The train was named after the French painter Antoine Watteau.

[1] One year before the creating of the TEE-network the French railway SNCF introduced three Trains d'affaires to link Paris with the industrial area in the North near the Belgian border.

This trains were scheduled with a morning, midday and evening service in both directions.

In 1959 these were replaced by locomotive hauled trains consisting of Corail coaches.

Although domestic TEE-services were allowed from 1965 the Trains d'affaires were not upgraded until 1978.