The Petit Trianon: A Queen's Private Domain

"Petit" in Petit Trianon means "small," a name given because the building is much smaller than the Grand Trianon. The Grand Trianon was originally known simply as "the Trianon," but once the Petit Trianon was built, "Grand" was added to distinguish between the two.

The estate was built for Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV's favored mistress, but she died before it was completed. When Louis XVI later came to the throne, he gave it as a gift to his wife, Marie Antoinette — the first time in French history that a queen possessed an independent estate entirely her own.