Marie Antoinette: The Journey
by Antonia Fraser
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Book Summary Information
Author: Antonia FraserEdition: Paperback
Published: 2006-09-12
ISBN: 0307277747
Number of pages: 544
Publisher: Anchor
Book Reviews of Marie Antoinette: The Journey
Book Review: Marie Antoinette in depth
Summary: 5 Stars
I have read many books on the Dauphine over the years and this is one of the best.
It covers in detail all of the daily life of a queen and the sacrifice she made by becoming a queen.
It seems that the paparazzi today are angels compared to what the people of France and all of Europe did to their monarchs.
The book is well researched, and well done and like all good books on her, this one doesnt speculate but clarifies the life of this often misunderstood young woman.
I recommend it highly.
But be warned - it is very detailed and there are tons of people to keep track of,
Even so, it reads well and you never get bored with it.
Summary of Marie Antoinette: The Journey
In the past, Antonia Fraser's bestselling histories and biographies have focused on people and events in her native England, from Mary Queen of Scots to Faith and Treason: The Story of the Gunpowder Plot. Now she crosses the Channel to limn the life of France's unhappiest queen, bringing along her gift for fluent storytelling, vivid characterization, and evocative historical background. Marie Antoinette (1755-93) emerges in Fraser's sympathetic portrait as a goodhearted girl woefully undereducated and poorly prepared for the dynastic political intrigues into which she was thrust at age 14, when her mother, Empress Maria Theresa, married her off to the future Louis XVI to further Austria's interests in France. Far from being the licentious monster later depicted by the radicals who sent her to the guillotine at the height of the French Revolution, young Marie Antoinette was quite prudish, as well as thoroughly humiliated by her husband's widely known failure to have complete intercourse with her for seven long years (the gory details were reported to any number of concerned royal parties, including her mother and brother). She compensated by spending lavishly on clothes and palaces, but Fraser points out that this hardly made her unique among 18th-century royalty, and in any case the causes of the Revolution went far beyond one woman's frivolities. The moving final chapters show Marie Antoinette gaining in dignity and courage as the Revolution stripped her of everything, subjected her to horrific brutalities (a mob paraded the head of her closest female friend on a pike below her window), and eventually took her life. Fraser makes no attempt to hide the queen's shortcomings, in particular her poor political skills, but focuses on her personal warmth and noble bearing during her final ordeal. It's another fine piece of popular historical biography to add to Fraser's already impressive bibliography. --Wendy SmithFrance's iconic queen, Marie Antoinette, wrongly accused of uttering the infamous "Let them eat cake," was alternately revered and reviled during her lifetime. For centuries since, she has been the object of debate, speculation, and the fascination so often accorded illustrious figures in history. Married in mere girlhood, this essentially lighthearted child was thrust onto the royal stage and commanded by circumstance to play a significant role in European history. Antonia Fraser's lavish and engaging portrait excites compassion and regard for all aspects of the queen, immersing the reader not only in the coming-of-age of a graceful woman, but in the culture of an unparalleled time and place.
General Books
- Biographies & Memoirs: Historical: General
- Biographies & Memoirs: Leaders & Notable People: Royalty: General
- History: Europe: France: General
- Biographies & Memoirs > Historical
- Leaders & Notable People > Royalty
- Specific Groups > Women
- People, A-Z > ( A ) > Antoinette, Marie
- History > Europe > France > Revolution
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