From 1784–1785,
Queen Marie Antoinette of France was embroiled in a scandal.
The Queen’s reputation, which was already tarnished, was further
stained by an untrue accusation that she had conspired
to cheat the Crown’s jewellers by obtaining an expensive diamond necklace
and subsequently declining to pay for it.
She turned down the offer to purchase it, and Jeanne de Valois-Saint-Rémy
forged her signature.
Although Jeanne was eventually found guilty, the event still holds
historical significance because it was one of the contemporary scandals
that lent credibility and popular support to the French Revolution.
So what was behind this very elaborate scam
and did Marie Antionette have a hidden agenda, let’s now look back
the twists and turns of the Affair of the Diamond Necklace
In 1772, King Louis XV of France
gave his mistress Madame du Barry, a priceless gift.
He tasked Charles Auguste Boehmer and Paul Bassenge, two renowned
Parisian jewellers, with creating a diamond necklace to outshine all others.
The resulting necklace comprised a row of seventeen
magnificent diamonds, encircling the very Queen of Diamonds,
a three-wreathed festoon, and numerous pendants, including simple pear-shaped,
multiple star-shaped, and clustered amorphous ones.
The creation of this magnificent necklace was no small feat, as it required
years of labour and a significant financial investment from the jewellers.
However, tragedy struck when Louis XV succumbed to smallpox,
and his grandson and successor banished Madame du Barry
from the court.
Although the jewellers had high hopes
that the new French Queen, Marie Antoinette, would purchase their work,
she declined when her husband, Louis XVI,
offered the necklace as a gift in 1778.
She famously remarked, “We require
seventy-four ships more than we require necklaces.”
It has been speculated that Marie Antoinette may have rejected
the necklace due to her dislike of Madame du Barry.
Despite their earlier failure to sell the necklace abroad,
the jewellers attempted to sell it to Marie Antoinette again
after the birth of Louis Joseph, Dauphin of France, in 1781.
However, the Queen once again declined the offer.
The creation of this splendid diamond necklace stands as a testament
to the remarkable craftsmanship
and artistry of the jewellers involved in its production.
While the Queen may have never worn it, it was intended for,
and its legend endures as a symbol of opulence and extravagance
during a time of great upheaval in France.
Jeanne de Valois-Saint-Rémy, also known as Jeanne de la Motte, was a notorious swindler
who orchestrated one of French history’s most audacious and infamous frauds.
Her scheme involved deceiving Cardinal de Rohan into believing
he was an intermediary for Queen Marie Antoinette
to purchase an extravagant diamond necklace.
In reality, the Queen had nothing to do with the necklace,
and Jeanne and her accomplices could sell the jewels on the black market
for a substantial profit.
Jeanne’s background was questionable, with a lineage
traced to an illegitimate child of King Henry II of France.
Despite being married to Nicholas de la Motte and receiving a small pension
from the King, Jeanne’s financial situation could have been better.
She sought to use her
connections to the monarchy to secure wealth and influence.
Her lover, Cardinal de Rohan, who had fallen out of favour with the Queen, was eager
to regain her favour and gain a prominent position in the government.
Jeanne convinced Rohan that she had the Queen’s support
and could help him regain her favour.
Jeanne used her
relationship with the Cardinal to borrow large sums of money
for the Queen’s charitable causes and make herself appear respectable.
When Boehmer and Bassenge, two prominent jewellers, approached her to sell
an expensive diamond necklace, she initially declined.
However, Jeanne later changed her mind and convinced the Cardinal
that the Queen wanted to buy the necklace but did not want to make
a public purchase during financial distress.
Rohan effectively bargained for the acquisition of the necklace
by agreeing to pay for it in instalments, amounting to 2,000,000 livres.
He believed he had the Queen’s permission to proceed with the purchase,
as Jeanne presented him with a handwritten note of the Queen’s terms.
However, the Queen denied
involvement in the asset when Boehmer brought the necklace to her.
It became apparent that Jeanne had deceived the Cardinal
into purchasing the necklace and had no intention of paying for it.
Jeanne promptly sold the necklace’s gems on the black market
in Paris and London, causing a scandal that rocked the French court.
The authorities caught
Jeanne and her accomplices, who were found guilty of fraud and other charges.
Jeanne was sentenced to life imprisonment, while her accomplices
received varying sentences.
In conclusion, Jeanne de la Motte’s fraudulent scheme
to acquire the diamond necklace using the Cardinal’s trust
and the Queen’s name caused a significant scandal in French history.
Her actions not only tarnished the reputation of the monarchy but
also led to her downfall and imprisonment.
During the trial, evidence was presented
that implicated Motte and her associates in the fraud.
On the other hand,
Rohan was found innocent of all charges, despite his involvement in the scheme.
This acquittal sparked a public outcry,
with many accusing the court of being biased toward the aristocracy.
The trial had far-reaching consequences for the French monarchy.
Marie Antoinette was already unpopular with the public and was further vilified
as rumours circulated that she was behind the plot.
The scandal contributed to the growing unrest that eventually led
to the French Revolution, as the public became
disillusioned with the monarchy’s extravagance and perceived corruption.
Despite the scandal’s historical significance, the exact details
of the Affair of the Diamond Necklace remain shrouded in mystery.
The extent of the Queen’s involvement in the fraud surrounding the diamond necklace
and the identity of those responsible remain uncertain.
Nevertheless, the scandal continues to captivate
the public’s imagination.
The Diamond Necklace Affair, which occurred in 1785, was a
significant scandal that significantly undermined public support
for the Bourbon monarchy and damaged the reputation of Queen Marie Antoinette.
The scandal was widely publicized and fueled by malicious
rumours spread about the Queen, further tarnishing her image
in the eyes of the French public.
Her reputation was already fragile due to her penchant for wasteful spending,
and the revelation of her involvement in the diamond necklace affair pushed it
beyond repair.
The scandal was a PR disaster that encouraged the dissemination
of salacious and degrading pamphlets, further fueling the growing resentment
towards the monarchy and ultimately contributing
to the French Revolution.
The Queen’s association
with the scandal and her perceived lack of concern for the French people
made her an even more significant liability for her husband, King Louis XVI.
The public’s perception of Marie Antoinette as a woman who committed
fraud for her hedonistic gain was something she could never dispel.
Her public appearances
were drastically reduced, and her reputation never recovered.
The French Revolution ultimately overthrew the monarchy.
Marie Antoinette was one of its primary targets
due to her embodiment of the luxury and debauchery of a collapsing regime
and her convenient scapegoat status in the morality play of the Revolution.
The Diamond Necklace Affair destroyed Marie Antoinette’s reputation
and affected Louis XVI’s behaviour before and during the Revolution.
His closeness to and defence of his wife after the scandal suggest
that the affair and its consequences impacted him immensly.
The scandal ultimately
contributed to the Bourbon monarchy’s downfall and the French Republic’s rise.
So the Diamond Necklace Affair remains a crucial moment in French history.
The story serves as a warning about the perils of luxury and extravagance,
especially for those who hold positions of authority and influence.