The Machine of Marly, was a French engineering marvel completed in 1684.
King Louis XIV needed a large water supply for his fountains at Versailles.

The amount of water needed per day for these fountains was not much less than
the amount of water used per day in the city of Paris.
The Machine de Marly,consisted of fourteen gigantic water wheels,
each roughly thirty-six feet wide, that moved 221 pumps
to bring water 177 yards (162 m) up a hillside from the Seine River.

King Louis XIV had countless schemes and inventions that were supposed
to bring water to his fountains. The Machine de Marly was, by far,
his most extensive and costly plan. After three years of construction
and a cost of approximately 4,000,000 livres, the massive contraption was completed.

However, the machine suffered from frequent breakdowns, required a permanent staff
of sixty to maintain and often required costly repairs.

In the beginning of the eighteenth century a part of the primitive Machine
was dismantled And replaced by this new one.



As the Machine de Marly constantly failed to operate properly, it was destroyed in 1968 and just stayed on the river the little house you see on the picture.

Now water is brought to the chateau de Versailles by big hydraulic pumps and is always carry on by the original aqueduct to two reservoirs near Versailles.

In spite of its name, the Machine de Marly was located on the territory of the commune of Bougival.
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