Marolles (considerable elder than Menestrier, published in 1657 his autobiographical work and in this text, in which also referred to the Tarot rules scene of 1637, he also presents a ballet with a battle between French playing cards and Tarot cards. The French playing cards win.
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=751&p=10705&hilit=ballet#p10705
Marolles himself must likely have been a friend of Tarot, likely also Mazzarin (Italian, still in function 1657 as ruling minister) and the king's mother possibly also (one honored with a sort of female Tarot scheme).
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=729
But the indication, that the Tarot cards lose the battle against the French suited playing cards, might mean, that the young king, still not ruling, might have other interests.
But France is in this time time still not ready with its internal wars ... there's trouble around the city of Marseille, with a climax just in the 1659:
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaspard_de ... _Niozelles
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Saint ... rseille%29
Marseille loses some of its independence.
These events form the interesting question, if Marseille in 1657-1659 was already important for Tarot card production, so, that the ballet of Tarot of Marolles in 1657 with is negative statement against Tarot cards already could address with it the rebellious conditions in Marseille.
What we actually get in 1659, is, that the text of the "Maison Academique des Jeux" - likely under some control of the French regime - places a relevant long description of Tarot inside the book (and the first edition of 1654 hadn't a description). So this should be a sign of "peace between Tarot card and French playing cards".
Perhaps this peace was offered, after Marseille was gotten under control?
According worldcat ...
http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=Maison ... umber_link
... there were these editions
1654 Edition without Tarot ... PARIS
--- (5 years) .... time of Tarot Ballet and Marseille is conquered
1659 Edition with "Taros" ... PARIS
--- (7 years)
1666 Edition LYON
--- (2 years)
1668 Edition PARIS
-------- 1668 .... End of the short war of Devolution (1667-68) Franche Comte) /
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_Devolution
--- (6 years)
1674 Edition LYON
-------- 1674 ... Besancon (Franche Comté is taken in Franco-Dutch war (1672 - 78 /
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franco-Dutch_War
--- (23 years)
-------- in this period a lot of war activities, especially against Huguenottes; Strasbourg is taken
1697 edition LYON
-------- same year: peace treaty arranged in LA HAYE (= Den Haag)
--- (5 years)
1702 LA HAYE (in Den Haag, the place of the peace treaty)
-------- 1704 Menestrier writes about playing cards
--- (16 years)
1718 Edition PARIS
--- (21 years)
1739 Edition PARIS
--- (21 years)
1760 Edition AMSTERDAM
--- (17 years)
1777 Edition AMSTERDAM
If one analyses these dates, one gets, that the text was produced from 1654-1668 and then much later again 1718-1739 in PARIS. In the period 1666-1697 we see productions in LYON (which is much nearer to Switzerland and to regions, where Tarot was long played). From 1702 - 1777 we've editions in Dutch countries.
Perhaps one can say, that the interest in Tarot in Paris died with the wars in Franche-Comté (1667-1678). The period with very much wars in France has the side-effect, that the text isn't produced. The new production starts just in the peace-treaty-year 1697, likely a connected date (a book for games runs likely better in times of peace). It's rather curious, that a new production in 1702 outside of France just is arranged in Den Haag, where the peace-treaty 5 years before had been arranged.
Menestrier arrived near to the court end of 1650s, when Marolles wrote his Tarot Ballet.
I would assume, that the use of Tarot in Northern France suffered by the political conditions. Menestrier didn't write about Tarot, because it wasn't opportune to write about this theme.