Did Marie Antoinette Commit Treason Against France?
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Did Marie Antoinette commit treason against France?
Marie Antoinette was from Austria. She was the daughter of Francis, the Holy Roman Emperor and Austrian Empress Maria Theresa. Her mother and King Louis XV from France planned for her marriage. It was a political statement of peace. France and Austria had been at war for a long time. They thought that the marriage would stop the fighting between France and Austria. She was initially welcomed by the French people. The beautiful lady from Austria married the crown prince of France in 1770. She became queen four years later, when her husband was crowned King Louis XVI. She had four children. She gained popularity with the people of France at first with her generosity as she continuously gave to the poor of Paris.
She looked for pleasure in a light-hearted way. This was different to the withdrawn personality of her husband. After her mother died in 1780, she became more extravagant and this led to growing resentment. The French were suspicious of her ties to Austria and her influence on the King.
The French Revolution took place in 1789 to 1799. In summary, the French revolution was to overthrow the monarchs because the middle class and the poor did not like the luxurious and privileged lives of the royals and nobility. The revolutionists wanted everybody to be equal.
Marie Antoinette was the last Queen of France. Marie Antoinette, wife and Queen of Louis XVI was executed by guillotine because it was believed that she committed treason by communicating with her relative who ruled Austria. She was also accused of a number of other crimes.
I do not believe that Marie Antoinette committed treason.
She is famous for the sentence “let them eat cake” which was never actually said by her. This shows me that there were many lies surrounding the life of Marie Antoinette. The French hated her because she was Austrian. I believe she was targeted by horrible rumours which ended in her death.
When the King and Queen were placed under house arrest in the Tuileries Palace, Marie Antoinette told her friends that she did not want to be involved in French politics any more because she did not want to be blamed, She was scared of the repercussions of further involvement. This tells me that she would not have risked the safety of her family by continuing to communicate with her relative in Austria. I think she was a good person because she was still involved with charitable functions and religious ceremonies. Most of her time, she was dedicated to her children. She liked nice things but I think she was a good mother to her children.
Marie tried to stay out of the public eyes but was still falsely accused in the libelles (a political pamphlet which slanders a public figure) of having an affair with the commander of the Garde Nationale, the marquis