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You are right; it would be giving her a death blow. It is better that I deprive myself of this sweet consolation and let her live in hope for a few minutes more.

–Louis XVI to his confessor, on the morning of 21 January 1793

Louis XVI had promised to visit his family on the morning of his execution, before leaving for the scaffold. On the advice of his confessor, Louis decided not to see his family, particularly because of his wife, whom the confessor believed would “not survive” another parting.

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He wept for sorrow over us, and not from fear of death.

–Marie-Thérèse Charlotte de France, on her father’s final meeting with his family.

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Louis ascended the throne at the age of twenty, and at the age of twenty he gave to the throne the example of character. He brought to the throne no wicked weaknesses, no corrupting passions. He was economical, just, severe. He showed himself always the constant friend of the people. The people wanted the abolition of servitude. He began by abolishing it on his own lands. The people asked for reforms in the criminal law… he carried out these reforms. The people wanted liberty: he gave it to them… Nevertheless, it is in the name of these very people that one today demands… Citizens, I cannot finish… I stop myself before History. Think how it will judge your judgement, and that the judgement of [the king] will be judged by the centuries!

–the conclusion of Raymond de Sèze’s defense of Louis XVI at his trial

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To a person less intimately acquainted than you are with the history of human affairs, it would seem strange that the mildest monarch who ever filled the French throne … should be prosecuted as one of the most nefarious tyrants that ever disgraced the annals of human nature–that he, Louis the Sixteenth, should be prosecuted even to death.

–Gouverneur Morris to Thomas Jefferson, January 1793

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You have just heard the arguments for my defense; I shall not repeat them. Speaking to you perhaps for the last time, I declare to you that my conscience reproaches me with nothing and that my counsel have told you nothing but the truth. I have never feared a public examination of my conduct; but my heart is rent at finding in the indictment the imputation that I wished to shed the blood of the people and above all that the misfortunes of 10 August should be attributed to me. I confess that the manifold proofs I have given at all times of my love for the people and the manner in which I have always conducted myself seemed to me sufficient proof that I took little heed of exposing myself to spare its blood and remove such an imputation from me forever.

–Louis XVI at his trial. [translation: John Hardman, Louis XVI; [image credit: Bibliothèque nationale de France, département Estampes et photographie] ]

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On January 21st, 1793, Louis XVI was brought to the scaffold of the guillotine and executed. His last words, cut off by drums and as recorded by his confessor, were:

I die innocent of all the crimes laid to my charge. I pardon those who have occasioned my death; and I pray to God that the blood you are going to shed may never be visited on France.

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“What a meeting have I gone through. Why should I love so tenderly, and why should I be so tenderly beloved?”

–Louis XVI to the Abbé de Edgeworth, after his last meeting with his family on the evening before his execution

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An account of Louis XVI’s final meeting with his family on the night of January 20th, 1793, as recorded by Cléry, the king’s valet.

At half-past eight the door opened; the queen appeared first, holding her son by the hand; then Madame Royale and Madame Élisabeth; they ran to the arms of the king. A gloomy silence reigned for several minutes, interrupted only by sobs. The queen made a movement to draw the king into his room. “No,” he said “let us go into the dining-room, I can see you only there.” They went there, and I closed the door, which was of glass, behind them. The king sat down, the queen on his left, Madame Élisabeth on his right, Madame Royale nearly opposite to him, and the little prince between his knees. All were bending towards him and held him half embraced. This scene of sorrow lasted seven quarters of an hour, during which it was impossible to hear anything; we could see only that after each sentence of the king the sobs of the princesses redoubled, lasting some minutes; then the king would resume what he was saying. It was easy to judge from their motions that the king himself was the first to tell them of his condemnation.

At a quarter past ten the king rose first; they all followed him; I opened the door; the queen held the king by the right arm; Their Majesties each gave a hand to the dauphin; Madame Royale on the left clasped the king’s body; Madame Élisabeth, on the same side but a little behind the rest, had caught the left arm of her brother. They made a few steps towards the entrance, uttering the most sorrowful moans. “I assure you,” said the king, “that I will see you to-morrow at eight o'clock.” “You promise us?” they all cried. “Yes, I promise it.” “Why not at seven o'clock?” said the queen. “Well, then, yes, at seven o'clock,” replied the king. “Adieu–” He uttered that “adieu” in so expressive a manner that the sobs redoubled. Madame Royale fell fainting at the king’s feet, which she clasped; I raised her and helped Madame Élisabeth to hold her. The king, wishing to put an end to this heart-rending scene, gave them all a most tender embrace, and then had the strength to tear himself from their arms. “Adieu–adieu,” he said, and re-entered his chamber.

Photo: Detail of a 1795 engraving depicing the final interview of Louis XVI and his family

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“Every one of these procedures [decreed in the Criminal Code of 1791], save the last, was violated in Louis’s trial, and each violation was exhaustively debated in the Convention. The majority of deputies thought Louis ought to be tried, ought to be punished for acts that would have sent any other Frenchmen to the guillotine, but they also wanted his trial to be impeccably correct. This proved to be impossible.”

— David P. Jordan, The King’s Trial

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the mystery continues! thank you for those additions

This painting had been previously uploaded by me under the description “Marie Antoinette embracing Madame Elisabeth.” However, some more research has revealed an unclear identification.

In 1960, the painting was part of a Paris Musee Galliera exhibition under the title “The Interrupted Music Lesson,” attributed to Jean-Frédéric Schall. You can see a set-aside instrument with music books in the background. It is unclear whether or not this title was attributed to the painting when it was made or if it is the title given to the painting by the owner, museum or exhibition organizers.

In 2015, Osenat auctioned the painting, giving it the title “The embrace,” and attributing it only “in the style” of Schall. There is no indication where the title “The embrace” came from or why they didn’t use the 1960 title.

To make things more confusing, there is a black chalk drawing by Alexandre Moitte in the musée des Beaux-Arts de Lille which is labeled by the museum “Marie Antoinette and Madame Elisabeth kissing”:

However, the two women in the chalk drawing look quite different compared to the women in the painting.

While I can see some of Marie Antoinette in the woman on the right in the painting version (though it reminds me more of 19th century Marie Antoinette rococo revival genre paintings than contemporary Marie Antoinette depictions) the women in the chalk drawing look different than the women in the painting, and neither women in the drawing look particularly like Elisabeth or Marie Antoinette. There is unfortunately no provenance or explanation as to why the museum has given the drawing the “Elisabeth and Marie Antoinette” designation, either.

Which came first? The drawing, or the painting? Did Moitte view the (attributed) Schall painting and take his own inspiration? Or perhaps the painting is by Moitte or was done after Moitte’s work.

To make things even more confusing, there is an engraving attributed to Moitte of two women in the collection of the Minneapolis Museum of Art:

The MIA description claims that these are the same women as the chalk drawing, but I’m not sure how this was determined.

This engraving is inscribed: “Paired from their earliest childhood, they were always friends and remained so for life.” Above them is the inscription Mors et via (life and death).

There is a MA monogram on the bottom center of the oval. However, neither women in the engraving has a strong resemblance to Marie Antoinette or Elisabeth, and ‘MA’ naturally does not always mean Marie Antoinette, queen of france.

Additionally, Marie Antoinette and Elisabeth didn’t know each other from earliest childhood. The MIA website suggests that perhaps it was Marie Antoinette and one of her favorites, but the only friends she knew from childhood were from outside France, and it would be strange to depict them as adult women embracing–if, indeed, the women in the side-portrait drawing are the same as the ‘embrace’ drawing.

Moitte did do at least one portrait drawing of Louis-Charles, so he (like many artists) was no stranger to depicting the royal family. But I don’t know that there is an actual reason why the black chalk drawing, which does not resemble either woman’s facial features, was given the “Elisabeth and Marie Antoinette” designation in the first place. I can’t seem to find one.

It’s also unclear whether or not the women in the second double portrait with flower garlands are actually the same women in the drawing or painting.

More research is obviously needed, but since I saw the painting inaccurately called “Marie Antoinette and Polignac” today, I decided to do a deeper dive into it.

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On January 14th and 15th, 1793, the verdict in the Trail of Louis XVI was delivered.

The verdict was a foregone conclusion of guilty; none of the 693 men who participated voted innocent. The punishment of death was decided on the 16th and 17th, but was by a very marginal majority. Ultimately he was guillotined on January 21st, in the Place de la Révolution.

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An illustration of the French royal family during the June 1792 invasion of the Tuileries by Edmund Dulac, 1934.

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'Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette in the Temple of Venus at Château de Presles' by J. Pradel, dated 1787. If you enlarge the inscription on the bottom, it labels the rest of the guests, including Madame Elisabeth and the princesse de Lamballe.

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White Cotton Round Gown, British, 1797-1805

From the Victoria & Albert Museum

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Just wondering, in regards to the post about Marie Antoinette’s letter to her brother Leopold, is there a consensus about which of her many siblings she was closest to?

Maria Carolina, Joseph II and Maria Amalia were who I would say she was closest with; Maximilien, to a lesser extent. For Leopold, IMO, the closeness was not as deeply rooted, as she only begins writing him more in earnest after Joseph II dies.

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Marie Antoinette to her brother Leopold II, writing on January 1st, 1791:

I would be too unhappy, my dear Brother, if I could not speak to you of my tender friendship at the beginning of this year. Be as happy as you deserve and as I wish, this year and many others with you. Embrace my sister-in-law and all your children for me, and never doubt the tender and inviolable feelings with which I embrace you with all my heart. The King, who sees me writing, charges me with his wishes and compliments for you.

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[On New Year’s Day, Marie Antoinette told me] … “I followed your advice, and Monsieur le dauphin is my witness.” The prince began to smile, but said nothing; then Mme l’archiduchesse told me herself what had happened and finished by saying: “I have spoken once, but I have decided to leave things as they stand, and that woman will never again hear the sound of my voice.”

–Ambassador Mercy to Maria Theresa, 23 January 1772 [translation: Margaret Anne Macleod, There Were Three of Us in the Relationship]