There was a note of bitterness in her voice and Amé knew that she was referring to the lampoons that daily found their way into the hands of French citizens and which had even been discovered in The Palace. Vitriolic, bestial and obscene, they portrayed the Queen as a monster of viciousness.
“Don’t think of such things, madame,” Axel de Fersen said quickly, making no pretence of being ignorant of what she referred to. “I am no poet, but there are two brief lines that keep coming to my mind this evening.”
“What are they?” Marie Antoinette asked.
“Faith, love and hope,
These three united for ever.”
His voice as he spoke the words was deep and low with emotion.
“That is lovely!” Marie Antoinette exclaimed. “I shall remember those words always. What is more, I shall embroider them on an
