by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2016
painting by Antoine-François Callet. source: Wikipedia
King Louis XVI of France
King Louis XVI of France reigned from 1774 until 1792, losing his throne – and his life – as a result of the French Revolution. He was born Louis-Auguste, Duc de Berry, on August 23, 1754, at the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France, the third son of Louis, Dauphin of France (son of King Louis XV) and Maria Josepha of Saxony. He had seven siblings:
- Marie Zéphyrine (1750 – 1755), died in childhood
- Louis Joseph, Duke of Burgundy (1751 – 1761), died in childhood from tuberculosis
- Xavier of France, Duke of Aquitaine (1753 – 1754), died in infancy
- Louis XVIII, King of France (1755 – 1824), married Marie Joséphine of Savoy, no children
- Charles X, King of France (1757 – 1836), married Marie Thérèse of Savoy, had four children
- Marie Clotilde (1759 – 1802), married Carlo Emanuele IV, King of Sardinia, no children
- Élisabeth (1764 – 1794), unmarried, executed during the French Revolution
As a younger son, Louis-Auguste was not given the same attention that his older brother received. But he excelled in his studies – Latin, history, geography, and astronomy, and became fluent in several languages. As his older brother had died, Louis-Auguste became the Dauphin – heir to the French throne – upon his father’s death in 1765 from tuberculosis. His mother died two years later. His education continued under the direction of the Duc de La Vauguyon, studying religion, humanities, and morality. He would late find that he was unprepared to assume the throne.
In 1770, his grandfather, King Louis XV, entered into an alliance with Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, and soon a marriage was arranged between the two dynasties. Louis-Auguste became engaged to Empress Maria Theresa’s youngest daughter, Maria Antonia. The two were second cousins, once removed, through their mutual descent from Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor.
The marriage of Louis-Auguste and Maria Antoinette, May 16, 1770. source: Wikipedia
After a marriage by proxy at the Augustinian Church in Vienna, Austria, the young bride took on the French version of her name – Marie Antoinette – and soon made her way to France. The couple first met on May 14, 1770, in Compiègne, France, and were married two days later in the chapel at the Palace of Versailles. Because of the recent Seven Years’ War, and the general animosity toward Austria, there was much public hostility against the marriage. Eventually, despite not having consummated their marriage until 1777, the couple had four children:
- Marie Thérèse Charlotte (1778 – 1851) – married her paternal first cousin Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême, no issue
- Louis Joseph Xavier François, Dauphin of France (1781 – 1789) – died in childhood
- Louis Charles, Duke of Normandy, Dauphin of France (1785 1795) – died in childhood, titular King Louis XVII of France
- Marie Sophie Hélène Béatrice (1786 – 1787) – died in infancy
Queen Marie Antoinette with the couple’s three eldest children, painted by Marie Louise Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun, c1786. source: Wikipedia
Upon his grandfather’s death, Louis-Auguste became King Louis XVI of France on May 10, 1774. Just 19 years old, and notably unprepared for his role, he faced growing distrust of the monarchy and a country that was deeply in debt. However, he initially gained much support from the French people, often considering public opinion when making any decisions. His coronation was held on June 11, 1775, at the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims. In 1787, he issued the Edict of Versailles, to counteract the religious persecution that had been in place since the Edict of Fontainebleau 102 years earlier. Non-Catholics in France were given the right to openly practice their religions as received legal and civil status.
Loius XVI’s attempts at financial reforms angered the French people and contributed to the fall of the monarchy. As he saw his power diminishing, he was forced to convoke the Estates-General for the first time since 1614, to come up with solutions to the dire financial problems of the French government. Divided into three groups – the clergy (First Estate), the nobility (Second Estate), and the common people (Third Estate), they quickly came to an impasse over how votes would be taken. Eventually, in June 1789, the Third Estate declared itself as the National Assembly and asked the other two to join them, bringing about the outbreak of the French Revolution. Just weeks later, the revolutionaries stormed the Bastille. Within months, King Louis XVI saw the majority of his power handed over to the elected representatives of the French people.
With growing distrust in the monarchy and a quickly spreading hatred of the Austrian Queen Marie Antoinette, compounded once again by the King’s inability or unwillingness to make, and stick to, strong decisions, he soon found that he was losing the support of even the more moderate politicians in the French government. On October 5, 1789, an angry mob of women marched to Versailles, gaining entry to the palace with plans to kill Queen Marie Antoinette. After the intervention of the Marquis de Lafayette who calmed the crowd, the King and his family were brought to the Tuileries Palace in Paris.
The King and his family being brought back to Paris, June 25, 1791. From a drawing by Jean-Louis Prieur. source: Wikipedia
With the future of the monarchy looking very bleak, the King began to make plans to escape the city and take refuge along the northeastern border where he could be protected by Austria. Know as the Flight to Varennes, the plan failed miserably. On June 21, 1791, the King and his family secretly fled the palace but were captured and arrested the following day. Once again, the King’s indecisiveness and his misguided belief that the majority of his people supported him, led to the plan falling apart. Brought back to the Tuileries Palace, the family was now placed under heavy security to prevent another chance of escape. Weeks later, on July 6, Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor (and brother of Queen Marie Antoinette) issued the Padua Circular, calling on the other sovereigns of Europe to join together in demanding that King Louis XVI be given his freedom.
On August 27, 1791, Leopold II, along with King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia, issued the Declaration of Pillnitz, in which they stated their support for King Louis XVI against the French Revolution. Interpreting this as the Emperor’s intention to go to war, the National Assembly instead declared war on Austria on April 20, 1792. However, the insufficient number of troops and complete disorganization of the military caused their efforts to fail miserably. Soon, the Duke of Brunswick led a joint Prussian and Austrian army into France. On July 25, 1792, he issued the Brunswick Manifesto, stating that the Prussians and Austrians intended to restore King Louis XVI to his full power, and would support this effort by any force necessary. The manifesto proved to be more harmful than helpful. To many, this reinforced their belief that the King was conspiring against his own country. Within weeks, the people revolted, storming the Tuileries Palace and forcing the royal family to take refuge in the Legislative Assembly on August 10, 1792.
The following day, King Louis XVI was arrested and imprisoned in the Temple in Paris. Five weeks later, on September 21, the National Assembly declared a Republic, abolishing the monarchy, and stripping the King and his family of all their titles and honors. The former King of France was now known as Citizen Louis Capet. The King was brought to trial in December 1792, with 33 charges lodged against him. Despite bringing together some of the most esteemed legal experts to mount his defense, the King was found guilty on January 15, 1793. The following day, the National Convention, by a narrow margin, voted in favor of execution.
The Execution of King Louis XVI. source: Wikipedia
On the morning of January 21, 1793, Louis made his final confession and attended Mass. He then traveled by carriage from the Tower, through the streets of Paris, to the Place de la Révolution (now the Place de la Concorde) where he was beheaded by guillotine. His body was taken to the Madeleine Cemetery, where a brief memorial service was held. His remains were dumped from their coffin into a grave, with his severed head placed at his feet. Years later, in 1815, on the anniversary of the King’s execution, his remains – along with those of his wife who was also executed – were reinterred at the Basilica of Saint-Denis. On the site of his original burial, in the churchyard of La Madeleine, now stands the Chapelle expiatoire, built by King Louis XVIII in honor of his elder brother.
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