Tea at Trianon: Marie Antoinette: the Last Queen of France

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

Monday, October 28, 2024

Marie Antoinette: the Last Queen of France

A relatively accurate summary of the Queen's life from History Extra:

At her first official public appearance, the Parisian people clamoured for a glimpse of the reportedly beautiful young princess. Unfortunately, popular favour was not won by beauty alone. Her fondness for fashion and lavish entertainments was already attracting attention, and she became entangled in court rivalries that not only endangered her own reputation but that of her home country. There were also whispers about her husband’s weakness – as a potential ruler and in the bedchamber.
Three years of marriage showed no sign of producing a much-needed heir. Conscious of her daughter’s delicate position, Maria Theresa bombarded her with advice about influencing people, and sought secret updates about her behaviour from the ambassador in Paris – he didn’t gush with enthusiasm.

On 10 May 1774, Louis XV died, making Marie Antoinette queen at just 18. Her future seemed secure, but the nation was squirming with unrest. Just weeks after her husband’s coronation in June 1775, parts of the country flared up into riots about the cost of bread. Years of heavy taxation and failed fiscal policies were leaving the people hungry. (Read more.)

My biography of the Queen is HERE.
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