Chapters 16 and 17 Summary and Analysis

Antoinette emerged from the Cardinal Rohan scandal with even more enemies at court than before. The acquittal of Rohan was an "atrocious insult," she told her friend Yolande (p. 173). Eight months pregnant and under increasing strain from the Rohan affair and the worsening economic conditions of the country, Antoinette took solace in caring for her children, Erickson writes.

Her oldest daughter was now seven, and Antoinette kept her nearby constantly. The dauphin was five and suffered from a deformed spine. Her third child was a healthy boy of fifteen months. She gave birth to her fourth child, a girl, who was undersized and sickly at birth.

The king's new finance minister, Calonne, warned the king that France was on a path to economic ruin unless drastic reforms were implemented. The king was no more decisive than before Erickson writes...