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Who really said it

Courage! I have shown it for years; think you I shall lose it at the moment when my sufferings are to end?

Reported decades after her death Marie Antoinette 1755–1793
Attributed Free to reuse

Frank B. Goodrich, Women of Beauty and Heroism, cited p. 301 (1859)

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Unconfirmed quote & credit

“Courage! I have shown it for years; think you I shall lose it at the moment when my sufferings are to end?” — Attributed to Marie Antoinette at her execution (1793), in Frank B. Goodrich’s later English account (1859); exact exchange unconfirmed.

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Evoking the world of Marie Antoinette — 1755–1793. Theme: "Courage! I have shown it for years; think you I shall lose it at the moment when my sufferings are to end?". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

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Provenance

The source

Source
Frank B. Goodrich, Women of Beauty and Heroism, cited p. 301
Evidence
Wikiquote gives Goodrich’s 1859 account for the English wording; a contemporary transcript of the alleged 1793 exchange was not established.

Courage! I have shown it for years; Short excerpt

How we verified this

  • Wikiquote supplies the exact English sentence, its alleged exchange with the priest, and Goodrich’s 1859 book, page 301.
  • The same reference gives different English versions attributed to later accounts. These variants show a translation and retelling tradition, not a single authenticated English utterance.
  • The inspected catalog identifies Goodrich’s book and links an 1859 edition, but the cited original page was not inspected. The report is therefore not treated as verbatim contemporary evidence.
Public domain

Only a short excerpt is reproduced; identification and commentary do not grant permission to reuse the complete work.

Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.

Context

Why it mattered

The saying is placed at Marie Antoinette’s execution in October 1793. Its cited English account appeared more than sixty years later, making the distinction between an execution-era statement and a later retelling essential. The historical setting is well documented even though the exact exchange is less securely established.

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Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Courage Mortality Resilience

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Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

Wikiquote: Marie Antoinetteen.wikiquote.org

Transcribes the exact sentence, cites Goodrich (1859), p. 301, and supplies variant translations.
Versailles historical biographyen.chateauversailles.fr

Institutional biography documents her marriage, queenship and execution on 16 October 1793.
Goodrich book catalogbooks.google.com

Catalog identifies Women of Beauty and Heroism and an 1859 full-view edition; this is bibliographic evidence, not inspection of page 301.
Marie Antoinette referenceen.wikipedia.org

Documents her dates and historical setting; not authentication of the alleged exchange.

The author

About Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette

1755–1793

Marie Antoinette (1755–1793), born an Austrian archduchess, married the future Louis XVI and became queen of France. Her life at Versailles ended amid the Revolution; she was imprisoned, tried by the Revolutionary Tribunal and executed on 16 October 1793.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

Source reference and evidence

Frank B. Goodrich, Women of Beauty and Heroism, cited p. 301. 1859.

This verification page

Quotle.info. Who really said 'Courage! I have shown it for years; think you I shall lose it at the moment when my sufferings are to end?'? Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/courage-i-have-shown-it-for-years-think-you-i-shall-lose-it/

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