The Weight of the Crown

The early months of Marie Antoinette's queenship revealed the vast gulf between the ceremonial power of her position and its practical limitations. While she presided over the most elaborate court in Europe, her actual influence on policy remained minimal. Louis XVI, though affectionate toward his wife, firmly excluded her from his councils, following the tradition that queens should concern themselves with charity and culture, not governance.

Yet the public held her responsible for every royal decision. When Louis XVI recalled the parlements (judicial bodies exiled by Louis XV), the decision was his alone, but pamphlets credited or blamed "the Austrian" for influencing him. This pattern would persist throughout her reign—minimal actual power coupled with maximum perceived influence.

Marie Antoinette's daily routine as queen was both magnificent and suffocating. Her lever, the morning ceremony of dressing, could involve up to forty people, each with specific hereditary rights to hand her particular items of clothing. The Duchesse de Bourbon passed the chemise, the Dame d'Honneur presented the dress, and so on through an elaborate choreography that could take two hours. The queen once reportedly nearly froze when confusion over precedence left her standing naked while courtiers debated who should hand her the chemise.

Her household had expanded enormously with queenship. She now commanded a staff of nearly 500 people, from the grand offices held by nobility to the army of servants who maintained her apartments, wardrobe, and kitchens. Each category had its own hierarchy and jealously guarded privileges. The queen's purveyor of coffee, for instance, engaged in a years-long dispute with the purveyor of chocolate over who had the right to serve hot beverages at particular times of day.

Despite these constraints, Marie Antoinette began to exercise what authority she had. She reformed some of the more absurd ceremonial positions, pensioning off elderly courtiers who contributed nothing but tradition. She also began what would become a signature practice: using her position to support artists, musicians, and craftspeople, particularly women trying to establish themselves in male-dominated professions.