The beautiful necklace of Marie Antoinette was a spectacular jewel with 647 diamonds, 2800 carats and valued in 1600,000 poundsdesigned by the court jewelers, Bohmer and Bassenge, it was ordered by Louis XV for his mistress Madame Du Barry, however it never reached her since Louis XV died before they finished the work.
For this reason Mr Bohmer offers this wonderful piece to Marie Antoinette after the birth of his son and his response was that for that price he could acquire a ship that was much more necessary. Bohmer offered the necklace to the Queen countless times and was always rejectedhe even begged the Queen of France to buy it because he was in bankruptcy, but she advised him to break the necklace and sell the stones to overcome their difficulties.
The origin of the scandal surrounding this necklace is that the Countess de Lamotte, belonging to a family of wealth but with economic problems, became romantically involved with Cardinal Rohan, who told her that his dream was to meet Marie Antoinette in person assuming that The Countess could fulfill his wishes by the closeness she said she had with the Queen.
At that time, the Countess of Lamotte sees the opportunity to get rich with the dream of Cardinal Rohan, making a plan related to the necklace that would allow her to end her painful economic situation.
The months before the scandal, the Countess of Lamotte, met Boehmer, the designer of the jewelwho had asked her to intercede so that Marie-Antoinette could acquire the famous necklace.
The Countess of Lamotte, told her lover Rohan that the Queen wanted to buy the necklace secretlysuggesting that he mediates in the operation in order to win the Marie Antoinette’s sympathy.
Rohan, talks to Boehmer who hopeful in selling the piece gives him the necklace to make it arrive to the Countess of Lammotewho had not planned to deliver the necklace, but she plans to sell it in London through her husband.
To complete her plan, the Countess sent letters to Rohan written by her but signed by the Queen in which he promised him to compensate for his action. While Rohan hoped to become a member of the Court of Versailles.
After several months, Rohan asks the Countess for a proof of the Queen’s interest in his person and that is when Lamotte hires a prostitute who had a huge resemblance to Marie Antoinette so that she meets Rohan.
For his part, the jeweler Boehmer begins to express his urgency for the payment of the jewel and decide to send the invoice to Versailles who obviously did not know anything. Boehmer informs Marie Antoinette that the Cardinal Rohan had been the intermediary of the purchase and The Queen orders its immediate detention.
the scandal of the diamond necklace, made that Marie Antoinette was accused of having an affair with Cardinal Rohan to get the expensive necklace, having nothing to do with history or own the jewel.