Philip Augustus had a tall keep built c.1200,in front of the town walls.It was to protect the right bank of Paris;it was also designed as a symbol of royal authority.
It was Charles V who,in the 14th century,first took up residence in the Louvre.The very famous miniature from the “Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry”shows the refurbishment work carried out by Raymond du Temple,the king’s architect,in the 1360’s.The fortress then accommodated the royal family and its suite,even though the palace on the Ile de la Cité remained the official residence.
François I had the keep demolished in 1528 and began restoring and refurbishing the mediaeval fortress to give it the palatial appearance we see today.In 1546,François I commissioned architect Pierre Lescot to rebuild the royal residence.The Louvre Palace laid out for Charles V was to be replaced by a building with the same design,i.e.four sides.The carvings on the façades were created by Jean Goujon.This was the first example of Renaissance art in Paris;it was continued by Henri II after the death of François I and gave rise to the square courtyard (Cour carrée).
After the Grand Gallery commissioned by Catherine de Medici from Louis Métezeau and Androuet Du Cerceau to link the Louvre and the Tuileries Palace(see page 31),it was Louis XIII who continued François I’s work by adding a wing to counterbalance the one built by Pierre Lescot.Louis XIII ordered Jacques Lemercier to continue the inner courtyard which then had only two façades,on the west and south.The foundation stone of the new pavilion,the Clock Pavilion,was laid on 15th July 1624.
