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The Diamond Necklace

Thomas Carlyle

Thomas Carlyle's essay retelling the scandal over a diamond necklace that damaged Marie Antoinette's reputation before the Revolution.

A later account of the diamond necklace scandal that harmed Marie Antoinette's public reputation.

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Thomas Carlyle, The Diamond Necklace. LibriVox volunteer reading of the public-domain text.

About this source

What it is

An essay by the Scottish writer Thomas Carlyle about the 'Affair of the Diamond Necklace,' a scandal involving a cardinal, a royal jeweller, and a con artist, which became linked to Queen Marie Antoinette's public image. This recording is a volunteer reading of the text, not Carlyle's or the queen's own voice.

Why it matters

The affair happened just before the French Revolution and badly hurt the queen's reputation, even though she was not directly responsible for the fraud. Carlyle's account, written long afterward, shows how later writers used dramatic storytelling to explain why the public turned against the monarchy.

Look closer

  • Why might rumors about the queen have spread so easily at this time?
  • How does Carlyle's lively writing style shape the reader's opinion of events?
  • What does this episode suggest about reputation and rumor in politics?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Marie Antoinette on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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