The Diamond Necklace Affair
The Diamond Necklace Affair consisted of misunderstandings and manipulation. The four major people involved were Marie, the Cardinal Louis Rene Edouard Prince de Rohan, the jeweler Beohmer and the Countess de LaMotte Valoris. The piece of jewelry the scandal revolved around was an exquisite diamond necklace consisting of 647 diamonds weighing in at approximately 2800 carats (Fraser 226-227).Boehmer had tried to sell the necklace to Marie but she had refused it many times (Fraser 227). By this time Marie had changed her lifestyle from one of extravagance to a simpler lifestyle although the damage that was done with the commoners and the economy was already in play (Fraser 227). The Queen received a letter from Beohmer asking for the money for the necklace but Marie, who knew nothing about it, disregarded it (Fraser 228). Beohmer insisted that the Queen had bought the necklace for one and a half million francs (Fraser 230). At this the Cardinal was brought into the light when Bohmer explained that the cardinal had purchased the necklace on behalf of the Queen in hopes to gain her favor(Fraser 230). The Cardinal brought forth supposed correspondences between himself and the Queen. The Cardinals half of the letters were legitimate, the Queens replies, however, were not (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 5). Neither the letters nor the signatures on the letters were Marie's (Fraser 232). The cardinal said that he had received the letter from the Countess de LaMotte Valoris (Fraser 232). She was the mastermind between the correspondences as she had forged the letters from Marie (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 5). The countess was always a sneaky person and had made her title in life through ill dealings (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 3). This scandal resulted in the denouncing of the Cardinal while the countess and others who had correlations with the cardinal were arrested (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace Scandal” par. 9). Marie demanded a trial for the cardinal because the cardinal had thought that Marie would have a relationship with him (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 9). This was a mistake on the Queen's behalf. Marie's enemies were delighted when they learned that the nature of the scandal was that the Cardinal believed he could become the queen’s lover (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 9). Her reputation was already on the edge and this practically shattered it. The Cardinal was pardoned (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par.11). As for the Countess, she was found guilty and after being beaten she was sent to the Bastille (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 11). At this point she was very popular with those against Marie and she was able to escape to London (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 12). To get back at the queen she created the Memories Justificatifs de la Comtesse de Valois de la Motte which gave her twisted version of the event (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace” par. 13). The diamond necklace had gone missing in the midst of all this and was never found. (“The Affair of the Diamond Necklace par.8)
The pictures were taken from http://www.joslinhall.com/diamond_necklace_affair.htm
The Cardinal Louis Rene Edouard Prince de Rohan
