The building that became the Louvre originally served as a fortress.
Philip II ordered the medieval Louvre built around 1190 as part of Paris’s defensive system. Its position on the Seine’s right bank guarded the western edge of the city and the route toward Normandy, then held by England. The fortress stood outside the junction of the new city wall and was designed to deter attacks approaching from the west.
The original complex was a fortified enclosure with thick crenellated walls, towers, a moat, and a large central keep. It was a military installation rather than a palace, museum, cathedral, or prison. Archaeological remains of the medieval structure survive in the basement areas beneath the Cour Carrée.
Over time, the Louvre lost its frontline military role as Paris expanded and its defenses changed. Charles V converted it into a royal residence in the 14th century, and Francis I began rebuilding it in Renaissance style in 1546. Centuries later, the former royal palace became a public museum during the French Revolution, opening in 1793.