Abstract
The French Revolution is deeply linked to the individuals, and the King and the Queen do not infringe on that rule. The personalities of the sovereigns', by which we mean their characters, the values they embody and how they were seen in public opinion, determined, among others the increasing radicalization of the Revolution. We will focus on the influence of the royal couple on the course of the revolutionary events. Before the time of the great depreciation of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, (they were not already crowned King and Queen) the royal couple used to be acclaimed by the people. On June 8th of 1773, the newlyweds made a brief appearance on the large balcony of the Tuileries to the cheering of the crowd. They were at the height of their popularity at that time, but this did not last. Marie-Antoinette, who was not French, revealed her pleasure to her mother in her letters, and significantly proved that she was aware of the difficult situation of her subjects: "I was very touched by the affection and the attentiveness of those poor people who, despite the taxes which crush them, demonstrated transports of joy on seeing us".
