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Marie-Thérèse was the first child born to King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette. Monarchists throughout France had prayed for the birth of a male to the royal couple, who had been married since 1770. However, the Queen greeted her daughter's birth with delight nonetheless. "Poor little thing," she said as they placed the baby in her arms, "you are not what they wanted, but we will love none the less. A son would have belonged to the State; you shall be mine, and have all my care; you shall share in my happiness and soften my sorrows." The baby princess was named after the queen's mother, the Austrian empress. She was styled the "Princess Royal."
The Princess Royal's household was set-up almost immediately, following court etiquette. The first governess was the Princess de Guémenée, who was later replaced by the the queen's closest friend - the duchesse de Polignac. King Louis XVI was an affectionate father, who delighted in spoiling his daughter and giving her anything she wanted. Marie-Antoinette was stricter and was determined that her daughter should not grow up to be as haughty as some of the other Bourbon princesses. She often invited children from working-class districts to come and dine with Marie-Thérèse and encouraged the child to give her toys to the poor.
In contrast to the image of Marie-Antoinette as an extravagant materialist who ignored the plight of the poor, Marie-Antoinette had some of the most beautiful toys brought to Marie-Thérèse's nursery at New Year in 1784. "I should have liked to have given you all these as New Year's gifts," the queen said, "but the winter is very hard, there is a crowd of unhappy people who have no bread to eat, no clothes to wear, no wood to make a fire. I have given them all my money; I have none left to buy you presents, so there will be none this year." It was a hard lesson for the young princess in the social realities of 18th-century France.
Marie-Thérèse was joined in the nursery by a brother, Louis-Joséph in 1781, Louis-Charles in 1785 and Sophie-Béatrix in 1786. The entire family were very close, and they had a deep and loving relationship.
However, the Revolution was building outside the palace. Social discontent mixed with a crippling budget deficit to provoke an outburst of anti-absolutist sentiment. By 1789Events January 7 First nationwide United States election January 21 The first American novel, The Power of Sympathy or the Triumph of Nature Founded in Truth is printed in Boston, Massachusetts January 23 Georgetown College becomes the first Catholic coll, France was hurtling towards revolt. The queen's popularity was at an all-time low, due to her Austrian birth and a hate-campaign generated against her by the Parisian gutter press. Tragedy struck closer to home when baby Princess Sophie-Béatrix died, to be followed not long after by the eldest boy's death. Prince Louise-Joséph died of consumptionTuberculosis is also called TB consumption (TB seemed to consume people from within with its symptoms of bloody cough, fever, pallor, and long relentless wasting), wasting disease White Plague (TB sufferers appeared markedly pale), phthisis (Greek for con at the height of the political crisis in early 1789Events January 7 First nationwide United States election January 21 The first American novel, The Power of Sympathy or the Triumph of Nature Founded in Truth is printed in Boston, Massachusetts January 23 Georgetown College becomes the first Catholic coll.
On July 14th, the Bastille Fortress was captured by the mob. The situation was now critical and several members of the royal household had to be sent abroad for their own safety. The Prime Minister, baron de BreteuilLouis-Auguste le Tonnelier, baron de Breteuil (1730 1807) A French aristocrat, statesman and politician. He was the last Prime Minister of the Bourbon Monarchy, appointed by Louis XVI only one hundred hours before the Fall of the Bastille. He was born int, had to escape to Germany. Marie-Thérèse's youngest uncle, Charles d'Artois was sent abroad on her father's orders and even her governess had to escape to Switzerland in case she was targetted by an assassin. The new royal governess was the devoutly Catholic, Louise-Elisabeth, Marquise de Tourzel, whose daughter Pauline became the princess's life-long friend.
In October, Versailles was besieged and the royal family were forced to move to Paris. They were placed in the Tuileries Palace, under virtual house arrest. From that point on, Marie-Thérèse's childhood was effectively over. Maria Therese whanted too show her love to her mother but never did .When she was in the tower of the temple she was nevre told what happend to her family all she knew was that her father was dead and she felt alone to the world. in her private diary she wrote "live my good mother whom i love so muh but bear no tiding,o my good father watch over me from heaven" life was so crule too her
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