LOUIS XVIMARIE-ANTOINETTE

1774-1792

• His character was unsuited to provide the leadership needed to control the complex social and political conflict smoldering in France

• Shy, dull, and corpulent, Louis preferred the hunting field and his locksmith's workshop to the council chamber;

• He was very indecisive and this made him subject to the poor advice of his intimates

• Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, ninth child of the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, was born at Vienna, on the 2nd of November 1755.

• She was brought up very simply knowing from a very early age that she was to marry the French Dauphin, arranged by Maria Theresa.

• Dauphin=French word for the Crown Prince

• Her marriage with the Dauphin, which took place at Versailles on the 16th of May 1770, was intended to confirm the alliance between Austria and France.

• This fact, combined with her youth and the extreme corruption of the French court, made her position very difficult.

• Madame du Barry, who was the mistress of Louis XV, formed the center of a powerful anti-Austria party, seriously threatened the stability of the Austrian alliance.

• Thus the young princess was surrounded by enemies both at court and in the Dauphin's household.

• She came to rely almost entirely upon the Austrian ambassador, chosen by her mother, the Empress Maria Theresa to act as her mentor

• At the same time Maria Theresa demanded that she be kept informed of all that concerned her daughter, so that she might at once advise her and safeguard the alliance.

Marie Antoinette

• Marie Antoinette soon won the affection and confidence of the dauphin and endeared herself to the king (Louis XV), but her position was still precarious.

• Maria Theresa had continually to urge her to conquer her violent dislike for the Madame du Barry (Louis XV’s mistress) and try to conciliate her.

• The accession of the young king and queen on the death of Louis XV (May 10, 1774), was met with great enthusiasm.

• But her first steps brought Marie Antoinette into open hostility with those who were anti-Austrian.

• She was given the nickname of "l‘Autrichienne" by Mesdames, the king's aunts.

• At the same time her undisguised impatience with court etiquette shocked many people, and her taste for pleasure led her to seek the company of some questionable people.

• But the greatest weakness in her position lay in her unsatisfactory relations with her husband.

• The king, though affectionate, was cold and apathetic, and

• After seven years of marriage there was still no sign of her bearing an heir for France.

• This fact naturally decreased her popularity, and as early as September 1774, was made the subject of offensive pamphlets.

• The King suffered from a physical disability that could be cured by very minor surgery, but His Majesty was terrified of it.

• Eventually His Majesty was persuaded to undergo this “minor” surgery et voila!

• Four children were born to their Majesties =two daughters and two sons.

• Sadly only one daughter would survive the French Revolution dying in 1851.

COUNT AXEL FERSEN 1755-1810

• Alleged lover of Marie Antoinette

• Swedish Count, Lt. General in Swedish Army

• Diplomat & statesman• Met Marie when both

were 18• Historians dispute

claims that they were actually lovers

• Helped royal family in their escape attempt from Paris

Princess Lamballe 1749-1792• Married one of the

richest men in France• Went to court and

became a close confidante of Marie Antoinette

• Arrested in Sept. 1792 and tried as an enemy of the revolution

• She refused to swear allegiance to the revolution and express her hatred of the royal family

• Murdered by the Paris mob – beheaded & disemboweled

Duchesse de Polignac 1749-1793 • French duchess and

favorite of Marie Antoinette

• Earned many enemies for her extravagance

• Louis XVI commanded many of the court favorites to leave France after the Bastille

• She lived in Switzerland until her death in 1793 probably from cancer not long after the execution of Marie

• Louis Stanislas (1755-1824) – brother of Louis XVI

• Becomes Louis XVIII upon the restoration of the Bourbon Monarchy after the overthrow of Napoleon (1814)

• Charles-Philippe, youngest brother of Louis XVI

• Ruled France(as Charles X) upon the death of his brother, Louis XVIII, from 1824 to 1830

• Was removed from the throne in 1830 during the July Revolution which replaced him with another Bourbon relative from a minor branch of his family

• Marie-Therese Charlotte

• Madame Royale• Oldest child of Louis

XVI and Marie Antoinette

• Survived the Revolution

• Born 1773; Died in 1851

• Married the Duc d’Angouleme, son of Louis XVI’s younger brother and her cousin

• Louis Josephe Xavier Francois

• Born 1781; died 1789

• Eldest son of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette

• Suffered from a series of fevers caused by the onset of tuberculosis and curvature of the spine

• Louis Charles (1785-1795)

• Titular King of France ascending the throne upon the death of his father, Louis XVI, as Louis XVII

• Imprisoned during the Revolution from 1792 until his death in 1795

• Sophie Helene Beatrice

• 1786-1787

• Died from convulsions at the age of 11 months

Painted by Vigee-LeBrun

1787