The pediment | ©Moonik / CC-BY-SA1720. The duke d'Estrées, marshal of France, owned a little plot of land located near the bois de Boulogne, in order to raise a little castle and a garden for his wife. The name of Bagatelle was perfect! The lady could receive her friends and made frivolous parties!
The castle was an intimate place, with rooms fit on a human scale: on the ground floor, a living room, a study and a room. Parva sed apta, says the inscription on the castle façade, "small but handy"!
The marshal gave his wife a little heaven on earth, perfect to host her lovers… The marquis d’Argenson wrote in his ″Memories″: ″Here, we make love, all is perfectly scheduled.″
Even the regent Philippe d’Orléans came with his new official mistress, La Parabère.
In 1737, Louis XV came to have a little bit of nooky, because, in Versailles, it was difficult to meet his mistresses! The marshal finally died in 1737, his wife in 1745.