What royal complex did Charles V create south of the Bastille for his own safety?

Charles V created the Hôtel Saint-Pol south of the Bastille for his own safety. The royal complex stood on Paris’s Right Bank, stretching roughly from the Porte Saint-Paul toward the Rue Saint-Antoine, close to the fortified eastern edge of the medieval city.

Charles V became king during the turmoil of the Hundred Years’ War, when Paris faced political unrest and military danger. He chose to live near the Bastille, whose defensive works helped protect the eastern approach to the capital. Construction of the Hôtel Saint-Pol began around 1360, and Charles expanded it by joining several existing properties.

The Hôtel Saint-Pol was not simply one palace building. It included separate lodgings for the king, queen, and royal children, chapels, banquet rooms, guest quarters, gardens, and a room for the royal council. Charles also kept an important book collection there, helping lay foundations for France’s later national library.

The residence declined after the royal court increasingly favored other locations. It fell into ruin and was sold off in the sixteenth century. It should not be confused with the later Palais-Royal or the Tuileries Palace, both associated with different periods and royal projects.