Marie Antoinette was born November 2, 1755 in Vienna, Austria. She was the youngest and most beautiful daughter of Francis Stephen I and Maria Theresa, Emperor and Empress of the Holy Roman Empire. Marie Antoinette was brought up believing her destiny was to become queen of France. She married the crown prince of France in 1770. Four years later she became queen when her husband was crowned King Louis XVI (House of Bourbon).
The stories of Antoinette's excesses are vastly overstated. In fact, rather than ignoring France's growing financial crisis, she reduced the royal household staff, eliminating many unnecessary positions that were based solely on privilege. In the process she offended the nobles, adding their condemnation to the scandalous stories spread by royal hopefuls. It was the nobility that balked at the financial reforms the government ministers tried to make, not the King and Queen, who were in favor of change. In truth, Antoinette and Louis were placed in harms' way not only by elements of their personalities, but by the changing face of political and social ideology in the 18th and 19th centuries.
In 1789 a mob descended on the palace at Versailles and demanded the royal family move to the Tuilerie palace inside Paris. From that point on the King and Queen were virtual prisoners. Antoinette sought aid from other European rulers including her brother, the Austrian Emperor, and her sister, Queen of Naples. After a failed attempt to flee Paris in 1791 Antoinette continued to seek aid from abroad. When Austria and Prussia declared war on France, she was accused of passing military secrets to the enemy. On August 10, 1792 the royal family was arrested on suspicion of treason and imprisoned. On January 21, 1793 King Louis XVI was convicted and executed on the guillotine.
Antoinette was cruely treated during her final days of captivity. Her children were taken from her, and her best friend, the Princess de Lambelle, was killed and her severed head was put on a pike and paraded in front of the Queen. Antoinette followed her husband to the guillotine on October 16, 1793. She was executed without proof of the crimes for which she was accused. She was only 37 years old.
2006-10-10 04:48:20
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answer #1
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answered by Eden* 7
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Wow, deep question, heavily. i'm uncertain i pass to be plenty help right here because of the fact as I know it MA develop into kind of stored out of politics. She develop into married to the 2d son as kind of a truce between Austria and France. hence, the French politicos did no longer quite have faith her with something politically appropriate. This of direction annoyed her brother, who wrote to her countless cases asking her to apply her effect contained in the French courtroom on his behalf. between being dependable to her husband, and longing to delight her brother, I think of she had a complicated time. I think of if she had a stance, she could blame the French Parliament, (or besides the fact that it develop into stated as), and their loss of cooperation together with her husband quite than her FIL who ran for the duration of the money like it develop into going out of trend. She develop into very dependable to her in-rules imho. i could additionally desire to have faith that she could sense that it develop into no longer inevitable because of the fact she refused to pass away her husband while issues have been getting risky, thinking the placement develop into going to teach itself around.
2016-10-02 03:57:27
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answer #2
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answered by ? 4
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This is one awesome person to do a report on if that's what you are doing!
Here are some sights that I found helpful when researching her. Let me know if this helps you!!
2006-10-10 04:56:01
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answer #3
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answered by frenchchick06 3
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