Chateau de Vincennes

The Chateau de Vincennes was one of our long trips, a little bit outside of the city that allowed us to explore different elements that were important to the history of Paris. Just to the east of Paris, the royal fortress built by Charles V of France stands. The castle forms a rectangle all together and has 6 towers. A couple of the towers were connected with bridges, such as the one in my picture, which connected the ramparts to the castle. It originated as a hunting lodge for Louis VII and was used as a royal residence from the 12th to the 18th centuries and Louis XI was the first king to use the fortress as a place to keep prisoners. Although it doesn’t have the glitz and gold like Versailles does, it is still a gem of history to France. As a visitor, it was obvious that many elements of the castle were imitations of the past, but it still gives the viewer a glimpse into the past in a creative way and contains a peaceful simplicity.