Five Lesser-Known Facts About Marie Antoinette: The Misunderstood Queen Of France
Let’s check out five lesser-known facts about the misunderstood queen of France who faced a grim end.
The Austrian-born teenage queen of France is chiefly remembered for her lavish taste and seeming indifference toward the misery of her subjects, which further fueled the resentment of the French people, thereby leading to the outbreak of the French Revolution. But how authentic are the things that we read about Marie Antoinette? Let’s check out five lesser-known facts about the misunderstood queen of France who faced a grim end.
Marie was forced to give up her pet dog before entering France
The 14-year-old Marie Antoinette and 15-year-old Louis Auguste were married on 16 May 1770 at the Palace of Versailles. The young archduchess’ entry into French territory was in itself a grand affair, accompanied by sixty carriages and an enormous bridal party. Marie, after reaching the border, was escorted to a location - somewhere in the Rhine - where she was dressed in traditional French attire. This custom symbolically indicated the act of shedding Marie’s former identity. As a part of the custom, she was compelled to let go of Mops, her pet dog – but she eventually reunited with her beloved canine at Versailles.
She owned a pleasure village
Marie during her initial years after marriage considered the customs of court life to be restraining. After Louis Auguste ascended the throne in 1774, Marie started spending most of her days in Petit Trianon, a lavish château (country house) located within the palace compound. At this pleasure village, she only allowed her ‘favourites’ to offer her company and organised parties without the knowledge of the prying members of the royal court.
Marie never uttered the words, “Let them eat cake”
History suggests that when Marie was informed that the citizens of France had no bread to eat, she responded with the most “infamous” quote: “Let them eat cake.” But she never spoke these words. As the economic disparity widened in France - between the 17th to 18th centuries - the patriotic French citizens preferred presuming that an Austrian-born queen was thoughtless about their misery.
She was buried in an unmarked grave
In September 1793, nine months after Louis Auguste was executed on charges of high treason, Marie was also charged with several notorious crimes that were not adequately proven with evidence. At the age of 37, Marie was guillotined publicly and was buried in an unmarked grave at Madeleine cemetery in Paris. Later, the queen’s remains were recovered and placed in a grave beside her husband.
The French queen was a teetotaller
Marie loved drinking chocolate, and after marrying Louis Auguste, she brought her chocolatier to Versailles from her native land of Vienna. Her chocolatier was known as “chocolate maker to the Queen” at the Royal Court.
In history, no queen other than Marie Antoinette had to face such humiliation, and sadly, her slanderous reputation seemed undeserved to most.
