Marie Antoinette
last Queen of France prior to the French Revolution (1755–1793)
Marie Antoinette: court life and revolution
An Austrian marriage
Born in Vienna in 1755 to Maria Theresa and Francis I, Marie Antoinette married the future Louis XVI at Versailles in 1770. The marriage formed part of the rapprochement between Austria and France, although that alliance did not make the young bride universally welcome. She became queen when Louis XVI took the throne in 1774.
Life at Versailles
At court she supported performers and artists, including the composer Gluck and portraitist Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun. The ceremonial life of the palace also constrained her. She sought privacy in rooms behind the state apartments and spent time at her own retreat. Those spaces and her patronage reveal more than the familiar image of court fashion alone.
A monarchy overturned
During the French Revolution, the royal family lost its secure position at Versailles. The monarchy later collapsed, and Marie Antoinette was imprisoned. After Louis XVI was executed, she was tried by a revolutionary tribunal and executed in October 1793. Her life connects the international politics of dynastic marriage with the end of the French monarchy.
Data and sources
Château de Versailles — Marie Antoinette ↗
Château de Versailles — Marriage of the Dauphin Louis and Marie-Antoinette ↗