Tea at Trianon: Musings from Chestnut Cottage

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, September 27, 2022

Musings from Chestnut Cottage

From Victoria:

Almost all successful celebrations leave guests reminiscing for months—even years—to come. When asked to hold an important charity dinner at her home in North Carolina, Kathryn didn’t hesitate in enthusiastically agreeing. Her passion for hospitality led the way as she meticulously planned the tricky seating chart, delectable menu, and elegant table settings.

To her pleasant surprise and honor, guests included the state’s governor, and with him, his team of personal security. Despite the obstacles, Kathryn faced the task at hand with grace and ensured that each security member was served a meal and given a seat, despite initial objections. “If you’re at my house, you’re going to eat! And you’re going to eat the same thing the governor eats,” she fondly remembers.

When planning a get-together begins to feel challenging, Kathryn encourages hosts to utilize caterers and florists as helpful alternatives to designing an event alone. With the weight of each responsibility delegated, once-in-a-lifetime memories can be crafted into the most cheerful dinner table stories your future guests will enjoy for ages. (Read more.)