The History of the Bidet: 300 Years of Hygiene, from the French Boudoir to the Japanese Washlet

Invented in French aristocratic boudoirs in the early 18th century, relegated to obscurity by toilet paper lobbyists, then reinvented by Japan in a form no one had imagined: the bidet spans 300 years of history with remarkable resilience. A complete look back at the trajectory of a hygiene object that, after almost disappearing, is now making a comeback in our bathrooms.

The invention of the bidet in France: 18th-century boudoirs

It was in France, in the early 18th century, that the bidet made its first documented appearance. Its invention is generally attributed to Christophe Des Rosiers, saddler to Regent Philippe d'Orléans, around 1710. The principle was rudimentary: a pear-shaped basin made of earthenware or porcelain, mounted on four carved wooden legs, into which warm water, brought in a pitcher, was poured. One straddled it — and washed one's intimate parts.

The object immediately became part of French nobility's customs. Inventories of the most luxurious châteaux bear witness to this: Madame de Pompadour owned no fewer than three, made of Sèvres porcelain with gilded trim. Napoleon Bonaparte had a solid silver bidet which he expressly bequeathed to his son in his will. Louis XIV received his ministers from his commode chair — reflecting an era where the boundary between intimate hygiene and public representation was radically different from ours.

At that time, the bidet was an unequivocal social marker. Only those with household staff capable of carrying hot water upstairs could afford its use: a luxury reserved for a tiny fraction of the population.

Why is it called a "bidet"?

The word "bidet" originally referred to a small post-horse — stocky, lively, and resilient. The verb "bider" meant "to trot." The metaphor is immediate: to use the object, one straddles it, exactly like mounting a horse. This equestrian nod has traversed the centuries, even appearing in the children's rhyme "À dada sur mon bidet, quand il trotte il fait des pets" (On my bidet, trot trot trot, when it trots, it makes farts).

This etymology, both popular and slightly trivial, helped to embed the bidet in an imaginary context that would later prevent it from crossing certain cultural boundaries — particularly those of the Anglo-Saxon world, where the object would long be associated with a misunderstood Latin sophistication.

The golden age of the bidet: from the 19th century to the Belle Époque

Throughout the 19th century, the bidet gradually descended the social ladder. The industrial revolution allowed for the production of earthenware basins at an accessible cost. More importantly, the widespread adoption of running water pipes in Haussmann-era buildings — from the 1850s onwards — radically transformed the object: no more pitchers of water, the bidet was now equipped with a mixer tap and a drainage system connected to the sewers.

During the Belle Époque, the bidet adorned almost all bourgeois French bathrooms, alongside claw-foot bathtubs. Its use was daily: after using the toilet, for washing feet, women's intimate care, or even "sitz baths" recommended by doctors to relieve hemorrhoids and perineal pain.

France was then one of the few Western European countries to massively adopt the bidet. In Great Britain and the United States, the object never truly crossed the threshold of homes. The reason is partly historical: during the First World War, Allied soldiers discovered the bidet in French brothels. The resulting negative association explains why, for decades, the bidet remained for Anglo-Saxons more synonymous with loose morals than rigorous hygiene — which considerably hindered its international adoption.

How toilet paper killed the bidet (1950–1980)

The decline of the bidet in France was swift and brutal. Within a single generation — between the 1950s and 1980s — it disappeared from new constructions. Several combined factors explain this downfall.

Toilet paper marketing. The paper industry invested heavily in advertising from the 1960s to normalize the exclusive use of paper. What was carefully omitted: it takes an average of 140 to 180 liters of water to produce a single roll of toilet paper — compared to less than a liter per bidet use. An ecological paradox that the era did not yet have the tools to measure.

Reduced surface areas. The post-war construction boom led to smaller apartments. In a 45 m² two-room apartment, the bathroom only accommodated a shower and a sink. The bidet was the first sacrifice to the architect's plan.

Democratized showers. The widespread access to showers in the 1960s–1970s gave the illusion that complete daily hygiene was achieved there. The bidet seemed redundant. It was forgotten with no apparent regret.

The weight of taboos. Associated in the collective imagination with sexuality and a form of artisanal contraception, the bidet failed to reinvent a serious image in an era that preferred not to talk about it.

By the end of the 1980s, the bidet had almost completely disappeared from new French constructions. Only old buildings retained a few specimens — often converted into towel racks or indoor planters.

Japan reinvents hygiene: the birth of the washlet (1980)

While France was forgetting the bidet, Japan was inventing it anew — and much better.

In 1980, the Japanese manufacturer Toto launched the Washlet: a toilet seat incorporating a warm water jet, warm air drying, and a heated seat. The innovation was radical: it combined the functions of a bidet and a toilet seat into a single device, without taking up additional space in the bathroom. No separate basin, no pitchers of water, no plumber required.

Its success in Japan was immediate and lasting. In 2024, more than 80% of Japanese households are equipped with a washlet. In hotels, train stations, airports, shopping centers — Japanese toilets are everywhere, featuring remote controls, self-cleaning nozzles, and automatic presence detection.

What Japan understood is that the bidet addresses a fundamental need that toilet paper doesn't truly satisfy: cleaning with water, as one does for any other part of the body. The Japanese simply made this obvious truth comfortable, discreet, and technological — and they can no longer imagine living without it.

The great return of the bidet in France: ecology, health, and savings

For the past decade, and accelerating since 2020, the bidet has made a remarkable comeback in France — in the form of compact attachments to install on existing toilets, and washlet seats inspired by the Japanese model.

Ecology. Each French person consumes an average of 15 kg of toilet paper per year. Reducing this consumption by 70 to 90% with a bidet is a concrete, measurable, immediate environmental gesture — without changing one's lifestyle.

Health. Doctors and dermatologists regularly remind us: toilet paper rubs without truly cleaning, leaves irritating residues, and can promote infections. For people suffering from hemorrhoids, anal fissures, sensitive skin, or for pregnant and postpartum women, the water jet is a common medical recommendation.

Budget. A four-person household spends between €150 and €250 per year on toilet paper. A bidet pays for itself in a few months and then generates lasting savings, year after year.

The 2020 shortage. The March 2020 lockdown reminded millions of French people that total dependence on a disposable consumable is a fragile hygiene strategy. Bidet sales soared by several hundred percent in the following weeks — and many of those who made the switch never returned to exclusive paper use.

Bidet or Japanese toilet seat: which Mizu product is right for you?

The Mizu range offers several ways to rediscover the comfort of water, depending on your installation, usage, and budget.

Mizu bidets — the minimalist solution

The Mizu Essentiel (cold water) and the Mizu Onzen (cold + hot water) attach directly under your current toilet seat. Connection to your toilet's stopcock in minutes, via the T-connector included in the kit. No electricity, no plumber, no renovation work. Fully reversible installation in less than 15 minutes.

Mizu toilet seats — Japanese comfort at home

The Mizu Zen and the Mizu Pro replace your existing toilet seat with a complete washlet: adjustable front and rear jets, heated seat, warm air drying, soft-close lid. Installation in 20 to 30 minutes. An electrical outlet with grounding is required near the toilet. If you want the full experience — the one that 80% of Japanese people couldn't imagine living without — this is the way to go.

The Mizu Go — bidet everywhere

On the go, camping, visiting friends and family? The Mizu Go and the Mizu Go+ are portable bidets that fit in a bag — manual or electric versions. Water hygiene, without depending on the equipment on site.

Three hundred years after its invention in the boudoirs of Versailles, the bidet is more relevant than ever. It has survived oblivion, crossed continents thanks to Japan, and is now returning armed with arguments that our era can only embrace: ecology, health, comfort, savings.

France invented it. Japan perfected it. All that's left is for you to reinstall it in your home.