In 1770, Marie-Antoinette married Louis, who,
in 1774,
became French King
Louis XVI.
Marie-Antoinette and
Her Children
Oil on canvas by Élisabeth
Vigée Le Brun, 1787
The children left to right: Marie-Thérèse, Louis-Charles, and
Louis-Joseph
In the crib: presumably Sophie-Beatrice
Versailles
Marie-Antoinette had the reputation of being extravagant, which was
partly justified because the girl felt right at home wherever luxury
resided. But of course, all the rumors, mini-conspiracies, and intrigues at the French court blew it
out of proportion. Remember
people didn't have TV back then.
In 1785, yet another drama, the Affair of the Diamond
Necklace, had been created. In a nutshell, the
Comtesse de La
Motte wanted to possess a certain exceptional diamond necklace
which she couldn't afford. What to do, what to do.
The Comtesse told the
Bishop of Strasbourg that Marie-Antoinette wanted him, the
Bishop, to secretly purchase the necklace for her, Marie-Antoinette.
The entire affair
was discovered, the involved individuals punished. But the general
public, the ones who actually had to work for a living, wasn't
and weren't thrilled.
Although Marie-Antoinette's response to the news that the people ran
out of bread, "Let them eat cake!" is an invention, it shows what
the people thought of her.
Long story short, in 1792 the Revolutionaries tried Louis and Marie for treason and
executed the two; Louis on January 21, 1793,
Marie-Antoinette on October 16, 1793.
