Marie Antoinette Timeline

(November 2, 1755 – October 16, 1793)

Marie Antoinette (1755–1793) was the last Queen of France before the French Revolution. Born an Archduchess of Austria, she married the future King Louis XVI in 1770 and became queen in 1774. Her lavish lifestyle, alleged extravagance, and foreign origins made her deeply unpopular, and she became a symbol of royal excess. After the Revolution began in 1789, she was imprisoned and ultimately executed by guillotine in 1793. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Early Life

Birth of Marie Antoinette in Vienna

Nov 2, 1755

Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna was born at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, the fifteenth child of Empress Maria Theresa and Holy Roman Emperor Francis I. Her birth came shortly after the devastating Lisbon earthquake of the same year.

Image source: Marie Antoinette

Raised at the Habsburg court in Vienna

1756 - 1769

Marie Antoinette spent her childhood among her many siblings at the imperial court. She received a somewhat relaxed education typical for younger daughters, focusing on music, dance, and etiquette rather than rigorous academics.

Seven Years' War reshapes European alliances

1756 - 1763

The Seven Years' War ended with the Diplomatic Revolution, in which Austria and France, formerly rivals, became allies against Prussia and Britain. This alliance set the stage for Marie Antoinette's marriage into the French royal family.

Image source: Seven Years' War

Marriage and Court Life

Betrothal to the French dauphin Louis Auguste

1769

Empress Maria Theresa negotiated the marriage of her youngest daughter to Louis Auguste, grandson of King Louis XV of France, as part of the Austro-French alliance. The engagement was formally agreed upon in 1769.

Struggles with Versailles etiquette and court factions

1770 - 1774

As dauphine, Marie Antoinette chafed under the rigid etiquette of Versailles and became entangled in rivalries between court factions, including tensions with Madame du Barry, the king's mistress, whom she was pressured to acknowledge.

Renunciation of Habsburg claims and departure from Vienna

Apr 19, 1770

Before leaving Austria, Marie Antoinette formally renounced her rights to the Habsburg lands. She departed Vienna in April 1770, crossing the border into France where she was required to leave all Austrian belongings behind.

Handover ceremony on Neutral Island in the Rhine

May 7, 1770

On an island in the Rhine River near Kehl, Marie Antoinette was ceremonially handed over from Austrian to French attendants. Stripped of her Austrian clothing and possessions, she was symbolically reborn as a daughter of France.

Wedding to Louis Auguste at Versailles

May 16, 1770

Marie Antoinette married the dauphin Louis Auguste in a lavish ceremony at the Chapel of Versailles. She was fourteen years old; the marriage cemented the Franco-Austrian alliance but initially remained unconsummated for years.

Fireworks disaster at the wedding celebration in Paris

May 30, 1770

During public festivities for the royal wedding, fireworks on the Place Louis XV sparked a panic and stampede that killed over a hundred people, casting an ominous shadow over the celebrations.

Purchase and expansion of Petit Trianon retreat

1774 - 1787

Louis XVI gave Marie Antoinette the Petit Trianon, a small château on the Versailles grounds where she escaped court formality. She transformed its gardens into an English-style landscape with a hamlet, drawing criticism for extravagance.

Image source: Petit Trianon

Death of Louis XV and accession of Louis XVI

May 10, 1774

King Louis XV died of smallpox, and his grandson ascended the throne as Louis XVI. At eighteen, Marie Antoinette became Queen of France and Navarre, one of the youngest queens in French history.

Image source: Louis XVI

Coronation of Louis XVI at Reims Cathedral

Jun 11, 1775

Louis XVI was crowned at Reims Cathedral in a traditional ceremony. Marie Antoinette did not participate directly in the coronation rites but attended the celebrations, which were marked by public festivity and famine-related unrest.

Image source: Coronation of Louis XVI

Birth of daughter Marie Thérèse Charlotte

Dec 19, 1778

After years of an unconsummated marriage and intense pressure to produce an heir, Marie Antoinette gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Marie Thérèse Charlotte, known as Madame Royale.

Image source: Marie-Thérèse, Duchess of Angoulême

Birth of daughter Marie Thérèse Charlotte

Birth of the dauphin Louis Joseph

Oct 22, 1781

Marie Antoinette gave birth to a son, Louis Joseph, securing the Bourbon succession. His birth was celebrated across France with cannon salutes and public rejoicing, briefly boosting the queen's popularity.

Image source: Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France

Affair of the Diamond Necklace begins to unfold

1784 - 1785

Con artists schemed to acquire an enormously expensive diamond necklace by fraudulently claiming it was commissioned by the queen. Though Marie Antoinette was innocent, the scandal destroyed her already fragile public reputation.

Image source: Affair of the Diamond Necklace

Birth of second son Louis Charles

Mar 27, 1785

Marie Antoinette gave birth to her second son, Louis Charles, Duke of Normandy, who later became titular King Louis XVII during the Revolution. Rumors questioning his paternity circulated widely among pamphleteers.

Image source: Louis XVII

Diamond Necklace trial acquits cardinal but damages queen

1786

The Paris parlement tried Cardinal de Rohan for his role in the necklace fraud and acquitted him, implicitly suggesting the queen had been involved or gullible. Public opinion turned sharply against Marie Antoinette, nicknamed 'Madame Deficit.'

Death of daughter Sophie Hélène Béatrix

Jun 19, 1787

Marie Antoinette's youngest child, Princess Sophie, died before her first birthday. The queen was devastated, and her grief deepened as France's financial crisis worsened around her.

French Revolution

Calling of the Estates-General amid fiscal crisis

May 5, 1789

Facing bankruptcy, Louis XVI convened the Estates-General for the first time since 1614. Marie Antoinette supported reformist ministers like Necker, but the gathering spiraled into demands for sweeping political change.

Image source: Estates General of 1789

Calling of the Estates-General amid fiscal crisis

Storming of the Bastille

Jul 14, 1789

Parisian revolutionaries stormed the Bastille fortress prison, igniting the French Revolution. When Louis XVI learned of the fall of the fortress, Marie Antoinette reportedly prompted his famous diary entry: 'Nothing.'

Image source: Storming of the Bastille

Women's March on Versailles forces royal family to Paris

Oct 5, 1789 - Oct 6, 1789

Thousands of Parisian women, angered by bread shortages, marched to Versailles and besieged the palace overnight. The mob invaded the queen's apartments, and the royal family was forced to relocate to the Tuileries Palace in Paris.

Image source: Women's March on Versailles

Flight to Varennes fails

Jun 20, 1791 - Jun 21, 1791

The royal family attempted to escape Paris secretly and flee to Austrian-controlled territory, but they were recognized and arrested at Varennes. The failed escape shattered remaining trust in the monarchy and discredited Marie Antoinette's hopes for foreign rescue.

Image source: Flight to Varennes

Declaration of Pillnitz threatens revolutionary France

Aug 27, 1791

Austria and Prussia issued the Declaration of Pillnitz, warning against harm to the French royal family. Marie Antoinette had secretly encouraged foreign intervention through correspondence with her brother Emperor Leopold II, deepening suspicions of treason.

Image source: Declaration of Pillnitz

France declares war on Austria

Apr 20, 1792

Revolutionary France declared war on Austria, beginning the French Revolutionary Wars. Marie Antoinette hoped an Austrian victory would restore royal power, but the war instead radicalized the revolution against the monarchy.

Image source: French Revolutionary Wars

Storming of the Tuileries Palace

Aug 10, 1792

Revolutionary militias stormed the Tuileries Palace, massacring the Swiss Guard. The royal family fled to the Assembly and was imprisoned in the Temple tower, ending the monarchy's effective rule.

Image source: Insurrection of 10 August 1792

September Massacres engulf Paris prisons

Sep 2, 1792 - Sep 6, 1792

Mobs killed over a thousand prisoners in Paris amid fears of foreign invasion and royalist plots. The princess de Lamballe, a close friend of Marie Antoinette, was murdered and her head displayed outside the Temple.

Image source: September Massacres

Monarchy abolished and First Republic proclaimed

Sep 21, 1792

The National Convention abolished the monarchy and proclaimed the First French Republic. Louis XVI was stripped of his titles and referred to simply as 'Citizen Louis Capet,' with the family held prisoner in the Temple.

Image source: French First Republic

Trial and Execution

Execution of Louis XVI

Jan 21, 1793

Louis XVI was convicted of treason and guillotined at the Place de la Révolution. Marie Antoinette, imprisoned separately, learned of her husband's death and fell gravely ill with grief, caring for her surviving children in captivity.

Image source: Execution of Louis XVI

Carnival Plot escape attempt fails

Jul 28, 1793

A daring plot led by Alexandre de Rougeville sought to free the queen using messages hidden in carnations, but the conspiracy was discovered. The failed escape sealed her fate and accelerated proceedings toward her trial.

Image source: The Devil's Carnival

Separation from her son and transfer to the Conciergerie

Aug 1, 1793 - Aug 2, 1793

Revolutionary authorities forcibly removed eight-year-old Louis Charles from his mother and placed him in the care of a cobbler, hoping he would be reeducated. The next day, Marie Antoinette was transferred to the grim Conciergerie prison.

Image source: Conciergerie

Trial before the Revolutionary Tribunal

Oct 14, 1793 - Oct 16, 1793

Marie Antoinette faced a two-day trial before the Revolutionary Tribunal on charges including treason, depletion of the treasury, and accusations of abuse against her son. She defended herself with dignity, famously appealing to mothers in the courtroom.

Image source: Marie Antoinette (1938 film)

Execution of Marie Antoinette

Oct 16, 1793

Convicted of treason, Marie Antoinette was guillotined at the Place de la Révolution at about 12:15 pm. Dressed in white, she apologized to her executioner for stepping on his foot, facing death with composure at age thirty-seven.

Key Facts

Marie Antoinette was born on November 2, 1755, in Vienna as Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna, an Archduchess of Austria.
At age 14, she married the Dauphin of France (the future Louis XVI) in 1770 to strengthen the Franco-Austrian alliance.
She became Queen of France in 1774 when Louis XVI ascended the throne, at just 18 years old.
The phrase 'Let them eat cake' is commonly attributed to her, but there is no historical evidence she ever said it.
She was executed by guillotine on October 16, 1793, during the Reign of Terror, nine months after her husband's execution.

Source

This Marie Antoinette timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

We work hard to keep these timelines accurate, but mistakes do get through. If you spot one, email us at [email protected] and we'll fix it for future visitors.

Want a timeline like this one?

Generate yours with AI or build it from scratch, for free.

Try It for Free