Who is Marie Antoinette?

Question

Storming of Bastille

Answer 1

french queen, wife of louis xvi, they both were beheaded after the french revolution 1789

Answer 2

She was married to Louis XVI. During the French Revolution she was imprisoned in the Bastille and then she was beheaded. She is the one who said "let them eat cake" - she was referring to the peasants who were starving and this was an indication of how far removed she was from the real issue.

Here is a link w/ more info
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Antoinette

Answer 3

Marie Antoinette was Queen of France and Archduchess of Austria. She was a daughter of the Holy Roman Emperor Francis I and his wife Empress Regnant Maria Theresa of Austria and was married to Louis XVI of France at age 14. As Louis XVI's wife and mother of "lost dauphin" Louis XVII, she was guillotined at the height of the French Revolution in 1793 and subsequently interred with her husband in the royal crypt at the Saint Denis Basilica in Paris. She was born Her Imperial and Royal Highness Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria.

Answer 4

Marie Antoinette was the wife King Louis XVI of France who was beheaded with her husband when the people of France overthrew the monarchy. She was originally from Austria.

Answer 5

The Austrian-born queen of France during the reign of Louie the16th. She had the misfortune of being hated for her ostentatious lifestyle and was beheaded along with her king during the French revolution. Her famous comment to the starving masses of Paris: "if there is no bread, let them eat cake!"

Answer 6

I learned quite a bit about her in my History class. She was influential because of her royal link to her brother. I always felt sorry for her. I don't think she deserved to die. Or her husband. Mob mentality took over.

Answer 7

She was the Queen of France, and said "Let them eat cake" hehe

But to be honest i dont see why you couldnt have just typed it into google, as that is what everyone who answered did. It comes up with loads of information... lazy

Answer 8

the one who said "Let them eat cake"
(when informed that the peasants had no bread)

Answer 9

Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna von Habsburg-Lothringen, usually known as Marie Antoinette; (2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was Queen of France and Archduchess of Austria. She was a daughter of the Holy Roman Emperor Francis I and his wife Empress Regnant Maria Theresa of Austria and was married to Louis XVI of France at age 14. As Louis XVI's wife and mother of "lost dauphin" Louis XVII, she was guillotined at the height of the French Revolution in 1793 and subsequently interred with her husband in the royal crypt at the Saint Denis Basilica in Paris. She was born Her Imperial and Royal Highness Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria.

Born at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Maria Antonia was the fifteenth child of Francis I and Empress Maria Theresa. Of the names given at her christening, Maria honoured the Virgin Mary; Antonia honoured Saint Anthony of Padua; Josepha honoured her elder brother, Archduke Josef; and Johanna honoured Saint John the Evangelist[citation needed]. The court official described the new baby as "a small, but completely healthy Archduchess." She was brought up in the company of her similarly-aged siblings Maria Carolina (two years older) and Maximilian (one year younger); her other brothers, Joseph, Leopold and Ferdinand Karl, were already involved in the Habsburg Empire.

Legend states that Maria Antonia and the composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart met as children, when Mozart gave a short musical concert for the Imperial Family. After the concert, Empress Maria Theresa asked the young Mozart what he would like as a reward. Much to the Empress' amusement, Mozart is said to have asked for the hand of Maria Antonia, her youngest daughter, in marriage.

Maria Antonia's sisters were soon married to European royalty; the eldest, Maria Christina, to the Regent of the Netherlands; Maria Amalia to the Prince of Parma; and Maria Antonia's favourite sister, Maria Carolina, to King Ferdinand of Naples.

A peace treaty, the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), had been signed, which it was hoped would end over a century and a half of intermittent fighting between Austria and France. In the following Seven Years' War (1756–1763), Austria and France were allies. In an attempt to preserve this alliance, it was proposed that Louis XV of France's heir, his grandson Louis-Auguste, marry one of Empress Maria Theresa's daughters. When her elder sisters died of smallpox, Johanna Gabriella in 1762 and Maria Josepha in 1767, Maria Antonia was next in line to be married to the French prince.
After lengthy negotiations, the official proposal for the teenage girl was made by Louis XV. in 1769. Only when the marriage treaty was signed, Maria Theresa realized that her daughter lacked sufficient knowledge of French language and customs. Teachers of language and dancing tried to prepare the girl for the role as Queen of France.

On 19 April 1770, a marriage per procurationem took place in Vienna's Augustine Church. A crying Maria Antonia left Vienna on 21 April 1770 to her mother's parting words "Farewell, my dearest child. Do so much good to the French people that they can say that I have sent them an angel."

Travelling with a large entourage along the Danube, then via Munich, Augsburg, Günzburg, Ulm, Freiburg im Breisgau, the Border at the Rhine between Kehl and Strasbourg was reached weeks later.


Marie Antoinette, painted by Franz Xaver Wagenschon shortly after her marriage in 1770On 7 May, as a symbolic act [1], Maria Antonia was required to leave all of her Austrian attire, possessions, servants and even friends behind. On a neutral island in the river, a pavilion was erected in which the 14 year old Maria Antonia had to cross the border naked and alone, to be received by messengers from the French court, as Marie Antoinette, as she was known from then on.

Dressed in French clothing, she was then taken to Strasbourg for a Thanksgiving Mass in her honour. The streets of the city were covered in flowers, which Marie Antoinette gently picked up like "the goddess Flora". The entire city was illuminated in her honour and a few days later, she began the journey to Versailles.

Marie Antoinette was conveyed to the royal palace at Versailles, where she met her future grandfather-in-law Louis XV and the other members of the royal family. Her future husband, the Dauphin Louis-Auguste was very shy. He was only a year older than she was and had no sexual or romantic relationships to prepare him for dealing with his fiancée. Their marriage was conducted within hours of Marie Antoinette arriving at Versailles. The Wedding Mass was celebrated with great pomp in the Chapel Royal on 16 May 1770. Just before the wedding, Marie Antoinette was presented with the magnificent jewels that traditionally belonged to a French dauphine. This collection included an elaborate diamond necklace which had belonged to Anne of Austria and pieces which had also belonged to Mary Queen of Scots and Catherine de Medici. The large collection of gems was valued at approximately 2 million livres. Marie Antoinette then received King Louis's own personal wedding gift. It was a fan, encrusted with diamonds.

The Dauphin and Marie Antoinette were then married in front of the court, with Marie Antoinette wearing a dress with large white hoops covered in diamonds and pearls. There was then a formal dinner, which was also held in front of the crowd. Louis-Auguste ate an enormous amount. When the king told him to eat less, the Dauphin replied "Why? I always sleep better when I have a full stomach!"

The court then conducted the young couple to their bed, which had just been blessed by the Archbishop of Reims. However, the marriage was not consummated that night and wouldn't be until seven years later. Rumours would later circulate that Louis-Auguste was impotent, or that he suffered from a genital anomaly, reputedly phimosis. Minor surgery corrected this problem seven years later, and Marie Antoinette finally gave birth to their first child the following year. Meanwhile, within days, gossips at Versailles were already whispering that the Royal marriage was a sham
On 7 May, as a symbolic act [1], Maria Antonia was required to leave all of her Austrian attire, possessions, servants and even friends behind. On a neutral island in the river, a pavilion was erected in which the 14 year old Maria Antonia had to cross the border naked and alone, to be received by messengers from the French court, as Marie Antoinette, as she was known from then on.

Dressed in French clothing, she was then taken to Strasbourg for a Thanksgiving Mass in her honour. The streets of the city were covered in flowers, which Marie Antoinette gently picked up like "the goddess Flora". The entire city was illuminated in her honour and a few days later, she began the journey to Versailles.

Marie Antoinette was conveyed to the royal palace at Versailles, where she met her future grandfather-in-law Louis XV and the other members of the royal family. Her future husband, the Dauphin Louis-Auguste was very shy. He was only a year older than she was and had no sexual or romantic relationships to prepare him for dealing with his fiancée. Their marriage was conducted within hours of Marie Antoinette arriving at Versailles. The Wedding Mass was celebrated with great pomp in the Chapel Royal on 16 May 1770. Just before the wedding, Marie Antoinette was presented with the magnificent jewels that traditionally belonged to a French dauphine. This collection included an elaborate diamond necklace which had belonged to Anne of Austria and pieces which had also belonged to Mary Queen of Scots and Catherine de Medici. The large collection of gems was valued at approximately 2 million livres. Marie Antoinette then received King Louis's own personal wedding gift. It was a fan, encrusted with diamonds.

The Dauphin and Marie Antoinette were then married in front of the court, with Marie Antoinette wearing a dress with large white hoops covered in diamonds and pearls. There was then a formal dinner, which was also held in front of the crowd. Louis-Auguste ate an enormous amount. When the king told him to eat less, the Dauphin replied "Why? I always sleep better when I have a full stomach!"

The court then conducted the young couple to their bed, which had just been blessed by the Archbishop of Reims. However, the marriage was not consummated that night and wouldn't be until seven years later. Rumours would later circulate that Louis-Auguste was impotent, or that he suffered from a genital anomaly, reputedly phimosis. Minor surgery corrected this problem seven years later, and Marie Antoinette finally gave birth to their first child the following year. Meanwhile, within days, gossips at Versailles were already whispering that the Royal marriage was a sham [1].

[edit]
Life as Dauphine
Since they were not having sex, Louis and Marie Antoinette remained childless for the first 7 years of their marriage. Hurtful gossips blamed Marie Antoinette for her childlessness and some people even asserted that she should be divorced and sent back to Austria. The young dauphine's position was not helped by the fact that she had earned the enmity of the King's mistress, Madame du Barry. Du Barry had begun life as Jeanne Bécu, a commoner who as courtesan gained the notice of nobility and eventually became Louis XV's paramour. Marie Antoinette felt it was beneath her dignity as a Habsburg princess to talk to a lady with such a past. Du Barry therefore set about to make Marie Antoinette's life as miserable as possible. She began turning the king against his granddaughter-in-law.

Marie Antoinette's daily routine was even more depressing. When she awoke in the morning, she was assisted out of bed and dressed by the various high-ranking noblewomen who were her ladies-in-waiting. Her dinner, which she ate with her husband, was also in public. Anyone who was decently dressed was permitted to come and watch the royals eating their dinner. Louis-Auguste ate enormous amounts of food, whilst Marie Antoinette ate almost nothing when she was in public. Marie Antoinette loathed this spectacle and she complained bitterly to her mother, "I put on my rouge and wash my hands in front of the whole world!"

Homesick and melancholy, Marie Antoinette especially missed the companionship she had enjoyed with her sister, Maria Carolina. She found a substitute for this with the gentle Princesse Thérèse de Lamballe. The Princesse de Lamballe was wealthy and kind-natured; she was also absolutely devoted to Marie Antoinette. Not long after meeting Thérèse, Marie Antoinette formed a deep attachment to the beautiful aristocrat, Gabrielle, Comtesse de Polignac. She was also on excellent terms with her husband's youngest brother Charles, the Comte d'Artois.

Marie Antoinette refused to involve herself in politics, possibly because she lacked any real knowledge or interest in it. She was being spied upon by her mother's ambassador, le Comte de Mercy d'Argenteau, who reported with great frustration that she was doing nothing to further Austria's influence in France.

Louis-Auguste and Marie Antoinette's life changed suddenly in the afternoon of 10th May 1774 when King Louis XV died of smallpox at 3 o'clock. The courtiers rushed over to Marie Antoinette's apartments to swear allegiance to their new king, Louis XVI, and his Austrian wife, Marie Antoinette. The new king and queen fell on their knees in prayer, with Louis saying "Dear God, guide and protect us. We are too young to reign." Marie Antoinette wiped away her tears and stood with her husband to greet the courtiers who had come to pledge their loyalty to the new king and queen.Marie Antoinette had already caused enough anger at Versailles before she started appointing her friends to places that were traditionally held by others. She made Thérèse de Lamballe the Superintendent of the Queen's Household, despite the fact that there were some aristocratic ladies with a superior claim to that job.

She then began spending less time living at the palace and more time at Le Petit Trianon, which was a small château in the palace grounds. The château was renovated for her and the costs soon spiralled out of control, especially whenever the gardens were re-designed to suit the queen's new tastes.

Vindictive rumours began that Marie Antoinette was sleeping with her brother-in-law Charles, the Comte d'Artois. Illegal presses in Paris soon began printing pamphlets showing the queen and Artois as adulterous lovers. The first pamphlet was called Les Amours de Charlot et Antoinette. L'Autrichienne en Goguette showed Artois and the Queen having anal sex in a palace salon. Le Godmiché Royal (the Royal dildo) showed Marie Antoinette masturbating, and later pamphlets would suggest that she had indulged in bestiality and lesbianism. No evidence of these charges had ever been produced, but they began to chip away at the queen's popularity with the people.

There were also wider problems affecting France at the time, for the entire country was standing on the edge of bankruptcy. The long series of wars fought by Louis XIV and Louis XV had left France with the highest national debt in Europe. French society was under-taxed and what little money was collected failed to save the economy. Louis XVI was persuaded to support the American revolutionaries in their fight for independence from England. This decision was a disaster for France, for the cost was enormous.

Marie Antoinette's brother, Emperor Joseph II, visited her in April 1777. He had come to inquire about the state of her marriage, since the Austrians were concerned about her failure to produce a son. They went for a long walk in the grounds of Le Petit Trianon, during which Joseph criticised her gambling and her taste in friends. He also had a deep conversation with Louis XVI, in which they discussed his sexual problems. Whatever Joseph II said to Louis XVI, it obviously worked, for the marriage was soon consummated and by April 1778, the queen could happily announce that she was pregnant.Marie Antoinette's first child was born at Versailles December 19th 1778. She was forced to endure the humiliation of a public birth in her bedchamber, in front of hundreds of courtiers. The queen actually passed out through a combination of embarrassment and pain. It was the last time such a ritual was permitted as Marie Antoinette refused to give birth in public ever again.

The baby was a girl and she was christened Marie Thérèse Charlotte. She was created "Princess Royal" or Madame Royale, since she was the oldest daughter of the king of France. Despite the fact that the country had desired a boy, Marie Antoinette was delighted with a girl. "A son would have belonged to the state," she said, "but you shall be mine, and have all my care; you shall share my happiness and soften my sorrows."


Marie Antoinette in 1783, portrait by her favourite artist, Marie Louise Élisabeth Vigée-LebrunMadame Royale was followed by three other children – Louis Joseph born in 1781, Louis Charles in 1785 and Sophie Béatrix in 1786.

As she grew older, Marie Antoinette became much less extravagant. She was devoted to her children and she was very involved in taking care of them. Speaking of her youngest son, Louis Charles, she said, "Mon chou d'amour ("My cabbage of love", "cabbage" being a popular term of endearment even into modern times in Europe), is charming, and I love him madly. He loves me very much too, in his own way, without embarrassment." She was also much more involved in charity work, although she had always been very generous.

After she turned thirty in 1785, Marie Antoinette also began to dress with more restraint. She abandoned the more elaborate wigs which had been festooned with jewels and feathers and she refused to buy any more jewels for her personal collection. She was, however, fiercely criticised for building a small mock-village for herself in the grounds of Versailles in 1786.

The building of these kinds of artificial villages was very popular among French aristocratic ladies, who were keen to experience a rural idyll in the comfort of their own estates. This tradition had begun with Louis XIV's greatest mistress, the beautiful Athénaïs de Montespan in the 1680s. Marie Antoinette's defenders did not think she deserved so much criticism for building the Hameau (as it was known.) Baroness d'Oberkirch complained, "Other people spent more on their gardens!" Even so, the queen was already unpopular and she could not possibly understand how much the Hameau would further damage her reputation. Many people began to see her as a clueless spendthrift who liked to play at being a shepherdess, whilst some of the real peasants lived in very hard conditions.