On August 31, 1997, the tragic death of Lady Di and her companion Dodi Al-Fayed shook the whole world. However, a few days before this tragedy, the couple had visited an iconic villa near Paris.
In the 16th arrondissement, near the Bois de Boulogne, there is a luxurious villa: Château Le Bois, renamed Villa Windsor. You should know that he is the father of Dodi Al-Fayed, the Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed, who rented the mansion to the city of Paris at the time of the tragedy. The owner of the Ritz hotel and the Harrods store then paid rent of 1 million francs per year (about 152,450 euros/year) and restored the place from top to bottom. Three days before their tragic accident, Lady Di and her companion Dodi had gone to the villa to visit it.
It is now the Mansart Foundation which holds the right to operate the villa. The foundation chaired by Senator Albéric de Montgolfier, restores since 2021 the castle of Bagatelle located near the Windsor villa. Recognized as a public utility, the foundation’s mission is to preserve and promote French heritage. The restoration of the Villa Windsor, of which the costs amount to 8.7 million euros, will be financed by sponsorship. The foundation plans to open a café-restaurant which will be open to the public in the summer of 2024.
The Villa Windsor: a mythical place for an atypical couple
Lady Di and Dodi Al-Fayed would not have been the only iconic couple to live there. Indeed, another member of the British royal family had already taken up residence there for decades. This is’Edward VIII and his wife, American socialite Wallis Simpson. The short-lived former King of the United Kingdom, who had abdicated to marry his divorcing wife, was named Duke of Windsor by his successor, George VI, his brother. The couple had lived in the mansion from 1952 to 1986.