner at the White House, April 2018

There is a fleur-de-lys on the menu!

From Good Housekeeping:

For the china, Melania chose a gold set from the Clinton White House, which created a regal, yet sophisticated ambiance. The White House chef, Cristeta Comerford, served an American menu with French influences, which included rack of spring lamb, Carolina gold rice jambalaya, and nectarine tarts for dessert. Fresh herbs from the South Lawn included. (Read more.)

From CNN:

Even the wine selection was chosen with the French-American relationship in mind. The Domaine Serene Chardonnay "Evenstad Reserve" 2015 was grown from French plants from Dijon "that thrive in the volcanic Oregon soil." The Domaine Drouhin Pinot Noir "Laurène" 2014 "uses the motto 'French soul--Oregon soil.'" Following a less formal dinner with the Macrons at Mount Vernon on Monday evening, the first lady hopped off the Marine One helicopter and did one final late-night run-through, personally inspecting each detail, including the white lilac centerpieces, the dripless candles and the entry to the evening, a grand hallway decked out in soft light and pink florals. (Read more.)