On this day 224 years ago...

Queen of France, Marie Antoinette, was publicly executed in Place de la Concorde, Paris, France. Marie Antoinette was born in Vienna, Austria to the Holy Roman Emperor Francis I and Empress Maria Theresa. At only fourteen years old, she was married off to the future king of France, Louis-Auguste. Their marriage was merely a chess move in European relations and power structures. Though initially loved by the French public, Marie Antoinette became a hated figure scapegoated for all of France's problems. While she was not the cause of all France's ills, she was indulged with an opulent and excessive lifestyle. Among some of her extravagances were a life-sized village complete with lakes, gardens, and watermills where she and her ladies-in-waiting would dress like peasants and play, her notable hair styles, often towering four feet over her head, and her love of extravagant parties. As political turmoil spread throughout France, overthrowing the royal palace, Versailles, became inevitable. Her life came to an end after the Revolutionary Tribunal convicted her of high treason and ordered her to be executed. A public beheading by guillotine took place two days later.