Editing Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma (section)

===Life as empress===
Marie Louise was excited as Napoleon’s wife and settled in quickly in the French court.<ref name="dsa76">de Saint-Amand, p. 76</ref> She developed a close friendship with her ''[[Première dame d'honneur]]'', the [[Louise Antoinette Lannes, Duchess of Montebello|Duchess of Montebello]],<ref name="dsa76"/> while most of the daily affairs were handled by her ''[[Dame d'atour]]'' [[Jeanne Charlotte du Luçay]]. Napoleon initially remarked that he had "married a womb" to an aide, but their relationship soon grew. He "spared no pains" to please her and claimed at one point to prefer Marie Louise to his first wife Joséphine;<ref name="dsa76"/><ref name="dsa80">de Saint-Amand, p. 80</ref> while he had loved Joséphine, and though he claimed Joséphine remained his greatest friend even after their amicable divorce, and that he still would choose her, whereas with Marie Louise, there was "Never a lie, never a debt" &mdash; presumably a reference to Joséphine's rumoured [[Extramarital sex|extramarital affairs]] and reputation as a spendthrift.<ref>Markham, Felix, ''Napoleon'', p.245</ref> Marie Louise wrote to her father: "I assure you, dear papa, that people have done great injustice to the Emperor. The better one knows him, the better one appreciates and loves him."<ref name="dsa94">de Saint-Amand, p. 94</ref> However, the marriage was not without tension; Napoleon sometimes remarked to aides that Marie Louise was too shy and timid, compared to the outgoing and passionate Josephine, with whom he remained in close contact, upsetting Marie Louise.

The excitement surrounding the wedding ushered in a period of peace and friendship between France and Austria, who had been largely at war for the last two decades. The people of Vienna, who hated Napoleon only months before, were suddenly in full praise of the French Emperor.<ref name="dsa39">de Saint-Amand, p. 39</ref> Flattering letters were sent between Napoleon and Emperor Francis, Empress Maria Ludovika Beatrix and Archduke Charles during the wedding festivities.<ref name="dsa44"/><ref name="dsa80"/><ref name="dsa61">de Saint-Amand, p. 61</ref>

During public occasions, Marie Louise spoke little due to reserve and timidity, which some observers mistook for haughtiness.<ref name="dsa128">de Saint-Amand, p. 128</ref> She was regarded as a quiet woman and never interfered in politics.<ref name="dsa130">de Saint-Amand, p. 130</ref><ref name="dsa129">de Saint-Amand, p. 129</ref> Privately, she was polite and gentle.<ref name="dsa140">de Saint-Amand, p. 140</ref>

Napoleon arranged for Marie Louise to participate in some carefully selected charity assignments, most notably the [[Société de Charité Maternelle]], for which he made her Honorary President.<ref>Christine Adams, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=9dceL4HYOewC&dq=Soci%C3%A9t%C3%A9+maternelle+empress&pg=PA202 Poverty, Charity, and Motherhood: Maternal Societies in Nineteenth-Century]''</ref>