Tea at Trianon: No Comparison

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, April 21, 2020

No Comparison

I left a comment on this article asking that Madame Speaker Pelosi not be compared with Marie-Antoinette. The Queen never said "Let them eat cake." She was deeply aware of the plight of the people which is why she organized clothing drives and distributed blankets, took in unwed mothers and orphans, and made a priority of feeding the hungry, all of which is documented. She was killed because she was a Catholic Queen and the Revolution wanted to overthrow the Church and the monarchy. Here is what Marie-Antoinette really said: "It is quite certain that in seeing the people who treat us so well despite their own misfortune, we are more obliged than ever to work hard for their happiness." More HERE, HERE and HERE.

julygirl said...: Tragic how fake history can malign the character of a person the same as fake news does today. Today many people seem to be hard wired to believe anything printed in newspapers, but at the same time people are getting wise to the lies.; April 21, 2020 at 11:24:00 AM EDT
May said...: These women are like night and day ! I can’t believe the cake quote is still making the rounds. Surely by now people should know better!; April 22, 2020 at 2:10:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: I know, really. Yet all they have to do is check Wikipedia.; April 22, 2020 at 8:31:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Yes, Julygirl. And they try to say that they are similar because they are both "women of privilege." Really? Marie-Antoinette's father was the Holy Roman Emperor; Nancy's was mayor of Baltimore. I mean, come on....; April 23, 2020 at 4:31:00 PM EDT