Marie antoinette biography louis xvi furniture

Furniture associated with King Louis XVI of France

Louis XVI furniture is characterized by elegance and neoclassicism, a return to ancient Greek and Roman models. Much of it was designed and made for Queen Marie Antoinette for the new apartments she created in the Palace of Versailles, Palace of Fontainebleau, the Tuileries Palace, and other royal residences. The finest craftsmen of the time, including Jean-Henri Riesener, Georges Jacob, Martin Carlin, and Jean-François Leleu, were engaged to design and make her furniture.

History

With the death of Louis XV on May 10, 1774, his grandson Louis XVI became King of France at age twenty. The new king had little interest in the arts, but his wife, Marie-Antoinette, and her brothers-in-law, the Comte de Provence (the future Louis XVIII) and the Comte d'Artois (the future Charles X), were deeply interested in the arts, gave their protection to artists, and ordered large amounts of furniture in the neoclassical style, inspired by Greco-Roman art. They were followed by the wealthy nobles who furnished their chateaux and Paris town houses in the new style.

The transition from the baroque and the rocaille style to the neoclassical style had begun in about 1760, near the end of the reign of Louis XV. It was advanced by the reports of the discoveries at the archeological sites at Herculaneum and Pompeii. Madame de Pompadour, mistress of Louis XV, had dispatched a group of scholars to Italy to report on the findings. The group included the designer Jean-Charles Delafosse and the Flemish architect, sculptor and engraver Jean-François de Nefforge. Their engravings of Greek and Roman art inspired many furniture designers and particularly the ébénistes, who made the fine marquetry inlaid ornament that decorated chests and tables.

Marie-Antoinette was a promoter of the new style even before she became queen. In 1770, after her marriage to the Dauphin Louis, she took over the apartment

Marie-Antoinette (1755-1793) is one of the most famous figures in the history of the Versailles Palace . Daughter of the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria (1717-1780) and of Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor (1708-1765), archduchess Marie-Antoinette was born in 1755 in one of the oldest and most powerful countries of Europe. At 14 years old, she was sent to France to be married to Louis, the Dauphin who would become Louis XVI (1754-1793), with whom she would later have four children.

The 1770 marriage between the daughter of the house of Austria and the heir to the crown of France was a very delicate and turbulent political affair that created as well as ruined careers and reputations in the French court. In fact, the political hostility between the two countries was deeply rooted, and Austria was an enemy of the French kingdom at the time. However, political alliances had changed, and young Marie-Antoinette arrived in France betrothed to the future King of France. The young princess was welcomed somewhat coldly by the general public and a number of important members of the court. Madame Adélaïde, daughter of Louis XV, was the first to nickname her "l’Autrichienne" (the Austrian), which in French rhymes with "chienne", the female dog. This nickname was also used during the Revolution.

During her time as future Queen of France, she stayed mostly in the background. The legend of Marie-Antoinette begins with her coronation in 1774. The young Queen was known to be frivolous and to spend a lot of money but was above all naïve and favored friendships that would prove to be fatal to her. She may have simply been too young to be queen, unwilling to accept the pressure from the court and to practice proper etiquette. In other words, she was reluctant to accept her duties as Queen.

Louis XVI put Marie-Antoinette in charge of amusing the court, which kept her away from politics. The queen attended horse races, organized balls, played music, scheduled severa

The reign of Louis XVI, the final Bourbon king of France, was a varied and eventful one, but when we think of him and his queen Marie Antoinette, certain associations inevitably pop into our minds. Perhaps we think of the couple’s ostentatious wealth, as exemplified by their palace at Versailles. Or, maybe we recall their blasé attitude towards the working poor, as reflected in Marie Antoinette’s famous quip, “Let them eat cake.” Some of us may think immediately of the grim machine responsible for the royal couple’s untimely end, the guillotine.

This historical shorthand may be the best we can do when we’re trying to absorb the whole of human history, but it doesn’t present us with a very well-rounded picture of an era or its important actors. In fact, sometimes it doesn’t deliver a very accurate picture at all. For instance, Marie Antoinette, forever identified with the contemptuous phrase “Let them eat cake,” never actually spoke those words. Yet, this tidbit of misinformation has defined her for generations.

History is made by people – people who have likes and dislikes, who love and hate, who possess virtues as well as flaws. Kings and queens, living on a large stage, experience more spectacular successes and more dramatic failures than most of us, but ultimately they are just people. Today, on the anniversary of King Louis XVI's execution in 1793, we spotlight some facts about him and his wife Marie Antoinette that may help to add a human dimension to our understanding of these often maligned historical figures.

Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were barely in their teens when they married

In the days of the European monarchies, marriage was less a matter of personal inclination than political expediency. Governments interested in forming alliances with other countries would as a matter of course attempt to unite their leaders with the offspring of other royalty. This was the case for Louis-Auguste, thi

Louis XVI dit le "juste" (Versailles, 23 août 1754 - Exécuté à Parisle 21 janvier 1793)

Marie Antoinette                                         Louis XVI

The Louis XVI furnishings and decorative style started in 1774, at the beginning of Louis XVI reign up until 1790. The Directoire style will succeed.
It followed a European movement return to classicism in the second half of the eighteenth century.
Louis XVI, grand-son of Louis XV, became king in 1774 at the age of 20.
Queen Marie Antoinette also very much appreciated the decorative arts.

The middle of the eighteenth century and the Louis XVI style furnishing has been heavily influenced by the discovery of the remains of Herculaneum (1738) and Pompeii in 1748.

Thus was born the neoclassical, neo-Palladian style, incorporating Greek and Roman elements (columns, pediments, harmonious proportions, swing).

The Louis XVI furniture is by opposition to Louis XV style rigourous and of geometric shapes: rectangle, square, round and oval are in vogue.

The elements of ornamentation are also minimalist, symmetrical (as opposed to Louis XV) and inspiration is found in the vegetable and antique themes: flute, bay leaves, strips of ovals....

Among the most classic one is the ribbon knot and the drapery swag.

The seats are straight lines and geometric.
The chest of drawers have covered feet. They contain two to five drawers where the divisions between the drawers are often hidden. The handles are simplified and the appearance of a ring.

The "half-moon" commode is a creation of the time.

We can see furniture designed for the use of women, so called "travailleuse" or "bonheur du jour"

Louis XVI style introduced mahogany.

New furniture are emerging to adapt to the changing lifestyle:
* The "bonheur du jour"  is a piece of furniture that appears during the transition. It is a mix between the secretary and the writing desk.
* The "armchair médaillon" is also a creation of the Louis XVI style. It has