Tea at Trianon: Princess Eugénie de Bourbon and Le Bal des Débutantes

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, December 9, 2024

Princess Eugénie de Bourbon and Le Bal des Débutantes

Hello! features photos from the recent Le Bal des Débutantes in Paris where Her Royal Highness Princess Eugénie de Bourbon, daughter of the Duc and Duchesse d'Anjou, was formally presented to society. The princess opened the ball with her father, whom many monarchists regard as "Louis XX" as he is the principal pretender to the throne of France. HRH was escorted by His Imperial and Royal Highness Archduke Charles-Constantine of Habsburg-Lorraine. It was also nice to see lovely Lucia Ponti, the granddaughter of film actress Sophia Loren, making her debut. Some left-wing American celebrities were also present, which is ironic, since debutante balls are distinctly vestiges of the ancien régime. It reminds me of the old Revolutionaries vying for aristocratic titles at Napoleon's court. It is sad that in France there is no longer an enthroned monarch to whom the young ladies might be presented. In England, where there is a king and a queen, court presentations have been abolished.

From Tatler:

Princess Eugenia de Borbon Vargas joined a new generation of Bright Young Things making their society entrance at Le Bal des Débutantes on Saturday. The stylish celebration saw Princess Eugenia joined at the opulent Shangri-La Paris by the likes of Apple Martin (daughter of Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin), Sophia Loren’s granddaughter Lucia Ponti, and British society darling Oona Finch.
Orchestrated by Ophélie Renouard, Le Bal brings together 21 dazzling debs from a host of internationally renowned families for a celebration of tradition and philanthropy. Previously, the event has welcomed the likes of Lady Kitty Spencer and Lady Amelia Windsor, as well as Emily In Paris actress Lily Collins and Lady Tatiana Mountbatten.
As the sole royal representative this year, Princess Eugenia de Borbon Vargas was the only deb to wear a tiara – and she used the opportunity to continue on in a great tradition of royals at Le Bal. The 17-year-old is the daughter of the legitimist pretender to the throne of France, HRH Prince Louis Alfonso, Duc d'Anjou, and his wife, Marie-Marguerite Vargas Santaella. The head of the House of Bourbon, Louis’ descends from King Louis XX, and those who support his claim to the throne refer to him as King Louis XX. They know Princess Eugenia as ‘Eugénie, Madame Royale’, the title typically historically offered to the eldest daughters of the kings of France. (Read more.)