Biography
On November 2, 1755, Maria Antonia Josepha was born in Vienna, Austria to Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Francis I. As a means of a political treaty, she became the Dauphine of France after her marriage to France's Louis XVI and was christened Marie Antoinette. Upon the death of the king, Louis XV, Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI ascended the throne on May 10, 1774. The French public was initially very fond of Marie due to her beauty and charm, but came to dislike her for her frivolous spending, promiscuity, and loyalty to her native country. At the height of the French Revolution, the monarchy was abolished and the king tried of crimes against France. Eight months after the king's trial, Marie herself was tried in court for several false accusations, including incest with her young son, and was sentenced to death by guillotine. On October 17, 1793, Marie Antoinette was beheaded in the Place de la Révolution in front of the French public and her body thrown in an unmarked grave.