| Marie Antoinette and her children. From a
painting by Madame Lebrun, in the Versailles Palace. Marie
Antoinette was unpopular both at the French court and with the
people almost from the time of her marriage. The ladies of the
court disliked her because she made fun of their grand manners.
The people considered her frivolous and extravagant. They
declared that she was nothing but a "foreigner," and generally
called her "the Austrian." She had four children, two daughters
and two sons. The younger daughter died in infancy in 1787; and
the older son died at the age of seven, in 1789. The younger
son, who survived his parents, is shown in the picture as the
baby on the queen's lap. |
