Record Details

Catalog Search

Search The Catalog



Marie Antoinette's head : the royal hairdresser, the queen, and the revolution / Will Bashor.

Bashor, Will. (Author).

Summary:

Marie Antoinette's Head: The Royal Hairdresser, The Queen, and the Revolution charts the rise of Léonard Autié from humble origins as a country barber in the south of France to the inventor of the Pouf and premier hairdresser to Queen Marie-Antoinette. By unearthing a variety of sources from the 18th and 19th centuries, including memoirs (including Léonard's own), court documents, and archived periodicals the author, French History professor and expert Will Bashor, tells Autie's mostly unknown story. Bashor chronicles Leonard's story, the role he played in the life of his most famous client, and the chaotic and history-making world in which he rose to prominence. Besides his proximity to the queen, Léonard also had a most fascinating life filled with sex (he was the only man in a female dominated court), seduction, intrigue, espionage, theft, exile, treason, and possibly, execution. The French press reported that Léonard was convicted of treason and executed in Paris in 1793. However, it was also recorded that Léonard, after receiving a pension from the new King Louis XVIII, died in Paris in March 1820. Granted, Léonard was known as the magician of Marie-Antoinette's court, but how was it possible that he managed to die twice?

Record details

  • ISBN: 9780762791538
  • ISBN: 0762791535
  • Physical Description: xix, 299 pages, 16 pages of color plates : illustrations (some color), map ; 24 cm
  • Publisher: Guilford, Connecticut : Lyons Press, [2013]

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 263-268) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:
Part 1 Mania -- 1 Léonard the Magician 2 -- 2 King's New Mistress 20 -- 3 Court of Versailles 29 -- 4 Captivating a Queen and Her Subjects 48 -- 5 "Le Pouf Sentimental" 65 -- Part 2 Queen's Confidant -- 6 A Hairdresser's Gossip 80 -- 7 Queen's Temperament 97 -- 8 Monsieur's Theater 109 -- Part 3 Clouds of Revolution -- 9 Fatal Banquet 124 -- 10 Flight of the Royal Family 142 -- 11 Other Léonard 162 -- 12 Fatal Message 173 -- 13 Léonard in Exile 183 -- Part 4 Struggles to Survive -- 14 Sorrowful Events 198 -- 15 Queen Is No More 211 -- 16 Leonard Resumes the Comb 222 -- 17 Sixteen Years Later 238 -- 18 Leonard's Final Ruse 47.
Subject:
Autié, Léonard, 1751?-1820.
Marie Antoinette, Queen, consort of Louis XVI, King of France, 1755-1793.
Marie Antoinette, Queen, consort of Louis XVI, King of France, 1755-1793 > Friends and associates.
France > History > Louis XVI, 1774-1793.
France > History > Revolution, 1789-1799.
France > Court and courtiers > Biography.
Genre:
Biographies.

Available copies

  • 1 of 1 copy available at NC Cardinal. (Show)
  • 1 of 1 copy available at McDowell County Public Library.

Holds

  • 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Sort by distance from:
Show Only Available Copies
Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Status Due Date
Marion Library 944 BAS (Text) 37810435114557 Adult Nonfiction Available -