after his wife's death, he left his land of lasson, near caen, for paris. soon after, he was sought after by the best company. he had left his devotion behind in normandy, and the company of fontenelle, mairan, mirabaud, d'alembert, diderot certainly inspired him to keep things this way. in 1759, his business recalled him in normandy for a few months. instead, he remained there for nearly eight years. keen to lure him back to the capital, diderot and his friends plotted a ruse inspired by the true story of a nun named marguerite delamarre who had appealed her vows: they pretended that nun had escaped the convent and was addressing the marquis to seek his help. the ploy to bring the marquis back to paris failed when, instead of returning to paris, the marquis offered asylum to the imaginary nun in his home in normandy. french literature gained one of its most poignant novels. croismare finally returned to paris in 1767, having lost none of his gaiety, playfulness and grace, which held true until company where his death.