The Truth Will Out & Marie Antoinette's Reputation is Ruined

The proverbial merde hits the fan in Marie Antoinette’s sixth episode of Season 2, “Hated, Humbled, Mortified,” as the trial against Cardinal Rohan begins. This will be the trial of the century (until eight years later, when the king and queen themselves will each be tried – months apart – and subsequently executed by guillotine). For now, the stakes of the trial could not be higher for Antoinette, whose reputation is on the line. She will endure a formal character assassination in court. 

The groundwork was already laid by the libelles and the fiery rumors they spread, but the trial and its outcome will inflict permanent damage from which the queen and crown will not recover. Even Antoinette’s marriage will be on shaky ground at the end of the hour.

The trial is a circus from the outset. A mob outside the court supports the cardinal, while others side with the queen. Among the aristocratic spectators in attendance is matriarch Madame de Rohan-Soubise (Dearbhla Molloy), who is not amused by the trial being co-opted as propaganda for Orléans’ “radical” agenda. Since Orléans supplied the lawyer, Madame makes it clear that her nephew must be acquitted, or she will denounce Orléans as a traitor. Hidden, Antoinette views the proceedings from a shielded balcony.

Rohan is brought in first. To the courtroom’s shock, he accuses the queen of stealing the necklace. Antoinette is not surprised he’d lie, but Yolande nearly goes through the roof. Rohan imparts the details of his correspondence and meeting the queen secretly in the gardens. He admits to brokering the deal on her behalf. The justices ask why the queen would arrange a secret purchase, and Rohan claims she couldn’t acquire it publicly after the criticism for buying Saint-Cloud. Unfortunately for Antoinette, she cannot refute Rohan’s claim about the garden meeting without admitting she was with von Fersen. She remembers Nicole D’Oliva parodying her at Palais Royal and asks Breteuil to investigate if that’s who the cardinal met.

Jeanne appears in court next as a witness for the crown. She tells her (mostly true) story of a noble but impoverished upbringing, then lies that it was Rohan’s fake charity, not hers. She claims ignorance about the necklace and implicates Cagliostro as Rohan’s accomplice in the scheme. The room is eating it up, and things don’t look good for the cardinal.

Meanwhile, the gossip reaching Versailles finds half of Paris believing the queen stole the necklace. Provence and Josephine realize that if Rohan is convicted, it will drum up unwanted sympathy for Antoinette. They enlist Beaumarchais’ help to make an anonymous deal with Jeanne, telling her to alter her testimony to hurt the queen. “My friends are happy for the cardinal to fall, provided the queen goes down with him.”

Jeanne is cross-examined by Target, who calls her a liar with a made-up title and gets the room laughing at her. Target brings up past charges of forgery as well as evidence of her increased spending after the necklace disappeared. With the tide turning against her, Jeanne switches tactics and begins slandering the queen. She claims Rohan stole the necklace because he was sexually obsessed and bragged about frequent visits to the Petit Trianon. 

Jeanne alleges he boasted of Antoinette’s “insatiable appetites and eclectic interests.” He mentioned a “wall” of diamonds in the queen’s bedroom, spoke of her many suitors, and that she was learning Swedish. “He said it’s lucky the king enjoys being a cuckold.” At this, the courtroom erupts like a Jerry Springer audience.

Louis, who spends much of this episode looking disheveled and haggard, is outraged and wants the trial stopped immediately. Except they can’t or it will appear the crown’s hiding something. The king is already strained: France will go bankrupt in six months, and Parliament is holding up his latest loan request because of the trial. They have learned of his proposed land tax and believe he’s persecuting nobles. 

Later, Antoinette and Louis discuss Parliament’s loyalty. Antoinette is stunned to learn about the country’s finances and the lack of Parliament’s support, and is angry that Louis kept her in the dark. She realizes the magnitude of the case. “This trial is not about a necklace. It’s a referendum on our reign.”

From the Palais Royal, Félicité transfers a shackled Villette the Bastille, whom the Freemasons delivered. Villette is shaken to see Jeanne alive: “You look good for a corpse!” Jeanne reveals she’s made a deal, and if he backs her story against the cardinal, Villette will also go free.

Nicole is brought in to testify, whom the defense found before Breteuil. The courtroom – and the audience – is initially fooled into thinking this is the queen. She confesses she was paid to impersonate Antoinette at a meeting with Rohan, and that she’s had practice pretending to be the queen on stage and in “gentlemen’s beds.” Inspector Fleury asserts the defense hired a “common prostitute” to fabricate a story.

When Villette takes the stand, he opts for complete honesty, perhaps as a form of retaliation against Jeanne. He tells the court that he was working on Jeanne’s orders and has the receipts, including a draft of one of the forged letters in Jeanne’s handwriting. There is thunderous applause; the cardinal has been effectively exonerated.

Louis is sure the trial is over for them, but Antoinette has a fresh idea: to charge the cardinal with slander, a capital crime that carries a death sentence. Louis takes it a step further: all the defendants will be charged. Vergennes questions whether they want a public execution. (Foreshadowing!)

After the new charge is brought, Target delivers a convincing speech claiming none of the defendants said anything that wasn’t already common knowledge about the queen: Antoinette is a proven profligate spender and scandalous adulteress. During the deliberations, Malherbe tells Provence that the Parliament is split. His faction is willing to vote against the king but doesn’t want to empower Orléans in a populist power grab. Malherbe will protect the monarchy by allowing Provence’s installation.

The verdicts are in for Rohan, Villette, Jeanne, Nicole, and Cagliostro, and the crown loses. Rohan and Cagliostro are found not guilty of stealing the necklace. Jeanne is guilty of theft, deceiving the cardinal, and of co-opting Villette and Nicole into the scheme. On the second count of defaming the queen’s good name, all are found not guilty. While the cardinal is greeted with cheers, Jeanne is sentenced to a public beating, branding, and life imprisonment.

Despite Rohan’s acquittal, Louis banishes him. With the crown having entirely lost Parliament’s support, Vergennes and Calonne suggest that Louis call an assembly of notables to pass his reforms. Antoinette interrupts and will not be ignored: she’s discovered the truth about the dauphin’s health and demands to know how much time he has left. She’s devastated when Louis confesses their son has less than two years, and beyond angry that he lied about the dauphin’s prognosis. 

He’s floundering to explain that he was protecting her. She beats her fists against him, and the king cowers. She tells him he can’t protect her, not from this. “Not from anything.” Louis asks how they’ll survive this, and is destroyed when Antoinette exits silently.

Marie Antoinette Season 2 airs Sundays on most local PBS stations, the PBS App, and the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel at 10 p.m. ET. All eight episodes of the new series are available on PBS Passport for members to stream. Season 1 is available to stream for members on PBS Passport and on the Prime Video Masterpiece Channel.