The seat of the Swiss embassy in Paris featured in Swiss TV a few weeks ago and peaked my curiosity. I learnt that the Besenval Palace once belonged to a baron from Solothurn called Pierre Victor de Besenval (1721-1791).
Pierre Victor de Besenval, who, having climbed all the hierarchy of the Swiss Guards under Louis XV, became a senior official of the army of Louis XVI and a very close confidant of Marie Antoinette.
Built for the Abbé Chanac de Pompadour by architect Alexis Delamair in 1705 the embassy's garden has remained the same despite the transformations of the place in 1767 when de Besenval had the architect Brongniart add a floor to the original hotel.
An "oeuvre d'art" the current ambassador Livia Leu is especially proud of is the 1665 Gobelins tapestry illustrateing the renewal of alliance between France and Switzerland which took place in the cathedral Notre-Dame of Paris on November 18th, 1663. The scene represents Louis XIV and the ambassadors of the Swiss cantons lending itself on the Bible a mutual oath.
When the French Revolution began de Besenval remained firmly attached to the royal court and he was given command of the troops which the king had concentrated in Paris in July 1789, a move which led to the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789.
Sadly, de Besenval showed incompetence in the crisis, and attempted to flee. He was arrested, tried by the tribunal of the Châtelet, but acquitted. He then fell into obscurity and died in Paris in 1791.
However, an embassy that can refer to a national historical figure is exceptional - as is the case with this "hotel particulier", which in addition, has its own value. It is the most beautiful Swiss embassy abroad and occasionally even serves as a movie backdrop due to its interior design.
A little treat for my German speaking readers.
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