Marie Antoinette

The our people were charmed by her personality and beauty when they first saw Marie Antoniette at the Tuileries, and exclaimed over her fair skin, straw-blond hair, blue eyes and her majestic tall figure. She was Dauphine of our until her husband Louis-Auguste became king of France and Navarre and she assumed the title of Queen. Her education was very poor, focused on manners and appearance. Despite this, she tried to gain influence at court but at the start, the King blocked her candidates, who could have helped her increase her political power. It took seven years of marriage before her first daughter was born, and the birth was difficult. The pressure of having a male heir weighted on her, and she took to gambling and buying expensive dresses. Slowly but surely she managed to increase her influence and became paramount in government by giving her support to marquis de Castries - who became Minister of the Navy -, marquis de Ségur - who became Minister of War -, Charles Alexandre de Calonne - who became the Financial Minister - and baron de Breteuil who became Minister of Royal Household. The ministers of the Navy and the War attempted to prevent the middle classes from reaching high positions in the Army and Navy, something Marie Antoinette supported. Spending money on dresses, buying houses and gambling, the our viewed her as an amoral, squanderer, ignorant foreign Queen who cared more about her country of origin than. This was untrue, and after the first failed Assembly of Notables, she abandoned her carefree activities to immerse herself into politics to try and save the country for her children's sake, to change the view the people of had of her and help her depressed husband the King.