1 00:00:01,160 --> 00:00:04,120 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:13,600 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,600 --> 00:00:17,280 Speaker 1: I'm Holly Fry and I'm Tracy V. Wilson. A Tracy. 4 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:20,639 Speaker 1: You know what's all over the news at the moment, protests, Yeah, 5 00:00:20,760 --> 00:00:23,680 Speaker 1: protest marches. So I thought maybe we would talk about 6 00:00:23,680 --> 00:00:26,000 Speaker 1: the women's march, but not the one you're thinking about, 7 00:00:26,440 --> 00:00:30,080 Speaker 1: the one that happened on Versailles in the seventeen hundreds, 8 00:00:30,520 --> 00:00:34,440 Speaker 1: the one that the moment I heard about it, I said, hey, Holly, 9 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:38,279 Speaker 1: I think you might want to do this episode. Yeah, yeah, yeah. 10 00:00:38,280 --> 00:00:40,640 Speaker 1: And it's one of those things that I knew about 11 00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:43,120 Speaker 1: in sort of an abstract way, but I didn't realize 12 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:47,319 Speaker 1: I was not really aware of all the details of it. 13 00:00:47,840 --> 00:00:49,920 Speaker 1: So this is an event that took place quite early 14 00:00:49,960 --> 00:00:52,720 Speaker 1: on in the French Revolution. As we've mentioned before, any 15 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:55,279 Speaker 1: time we touch on the French Revolution, there's a long 16 00:00:55,320 --> 00:00:57,880 Speaker 1: and winding road. So this is at the very early 17 00:00:57,960 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 1: start of it. Uh, and it started with a bread shortage. 18 00:01:01,240 --> 00:01:03,520 Speaker 1: This is kind of one of the more famous aspects 19 00:01:03,520 --> 00:01:07,160 Speaker 1: of the French Revolution, and as with any historical event, 20 00:01:07,280 --> 00:01:10,440 Speaker 1: there are multiple causes that lead up to this thing. Happening, 21 00:01:10,560 --> 00:01:13,120 Speaker 1: So we're gonna talk about each of them and kind 22 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:15,520 Speaker 1: of put the pieces together before we get to the 23 00:01:15,560 --> 00:01:18,319 Speaker 1: actual march, and first in the setup, we're going to 24 00:01:18,360 --> 00:01:23,520 Speaker 1: talk about Versailles. Versailles is located twelve miles which is 25 00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:26,480 Speaker 1: a little more than nineteen kilometers from Paris to the 26 00:01:26,560 --> 00:01:31,399 Speaker 1: southwest of the city. The site originally featured Louis thirteenth 27 00:01:31,520 --> 00:01:35,560 Speaker 1: chateau was a stonework hunting lodge designed to be a getaway, 28 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:38,240 Speaker 1: but under the next king of France it became something 29 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:42,760 Speaker 1: quite different, eventually evolving into a very opulent seat of 30 00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:46,520 Speaker 1: the monarchy. The palace and a complex of other buildings 31 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:49,680 Speaker 1: built during the seven decade reign of Louis the fourteenth 32 00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:53,240 Speaker 1: at the time just prior to the revolution, included governmental 33 00:01:53,240 --> 00:01:56,600 Speaker 1: office buildings, the royal gardens, the Grand Trional, the pet 34 00:01:56,680 --> 00:02:01,240 Speaker 1: Trional stables, hunting grounds, and multiple ructures to house all 35 00:02:01,320 --> 00:02:05,520 Speaker 1: of the people who lived there, which included many many servants. 36 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:09,120 Speaker 1: It's estimated that at the time of Louis the sixteenth 37 00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:12,240 Speaker 1: reign as many as sixty thousand people were living on 38 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:15,560 Speaker 1: the grounds at Versailles. It was in effect its own city, 39 00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,240 Speaker 1: and it was a luxurious place. The palace, of course, 40 00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:21,480 Speaker 1: was the most lavish of all the buildings, with more 41 00:02:21,520 --> 00:02:25,239 Speaker 1: than two thousand rooms, more than seven hundred and twenty 42 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:28,240 Speaker 1: thousand square feet which is about sixty seven thousand square 43 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:32,600 Speaker 1: meters at floor space, more than four dozen staircases, and 44 00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,840 Speaker 1: then all that space was decorated with fine art and furniture. 45 00:02:36,360 --> 00:02:40,040 Speaker 1: There were at least fifteen thousand paintings in the palace, 46 00:02:40,080 --> 00:02:43,639 Speaker 1: plus tapestries and glass work and lots of gold leaf. 47 00:02:43,720 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 1: It took a staff of thousands just to maintain the 48 00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:51,600 Speaker 1: palace and the grounds. Yeah, so if you've ever visited Versailla, 49 00:02:51,680 --> 00:02:53,280 Speaker 1: you know it is massive, but it's one of those 50 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: things where you think about, like the house you live 51 00:02:55,440 --> 00:02:58,639 Speaker 1: in and whatever the square footage is, like, uh, you know, 52 00:02:58,919 --> 00:03:01,800 Speaker 1: an average sort of apartmenty thing in Atlanta is about 53 00:03:01,800 --> 00:03:04,920 Speaker 1: twelve hundred square feet. So then when you think about 54 00:03:05,320 --> 00:03:07,880 Speaker 1: how massive, I mean it's a small town. Just in 55 00:03:07,919 --> 00:03:11,720 Speaker 1: the palace, it was like multiply that time seven twenty 56 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:16,760 Speaker 1: uh and in the views of the royals and the 57 00:03:16,800 --> 00:03:20,040 Speaker 1: nobility who occupied Versailles, it was a house of the people, 58 00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:23,040 Speaker 1: or at least that's what they told themselves. Anyone could 59 00:03:23,360 --> 00:03:27,640 Speaker 1: visit and wander around basically unimpeded. So um. But even 60 00:03:27,639 --> 00:03:31,320 Speaker 1: though the lower classes could visit, the really important thing 61 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:34,239 Speaker 1: about Versailles is that it was where the king spent 62 00:03:34,480 --> 00:03:37,120 Speaker 1: basically all his time, and that meant that the seat 63 00:03:37,120 --> 00:03:39,680 Speaker 1: of government was it a remove from the city of 64 00:03:39,760 --> 00:03:42,160 Speaker 1: Paris and the common people. By the time Louis the 65 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:46,760 Speaker 1: sixteenth was ruler in the mid seventeen seventies, the grain 66 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:49,760 Speaker 1: market in France was deregulated. This was part of a 67 00:03:49,880 --> 00:03:54,520 Speaker 1: larger economic plan on the part of a Robert Jacques Turgeaux, 68 00:03:54,640 --> 00:03:58,040 Speaker 1: who was serving as the Minister of Finance, Trade and 69 00:03:58,120 --> 00:04:01,560 Speaker 1: Public Works under King Louis sixteen had at this point 70 00:04:01,640 --> 00:04:06,040 Speaker 1: become the ruler of France, and Turgeau's blanket philosophy was 71 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:10,320 Speaker 1: no bankruptcy, no tax increases, no borrowing, and he did 72 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:13,720 Speaker 1: have a positive impact on the French economy. His policies 73 00:04:13,800 --> 00:04:16,400 Speaker 1: led to a decrease in the deficit and an increase 74 00:04:16,440 --> 00:04:19,640 Speaker 1: in credit for a brief time. But while Turgeau did 75 00:04:19,640 --> 00:04:23,000 Speaker 1: seem to have some good ideas about handling France's money, 76 00:04:23,040 --> 00:04:26,000 Speaker 1: he ran into some pretty serious problems after a couple 77 00:04:26,040 --> 00:04:30,479 Speaker 1: of years. Around seventy first, he established a freedom of 78 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:34,640 Speaker 1: enterprise and competition policy, and this made France's craft guilds 79 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:38,920 Speaker 1: really angry because they had previously controlled all that. And 80 00:04:38,960 --> 00:04:42,440 Speaker 1: then he shifted the taxes in kind, where a portion 81 00:04:42,560 --> 00:04:45,880 Speaker 1: of agricultural production was used as a form of payment, 82 00:04:46,160 --> 00:04:49,159 Speaker 1: he changed that to a direct money tax. This was 83 00:04:49,240 --> 00:04:52,960 Speaker 1: intended to garner the government a more liquid income, but 84 00:04:53,120 --> 00:04:58,000 Speaker 1: it really made everyone angry. Yeah, so to him, this 85 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:00,680 Speaker 1: would have fallen under no tax increase is because we're 86 00:05:00,680 --> 00:05:03,599 Speaker 1: still taxing the same we just now want the cash 87 00:05:03,640 --> 00:05:07,280 Speaker 1: instead of the crops um. But of course that's not 88 00:05:07,360 --> 00:05:09,839 Speaker 1: really the same when you're the person making the payment. 89 00:05:10,480 --> 00:05:13,359 Speaker 1: So Turgeau resigned at this point. Louis the sixteenth was 90 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:17,640 Speaker 1: really frustrated. Uh Marie Antoinette and the Minister of State 91 00:05:17,720 --> 00:05:20,560 Speaker 1: kind of urged Trejau to step down, and he was 92 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:24,279 Speaker 1: eventually replaced by Jacques nick Care, but his legacy in 93 00:05:24,279 --> 00:05:28,279 Speaker 1: the grain market would continue. After the grain market went 94 00:05:28,360 --> 00:05:31,360 Speaker 1: free trade without any price controls. There were a number 95 00:05:31,400 --> 00:05:34,680 Speaker 1: of years where the grain harvest was also poor, and 96 00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:39,520 Speaker 1: the crop was especially bad. Then the following winter was 97 00:05:39,560 --> 00:05:43,040 Speaker 1: a lot colder than normal. Once the temperature rose enough 98 00:05:43,080 --> 00:05:45,560 Speaker 1: to melt some of the freeze, there was flooding which 99 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:50,360 Speaker 1: affected grainaries and fields, making seventeen eighty nine and especially 100 00:05:50,400 --> 00:05:53,360 Speaker 1: hard year for farming before there was even a chance 101 00:05:53,400 --> 00:05:57,839 Speaker 1: to plant anything. Yeah, it was basically kind of doomed 102 00:05:57,839 --> 00:05:59,680 Speaker 1: from the start at this point. And this was in 103 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:02,599 Speaker 1: a into the fact that the population of France had 104 00:06:02,640 --> 00:06:05,240 Speaker 1: grown by about eight million people over the course of 105 00:06:05,240 --> 00:06:09,719 Speaker 1: approximately eight decades, while France's agriculture, which was its primary 106 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:13,080 Speaker 1: economic driver, had stayed roughly the term the same in 107 00:06:13,160 --> 00:06:17,680 Speaker 1: terms of size. The grain shortage drove up prices, first 108 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:20,760 Speaker 1: making it difficult for the average citizens to afford to 109 00:06:20,800 --> 00:06:23,800 Speaker 1: buy grain, and then there was so little of it 110 00:06:23,839 --> 00:06:27,120 Speaker 1: that only the very rich could actually purchase it. In 111 00:06:27,200 --> 00:06:30,760 Speaker 1: seventy eight, the laborers of Paris were spending about half 112 00:06:30,800 --> 00:06:33,800 Speaker 1: of their wages just to purchase bread, and by the 113 00:06:33,880 --> 00:06:37,640 Speaker 1: following year, the shrinking supply had pushed that percentage up 114 00:06:37,680 --> 00:06:42,720 Speaker 1: to about eighty percent of wages just going to bread. Yeah, 115 00:06:42,720 --> 00:06:45,680 Speaker 1: and that's an approximation, because you'll see figure sited that 116 00:06:45,680 --> 00:06:48,320 Speaker 1: are anywhere from seventy to nine. So I just went 117 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:50,839 Speaker 1: right in the middle at eighty. And for his part, 118 00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:54,279 Speaker 1: Naicare had actually retired from government finance, but he returned 119 00:06:54,320 --> 00:06:57,479 Speaker 1: to the position of Director General of Finance in sevente 120 00:06:58,160 --> 00:07:01,239 Speaker 1: at the request of Louis the sixteen. He would also 121 00:07:01,279 --> 00:07:05,080 Speaker 1: be dismissed and recalled again. Uh. You know, the king 122 00:07:05,120 --> 00:07:07,960 Speaker 1: and his directors of finance had some problems uh in 123 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:12,120 Speaker 1: nine and during his two times being recalled to office, 124 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:15,040 Speaker 1: he did make efforts to assuage the suffering of France's 125 00:07:15,120 --> 00:07:18,960 Speaker 1: hungry people by banning the export of grain, regulating the 126 00:07:18,960 --> 00:07:22,640 Speaker 1: grain market again, and arranging to have additional grain imported, 127 00:07:22,840 --> 00:07:25,600 Speaker 1: but it was not enough to make up the huge 128 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:28,360 Speaker 1: gap that had been created by all of these poor harvests. 129 00:07:28,680 --> 00:07:31,080 Speaker 1: Coming up, we'll get into an effort on Louis the 130 00:07:31,120 --> 00:07:35,000 Speaker 1: sixteenth part to try to address these problems, but first 131 00:07:35,000 --> 00:07:37,000 Speaker 1: we're going to take a break for a quick word 132 00:07:37,080 --> 00:07:46,080 Speaker 1: from a sponsor. King Louis the sixteenth had already inherited 133 00:07:46,200 --> 00:07:49,080 Speaker 1: an economic train wreck from his grandfather, and things had 134 00:07:49,160 --> 00:07:51,480 Speaker 1: only gotten worse while he had been on the throne. 135 00:07:52,280 --> 00:07:54,440 Speaker 1: So to try to find a way to solve the problem, 136 00:07:54,520 --> 00:07:58,400 Speaker 1: he assembled the Estates General, and this general assembly consisting 137 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:00,960 Speaker 1: of representatives of the estate of the realm that would 138 00:08:00,960 --> 00:08:03,560 Speaker 1: be the clergy, which was the first estate, the nobility, 139 00:08:03,640 --> 00:08:06,200 Speaker 1: which was the second estate, and the commoners, which were 140 00:08:06,200 --> 00:08:08,920 Speaker 1: the third estate, had not been brought together since the 141 00:08:08,960 --> 00:08:13,880 Speaker 1: early sixteen hundreds, but this situation was dire. At this point, 142 00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:17,480 Speaker 1: France was spending almost fifty percent of its national income 143 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:20,400 Speaker 1: to pay the debt accrued over a very long period 144 00:08:20,400 --> 00:08:24,480 Speaker 1: of poor fiscal management. Of the remaining fifty percent, six 145 00:08:24,560 --> 00:08:27,600 Speaker 1: percent was allocated to the maintenance of Versailles. The rest 146 00:08:27,600 --> 00:08:31,240 Speaker 1: of it went to the military and public works. In 147 00:08:31,320 --> 00:08:34,320 Speaker 1: this assembly, and what came out of it could easily 148 00:08:34,320 --> 00:08:36,959 Speaker 1: be its own episode. There was a lot that happened, 149 00:08:37,000 --> 00:08:39,920 Speaker 1: but for the purposes of discussing the women's march on Versailles, 150 00:08:40,160 --> 00:08:42,560 Speaker 1: we're gonna keep it fairly simple and do pretty much 151 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:46,599 Speaker 1: the broad strokes. So after a long series of squabbles 152 00:08:47,080 --> 00:08:50,400 Speaker 1: an as seeming impasse, the third Estate broke away and 153 00:08:50,440 --> 00:08:53,559 Speaker 1: formed its own initiative under the name of the National Assembly. 154 00:08:54,120 --> 00:08:56,960 Speaker 1: You've probably heard of the tennis Court Oath, but just 155 00:08:57,040 --> 00:08:59,440 Speaker 1: in case you haven't or you're fuzzy about the details, 156 00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:01,880 Speaker 1: this was a ow made by the members of the 157 00:09:01,920 --> 00:09:04,840 Speaker 1: General Assembly on a tennis court after being locked out 158 00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:07,360 Speaker 1: of the hall where they had been meeting quote, not 159 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:11,640 Speaker 1: to separate and to reassemble wherever circumstances require, until the 160 00:09:11,679 --> 00:09:18,079 Speaker 1: constitution of the Kingdom is established and consolidated upon solid foundations. Yes, 161 00:09:18,160 --> 00:09:22,160 Speaker 1: so they wanted to develop a constitutional monarchy and they 162 00:09:22,160 --> 00:09:25,600 Speaker 1: were going to write that constitution, and they promised they 163 00:09:25,640 --> 00:09:27,360 Speaker 1: were going to stick together and do it and work 164 00:09:27,400 --> 00:09:30,319 Speaker 1: together until it was done. And after the king concluded 165 00:09:30,320 --> 00:09:33,440 Speaker 1: the Estates General Meeting which had spawned the General Assembly, 166 00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:37,079 Speaker 1: and nothing had really um, you know, been resolved by 167 00:09:37,080 --> 00:09:40,720 Speaker 1: that estate's general gathering, the group known as a General 168 00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:43,480 Speaker 1: Assembly sort of disbanded. You'll also just see it said, 169 00:09:43,760 --> 00:09:46,640 Speaker 1: uh written that they've renamed, but they reformed as the 170 00:09:46,760 --> 00:09:49,840 Speaker 1: National Constituent Assembly. And at that point too, we should 171 00:09:49,960 --> 00:09:54,199 Speaker 1: note that there were even though it's often called the 172 00:09:54,280 --> 00:09:57,560 Speaker 1: gathering of the Third Estate, there were people from the 173 00:09:57,559 --> 00:09:59,720 Speaker 1: clergy and the nobility that we're on board with this 174 00:09:59,760 --> 00:10:03,080 Speaker 1: and we're kind of joining in. And this group was 175 00:10:03,200 --> 00:10:06,240 Speaker 1: meeting at a hall in the Versailles complex when the 176 00:10:06,240 --> 00:10:11,720 Speaker 1: Women's March took place. So in October one nine, there 177 00:10:11,760 --> 00:10:14,720 Speaker 1: was a raucous party at Brassailles and the Opera House 178 00:10:14,800 --> 00:10:17,880 Speaker 1: that got a lot of publicity and at the space, 179 00:10:18,040 --> 00:10:22,000 Speaker 1: the Royal Flanders Regiment was welcomed by the King's bodyguard. 180 00:10:22,080 --> 00:10:25,280 Speaker 1: At the palace, there was a banquet, lots and lots 181 00:10:25,320 --> 00:10:29,720 Speaker 1: of wine, and things quickly lost any sense of behavioral constraint. 182 00:10:30,440 --> 00:10:34,040 Speaker 1: The soldiers in particular got very drunk and allegedly started 183 00:10:34,040 --> 00:10:39,480 Speaker 1: slurring insults about the revolution. Stories appeared in the press 184 00:10:39,559 --> 00:10:42,199 Speaker 1: that some of the soldiers had even thrown the tricolor 185 00:10:42,280 --> 00:10:45,720 Speaker 1: cocads those are those pleaded ribbon badges that had become 186 00:10:45,760 --> 00:10:49,480 Speaker 1: emblems of the revolution onto the floor and both urinated 187 00:10:49,520 --> 00:10:52,599 Speaker 1: on them and stomped on them. And then they allegedly 188 00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:56,199 Speaker 1: put on the white ribbons of the Bourbons or black ribbons, 189 00:10:56,240 --> 00:11:00,439 Speaker 1: which were associated with the aristocratic counter revolution, and swore 190 00:11:00,480 --> 00:11:03,880 Speaker 1: their loyalty to Louis the sixteenth and his queen. And 191 00:11:03,920 --> 00:11:07,280 Speaker 1: while Louis the sixteenth had been at the party for 192 00:11:07,400 --> 00:11:10,520 Speaker 1: some period of time, it was fairly brief, but some 193 00:11:10,559 --> 00:11:13,920 Speaker 1: accounts claimed that he had been there for hours partying 194 00:11:13,920 --> 00:11:18,400 Speaker 1: with these soldiers. This event was commemorated by printmakers that 195 00:11:18,480 --> 00:11:21,880 Speaker 1: they were largely fabricated depictions of this event, as the 196 00:11:21,960 --> 00:11:25,320 Speaker 1: artists were working from descriptions from other people and maybe 197 00:11:25,320 --> 00:11:29,120 Speaker 1: even rumors, they were basically filling in the details. Both 198 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:32,600 Speaker 1: the stories and the prince were not considered to be accurate, 199 00:11:34,120 --> 00:11:37,840 Speaker 1: but boy, they were really proliferating throughout France at the time. 200 00:11:38,960 --> 00:11:42,280 Speaker 1: But though they were overblown reports, they still garnered the 201 00:11:42,280 --> 00:11:45,880 Speaker 1: ire of the public. For one, Guests and Versailles were 202 00:11:45,920 --> 00:11:49,199 Speaker 1: bad mouthing the revolution, which was just in its infancy, 203 00:11:49,280 --> 00:11:52,480 Speaker 1: and people were really angry to think that the king 204 00:11:52,559 --> 00:11:55,280 Speaker 1: was hosting people that were basically saying that that was 205 00:11:55,480 --> 00:11:58,880 Speaker 1: stupid and useless. For another, these men were being treated 206 00:11:58,920 --> 00:12:02,280 Speaker 1: to a massive east when many of France's people were 207 00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:06,840 Speaker 1: going hungry. And because this October First Party was just 208 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:10,080 Speaker 1: another in the long line of incidents of waste on 209 00:12:10,120 --> 00:12:12,800 Speaker 1: the part of the monarchy while the common people suffered, 210 00:12:13,200 --> 00:12:17,960 Speaker 1: it sparked lots of protest. Yeah, certainly not the first protest, 211 00:12:18,040 --> 00:12:19,839 Speaker 1: but we'll talk about that a little in a moment. 212 00:12:20,440 --> 00:12:23,200 Speaker 1: And additionally, there had been an expected bump in the 213 00:12:23,240 --> 00:12:26,920 Speaker 1: availability of bread, so the grain harvest had taken place 214 00:12:26,920 --> 00:12:31,480 Speaker 1: in September. Uh, there wasn't a lot, but there was some, 215 00:12:31,640 --> 00:12:34,559 Speaker 1: so it seemed like there should be some bread available, 216 00:12:35,320 --> 00:12:37,400 Speaker 1: and there had, as we said, benefforts on the part 217 00:12:37,440 --> 00:12:40,480 Speaker 1: of the French government, under the stewardship of Director General 218 00:12:40,480 --> 00:12:43,959 Speaker 1: of Finance Jacques Nicare, to import additional grain, so people 219 00:12:44,040 --> 00:12:47,000 Speaker 1: thought that there should be some food to eat, but 220 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:50,079 Speaker 1: those supplies had not arrived yet. In early October when 221 00:12:50,120 --> 00:12:53,360 Speaker 1: this was going on, the lack of grain, even though 222 00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:57,320 Speaker 1: there had been assurances that shipments had been arranged, caused 223 00:12:57,400 --> 00:13:01,120 Speaker 1: all kinds of rumors to circulate. As lines for even 224 00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,720 Speaker 1: meager portions of bread stretched for city blocks, people started 225 00:13:04,720 --> 00:13:08,160 Speaker 1: to gossip that the shortage was purposely being arranged by 226 00:13:08,200 --> 00:13:13,920 Speaker 1: the government to weaken the populace and make them more submissive. Yeah. 227 00:13:13,960 --> 00:13:16,160 Speaker 1: When you combine the fact that there is no food 228 00:13:16,160 --> 00:13:19,800 Speaker 1: with the fact that there are obviously these lavish parties 229 00:13:19,840 --> 00:13:23,640 Speaker 1: and a lot of spending going on at Versailles. Uh, 230 00:13:23,640 --> 00:13:25,240 Speaker 1: you know this ties in, of course to the whole 231 00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:30,560 Speaker 1: let the meatcake falsehood. Uh. It is often reported that 232 00:13:30,640 --> 00:13:33,319 Speaker 1: has been talked about on the show before, I think 233 00:13:33,320 --> 00:13:37,440 Speaker 1: my previous hosts, and we've certainly referenced it. Yeah. I 234 00:13:37,440 --> 00:13:39,319 Speaker 1: think that's like a really short episode back in the 235 00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:42,880 Speaker 1: CANDUs and maybe even Josh Days maybe yeah, je long 236 00:13:42,920 --> 00:13:47,640 Speaker 1: time ago. Yeah, but I mean basically everything that was 237 00:13:47,760 --> 00:13:51,640 Speaker 1: being reported was largely rumor, but people were so upset 238 00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:55,480 Speaker 1: that conspiracy theories were just sort of like the standard 239 00:13:55,520 --> 00:13:57,679 Speaker 1: of the day, and it was easy to believe that 240 00:13:57,720 --> 00:14:00,160 Speaker 1: there must be something the ferry is going on if 241 00:14:00,160 --> 00:14:03,000 Speaker 1: they were having parties in the palace while no one 242 00:14:03,000 --> 00:14:06,720 Speaker 1: else could even get a loaf of bread. Uh So 243 00:14:07,400 --> 00:14:10,000 Speaker 1: that is why rumors were so rampant at the time. 244 00:14:11,000 --> 00:14:14,000 Speaker 1: There had been multiple calls for organized protests in the 245 00:14:14,040 --> 00:14:17,120 Speaker 1: days and weeks leading up to October, but this grain issue, 246 00:14:17,200 --> 00:14:19,760 Speaker 1: combined with the bad press around the party at Versailles, 247 00:14:19,960 --> 00:14:23,640 Speaker 1: served as a catalyst. Protests started on October four, with 248 00:14:23,760 --> 00:14:26,920 Speaker 1: people marching in the streets to decry this rumored party 249 00:14:26,920 --> 00:14:30,280 Speaker 1: at Versailles as well as the food scarcity, but they 250 00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:37,120 Speaker 1: didn't really come together until the following day. On October five, nine, 251 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:40,320 Speaker 1: a march started that would eventually cover the twelve plus 252 00:14:40,360 --> 00:14:43,560 Speaker 1: miles from Paris to Versailles, but it didn't begin with 253 00:14:43,600 --> 00:14:46,160 Speaker 1: that intent, so when the first part of the crowd 254 00:14:46,200 --> 00:14:48,840 Speaker 1: assembled in the morning, it was outside the Hotel de 255 00:14:48,960 --> 00:14:52,040 Speaker 1: Ville that was the seat of the Parisian City Council, 256 00:14:52,760 --> 00:14:57,280 Speaker 1: somewhere between five thousand and ten thousand people again that's 257 00:14:57,280 --> 00:15:00,960 Speaker 1: one of those things that the reporting is very, very 258 00:15:00,960 --> 00:15:05,440 Speaker 1: widely varied. Uh. It was mostly women. They stood outside 259 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:09,080 Speaker 1: this administrative building demanding that all the remaining green stores 260 00:15:09,120 --> 00:15:12,400 Speaker 1: be released to the people. There was no response from 261 00:15:12,400 --> 00:15:14,840 Speaker 1: the Hotel de Villa, So at that point the crowd 262 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:18,000 Speaker 1: decided to march right to the monarchy with their protests, 263 00:15:18,080 --> 00:15:22,600 Speaker 1: and by noon the group had armed themselves with clubs, muskets, 264 00:15:22,680 --> 00:15:25,240 Speaker 1: pikes and the like and headed out of Paris to 265 00:15:25,320 --> 00:15:29,280 Speaker 1: walk to Versailles, basically the length of a half marathon. 266 00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:32,200 Speaker 1: I know. That's what I kept thinking, is that, Um, 267 00:15:32,240 --> 00:15:34,560 Speaker 1: you know Tracy has done a half. I've done quite 268 00:15:34,560 --> 00:15:38,520 Speaker 1: a number of half marathons. This is not a small distance. 269 00:15:38,560 --> 00:15:40,960 Speaker 1: It's one of those things that, um, if you've ever 270 00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:42,600 Speaker 1: walked a mile and been that person has been like, 271 00:15:42,640 --> 00:15:44,760 Speaker 1: I could do that twelve more times. Yes, you probably could, 272 00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:47,200 Speaker 1: but it's exhausting. You might hurt yourself like I did. 273 00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:50,040 Speaker 1: And now imagine doing that when you haven't had enough 274 00:15:50,080 --> 00:15:53,920 Speaker 1: to eat in months. It's a no small undertaking, and 275 00:15:53,960 --> 00:15:58,480 Speaker 1: it speaks to the level of frustration that was prevalent 276 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:02,120 Speaker 1: at the time among the people of Paris. The royal 277 00:16:02,160 --> 00:16:05,760 Speaker 1: family had received word of the protesters headed towards the palace, 278 00:16:06,080 --> 00:16:08,480 Speaker 1: so they sought refuge in their private apartments and the 279 00:16:08,560 --> 00:16:12,640 Speaker 1: gates were locked. While women made up the majority of 280 00:16:12,680 --> 00:16:15,920 Speaker 1: the marchers, they were accompanied by a National Guard officer 281 00:16:16,080 --> 00:16:20,080 Speaker 1: named Stanislaus my Yard. This was not for many of 282 00:16:20,080 --> 00:16:23,200 Speaker 1: the marchers their first protest. A lot of the women, 283 00:16:23,280 --> 00:16:25,680 Speaker 1: as well as my Yard, had been part of the 284 00:16:25,720 --> 00:16:29,800 Speaker 1: storming of the Bastille several months earlier on July four teenth, 285 00:16:30,080 --> 00:16:33,080 Speaker 1: and the group as it made its way from Paris 286 00:16:33,080 --> 00:16:36,600 Speaker 1: to Versailles grew. The exact numbers of the protests are 287 00:16:36,640 --> 00:16:40,480 Speaker 1: difficult to gauge because they're varying accounts, and as we 288 00:16:40,520 --> 00:16:42,840 Speaker 1: know from more recent history, it's kind of tough to 289 00:16:42,960 --> 00:16:48,160 Speaker 1: estimate crowd size. Sometimes numbers vary anywhere from ten thousand 290 00:16:48,160 --> 00:16:51,600 Speaker 1: to thirty thousand people. And the crowd had more than 291 00:16:51,680 --> 00:16:54,240 Speaker 1: one aim in this protest, and that happened because it 292 00:16:54,280 --> 00:16:57,400 Speaker 1: had become a combination of the initial group of women 293 00:16:57,440 --> 00:17:01,280 Speaker 1: who were marching largely over food shortages, and other groups 294 00:17:01,320 --> 00:17:04,320 Speaker 1: that had joined in with their own agendas regarding the revolution. 295 00:17:04,920 --> 00:17:07,320 Speaker 1: So by the time they reached Versailles, there were several 296 00:17:07,359 --> 00:17:10,159 Speaker 1: demands kind of being put forth by different factions of 297 00:17:10,200 --> 00:17:12,680 Speaker 1: the group. One was for the monarchy to address the 298 00:17:12,680 --> 00:17:15,159 Speaker 1: food shortage, which had really been the initial driver for 299 00:17:15,200 --> 00:17:18,119 Speaker 1: this whole march. Another was for the king to relocate 300 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:20,320 Speaker 1: to Paris and reign from a position where he was 301 00:17:20,359 --> 00:17:24,160 Speaker 1: with his people and not solely influenced by the aristocracy. 302 00:17:24,240 --> 00:17:26,600 Speaker 1: And then there were people who just wanted to harm 303 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:30,159 Speaker 1: the king or really, more specifically Marie Antoinette, because she 304 00:17:30,200 --> 00:17:34,080 Speaker 1: sort of became too many people of France emblematic of 305 00:17:34,119 --> 00:17:36,560 Speaker 1: the fiscal problems they were having, because she was known 306 00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:39,000 Speaker 1: for spending a lot of money when they had nothing. 307 00:17:40,040 --> 00:17:42,159 Speaker 1: We will talk about how things played out once this 308 00:17:42,280 --> 00:17:45,280 Speaker 1: protest actually got to Versailles, but first we will have 309 00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:54,040 Speaker 1: another quick word from one of our sponsors. The protesters 310 00:17:54,080 --> 00:17:57,560 Speaker 1: would end up spending about twenty four hours at Versailles. 311 00:17:58,320 --> 00:18:00,400 Speaker 1: The two days of the protests are to or fifth, 312 00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:03,600 Speaker 1: and six are sometimes referred to as the October Days 313 00:18:03,720 --> 00:18:05,880 Speaker 1: or the October Days March, in addition to being called 314 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:09,360 Speaker 1: the Women's March Undersigh. To add tention to the situation, 315 00:18:09,400 --> 00:18:12,119 Speaker 1: it was raining when the march got to the Versailles complex, 316 00:18:12,240 --> 00:18:14,760 Speaker 1: so some of the women about twenty made their way 317 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:18,000 Speaker 1: into the hall where the National Constituent Assembly was meeting, 318 00:18:18,359 --> 00:18:22,520 Speaker 1: along with my Yard. While this took the Assembly by surprise, 319 00:18:22,920 --> 00:18:25,719 Speaker 1: the group spoke with the protesters and heard them out, 320 00:18:25,760 --> 00:18:28,240 Speaker 1: and my Art did most of the talking on behalf 321 00:18:28,280 --> 00:18:32,280 Speaker 1: of the demonstrators. The women and my Yard explained that 322 00:18:32,359 --> 00:18:34,439 Speaker 1: there was no bread in Paris and that they needed 323 00:18:34,440 --> 00:18:37,760 Speaker 1: the Assembly's help, and so the men drafted a proposed 324 00:18:37,760 --> 00:18:40,960 Speaker 1: decree requesting that the king make every effort to get 325 00:18:40,960 --> 00:18:44,640 Speaker 1: greens circulating through the population, and this proposal was read 326 00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:49,040 Speaker 1: to the women and my Yard for review. Jean Joseph Munier, 327 00:18:49,080 --> 00:18:53,160 Speaker 1: who was President of the National Constituent Assembly, deputized six 328 00:18:53,240 --> 00:18:55,439 Speaker 1: of the women present so they could enter the palace 329 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:58,360 Speaker 1: and make their case directly to King Louis the sixteen, 330 00:18:58,840 --> 00:19:01,600 Speaker 1: and for his part, the King seemed receptive. He heard 331 00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:03,639 Speaker 1: what the women had to say and assured them that 332 00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:07,679 Speaker 1: he would take action to address the food shortage. The crowd, however, 333 00:19:07,840 --> 00:19:10,480 Speaker 1: was not placated by the words of the king. In 334 00:19:10,520 --> 00:19:13,880 Speaker 1: an attempt to mollify the situation, Louis the sixteenth declared 335 00:19:13,920 --> 00:19:16,480 Speaker 1: that the food stores of Versailles should be open and 336 00:19:16,520 --> 00:19:20,640 Speaker 1: that the supplies within should be distributed among them. Still 337 00:19:20,680 --> 00:19:24,119 Speaker 1: the crowd was not soothed to add tention to the moment. 338 00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:27,119 Speaker 1: A National Guard regiment led by the Marquis de Lafayette. 339 00:19:27,760 --> 00:19:30,879 Speaker 1: Still the crowd was not soothed to add attention to 340 00:19:30,920 --> 00:19:33,679 Speaker 1: the moment. A National Guard regiment led by the Marquis 341 00:19:33,760 --> 00:19:38,080 Speaker 1: de Lafayette had arrived at Versailles. Should military intervention be needed, 342 00:19:38,440 --> 00:19:41,520 Speaker 1: but Louis sixteenth was against the idea of using force 343 00:19:41,560 --> 00:19:45,560 Speaker 1: in the situation. Tensions waxed and wane throughout the night, 344 00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:49,280 Speaker 1: and although there were occasionally straight shots fired, the situation 345 00:19:49,359 --> 00:19:53,639 Speaker 1: did not escalate into violence. Allegedly, there was even a 346 00:19:53,760 --> 00:20:00,000 Speaker 1: fairly friendly relationship between some of the guardsmen and the crowd. Uh. 347 00:20:00,040 --> 00:20:03,520 Speaker 1: Given the Marquis to Lafayette's reputation in both the United 348 00:20:03,560 --> 00:20:07,280 Speaker 1: States and France, that does not completely surprised me. Yeah, 349 00:20:07,280 --> 00:20:10,120 Speaker 1: Apparently some of some of the guardsmen were just kind 350 00:20:10,119 --> 00:20:12,520 Speaker 1: of mingling with the people that were there hanging out. 351 00:20:12,600 --> 00:20:14,320 Speaker 1: They were trying to kind of make a go of it, 352 00:20:15,200 --> 00:20:19,760 Speaker 1: like we're all stuck here for the night, I guess um. 353 00:20:19,800 --> 00:20:23,439 Speaker 1: But as the night stretched on and uh dawn of 354 00:20:23,440 --> 00:20:26,840 Speaker 1: October six approached, it became apparent that there were factions 355 00:20:26,840 --> 00:20:29,840 Speaker 1: in the crowd who had gotten really restless with the situation. 356 00:20:30,280 --> 00:20:32,560 Speaker 1: They wanted more action on the part of the monarch 357 00:20:32,640 --> 00:20:34,359 Speaker 1: to come to the aid of the people, and they 358 00:20:34,400 --> 00:20:37,800 Speaker 1: had become convinced that the Queen, Marie Antoinette, would reverse 359 00:20:37,840 --> 00:20:41,720 Speaker 1: the seemingly magnanimous efforts of her husband. The section of 360 00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:45,280 Speaker 1: the protesters became more and more agitated and eventually made 361 00:20:45,320 --> 00:20:48,000 Speaker 1: their way into the palace in the early morning in 362 00:20:48,040 --> 00:20:50,919 Speaker 1: search of the queen. Their intent was to harm her and, 363 00:20:50,960 --> 00:20:53,720 Speaker 1: according to some accounts, to kill her. But as the 364 00:20:53,800 --> 00:20:56,840 Speaker 1: queen fled, the angry faction was unable to keep up 365 00:20:56,880 --> 00:20:59,840 Speaker 1: the pursuit. For the palace's complex floor pun and it's 366 00:21:00,000 --> 00:21:04,000 Speaker 1: any many doors. Yeah, all of those two thousand rooms 367 00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:07,880 Speaker 1: really paid off, because if you didn't know the entry 368 00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:09,720 Speaker 1: and exit points, it was hard to keep up with 369 00:21:09,760 --> 00:21:12,560 Speaker 1: someone that was running through them, that knew them very well. 370 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:15,520 Speaker 1: And in the midst of this pursuit, those things turned 371 00:21:15,600 --> 00:21:18,840 Speaker 1: violent when a guard fired upon two of the women protesters. 372 00:21:19,400 --> 00:21:21,879 Speaker 1: One of them was killed, which fomented the rest of 373 00:21:21,880 --> 00:21:27,160 Speaker 1: the group into retaliatory violence. Two soldiers were killed and dismembered. 374 00:21:27,920 --> 00:21:31,320 Speaker 1: The Marquis de Ferrierer, nobleman who was at Versailles at 375 00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:34,080 Speaker 1: the time, wrote of that morning, and here's what he said. 376 00:21:34,560 --> 00:21:36,760 Speaker 1: At six o'clock in the morning, a crowd of women 377 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:40,320 Speaker 1: and armed men assembled in the square. Summoned by the 378 00:21:40,359 --> 00:21:44,640 Speaker 1: beating of drums, shouts of rage against the royal bodyguards 379 00:21:44,640 --> 00:21:48,520 Speaker 1: were heard. One of those columns marched up to the 380 00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:52,080 Speaker 1: royal gate but found it locked. Another got through by 381 00:21:52,119 --> 00:21:54,560 Speaker 1: the gate of the chapel, which was open. One of 382 00:21:54,560 --> 00:21:57,960 Speaker 1: the national guards of the Versailles Militia led the way 383 00:21:58,040 --> 00:22:01,919 Speaker 1: up to the king's staircase. Some of the bodyguard ran up, quote, 384 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:05,080 Speaker 1: my friends, you love your king, and yet you even 385 00:22:05,160 --> 00:22:09,120 Speaker 1: come to his palace to disturb him. No one answered. 386 00:22:09,680 --> 00:22:13,600 Speaker 1: The column continued to advance. The bodyguard mustard in their hall. 387 00:22:14,200 --> 00:22:17,000 Speaker 1: The doors were soon broken down and they were forced 388 00:22:17,080 --> 00:22:21,160 Speaker 1: to evacuate it. The conspirators approached the queen's apartments, crying, quote, 389 00:22:21,160 --> 00:22:22,920 Speaker 1: we are going to cut off her head, tear out 390 00:22:22,920 --> 00:22:25,399 Speaker 1: her heart, fright her liver, and that won't be the 391 00:22:25,520 --> 00:22:28,719 Speaker 1: end of it. Mialmandra flew to the door of the 392 00:22:28,760 --> 00:22:31,800 Speaker 1: first anti room, opened it hurriedly, and called to the 393 00:22:31,840 --> 00:22:35,040 Speaker 1: lady whom she saw save the Queen. They mean to 394 00:22:35,240 --> 00:22:39,520 Speaker 1: kill her. I am alone, facing two thousand tigers. My 395 00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:43,560 Speaker 1: comrades have been obliged to quit their hall. After these 396 00:22:43,600 --> 00:22:47,320 Speaker 1: few words, My Almandra shut the door and bravely waited 397 00:22:47,359 --> 00:22:50,520 Speaker 1: for the conspirators. One of them tried to stab him 398 00:22:50,520 --> 00:22:53,800 Speaker 1: with his pike. He parried the blow. Another, taking the 399 00:22:53,840 --> 00:22:56,520 Speaker 1: pike by the head, struck him a blow with the butt, 400 00:22:56,640 --> 00:23:00,159 Speaker 1: which felled him to the ground stand back of the 401 00:23:00,280 --> 00:23:03,240 Speaker 1: National guardsman who led the column. The crowd made room 402 00:23:03,320 --> 00:23:06,000 Speaker 1: for him. Then, measuring the butt of his musket against 403 00:23:06,080 --> 00:23:09,640 Speaker 1: Mountainder's head, he struck him with all his forces so 404 00:23:09,680 --> 00:23:14,800 Speaker 1: that the trigger penetrated his skull. Mailmandra, streaming with blood, 405 00:23:14,880 --> 00:23:20,120 Speaker 1: was left for dead, and eventually, with more manpower summoned, 406 00:23:20,160 --> 00:23:23,119 Speaker 1: the military was able to get all of the protesters 407 00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:27,320 Speaker 1: out of the palace, though the now angry mob remained outside. 408 00:23:28,600 --> 00:23:32,439 Speaker 1: Lafayette suggested that Louis the sixteenth addressed the crowd, and 409 00:23:32,520 --> 00:23:35,000 Speaker 1: the king went along with this plan, walking out to 410 00:23:35,040 --> 00:23:37,520 Speaker 1: the balcony to tell the gathered people that he and 411 00:23:37,560 --> 00:23:40,639 Speaker 1: the rest of the immediate royal family would travel to Paris, 412 00:23:41,080 --> 00:23:44,000 Speaker 1: and he declared his love for his people. He also 413 00:23:44,040 --> 00:23:48,960 Speaker 1: put on a tricolor cocade, and Louise's words sort of 414 00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:53,000 Speaker 1: did the trick. Uh. His words were well received by 415 00:23:53,000 --> 00:23:55,720 Speaker 1: the crowd, and they did begin to cheer for him, 416 00:23:55,760 --> 00:23:58,200 Speaker 1: and he then left the balcony to be replaced by 417 00:23:58,240 --> 00:24:00,399 Speaker 1: his wife. And while she was not up with the 418 00:24:00,440 --> 00:24:03,199 Speaker 1: same cheers, it was not lost on the crowd that 419 00:24:03,240 --> 00:24:07,040 Speaker 1: she was showing an incredible level of trust in making 420 00:24:07,040 --> 00:24:10,399 Speaker 1: this appearance. So immediately after this foiled attempt on her life, 421 00:24:11,040 --> 00:24:14,920 Speaker 1: the morning was spent preparing for travel, and that very afternoon, 422 00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:18,320 Speaker 1: Louis the sixteenth, Marie Antoinette, and their children left Versailles, 423 00:24:18,320 --> 00:24:22,679 Speaker 1: accompanied by several members of the National Constituent Assembly and 424 00:24:22,720 --> 00:24:25,200 Speaker 1: the crowd that had been at Versailles throughout the protest. 425 00:24:25,840 --> 00:24:29,160 Speaker 1: King Louis the sixteenth and the National Constituent Assembly moved 426 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:31,720 Speaker 1: into the Palais de Tuilerie on the right bank of 427 00:24:31,760 --> 00:24:35,520 Speaker 1: the Sin And while the Tuileri was a palace originally 428 00:24:35,520 --> 00:24:37,959 Speaker 1: built in the sixteenth century, it had not been an 429 00:24:37,960 --> 00:24:41,560 Speaker 1: active residence for decades, so there was some effort required 430 00:24:41,600 --> 00:24:44,280 Speaker 1: to make it livable as a home and serviceable as 431 00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:46,600 Speaker 1: a governmental hub. And it's one of those things where 432 00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:49,560 Speaker 1: people go, well, you moved into another palace, but it 433 00:24:49,600 --> 00:24:52,919 Speaker 1: really was a significant shift in their lifestyle from what 434 00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:56,399 Speaker 1: they had been living in at Versailles. This is the 435 00:24:56,440 --> 00:24:59,320 Speaker 1: first time in a hundred years that France was governed 436 00:24:59,359 --> 00:25:02,639 Speaker 1: from Paris rather than from the Versailles complex, and Louis 437 00:25:02,680 --> 00:25:07,920 Speaker 1: the sixteenth and his family never saw Orsi again. Yeah, 438 00:25:07,920 --> 00:25:11,280 Speaker 1: so that was the women's march on Versailles. That seemed effective. 439 00:25:11,440 --> 00:25:15,240 Speaker 1: A little bit of bloodshed unfortunately, but uh, yeah, I 440 00:25:15,320 --> 00:25:17,440 Speaker 1: mean we you and I talked about it before we 441 00:25:17,480 --> 00:25:20,560 Speaker 1: started that. I have this whole thing where I when 442 00:25:20,560 --> 00:25:24,479 Speaker 1: I read about Marie Antoinette and Louis the sixteenth, and 443 00:25:24,520 --> 00:25:26,520 Speaker 1: there have been some writings in recent years that have 444 00:25:26,640 --> 00:25:29,919 Speaker 1: fallen more in this angle rather than the sort of 445 00:25:29,920 --> 00:25:34,080 Speaker 1: more vilifying versions, which is probably what I'm most influenced by. Uh, 446 00:25:34,160 --> 00:25:38,040 Speaker 1: they made so many stupid, stupid moves, but I really 447 00:25:38,080 --> 00:25:42,000 Speaker 1: think they just were not prepared for the roles that 448 00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:45,800 Speaker 1: they found themselves in. Yeah, they sometimes are portrayed as 449 00:25:45,880 --> 00:25:52,440 Speaker 1: like mustache twirling villains, cackling over everybody else's misfortune. Yeah, 450 00:25:52,440 --> 00:25:55,919 Speaker 1: are just completely callous, and really I think they just 451 00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:58,320 Speaker 1: didn't get it. They had no grasp of the reality 452 00:25:58,720 --> 00:26:02,280 Speaker 1: of France. I think Louis the sixte wanted to do 453 00:26:02,359 --> 00:26:04,399 Speaker 1: the right thing, but didn't know how. He didn't know 454 00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:09,040 Speaker 1: who to trust, He didn't he wasn't ever confident enough 455 00:26:09,080 --> 00:26:11,399 Speaker 1: in any of his advisers to really follow through on 456 00:26:11,440 --> 00:26:14,520 Speaker 1: any plans that may have helped in the long run. 457 00:26:14,600 --> 00:26:18,119 Speaker 1: There are some historians that theorized that if Turgeau had 458 00:26:18,119 --> 00:26:21,760 Speaker 1: been allowed to stay in his position running finances, that 459 00:26:21,840 --> 00:26:25,560 Speaker 1: he actually could have prevented the later events of the revolution. 460 00:26:25,720 --> 00:26:30,359 Speaker 1: But we don't know, uh, But yeah, I I oh, 461 00:26:30,440 --> 00:26:33,520 Speaker 1: they made so many poor choices and just bad decisions. 462 00:26:33,560 --> 00:26:35,840 Speaker 1: But I really think above all else, they were just 463 00:26:36,640 --> 00:26:41,280 Speaker 1: foolish and oll prepared. And the whole situation was exacerbated 464 00:26:41,800 --> 00:26:45,720 Speaker 1: so much by like huge feud shortages and this enormous 465 00:26:45,840 --> 00:26:50,439 Speaker 1: disparity between the like the world of Versailles and the 466 00:26:50,480 --> 00:26:55,040 Speaker 1: world of everyone else. Yeah. Yeah, it's it's a thing 467 00:26:55,160 --> 00:26:57,240 Speaker 1: like how how can you govern people you don't even 468 00:26:57,280 --> 00:27:01,840 Speaker 1: know or understand? Uh, And it's it's a fascinating. So 469 00:27:01,960 --> 00:27:04,399 Speaker 1: I think that's why people are continue to be fascinated 470 00:27:04,440 --> 00:27:07,400 Speaker 1: by Louis the sixteenth and Marie Antoinette. It's just it's 471 00:27:07,400 --> 00:27:11,119 Speaker 1: such a bizarre concept. They're so completely divorced from the 472 00:27:11,119 --> 00:27:17,800 Speaker 1: people that they are allegedly ruling. It's there's a surreal 473 00:27:17,880 --> 00:27:22,000 Speaker 1: level of out of touchness going on, which is again 474 00:27:22,040 --> 00:27:27,520 Speaker 1: it's fascinating. But I have listener mail that's uh nicer. Yeah. 475 00:27:27,560 --> 00:27:30,359 Speaker 1: So I have a couple of postcards. The first is 476 00:27:30,440 --> 00:27:33,359 Speaker 1: from our listener Michelle. It is a postcard that she 477 00:27:33,400 --> 00:27:37,200 Speaker 1: sent us um of the Wild Bunch, which we referenced 478 00:27:37,280 --> 00:27:41,360 Speaker 1: in our Robbers Roost episode that we did in Salt Lake. 479 00:27:42,320 --> 00:27:44,399 Speaker 1: She says, Tracy and Holly, after listening to your recent 480 00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:46,720 Speaker 1: live show about Robert's Roost and how you love that, 481 00:27:46,760 --> 00:27:49,880 Speaker 1: tell your ride Colorado uses Butch Cassidy as their claim 482 00:27:49,960 --> 00:27:51,840 Speaker 1: to fame. I had to write to you. I grew 483 00:27:51,880 --> 00:27:54,439 Speaker 1: up in mont Pelio, Idaho. We not only have a 484 00:27:54,520 --> 00:27:56,400 Speaker 1: plaque in front of the bank he robbed. The bank 485 00:27:56,440 --> 00:27:59,080 Speaker 1: is now a museum commemorating that robbery. We even have 486 00:27:59,119 --> 00:28:02,240 Speaker 1: a festival business and business is named for him. I 487 00:28:02,280 --> 00:28:04,000 Speaker 1: love the show, keep it up. So it is that 488 00:28:04,080 --> 00:28:06,920 Speaker 1: famous photograph of the Wild Bunch that we talked about 489 00:28:06,960 --> 00:28:09,359 Speaker 1: in the episode where they all look for all the 490 00:28:09,400 --> 00:28:13,520 Speaker 1: world like fancy businessmen in their lovely suits and not 491 00:28:13,720 --> 00:28:18,000 Speaker 1: in fact like men on the run from the law. Um, 492 00:28:18,040 --> 00:28:19,840 Speaker 1: it's such a good picture. It's one of those that, 493 00:28:19,880 --> 00:28:21,720 Speaker 1: even though it's like the one picture that gets used 494 00:28:21,720 --> 00:28:24,000 Speaker 1: all the time, I love it every time I see it. Uh. 495 00:28:24,080 --> 00:28:26,760 Speaker 1: The other one is from our listener Whitney, and it 496 00:28:26,800 --> 00:28:29,480 Speaker 1: is a little bit uh Jermaine, not even just a 497 00:28:29,480 --> 00:28:31,760 Speaker 1: little bit. It's Germaine to what we talked about today, 498 00:28:32,480 --> 00:28:34,520 Speaker 1: She says, highlight these. I wanted to drop you a 499 00:28:34,560 --> 00:28:38,440 Speaker 1: line from Boston, a city rich in history. Um, My 500 00:28:38,520 --> 00:28:40,760 Speaker 1: husband and I are on our way home from the honeymoon, 501 00:28:41,120 --> 00:28:43,640 Speaker 1: from our honeymoon and azors and we couldn't resist a 502 00:28:43,640 --> 00:28:45,800 Speaker 1: forty eight hour layover in a city filled with history. 503 00:28:45,840 --> 00:28:47,680 Speaker 1: Thank you for all you do in the Fantastic podcast. 504 00:28:47,880 --> 00:28:53,160 Speaker 1: But the postcard that she sent us is uh a 505 00:28:53,200 --> 00:28:56,200 Speaker 1: postcard with a quote from Abigail Adams that says, remember 506 00:28:56,240 --> 00:28:59,520 Speaker 1: the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them, 507 00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:01,400 Speaker 1: and the bad explains that it is part of the 508 00:29:01,400 --> 00:29:03,320 Speaker 1: Adams Letters. The quote on the front of the card 509 00:29:03,360 --> 00:29:05,560 Speaker 1: and what follows are both part of a letter sent 510 00:29:05,600 --> 00:29:08,680 Speaker 1: by Abigail Adams to her husband John Adams, dated March 511 00:29:09,240 --> 00:29:12,520 Speaker 1: seventeen seventy six. So again that's at the same time 512 00:29:12,560 --> 00:29:15,760 Speaker 1: all of this stuff is playing out. Uh if particular 513 00:29:15,800 --> 00:29:17,800 Speaker 1: care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we 514 00:29:17,840 --> 00:29:20,480 Speaker 1: are determined to foment a rebellion and will not hold 515 00:29:20,520 --> 00:29:22,760 Speaker 1: ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no 516 00:29:22,880 --> 00:29:27,840 Speaker 1: voice or representation. So that just seemed pertinent today's discussion 517 00:29:28,840 --> 00:29:31,040 Speaker 1: of the women who marched on Versailles. Again at the 518 00:29:31,080 --> 00:29:34,320 Speaker 1: same time that all of the Abigail Adams was doing 519 00:29:34,320 --> 00:29:36,360 Speaker 1: her writing, or around the same time, I should say 520 00:29:36,800 --> 00:29:39,000 Speaker 1: so thank you, thank you both for sending us postcards 521 00:29:39,000 --> 00:29:40,720 Speaker 1: and everyone else who has sent us cards that we 522 00:29:40,760 --> 00:29:42,680 Speaker 1: haven't gotten to read on the air. I have a 523 00:29:42,680 --> 00:29:44,760 Speaker 1: massive pileo at my desk and I'm trying to figure 524 00:29:44,760 --> 00:29:47,120 Speaker 1: out what I want to do with them, because I 525 00:29:47,160 --> 00:29:48,560 Speaker 1: don't want to get rid of them, but I have 526 00:29:48,600 --> 00:29:50,840 Speaker 1: to figure out a better storage plan than piling them 527 00:29:50,840 --> 00:29:55,400 Speaker 1: on my dad, which is I have quickly become like 528 00:29:55,840 --> 00:29:59,040 Speaker 1: an Oscar the gratch level trash monster of things just 529 00:29:59,160 --> 00:30:03,720 Speaker 1: piling around my desk. I'm not good at organizing spatial relationships. 530 00:30:03,960 --> 00:30:06,120 Speaker 1: Uh So, anyway, if you would like to write to us, 531 00:30:06,160 --> 00:30:08,920 Speaker 1: please do so at History podcast at how stuff works 532 00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:11,400 Speaker 1: dot com. You can also find us across the spectrum 533 00:30:11,400 --> 00:30:13,560 Speaker 1: of social media is at mist in History that includes 534 00:30:13,600 --> 00:30:18,000 Speaker 1: Twitter at misston History, Pinterest, as missed in History, Facebook 535 00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:20,320 Speaker 1: dot com, slash mist in History, missed in History dot 536 00:30:20,320 --> 00:30:23,320 Speaker 1: temblor dot com, and we're on Instagram as at mist 537 00:30:23,360 --> 00:30:27,760 Speaker 1: in History. If you would like to visit our site, 538 00:30:27,840 --> 00:30:29,800 Speaker 1: which is missed in History dot com, you can do that. 539 00:30:29,880 --> 00:30:32,240 Speaker 1: You will find an archive of every episode of the 540 00:30:32,280 --> 00:30:34,880 Speaker 1: podcast that has ever existed, as well as show notes 541 00:30:34,880 --> 00:30:36,680 Speaker 1: for any of the episodes Tracy and I have worked 542 00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:39,800 Speaker 1: on together, as well as some other cool stuff. And 543 00:30:39,880 --> 00:30:43,040 Speaker 1: you can visit our parents site, how stuff works dot com. 544 00:30:43,240 --> 00:30:45,560 Speaker 1: Type in a search term in the search bar and 545 00:30:45,600 --> 00:30:47,560 Speaker 1: you're gonna come up with lots of stuff. If you 546 00:30:48,120 --> 00:30:50,920 Speaker 1: type in re Intwinet, lots of things will happen. You'll 547 00:30:50,960 --> 00:30:52,440 Speaker 1: have a lot of things to keep you busy for 548 00:30:52,480 --> 00:30:54,640 Speaker 1: a while, So we encourage you kind of visit us 549 00:30:54,720 --> 00:30:57,160 Speaker 1: at missed in History dot com and how stuff Works 550 00:30:57,200 --> 00:31:06,080 Speaker 1: dot com for more on this and thousands of other topics. 551 00:31:06,320 --> 00:31:11,000 Speaker 1: Is it how stuff works dot com. M