The Life of Marie Antoinette

FOOTNOTES

PREFACE

[1] 0ne entitled 'Marie-Antoinette, correspondance secrete entre Marie- Therese et le Comte Mercy d'Argenteau, avec des lettres de Marie-Therese et de Marie-Antoinette.' (The edition referred to in this work is the greatly enlarged second edition in three volumes, published at Paris, 1875.) The second is entitled 'Marie- Antoinette, Joseph II., and Leopold II,' published at Leipsic, 1866.

[2] Entitled 'Louis XVI, Marie-Antoinette, et Madame Elizabeth,' in six volumes, published at intervals from 1864 to 1873.

[3] In his 'Nouveau Lundi,' March 5th, 1866, M. Sainte-Beuve challenged M. Feuillet de Conches to a more explicit defense of the authenticity of his collection than he had yet vouchsafed; complaining, with some reason, that his delay in answering the charges brought against it 'was the more vexatious because his collection was only attacked in part, and in many points remained solid and valuable.' And this challenge elicited from M.F. de Conches a very elaborate explanation of the sources from which he procured his documents, which he published in the Revue des Deux Mondes, July 15th, 1866, and afterward in the Preface to his fourth volume. That in a collection of nearly a thousand documents he may have occasionally been too credulous in accepting cleverly executed forgeries as genuine letters is possible, and even probable; in fact, the present writer regards it as certain. But the vast majority, including all those of the greatest value, can not be questioned without imputing to him a guilty knowledge that they were forgeries-a deliberate bad faith, of which no one, it is believed, has ever accused him.

It may be added that it is only from the letters of this later period that any quotations are made in the following work; and the greater part of the letters so cited exists in the archives at Vienna, while the others, such as those, addressed by the Queen, to Madame de Polignac, etc., are just such as were sure to be preserved as relics by the families of those to whom they were addressed, and can therefore hardly be considered as liable to the slightest suspicion.

CHAPTER I. [1] Sainte-Beuve, 'Nouveaux Lundis,' August 8th, 1864.

CHAPTER II. [1] 'Histoire de Marie Antoinette,' par E. and J. de Goncourt, p. 11.

[2] How popular masked halls were in London at this time may be learned from Walpole's 'Letters,' and especially from a passage in which he gives an account of one given by 'sixteen or eighteen young Lords' just two months before this ball at Vienna.-Walpole to Mann, dated February 27th, 1770. Some one a few years later described the French nation as half tiger and half monkey; and it is a singular coincidence that Walpole's comment on this masquerading fashion should be, 'It is very lucky, seeing how much of the tiger enters into the human composition, that there should be a good dose of the monkey too.'

[3] 'Memoires concernant Marie Antoinette,' par Joseph Weber (her foster- brother), i., p. 6.

[4] 'Goethe's Biography,' p. 287.

[5] 'Memoires de Bachaumont,' January 30th, 1770.

[6] La maison du roi.

[7] Chevalier d'honneur. We have no corresponding office at the English court.

[8] The king said, 'Vous etiez deja de la famille, car votre mere a l'ame de Louis le Grand.'-SAINTE-BEUVE, Nouveaux Lundis, viii., p. 322.

[9] In the language of the French heralds, the title princes of the royal family was confined to the children or grandchildren of the reigning sovereign. His nephews and cousins were only princes of the blood.

CHAPTER III. [1] The word is Maria Teresa's own; 'anti-francais' occurring in more than one of her letters.

[2] Quoted by Mme. du Deffand in a letter to Walpole, dated May 19th, 1770 ('Correspondance complete de Mme. du Deffand,' ii., p.59).

[3] Mercy to Marie-Therese, August 4th, 1770; 'Correspondance secrete entre Marie-Therese et la Comte de Mercy Argenteau, avec des Lettres de Marie-Therese et Marie Antoinette,' par M. le Chevalier Alfred d'Arneth, i., p. 29. For the sake of brevity, this Collection will be hereafter referred to as 'Arneth.'

[4] 'The King of France is both hated and despised, which seldom happens to the same man.'-LORD CHESTERFIELD, Letter to Mr. Dayrolles, dated May 19th, 1752.

[5] Maria Teresa died in December, 1780.

[6] Mme. du Deffand, letter of May 19th, 1770.

[7] Chambier, i., p. 60.

[8] Mme. de Campan, i., p. 3.

[9] He told Mercy she was ''vive et un peu enfant, mais,' ajouta-t-il, 'cela est bien de son age.''-ARNETH, i., p. 11.

[10] Arneth, i., p.9-16

CHAPTER IV. [1] Dates 9th and 12th., Arneth, i., pp. 16, 18.

[2] Marly was a palace belonging to the king, but little inferior in splendor to Versailles itself, and a favorite residence of Louis XV., because a less strict etiquette had been established there. Choisy and Bellevue, which will often be mentioned in the course of this narrative, were two others of the royal palaces on a somewhat smaller scale. They have both been destroyed. Marly, Choisy, and Bellevue were all between Versailles and Paris.

[3] Mem. de Goncourt, quoting a MS. diary of Hardy, p. 35.

[4] De Vermond, who had accompanied her from Vienna as her reader.

[5] See St. Simon's account of Dangeau, i., p. 392.

[6] The Duc de Noailles, brother-in-law of the countess, 'l'homme de France qui a peut-etre le plus d'esprit et qui connait le mieux son souverain et la cour,' told Mercy in August that 'jugeant d'apres son experience et d'apres les qualites qu'il voyait dans cette princesse, il etait persuade qu'elle gouvernerait un jour l'esprit du roi.'-ARNETH, i., p. 34.

[7] La petite rousse.

[8] 'De monter a cheval gate le teint, et votre taille a la longue s'en ressentira.'-Marie-Therese a Marie-Antoinette, Arneth, i., p. 104.

[9] 'On fit chercher partout des anes fort doux et tranquilles. Le 21 on repeta la promenade sur les anes. Mesdames voulurent etre de la partie ainsi que le Comte de Provence et le Comte d'Artois.'-Mercy a Marie- Therese, September 19, 1770, Arneth, i., p. 49.

[10] 'Madame la Dauphine, a laquelle le tresor royal doit remettre 6000 frs. par mois, n'a reellement pas un ecu dont elle peut disposer elle-meme et sans le concours de personne' (Octobre 20).-ARNETH, i. p. 69.

[11] 'Ses garcons de chambre recoivent cent louis [a louis was twenty-four francs, so that the hundred made 2100 francs out of her 6000] par mois pour la depense du jeu de S.A.R.; et soit qu'elle perde ou qu'elle gagne, on ne revoit rien de cette somme.'-ARNETH, i.

[12] 'Mme. Adelaide ajouta, 'On voit bien que vous n'etes pas de notre sang.''-ARNETH, i., p. 94.

[13] Arneth, i., p. 95.

[14] 'Finalement, Mme. la Dauphine se fait adorer de ses entours et du public; il n'est pas encore survenu un seul inconvenient grave dans sa conduite.'-Mercy a Marie-Therese, Novembre 16, Arneth, i., p. 98.

[15] Prince de Ligne, 'Mem.' ii., p. 79.

[16] Mercy to Maria Teresa, dated November 17th, 1770, Arneth, i., p. 94.

[17] Mercy to Maria Teresa, dated February 25th, 1771, Arneth, i, p. 134.

CHAPTER V. [1] See the 'Citizen of the World,' Letter 55. Reference has often been made to Lord Chesterfield's prediction of the French Revolution. But I am not aware that any one has remarked on the equally acute foresight of Goldsmith.

[2] Letter of April 16th, 1771, Arneth, i., p. 148.

[3] Arneth, i., p. 186.

[4] Maria Teresa to Marie Antoinette, July 9th, and August 17th, Arneth, i., p. 196.

[5] 'Ne soyez pas honteuse d'etre allemande jusqu'aux gaucheries.... Le Francais vous estimera plus et fera plus de compte sur vous s'il vous trouve la solidite et la franchise allemande.'-Maria Teresa to Marie Antoinette. May 8th, 1771, Arneth, i., p. 159.

[6] Walpole's letter to Sir H. Mann, June 8th, 1771, v., p. 301.

[7] Mercy to Maria Teresa, January 23d, 1772, Arneth, i., p. 265.