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Origin and history

La Folie Desmares, located 17 rue de la Gare in Châtillon (Hautes-de-Seine), was built around 1728 by Swiss banker Antoine Hogguer for his mistress, actress Charlotte Desmares. This building, sometimes mistakenly associated with Louis XV's hunting appointments, was built on the cellars of an old house bought in 1708. The architect François Debias-Aubry drew up the plans, while the garden was designed by J.B.A. Le Blond between 1710 and 1715, including a water room, terraces and an orangery.

Sold in 1742, the property underwent modifications over the centuries: transformation of the right wing into a chapel in the 19th century, and reduction of the left wing in 1923. Between the Revolution and 1854, it will house an institution for young people, then the Dominicans of Our Lady of Grace will settle there in 1880 under the name of refuge Sainte-Anne.

The Folie Desmares was acquired by the town hall of Châtillon in 1984 and was classified as a historical monument in 1987 for its facades, roofs, and interior elements as two paintings by Alexandre-François Desportes, now missing. The adjacent park, formerly private, became a public space. The municipality planned to install the town hall, but the project is not mentioned as being completed in the available sources.

The building illustrates the 18th century craze for madness, recreational residences built by the aristocracy or the wealthy bourgeoisie on the outskirts of Paris. Its architecture, close to the Parisian mansion of Dogguer (78 rue de Varenne), reflects the fascist of this period, mixing classical influences and refined decorations, as evidenced by the remains of the paintings of Deportes.

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