buckybitchinbarnes: THIS DAY IN HISTORY: May 16th, 1770- Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette are of
buckybitchinbarnes:THIS DAY IN HISTORY: May 16th, 1770- Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette are offically married.To reinforce diplomatic ties, King Louis XV and Empress Maria Theresa decided to wed their respective children; the Duc de Berry, Dauphin of France, and Marie Antoinette, Archduchess of Austria. A proxy wedding took place on April 19th in Vienna soon after. A lavish, official, wedding ceremony took place in the royal chapel at Versailles, more than 5,000 guests watched as the two teenagers were married. In a 19th century biography of Antoinette, Maxime de la Rocheterie describes, “An immense crowd filled the royal city. Paris was deserted: the shops were closed; the entire population had betaken itself to Versailles to assist at the celebrations.” The celebrations continued until May 30th.Marie Antoinette was a carefree 14-year-old with a year of tutoring in French language and culture; Louis was an awkward, introverted 15-year-old who preferred hunting than royal duties. They were not a well-matched couple and it took seven years following their wedding to consummate the marriage. It is believed by some that Louis had injuries which led to sex being extremely painful, though all agree both teens were not attracted to each other and were sexually inexperienced. In 1777, Marie Antoinette’s brother, Joseph II, traveled to France and gave Louis sexual advice. Within months, the marriage was consummated and Louis had professed, “I delight in the pleasure, and I regret that I wasn’t aware of it for so long!” -- source link
#history#marie antoinette#louis xvi#18th century