Editing Gothic architecture (section)

==Military architecture==
[[File:Chateau-de-Vincennes-donjon.jpg|thumb|Donjon of the [[Château de Vincennes]], (1337–)]]
{{Main|Castle}}

In the 13th century, the design of the castle ({{Langx|fr|château fort}}) evolved in response to contact with the more sophisticated fortifications of the [[Byzantine Empire]] and the [[Islamic world]] during the [[Crusades]]. These new fortifications were more geometric, with a central high tower called a [[keep]] ({{Langx|fr|donjon|links=no}}) which could be defended even if the [[Curtain wall (fortification)|curtain walls]] of the castle were breached. The donjon of the [[Château de Vincennes]], begun by [[Philip VI of France]] was a good example. It was {{cvt|52|m|ft}} high, and, even though within the moat and walls of the fortress, had its own separate drawbridge to going to higher floor.

Towers, usually round, were placed at the corners and along the walls in the Phillipienne castle, close enough together to support each other. The walls had two levels of walkways on the inside, a [[Crenelation|crenellated]] [[parapet]] with [[merlon]]s, and projecting [[machicolation]]s from which missiles could be dropped on besiegers. The upper walls also had protected protruding balconies, ''[[Bartizan|échauguettes]]'' and ''[[bretèche]]s'', from which soldiers could see what was happening at the corners or on the ground below. In addition, the towers and walls were pierced with [[arrowslit]]s, which sometimes took the form of crosses to enable a wider field of fire for archers and crossbowmen.{{sfn|Ducher|1988|pp=66–67}}

Castles were surrounded by a deep moat, spanned by a single drawbridge. The entrance was also protected by a grill of iron which could be opened and closed. The walls at the bottom were often sloping, and protected with earthen barriers. One good surviving example is the [[Château de Dourdan]], near [[Nemours]].{{sfn|Renault|Lazé|2006|p=38}}

After the end of the [[Hundred Years War]] (1337–1453), with improvements in artillery, the castles lost most of their military importance. They remained as symbols of the rank of their noble occupants; the narrowing openings in the walls were often widened into the windows of bedchambers and ceremonial halls. The tower of the Château de Vincennes became a part-time royal residence until the [[Palace of Versailles]] was completed.{{sfn|Renault|Lazé|2006|p=38}}

<gallery widths="200" heights="140">
File:Carcasonneouterwall.jpg|Restored outer walls of the medieval city of [[Carcassonne]] (13th–14th century)
File:Castillo de Malbork, Polonia, 2013-05-19, DD 04.jpg|[[Malbork Castle]] in Poland (13th century)
File:Exterior Alcazar Segovia.jpg|[[Alcazar of Segovia]] (12th–13th centuries)
File:Burg Hohenzollern.JPG|[[Hohenzollern Castle]] (1454–1461) in [[Baden-Württemberg]], southern Germany
File:Visconteo Castle of Pavia.jpg| [[Visconti Castle (Pavia)|Visconti Castle]], 1360- 1365, [[Pavia]]
</gallery>