In the footsteps of Gabrielle: the presentation to Marie-Antoinette in the Salon of the Nobles
Since my first In the Footsteps of Gabrielle post seems to be a hit, I decided to continue in this line. So this is the second entry in the series. It deals with Gabrielle's "presentation" at Court. What were the requirements to be presented at Court? You had to (1) prove that your family had been noble since at least the year 1400, and (2) find another lady, herself presented, who would introduce you to the Queen, King and princes of the royal blood.
Gabrielle has no trouble in this regard: her family belongs of the most ancient nobility, and her friend and cousin the Duchess d'Arpajon proposes to act as her presenting lady.
What were the advantages of being presented? You could be admitted in the presence of the royal family on every official occasion and meet the most prominent courtiers. In particular, presented ladies were allowed to sit in the galleries of the Royal Chapel and enter the Queen's Bedchamber (which will be the topic of the next post in the series.)
The presentation of a lady occurred in the Salon of the Nobles, which served as a sort of throne room for the Queen. This particular room in Versailles has been recently restored and the furniture in this picture is the one chosen by Marie-Antoinette herself.
Here is the relevant excerpt from Mistress of the Revolution:
We walked to the
doors of the Salon of the Nobles, where dozens of ladies were crowded, their
bulky paniers pressed against each other. The colours of their gowns
jarred against the apple-green damask that covered the walls.“Are you not glad to be wearing white?” whispered the Duchess. “This shade of green is the Queen’s favourite colour, and this room was redone according to her directions. Now remember to stay away from the windows whenever you are in her presence. Otherwise she would think that you are flaunting the radiance of your skin. Her complexion is beginning to fade and she resents the freshness of younger women.”
This remark helped me remember that Marie-Antoinette, though she was the Queen, was not exempt from the petty vanities shared by many women. My heartbeat quieted and my composure returned. I followed the Duchess into the salon. The crowd parted to make way for us. All eyes were on me, and not all were friendly.
At last I saw the Queen standing at the far end of the room. She was dressed in a blue gown
embroidered with sapphires and diamonds. I tried to remember what my late
husband had said of her. She did have an elongated face, a thick lower lip,
bulging blue eyes and ruddy cheeks, either naturally or from too much rouge.
Yet what her features lacked in fineness was compensated by the majesty of her
countenance. She was almost as tall as I, but rather stout. Her breasts seemed
ready to burst out of her glittering bodice.The Duchess made a deep curtsey and announced: “Madam, the Baroness de Peyre!”
I advanced towards the Queen, pausing three times to curtsey. Then, bowing until my forehead almost touched the floor, I removed my right glove and seized the hem of the Queen’s gown to bring it to my lips. The Duchess, during our rehearsals, had warned me that Her Majesty never allowed any lady to complete that part of the ritual. The Queen, with a tap of her fan, did withdraw her skirt before I had time to kiss it. I put on my glove, rose and, careful not to trip on my own train, walked backwards in the direction of the Duchess. My presentation to the Queen was over.
“You did very
well, dear,” whispered the Duchess."
Posted by Catherine Delors at 5/21/2008 10:21 AM 
Categories: historical fiction,Gabrielle de Montserrat,Versailles,Marie Antoinette,18th century life,Mistress of the Revolution
Tags: Mistress of the Revolution historical fiction Versailles Gabrielle de Montserrat 18th century life Marie Antoinette
Categories: historical fiction,Gabrielle de Montserrat,Versailles,Marie Antoinette,18th century life,Mistress of the Revolution
Tags: Mistress of the Revolution historical fiction Versailles Gabrielle de Montserrat 18th century life Marie Antoinette
I really like this feature - it helps to visualize the settings in the book. Plus, it's probably the only way I will ever get to see them! I can imagine that the beauty of the place would have alone been very intimidating.
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Thank you, Daphne, you encourage me to continue with this series of posts! In fact the next one, about the Queen's Bedchamber, is almost ready.
I love illustrated books, and think it is a pity "grown-up" novels no longer have any pictures. The neat thing will be to gather all of these posts into a free ebook when I am done with the series.
If you look in the sidebar to the right, you will see that I installed a In the Footsteps of Gabrielle feature (just below the My Website link.)
And I do hope you get to visit Paris and Versailles some day. In the meantime, enjoy the posts!
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Madame, I wrote this in a moment of solitude. About Red heels...
http://lefleurdelystoo.blogspot.com/2008/05/talon-rouge.html
de Brantigny
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Thank you for this link to your excellent post, Monsieur de Brantigny. Indeed Louis XIV was a very dressy man.
And I noticed that the Sacred-Heart appears prominently on your blog. It keeps coming back in my second novel, as the emblem of the Order of the Visitation of Mary, and as the war sign of the Chouans.
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i am enying this page. I could never make it as a courtier. i am still falling over myself when i try to curtsy and i hate black tie formals. alas i am a tomboy at heart. the court would laugh at me had i been noble & french.
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With these qualities, I have a feeling you wouldn't have fit to well in Versailles, Penny! I am not sure whether I would have acquitted myself as well as Gabrielle did on that occasion. Walking backwards in huge panniers must have been quite a feat.
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I have a silver picture and frame approx. 4 x 3 titled "presentation de la mariee". Any idea how I might find out the value?
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Congratulations! I have frankly no idea of the value of this heirloom. Big auction houses such as Christie's or Sotheby's, as well as any reputable antiques dealer specializing in this period, may be helpful.
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Beautiful work, lovely explanations. I'm going to Amazon to look for your books! PS--how about the beautiful walls of the Petite Trianon for inspiration on the background for your site?
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Thank you, Sharon! The Trianon would have been great for Mistress of the Revolution, but wouldn't work for For the King, set in 1800-1801. This second book has much more of an urban setting (Paris, of course.)
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I have been reading a lot of stuff about it. but it is different presented, i loved to read this. keep it up.
Online Furniture Retailers UK
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