Get an intimate look at the king and his wife — the good, the bad and the naughty. The timing of the birth of Marie’s third child, Louis-Charles, in 1785 set tongues wagging throughout France, as many surmised that he was von Fersen’s son. Louis XVI, the last king of France (1774–92) in the line of Bourbon monarchs preceding the French Revolution of 1789. Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette … In late 1789, the royal family was moved from Versailles and placed in captivity in Paris. Finally, in 2000, conclusive medical evidence put the theory to rest. In January 1793, King Louis XVI was sentenced to death for conspiring against the state. The marriage was decided to ease the tensions between France and Austria. Although Louis and Marie were fond of each other (unlike most other royal males, Louis did not take a formal mistress), theirs was no great love match. The reign of Louis XVI, the final Bourbon king of France, was a varied and eventful one, but when we think of him and his queen Marie Antoinette, certain associations inevitably pop into our … Louis XVI became emotionally paralyzed, leaving most important decisions to the queen. 1786- Marie Antoinette's daughter Sophie Beatrix is born. While she was not the hoped-for son, Marie Therese provided much-needed emotional support for her mother, whose seemingly frivolous appearance and spending masked deep loneliness and insecurities. Louis XVI had given it to Marie Antoinette in June 1774, a few days after he became king, when she asked for a hideaway. 1787- Shortly before her first birthday Sophie Beatrix dies. The king’s flight was traumatic for France. His grief-stricken parents had little time to mourn, as the powder keg that would become the French Revolution exploded with the storming of the Bastille just weeks after Louis’ death. It was now no longer possible to pretend that the reforms of the French Revolution had been made with the free consent of the king. The couple wed in May 1770, and the ceremony and ensuing … Dressed in more modest clothes, Marie created an idyllic (and expensive) second life, away from both the prying eyes of courtiers and the realities of the growing unpopularity of both Marie and Louis among the French people. The arrest of Louis XVI and his family at the house of the registrar of passports, at Varennes in June 1791by Thomas Falcon Marshall. Marie Antoinette has been portrayed as the spendthrift wife who meddled in the political affairs of her weak-willed husband, Louis XVI. “Arrest_of_Louis_XVI_and_his_Family_Varennes_1791.jpg.”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Revolution, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brunswick_Manifesto, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_to_Varennes, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champ_de_Mars_Massacre, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuileries_Palace#Louis_XVI, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arrest_of_Louis_XVI_and_his_Family,_Varennes,_1791.jpg, https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/. The long-term political objectives of the royal couple and their closest advisers remain unclear. It wasn’t until 1778, four years after they had assumed the French throne, that their first child was born. The long-term political objectives of the royal couple and their closest advisers remain unclear. The intended goal of the unsuccessful flight was to provide the king with greater freedom of action and personal security than was possible in Paris. While most of these claimants were easily dismissed, others presented “evidence” that swayed believers. In 1770, he married Marie Antoinette, the daughter of Maria-Theresa of Austria. But she was also a devoted mother to her four children, who provided emotional solace for the troubled queen. Despite the rocky start, Marie and Louis XVI would have four children -- only one of whom lived to adulthood. The grandson of Louis XV, he became a French Dauphin after the death of his father and his older brothers. Prodded by the queen, Louis committed the family to a disastrous escape attempt from the capital to the eastern frontier on June 21, 1791. 1793- On January 21, Louis XVI is taken to the guillotine & executed. Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette’s wedding ended with a deadly stampede. The outbreak of the war with Austria in April 1792 and the publication of the Brunswick Manifesto led to the storming of the Tuileries by Parisian radicals on August 10, 1792. Under the influence of her mother, Marie Antoinette made some clumsy attempts to get involved in politics, which were met with scorn by the Court. Jean Sylvain Bailly, the mayor of Paris, used this incident to declare martial law. In November, proof of Louis XVI’s dealings with the deceased revolutionary politician Mirabeau and of his counterrevolutionary intrigues with foreigners was found in a secret iron chest in the Tuileries. She became dauphine of France in May 1770 at age 14 upon her marriage to Louis-Auguste, heir apparent to the French throne. The famed explorer was always searching for new places, but his lasting legacy has people searching for his true nationality. A detailed document entitled Declaration to the French People prepared by Louis for presentation to the National Assembly and left behind in the Tuileries indicates that his personal goal was a return to the concessions and compromises contained in the declaration of the Third Estate in June 1789, immediately prior to the outbreak of violence in Paris and the storming of the Bastille. Following a grueling two-day trial, Marie was found guilty of crimes against the state and followed her husband to the guillotine on October 16, 1793. Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette struggled to start a family. This attack led in turn to the suspension of the king’s powers by the Legislative Assembly and the proclamation of the First French Republic on September 21. However, on July 15, 1791, the National Constituent Assembly agreed that the king could be restored to power if he agreed to the constitution, although some factions opposed the proposal. 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