The Main Actors in Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI's marriage

 Empress Maria-Theresa

She had always dreamt of a prestigious alliance with the French kingdom, and settling in the most famous kingdoms in Europe one of her daughters. Little did she know how unfortunate her daughter's fate would become in the end. In her letters, she poured many advices on her last daughter in order to secure her place in the French court, notorious for being one of the cruelest. But because of some of her demands, she put Marie-Antoinette in danger. The French opinion thought that MA was still Austrian at heart and was ready to betray her new country while serving the Austrian interests. 

 King Louis XV. Louis XVI's grand-father. He had long hesitated before agreeing to the marriage between his grandson Louis-Auguste, born in August 1754, and the young archduchess. Nonetheless, this alliance was, in his eyes, probably a mean to get some revenge against the UK. Indeed, the French lost the 7-year War against England, and a marriage, a cooperation between France and Austria could be a solution against the English supremacy.
Louis XV was famous for being handsome, though quite shy. He was extremely loyal to his wife, the queen, with whom he had had numerous children. When she decided to stop having sexual relationships with him (because constant pregnancies started to wear her out), he began to have mistresses. The most famous ones are the Marquess of Pompadour, and Countess du Barry. The latter was Marie-Antoinette's biggest rival when she arrived in France, but this rivalry was in fact, only in MA's mind. 

 Ambassador Mercy-Argenteau. Marie-Antoinette grew very attached to him; she considered him as a second father. But he wasn't as sentimental as her, to be honest. Today, many historians think he was a bit of a bad genius towards Marie-Antoinette. He secretly furnished the empress with many details about her daughter's new life, giving to MA the impression that she was completely and relentlessly spied on;  indeed her mother knew everything about her way of living. Moreover, he thought Louis-Auguste, future Louis XVI, was a stupid, naive young man that could be easily manipulated.

 Chancelier Kaunitz

Minister Choiseul. He was rather a good politician but alienated Louis XV because of his "war" with Mme du Barry, Louis XV's mistress. The marriage between MA and Louis XVI was also one of his ideas, and Marie-Antoinette felt extremely grateful towards him. Unfortunately for him, after Louis XV's death, he never recovered from his feud with Countess du Barry, and Louis XVI never took him back as a minister, trying to erase everything that may remind him of his grandfather's failures to only keep what seemed good to him and for the kingdom.

Preparations for a marriage or Marie-Antoinette's Fate

The political strategists from Marie-Thérèse led her to her dream: making her youngest daughter Marie-Antoinette future queen of France.
Her sister Marie-Caroline married with the king of Naples a few years before Marie-Antoinette went to France. Indeed, one of their big sisters died and MC had to replace her. As for Marie-Elisabeth, she was disfigured by illness and was considered unmarriable, finally.

(the portrait they sent to the French king as the lilly flower can be seen embroidered to her ermine coat).

Their father, François-Etienne died when Marie-Antoinette was around 9.
The first talks for a marriage between a dauphin (French heir to the French throne) and an archduchess must have started about 1764.
This marriage was seen as an extension of the alliance between France and Austria. Indeed, some years before everything was concluded for MA and Louis-Auguste, a conflict opposed Prussia and England against France and Austria. It ended up in disaster, and both Louis XV and Marie-Thérèse renounced to some of their land possessions. From that moment, France tried to maintain its alliance with Austria, but the French king still felt some mistrust towards this country. Like England (mostly with the competitions between French king François I and English king Henry VIII during the Renaissance times), Austrian sovereigns were considered as rivals.

Choiseul, a French nobleman, worked on a marital project between the two countries in order to make the bond between them much stronger. Indeed, Bourbons and Habsbourgs had both a lot of prestige and this new form of alliance could only make it brighter and more powerful.

From 1766 to 1769, diplomats exchanged many letters about Marie-Antoinette and the union between the princess to dauphin Louis-Auguste. If she already pleased with her pretty face and good manners, her lack of sturdy education started to worry her mother. So in 1768, the empress really began to catch-up for her daughter's short comings.

Marie-Antoinette made tolerable progress in French, history etc but it remained superficial enough. The most important was to get her to speak the best French possible. As she had all the graces required for a princess, her entourage felt sure about her social success.

It seemed the little princess underwent some physical make-over: her new hairstyle coiffed her (to arrange her high forehead), a dentist took care of her teeth (badly aligned at first) and they sewed for her new dresses in a more French style. We have to remember the French court was the nest of fashions in all categories possible.

A portrait is sent to the French court. It probably was received with both satisfaction and contentement. As for Marie-Antoinette, she only received a painting of her future husband plowing a field. I think it was done so in order to make her see her future husband's qualities (a great worker? a humble  and healthy young man?). Though such a choice of representation can still be seen as strange. And she probably didn't complain because no one reported a sign of disappointment from her part.

On June 13rd, 1769, Marie-Antoinette was officially asked in marriage by the French king for his grand son Louis-Auguste.

Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI-Related

Genealogy

Related.

When people say that all royals are blood related, well, I'm more than ready to agree. There were already a few gossips on the net on how Kate and William had some ancestors in common

(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1299794/How-Prince-William-Kate-Middleton-related-thanks-Tudor-tyrant.html ).

Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI were not exceptions to this fact as well:

their common ancestors lineage starts with Philippe, Duke of Orléans, brother of king Louis XIV (great-great-great grand-father of Louis XVI). Indeed, Monsieur (as Philippe was called ) is no less than Marie-Antoinette's father's grand-father. With his second wife, Princess Palatine, Philippe “created” a second branch in his family when he gave his daughter to marry a member of the Lorraine family.

Louis XIV's brother's blood then also ran into Louis XVI's veins. He was his great-great-great-grand-father by the marriage between Marie-Adélaide de Savoie (Philippe's grand-daughter) and Louis de France (Louis XIV's grand-son and heir). 

So according to some genealogy rules, Marie-Antoinette is Louis XV's cousin on the same degree (not same generation, obviously).

Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette were second cousins twice removed, and Marie-Antoinette was Louis XIV's great-grand niece.

Nevertheless, despite frequent marriages between first cousins or with other familial links, at least in their direct genealogy, Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette were rather in good health, great shape and said to be both handsome people (an English woman once said she was disappointed by Louis-Auguste during his wedding day, because she thought he was going to be horrible. He wasn't.).

Unfortunately, Louis XIV's cousin Charles II of Spain didn't have the same luck; he was the heir of a lineage full of inbreedings (his mother and father being niece and uncle for example) which probably explains his very awful health. And he was also heavily prognathous. He married Philippe's first daughter Marie-Louise whom he fell deeply in love with. Unfortunately for the couple, they didn't succeed in having children, which caused great distress for both of them. 

(Pictures found on the Net).

By Nana 

If there are some mistakes I apologize and will try to correct them.