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Gabrielle de Polastron, duchesse de Polignac
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Yolande Martine Gabrielle de Polastron, duchesse de Polignac (8 September 1749–9 December 1793) was a French aristocrat and favourite of Marie Antoinette, whom she first met when she was presented at Versailles in 1775. Her critics among historians have argued that the duchesse de Polignac typified the aristocratic hangers-on at the court of Versailles before the French Revolution and that she embodied the exclusivity, the obliviousness and the selfish extravagance of the ruling class. However, more sympathetic historians, such as Pierre de Nolhac and the marquis de Ségur, agree that that most of the problems originated with her entourage. Assessments of her character aside, it is generally agreed that she was one of the key figures in the ultra-monarchist movement throughout the early summer of 1789, acting under the influence of her friend, the comte d'Artois.[1]
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She was born in Paris, but moved to Languedoc. The Polignac family were of ancient lineage and well-respected, but encumbered by many debts.[2] Her maternal grandfather was René Hérault, who had served as Lieutenant General of Police of Paris (i.e. head of the Paris Police) between 1725 and 1739. She lost her mother, Jeanne Charlotte Hérault, at the age of three and went to her aunt, who put her in a convent - a commonplace for the education of young aristocratic girls. When she was eighteen, her marriage to Jules, comte de Polignac, captain in the French army, was arranged.
When Diane de Polignac, her sister-in-law, called her to Court, she came with her husband and was presented at a formal reception in 1775. Queen Marie-Antoinette became instantly attached to her and agreed to settle the family's many outstanding debts; Gabrielle also won the friendship of the king's younger brother the comte d'Artois and the approval of King Louis XVI himself, who was grateful for her calming influence on his wife, encouraging their friendship.[3] She was, however, resented by other members of the royal entourage, particularly the queen's confessor and her political adviser, the Austrian ambassador.
Charismatic and beautiful, Gabrielle became the undisputed leader of the queen's exclusive circle, ensuring that few entered without her approval. The entire Polignac family benefited enormously from the queen's considerable generosity, but their increasing wealth outraged many aristocratic families, who resented their dominance at Court. Ultimately, the queen's favouritism towards Gabrielle and her family was one of the many causes which fueled Marie-Antoinette's unpopularity with many of her subjects.[4] By the late 1780s, thousands of hostile, pornographic pamphlets alleged that Gabrielle was the queen's lesbian lover, and although there was no solid evidence to back up these accusations they did immeasurable damage to the monarchy's prestige.[5]
Gabrielle was eventually appointed Governess to the Royal Children, including the future Louis XVII and Princess Marie-Thérèse. At the time, her appointment generated further outrage at Court, where it was felt Gabrielle was unsuitable for the post.[6] Her husband was later promoted through two rungs of the aristocratic ladder, thus making him a duke and Gabrielle a duchesse - a further source of irritation to the courtiers at Versailles. Later, Gabrielle's beautiful sister-in-law, Louise, became the life-long mistress of Louis XVI's youngest brother, the comte d'Artois (later King Charles X).
Gabrielle's marriage was cordial, if not successful; in other words, it was typical of aristocratic arranged marriages. For many years, Gabrielle was passionately in love with the captain of the Royal Guard, the comte de Vaudreuil, although it was felt by many of her friends that Vaudreuil was too domineering of her.[7] It was rumored at Versailles that Gabrielle's second child was actually fathered by Vaudreuil.
Gabrielle's influence over Marie-Antoinette began to wane after 1785, when the queen's second son was born. The queen was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the cost of the Polignac circle.[8] She confided to another lady-in-waiting, Henriette Campan, that she was "suffering acute dissatisfaction" over the Polignacs. According to Campan, "Her Majesty observed to me that when a sovereign raises up favourites in her court she raises up despots against herself".[9] Eventually, Gabrielle felt Marie-Antoinette's displeasure and decided to visit friends in England, particularly the duchess of Devonshire, who was the leader of London high society and one of Gabrielle's closest confidantes.[8]
The months leading up to the outbreak of the French Revolution in July 1789 saw the queen and the Polignac set become closer once more. Politically, Gabrielle and her friends supported the ultra-monarchist movement in Versailles. Together with the diplomat, the baron de Breteuil, and the comte d'Artois, they persuaded Marie-Antoinette to help depose the king's finance minister, Jacques Necker. However, without the necessary military support to crush the insurrection, Necker's dismissal fuelled the already-serious violence in Paris, culminating in the attack on the Bastille Fortress.
After the fall of the Bastille on 14 July 1789, and with Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette under effective house arrest, several members of the Polignac Set decided to emigrate. The comte d'Artois left on Louis XVI's orders, as did Breteuil. Gabrielle and her family escaped to Switzerland, where they kept in contact with the King and Queen through letters. After she had left, the care of the royal children was entrusted to the Marquise de Tourzel.
Gabrielle developed cancer while living in Switzerland, although she had arguably been in poor health for several years. She died in October 1793, shortly after hearing of the execution of Marie-Antoinette.
Gabrielle was the mother of Jules, prince de Polignac, who became Prime Minister when the comte d'Artois became king in 1824. She was also the mother of Aglaïé de Polignac, duchesse de Guiche, called in the family "Guichette", who died in 1803 in an accidental fire. Two of her grandsons were Camille Armand Jules Marie, Prince de Polignac and Prince Edmond de Polignac.
Gabrielle de Polastron has left her mark in history and it can be seen in history books, novels, movies and other kinds of media.
More recently she has been portrayed by Rose Byrne in the recent film Marie Antoinette.
- Bombelles, Marc Marie, Marquis de [1794?] (1977) Journal: marquis de Bombelles, Grassion, Jean and Durif, Frans (Eds), Histoire des idées et critique littéraire, 5 vols (1780-1800), Genève : Droz, ISBN 2-600-00677-X
- Campan, J.-L.-H., Mme [1823] (2006) The Private Life of Marie-Antoinette: A confidante's account, New York : 1500 Books, ISBN 1-933698-00-4
- Fraser, Antonia (2002) Marie Antoinette : the journey, London : Phoenix, ISBN 0-7538-1305-X
- Jones, Colin (2002) The great nation : France from Louis XV to Napoleon, London : Allen Lane, ISBN 0-7139-9039-2
- Lever, Évelyne (2000) Marie Antoinette : the last queen of France, Temerson, C. (transl.), New York : Farrar, Straus & Giroux, ISBN 0-374-19938-8
- Price, Munro (2002) The fall of the French monarchy : Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and the Baron de Breteuil, London : Macmillan, ISBN 0-333-90193-2
- Zweig, Stefan [1938] (1988) Marie Antoinette : the portrait of an average woman, Paul, E. and Paul, C. (transl.), Cassell biographies, London : Cassell, ISBN 0-304-31476-5