Marie-Antoinette
At a glance:
- Series: Dictionary of World Biography: The 17th and 18th Centuries
- Categories: Government and Politics, Women’s Issues, Royalty, Rulers, Nobility
- Subcategories: Kings, Queens, Kingdoms, Monarchy, Aristocracy, Aristocrats, Nobles, French Revolution, Reign of Terror
- Curriculum: Women’s History, 18th Century European History, French History
Article abstract: Marie-Antoinette, through her exaggerated public image as a frivolous and extravagant woman, did much to undermine popular respect for the French monarchy. As queen of France, she opposed the revolutionary movement at every turn.
Early Life
Marie-Antoinette-Josèphe-Jeanne D’Autriche-Lorraine (original German name Maria Antonia Josepha Joanna von Österreich-Lothringen) was born in Vienna to Maria Theresa and Holy Roman Emperor Francis I. She was the eleventh child in a family of three boys and eight girls; the last child in the...
[The entire page is 2144 words long]
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