Editing Tarascon (section)

===Medieval castle===
The [[castle of King René]]. The present castle replaced a fortress, built on the site of the Roman town to monitor the border of Provence. After the destruction perpetrated in 1399 by the bands of Raymond de Turenne, the Anjou family decided to rebuild it entirely. The construction of the current castle of Tarascon was started in 1401 by [[Louis II of Anjou]]. The construction was continued by his first son, [[Louis III of Anjou]], and was completed in 1449 by his second son, [[René I of Naples]] (René d'Anjou). Thus, the castle is often referred to as ''le château du roi René'' (King René's castle). It was turned into a military prison in the 17th century, until its acquisition by the state in 1932.

It consists of two independent parts: the South, the stately home, flanked by round towers on the city side and river side with walls of up to 48 m high and square towers and the North, the lower court that defends the rectangular constructions. It stands right on the banks of the Rhône opposite [[Château de Beaucaire]], and near St Martha's Collegiate Church.