Marie Antoinette

Biography of Marie Antoinette

Marie Josèphe Jeanne Antoinette was born on 2nd November 1795 in Vienna, Austria to the emperor Joseph and empress Maria Therese. Her mother was a very powerful woman, who had about 15 children in total.
In 1770, when she was only fourteen, Marie was married off to the French Dauphin (heir to the throne). Before she was married, Marie had to say goodbye to her parents and siblings, some of whom she would never see again, and travel to the Austrian/French border. It was here, in a tent on a platform situated in the middle of the River Rhine, that she was forced to strip off all her clothes and pass through the tent to France. They were married and Marie later gave birth to three children.
In 1774 her husband became King Louis XVI and she became Queen of France. The personalities of the two rulers were very different; Louis was phlegmatic and withdrawn, whilst Marie was happy, frivolous and imprudent in her actions and choice of friends.
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