The Du Barry Affair

Marie Antoinette's refusal to speak to Madame du Barry became her first major political crisis. The king's mistress, born Jeanne Bécu to a working-class family, had risen through beauty and cunning to become one of the most powerful women at court. Court protocol required the dauphine to acknowledge her, but Marie Antoinette, influenced by Mesdames and her own moral principles, refused.

This seemingly trivial matter of etiquette had serious diplomatic implications. Louis XV was genuinely attached to du Barry and interpreted Marie Antoinette's snub as a personal insult. The Austrian ambassador, Count Mercy-Argenteau, found himself in the delicate position of pressuring the dauphine to compromise without appearing to endorse the irregular situation.

The standoff lasted for months, dividing the court into factions. Supporters of du Barry, including many powerful nobles who owed their positions to her influence, began spreading malicious gossip about the dauphine. They mocked her German accent, criticized her appearance, and suggested she was barren. Anonymous pamphlets, a powerful weapon in 18th-century politics, began circulating with increasingly vicious attacks.

Marie Antoinette's own household was divided. The Abbé de Vermond supported her moral stance, while more pragmatic advisors urged compromise. Her first lady of the bedchamber, the Duchesse de Villars, tried to arrange "accidental" encounters where acknowledgment would seem natural, but Marie Antoinette skillfully avoided them.

The resolution came through maternal pressure. Maria Theresa, alarmed by reports that the alliance itself was in danger, wrote stern letters ordering her daughter to speak to du Barry. On New Year's Day 1772, Marie Antoinette finally uttered the minimal acknowledgment: "There are a lot of people at Versailles today." It was enough to satisfy protocol while maintaining her dignity, but the damage to her reputation had been done.