Favorite ladies from history ⇨ Yolande Martine Gabrielle de Polastron, Duchess of Polignac
Claim to fame: Marie Antoinette’s bestie
Why she’s on the list: Yolande probably seems like a bit of a bizarre choice, seeing as she’s more of a footnote in the life of MA than a big personality in her own right, but I DO WHAT I WANT, because she’s awesome. And if I’m being honest, she seemed like a lot more fun than good ole Antonia. (Yolande also has the added distinction of being one of the very, very few things I liked about Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette.) When I get attached to historical figures, it’s usually because they either pushed boundaries or were just flat-out extraordinary (Anne Boleyn, Eleanor of Aquitaine), but hopefully you’ll see as this list progresses that sometimes I like people just because they were vivid personalities who made a lot of noise. You don’t always have to be a towering figure in the history books to make an impact or qualify as interesting.
Appearance: Dark brown hair, pale skin, violet-coloured eyes. Often compared to “a harvested and luscious fruit” or a Madonna by Raphael.
Personality traits: Up for debate. Historians tend to vacillate between two extremes: Was she a total sweetheart who pledged undying loyalty to Marie Antoinette out of the kindness of her heart? Or was she actually a stone cold bitch who loved nothing more than ambition, raspberry macarons, and fiddling while Rome burned? Personally, I think she’s somewhere down the middle.
Required reading: Marie Antoinette: The Portrait of an Average Woman by Stefan Zweig
Notable quotable: “We do not yet love each other enough to be unhappy if we part; but I see it coming, soon I shall not be able to leave you.”
