Just 12 miles from the busy streets of Paris, beyond the gilded gates of the Palace of Versailles, the Château de la Bretèche has re-entered the public market for the first time in nearly 80 years. The sale is being handled by Junot Châteaux & Patrimoine, with international marketing led by Jane Bark Barrellier of Compass.

Built in the 17th century and expanded in the 18th, La Bretèche was adapted as a private hunting retreat for Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, Comte de Toulouse, the legitimized son of Louis XIV, and sits just outside the former Grand Parc of Versailles.

The château is classified as a Monument Historique, placing it under France’s national heritage protections and subjecting future alterations to regulatory oversight. That designation may also make qualifying restoration work eligible for state-supported grants or tax frameworks tied to protected historic properties, subject to approval.

That classification helps explain both the estate’s long-term preservation and its market positioning.

Unlike properties embedded within the Versailles complex, La Bretèche was planned for private use, with its layout oriented toward forest and open land rather than ceremonial display. The grounds extend across approximately 18 hectares, or 45 acres, enclosed by walls and bordering the Marly Forest.

Formal gardens, a historic potager, equestrian alleys, and long views over the Versailles plain structure the landscape, while several character outbuildings and a caretaker’s house support the main residence.

Leisure amenities added over the 20th century include a long outdoor swimming pool, a tennis court, and wine cellars. The property also sits beside the Golf de Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche, one of the region’s most established private clubs.

The main residence offers approximately 11,560 ft² (1,074 m²) of habitable space within a total built area of roughly 15,800 ft² (1,468 m²). Preserved woodwork and a sequence of formal salons emphasize reception over display, while the upper floors house ten bedrooms. Service areas, including kitchens and bathrooms, largely date to the late 20th century and would require updating.

Period architecture remains central to the interior, anchored by a grand Rococo staircase attributed to Jacques Hardouin-Mansart de Sagonne, a court architect and grandson of Jules Hardouin-Mansart, the principal architect of Versailles under Louis XIV—placing La Bretèche squarely within the architectural lineage of the royal domain.

As reported by The Wall Street Journal, the château has been owned by the same family since the 1940s, when it was acquired by Jules Guillaume, then Belgium’s ambassador to France. The estate later passed to his son, Alain Guillaume, and his wife, Princess Anne-Marie Guillaume, a descendant of Joachim Murat and Caroline Bonaparte.

During the postwar period, the property hosted members of Europe’s diplomatic and aristocratic circles, including Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, reinforcing its use as a private residence rather than a ceremonial estate.

At an asking price of $22.9 million, the valuation reflects constraints that are increasingly difficult to replicate this close to Paris: land scale within Île-de-France, Monument Historique classification, documented royal association, and a volume of built space more typical of estates far beyond the capital’s orbit.

Properties of this category trade infrequently and sit outside conventional residential comparisons, with ownership shaped as much by long-term stewardship as by use. For international buyers—particularly from the U.S.—the appeal lies less in spectacle than in structure: proximity to Paris without visibility, land scale that has largely vanished from the region, and royal-era classification that places the estate within a narrow class of long-held heritage assets now re-entering circulation through generational transition.