Marie Antoinette: The Making of a French Queen

[A] splendid biography [. . .] It sheds genuine new light on a celebrated and tragic figure whose faults did not merit the appalling fate she suffered -Munro Price, Literary Review Hardman is far more than a biographer, his works are key to understanding the politics of the reign of Louis XVI. Steeped in the original sources and well able to decode the plots and schemes of the factions, this is both an entertaining and convincing new interpretation of the tragic Queen - Peter Campbell, author of Power and Politics in Old Regime France Superb. Hardman draws upon his vast knowledge of the period to present a new, deeply researched and compelling portrait of a much-maligned queen'-Julian Swann, author of Exile, Imprisonment, or Death Gripping and beautifully-written. Hardman centres on the queen's political role, long a subject of myth and controversy. He cuts through both with forensic skill, and reveals a much more intelligent and impressive figure than the frivolous spendthrift of legend. -Munro Price, author of The Fall of the French Monarchy A fresh perspective grounded in robust scholarship, Marie-Antoinette offers readers new insight into the political role of the last Queen of France. -Will Bashor, author of Marie Antoinette's Darkest Days