Was she (Marie Antoinette) really aware of how France was going to change in 1789?
Not at all, she was absolutely removed from reality, having only acknowledged the pleasant and joyous face of the French whom she encountered at the time of her marriage to the Dauphin of France. She was very shocked and couldn’t understand why the people gave her such an icy reception when she visited Paris.
She never really went to meet the people even though she showed a lot of compassion towards those less fortunate, such as housing 12 poor families to enable them to live in a dignified manner. She also adopted poor children before becoming a mother herself and again at the birth of each of her own children in order that they should learn the value of sharing. The arrogance of Madame Royal, her oldest daughter, was something that worried her. But regarding the misery of the people of France, she deceived herself by seeing them as charming rustics surrounded by well-kept sheep and cows. On the other hand, in the worst moments of her life, she exhibited a dignity that would mellow even the worst revolutionaries.
- Elisabeth de Feydeau Pictures taken by me at Petit Trianon, Versailles.