HistoryMakers
We
may despise them or admire them, but these fascinating pivotal
people are part of the story in history. |
 |

Marie Antoinette
Marie
Antoinette has gone down in history as the callous queen of France
who said "Let them eat cake!" while the peasants starved.
Actually she wasn't that bad.
She
was only 14 when she went to France to marry Louis
XVI and from the beginning the people hated her because she
was from France's enemy, Austria. If ever anyone was the victim
of a bad press, it was Marie. She soon was known by the nicknames
"the Austrian Whore" and "Madame Deficit," and
was accused of having affairs and spending lavishly.
She probably did a bit of both but she had her reasons. Not only
did everyone at the court hate her, for the first seven years Louis
was unable to consummate their marriage due to a physical problem.
Alone, young and friendless she looked for comfort where she could
find it. When Louis finally had surgery to correct his problem and
she was able to have children, she settled down.
She
never said "Let them eat cake" - in fact she helped to
feed the poor people of Paris with her own money. Unfortunately
it was too late to save her reputation - the French
Revolution took everything from her.
First
she said goodbye to Louis for the last time; he was executed
by the new radical state. Then she saw her son, Louis
Charles, torn from her arms; he died in prison later. She finally
went to the guillotine herself.
The
Guillotine
The
French Revolution
The
Mystery of Louis XVII
|