In 1740, with the support of Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour, a porcelain factory was founded in the disused castle of Vincennes. Between 1753 and 1756, under architect Jean-Baptiste Robert Lindet, a new factory was built in Sèvres, near the Bellevue castle (1750) of Madame de Pompadour.

Production moved to Sèvres in 1756. Not long after, the factory, originally a private enterprise, became royal hands. The name manufacture royale de porcelaine de Sèvres was carried on until the French Revolution. Subsequently, the porcelain factory came into the hands of the state, until 2009 it fell under the Ministry of Culture.

In 2010, the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres, the Musée national de Céramique in Sèvres and the Musée National de la Porcelaine A. Dubouché in Limoges were merged into Cité de la céramique - Sèvres et Limoges. The new organization is responsible for the reissue of old products, but also produces new work in collaboration with contemporary artists.

The factory has traditionally produced both household porcelain and pieces used solely for decorative purposes. Sèvres was best known for the tall vases that were made in different sizes, colours, patterns and scenes. Artists were hired for the designs and paintings. Furniture, clocks and barometers were also decorated with porcelain. The porcelain factory had a separate department where small sculptures or figures were made in white biscuit, modeled by sculptors such as Jean-Jacques Bachelier and Étienne-Maurice Falconet.