The Tragic End of Marie Antoinette: The last queen of France

The Tragic End of Marie Antoinette: The last queen of France

Marie Antoinette (1755–93), was the last queen of France who helped provoke the popular unrest that led to the French Revolution and to the overthrow of the monarchy in August 1792.

She was the youngest daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Francis I and Empress Maria Theresa, born 1755.Marriage was arranged between Marie Antoinette and Louis XV’s grandson to create and hold an alliance between Austria and France.

Marie Antoinette became a symbol of the excesses of the monarchy and is often credited with the famous quote "Let them eat cake," although there is no evidence she actually said it. As consort to Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette was beheaded nine months after her husband by order of the Revolutionary tribunal. She was 37 years old.

Marie soon became involved in the extravagance of French court life, attending lavish balls and gambling. Her husband, however, shied away from public affairs. The couple would not consummate their marriage until seven years later – this became a popular matter of discussion and ridicule both at court and among the public.

King Louis XV died on 10 May 1774 after contracting smallpox. Marie, who was not yet 19 years old, became Queen of France when her husband inherited the throne as King Louis XVI. Marie gave birth to the couple’s first child, Marie Thérèse Charlotte, in December 1778.

Marie Antoinette

King Louis XVI and the French Revolution

France experienced poor harvests during the 1780s, which consequently increased the price of grain, and the government faced mounting financial difficulties. As a result, Marie’s lavish lifestyle at court came under attack. Numerous pamphlets and satires were distributed across the country demonstrating peoples’ disgust towards the queen’s extravagant spending.

King Luis xi of France

During the French Revolution, the monarchy deteriorated and in 1789 the royal family was eventually imprisoned in their own palace. Marie had planned to flee France with her family and return to her birthplace of Austria, but they were captured during the attempt and taken prisoner.

The French Revolution completely changed the social and political structure of France. It put an end to the French monarchy, feudalism, and took political power from the Catholic Church.

It brought new ideas to Europe including liberty and freedom for the commoner as well as the abolishment of slavery and the rights of women.

Although the revolution ended with the rise of Napoleon, the ideas and reforms did not die. These new ideas continued to influence Europe and helped to shape many of Europe's modern-day governments.

Louis XVI’s policy of not raising taxes and taking out international loans, including funding the American Revolution, increased France’s debt, setting in motion the French Revolution. By the mid-1780s the country was near bankruptcy, which forced the king to support radical fiscal reforms not favorable with the nobles or the people.

Louis XVI declared the Assembly null and void and called out the army to restore order.Public dissension grew, and a National Guard formed to resist the King's actions.By July 1789, he was forced to acknowledge the National Assembly's authority.

On July 14, riots broke out in Paris and crowds stormed the Bastille prison in a show of defiance toward the King. The day is now commemorated in France as a national holiday and the start of the French Revolution.

For a time, it seemed that Louis XVI could soothe the masses by saying that he would accept to their demands. However, he accepted bad advice from the nobility's hard-line conservatives and his wife, Marie Antoinette. He talked of reform but resisted demands for it

King Luis xi and Queen Marie Antoinette

Escape Attempt of Marie Antoinette

The royal family was forcibly transferred from Versailles to Paris on October 6, 1789. Louis ignored advice from advisers and refused to abdicate his responsibilities as king of France, agreeing to a disastrous attempt to escape to the eastern frontier in June 1791. He and his family were brought back to Paris, and he lost all credibility as a monarch.

Execution of Queen Marie Antoinette and King Louis XVI

Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were executed for treason. Louis had failed to address France's financial problems, instigating the French Revolution that eventually descended upon him.

He made matters worse by often escaping to more pleasurable activities like hunting and locksmithing. Modern historians attribute this behavior to a clinical depression that left him prone to paralyzing indecisiveness.

On September 21, 1792, the Legislative Assembly proclaimed the First French Republic. That November, proof of Louis XVI's secret dealings and counter-revolutionary intrigues was discovered, and he and his family were charged with treason. Louis was soon found guilty by the National Assembly and condemned to death.

Trail of Marie Antoinette

Louis XVI was guillotined in the Place de la Révolution on January 21, 1793. His wife, Marie Antoinette, met the same fate nine months later, on October 16, 1793. Their young son, Louis-Charles, died in prison where living conditions were horrible. Daughter Marie-Thérèse was released from prison in December 1795 into the custody of her family in Austria.

Note---this story “the tragic end of marie antoinette: the last queen of France”,has been prepared with help of various articles and photos available on net,with great thanks to original writers.

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