Oh, now this is a tea-worthy disaster of epic proportions. Marie Antoinette didn’t even touch the damn necklace, but somehow she got dragged into the biggest scandal of pre-revolutionary France. Grab a seat, pour the tea, and let’s absolutely demolish the Affair of the Diamond Necklace.
💎 The Affair of the Diamond Necklace: Marie Antoinette’s Ultimate PR Nightmare
Once upon a time in 1780s France, two jewelers made a necklace so ridiculously over-the-top that even royalty found it tacky. It was loaded with 647 diamonds and was meant to be the pinnacle of luxury. The problem? It was so expensive that even King Louis XV—who originally ordered it—died before he could pay for it. (Embarrassing.)
Now, enter Cardinal de Rohan, a high-ranking church official with two brain cells and a desperate need to be liked. He was obsessed with getting on Marie Antoinette’s good side, because she hated him. And why did she hate him?
- He trashed her mother, Empress Maria Theresa, in gossip circles.
- He was a clout-chasing opportunist.
Marie wouldn’t even look at him at court. And that? That hurt his fragile little ego.
Enter Jeanne de La Motte, the Ultimate 1700s Scammer
Jeanne de La Motte was a broke noblewoman with more ambition than money. She realized that Cardinal de Rohan was desperate to impress the Queen. So what did she do?
- She forged letters from Marie Antoinette that pretended to reconcile with the Cardinal.
- She set up a secret “meeting” between Rohan and a random prostitute dressed as Marie Antoinette (in the dark, of course).
- She tricked him into thinking the Queen wanted him to buy the world’s ugliest diamond necklace—and that if he did, she would forgive him.
And the idiot fell for it.
Rohan, believing he was Marie Antoinette’s new bestie, approached the jewelers and agreed to buy the necklace in her name. He even gave the necklace to Jeanne, thinking she was going to deliver it to Marie Antoinette personally. Spoiler: She sold it on the black market.
The Moment It All Went to Hell
Months passed, and the jewelers were getting impatient. They went to the actual Queen and asked for payment. Marie Antoinette was like, “What necklace? What are you talking about?” And just like that, the entire fraud unraveled.
- Rohan was arrested in front of the entire court.
- Jeanne was thrown in jail and whipped through the streets for fraud.
- The prostitute was like, “Wait, I was just doing my job??”
- And Marie Antoinette? She got absolutely dragged through the mud despite having nothing to do with it.
Marie Antoinette’s Reputation? Officially in the Gutter.
Even though she never touched the necklace, the people of France decided, “You know what? This is Marie Antoinette’s fault.”
Pamphlets started circulating with cartoons of her rolling in diamonds while the poor starved. The famous line “Let them eat cake”? She never said it, but this scandal is what cemented her image as a clueless, selfish Queen.
And the timing? Couldn’t have been worse. France was already heading toward the Revolution, and this sealed her fate.
Years later, when she was on trial before the guillotine, they brought up the necklace scandal again. It was completely unrelated to the charges, but the people hated her so much that they used it as proof that she was the worst.
And that, my dear tea-drinkers, is how a dumb scam ruined an actual Queen.
Alice’s Final Verdict:
“Marie Antoinette never wore the necklace. Never even saw the necklace. But she got the blame anyway. A PR disaster, a himbo Cardinal, and a scammer with nerve? Iconic.”
