1725

Domaine du Grand Malagny

Classified as part of Geneva’s cultural and historical heritage, the Grand Malagny estate was established between 1725 and 1752 by the Saladin brothers and owes its architecture to the entrepreneur Jean-Louis Bovet.

Majestically positioned facing the lake and Mont Blanc, the estate takes its name from the hamlet it replaced. As early as 1725, the three Saladin brothers set out to acquire all the land and houses in the hamlet to create a single large estate. It was Jean-Louis Saladin, a skilled diplomat better known as Saladin d'Onex, who became the owner of the property and to whom we owe the estate as it still stands today: a grand manor house positioned at the end of a long perspective, punctuated by a succession of rectangular courtyards—the agricultural courtyard, framed by its outbuildings, and the masters' courtyard.

This ensemble, built between 1754 and 1757, is attributed to the entrepreneur and architect Jean-Louis Bovet. The estate, sold to the Marcet family in the 19th century, later passed, at the beginning of the 20th century, to a nephew, Count Horace de Pourtalès, the younger brother of the writer Guy de Pourtalès. The large rural outbuildings, symmetrically positioned on either side of the first courtyard, reflect the significant agricultural activity inherent to this type of estate, which is also adorned with vast gardens.