Page "Marie Antoinette" Paragraph 23

However, at Court the match was not so popular among the elder members of court due to the long-standing tensions between Austria and France, which had only recently been mollified.

Many courtiers had actively promoted a marriage between the dauphin and various Saxon princesses instead.

Behind her back, Mesdames called Marie Antoinette " l ' Autrichienne ", the " Austrian woman.

" ( Later, on the eve of the Revolution, and as Marie Antoinette's unpopularity grew, l ' Autrichienne was easily transformed into l ' Autruchienne, a pun making use of the words autruche " ostrich " and chienne " bitch ".

) Others accused her of trying to sway the king to Austria's thrall, destroying long-standing traditions ( such as appointing people to posts due to friendship and not to peerage ), and of laughing at the influence of older women at the royal court.

Many other courtiers, such as the comtesse du Barry, had tenuous relationships with the Dauphine.