May 16, 1770
Louis marries Marie Antoinette.
Louis XVI (the 16th) was only 15 years old and still a prince when he married Marie Antoinette, a 14 year old princess from Austria. They became King and Queen of France when Louis was 20. The two were not prepared for the huge responsibility of ruling a country, and after loaning a large sum of money to the American colonists fighting against the British in the American Revolution, the King was forced to raise taxes again and again. His reputation wasn't helped by the extravagant spending of his beautiful wife, Marie Antoinette. In 1792, French revolutionaries arrested Louis and Marie Antoinette and imprisoned them, and then declared France a Republic. The former King and Queen were both executed by guillotine in 1793.
For more information...
Marie Antoinette
From a PBS documentary on the life of Marie Antoinette, this site contains biographical information, a Flash-enabled tour of Versailles, the royal palace, a very nice Flash-enabled overview of the connections between the French, American and Russian Revolutions, and a gallery of information about major characters in the French Revolution.
Liberty, Equality, Fraternity: Exploring the French Revolution
A site rich with primary documents, essays, images, music and maps focused on the French Revolution.
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