Let them eat cake

[marcialou]

there's no evidence that Marie Antoinette...ever said "Let them eat cake -Sena

I was surprised that not only did she not say "Let them eat cake," in your book, but that she did say something so compassionate that I underlined it for future reference. At least I thought I did but now I can't find it. Does anyone know the one I mean and can you quote it and cite the page? I'm beginning to think I imagined it and have given up looking.

Thanks,

Marcia

[mx6stcy]

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marcialou wrote:
there's no evidence that Marie Antoinette...ever said "Let them eat cake -Sena

I was surprised that not only did she not say "Let them eat cake," in your book, but that she did say something so compassionate that I underlined it for future reference. At least I thought I did but now I can't find it. Does anyone know the one I mean and can you quote it and cite the page? I'm beginning to think I imagined it and have given up looking.

Thanks,

Marcia

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I'm still in Act I of the book but everything so far is about how she wants to please those around her. The one thing I thought was very compassionate was when the storm starts during the wedding banquet. The people of Paris were there to celebrate in her honor and she fears they will be cold and wet. She even remarks on it to the king and he offers to send hot ale in her name. Don't know if this is what you were looking for but I thought it was worth mentioning.

[marcialou]

That wasn't what I was thinking, but by now I wonder whether my memory wasn't a figment of my imagination. There is at least one other instance in the book (maybe others) where she behaves compassionatley towards the needy. (I'll find it later if someone else doesn't first.) Maybe we can use this space to note things like that as well as look for my phantom line.

Marcia

[Tiffany129]

Not sure if this was what you were thinking of, but on pg. 318 when speaking with her husband MA says "Nevermore give me gifts of diamonds. I will not have such jewels when they could buy a ship for our navy or bread for the hungry." Of course this was when she was about to construct her Hameau, but she was yearning for more simplicity in her life.

[marcialou]

I think that was it. Thanks.

Marcia

[3B-S]

I don't remember the exact line you are looking for, but there are many instances in the book that show "Toinette" being compassionate to those less fortunate than her.
When her carriage ran over a peasant, she brought food to the household, took a child and raised it,and later gave a job to a family member. She was kind to her hairdresser, to the young girl in the tower prison, to her husband.

[Tiffany129]

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marcialou wrote:
I think that was it. Thanks.

Marcia

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You're welcome.

Another example of compassion was when MA and Louis refused to tax the people upon their accession to the throne because the French people were already so impoverished(p. 211).

[SenaJeterNaslu…]

Another example of compassion was when MA and Louis refused to tax the people upon their accession to the throne because the French people were already so impoverished(p. 211).

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When Antoinette came to France as a new bride, she had the legal right to levy a tax called "The Queen's Belt" to support the expenses of her household. She said she didn't need anything and the peasants had enough burdens; she didn't want to make life harder for them. At the time, she was not yet fifteen. There certainly are many instances, as several of you have noted, in which she was compassionate or considerate. One of the things that caused her to lose favor with the populace was the distributing of many obscene and untrue pamphlets about her, stemming from her husband's failure to consummate their marriage.

[Cheyenne]

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SenaJeterNaslund wrote:
One of the things that caused her to lose favor with the populace was the distributing of many obscene and untrue pamphlets about her, stemming from her husband's failure to consummate their marriage.

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I have not reached that point in the book yet, but I do wonder what political or public-relations type staff the royalty had at that time. Were these types of pamphelts a new tactic used against the royalty or had they existed for some time? I can see that if they hadn't been used previously, no one would experience combating this type of propaganda. But if this wasn't new, then was the failure to distract the populace from these pamphelts just inepitude within the royal staff?

[marcialou]

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Cheyenne wrote:
Were these types of pamphelts a new tactic used against the royalty or had they existed for some time?

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A quick internet search shows that political broadsides were published in 18th century America from before the Revolution. I don't know if there are earlier examples.

Marcia

[gracebaldwin]

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SenaJeterNaslund wrote:
Another example of compassion was when MA and Louis refused to tax the people upon their accession to the throne because the French people were already so impoverished(p. 211).

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When Antoinette came to France as a new bride, she had the legal right to levy a tax called "The Queen's Belt" to support the expenses of her household. She said she didn't need anything and the peasants had enough burdens; she didn't want to make life harder for them. At the time, she was not yet fifteen. There certainly are many instances, as several of you have noted, in which she was compassionate or considerate. One of the things that caused her to lose favor with the populace was the distributing of many obscene and untrue pamphlets about her, stemming from her husband's failure to consummate their marriage.

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Yes, I thought it was a sad irony that endured her husband's failure to consumate the marriage and yet was subjected to such obscene and disgusting rumors and stories. I thought that your book also highlighted the misogyny that surrounded her, certainly at the time of the revolution. It appeared to me (also from reading Antonia Fraser's book) that the revolution evolved into something anti-female in nature.

[SenaJeterNaslu…]

The pamplets were a relatively new kind of assault. Of course the authors were not identified, so it was difficult to put a stop to them. The king did appoint a particular minister to try to squelch the pamphlets, but the person was not effective.