Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette, the queen who danced in the Palace of Versailles while the poor starved. Many have questioned whether Marie Antoinette was the cause of the brutal French revolution, or a rejected victim. I believe Marie, unfortunately, was just a helpless victim. Throughout history her image was continuously damaged, as she was known well for her large spending; resulting in a countrywide deficit. The Queen, being a princess from Austria, was born into royal life and didn’t think to appreciate her luck. Life in Versailles was glamorous. The royals were expected to lead an exotic lifestyle. The parties, the accessories and thrill were all expertise of a royal life. Life for a peasant meant 16 hours of work per day and large amounts of texts sent to the church out of their crop. Meanwhile, the court, monarchy, and local nobility did not pay a dime and were tax-free. The peasants’ life was miserable and Marie was clearly oblivious to their struggles. She was a beautiful and helpless victim of fortune. Marie Antoinette was given a complete new lifestyle at age fourteen. She was married off to Austria’s enemy, France, and Louis the 16th was only sixteen years old, to form an alliance. Because of this hatred from the French people, she quickly gained the nickname 'L'Autrichienne'. Her every action was criticized by the public and the failure to produce an heir did hot help her case, as well as her mother’s continuous nagging. She was a stranger amongst the French; therefore her turning to major spending can be justified. It is unfortunate that her monthly allowance was not more controlled by Louis, if it caused such a problem amongst the economy. Many remember Marie either for her famous quote “Let them eat cake” or her glamorous closet filled with clothes worth a year’s food supply, but her acts of good are forgotten. As Dauphine of France she was kind to peasants. For an instance, there was a time when she had her carriage stopped for a while in order to help an...

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