From the fortress of Philippe Auguste (1190) to the completion of the "Grand Dessein" (1870), the Louvre palace has extended progressively along the right bank of the Seine. A true barrier separating the northern and southern parts of the city, the building constitutes the point of departure of the great East-West view, which crosses the Arc du Carrousel, the obelisk in the Place de la Concorde, the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysées, and extends right out to the new arche de la Défense. The international renown of the Louvre museum sometimes makes us forget that it was originally designed as a palace. Since the Middle Ages, its development has been quite exceptional, marked by both the major events of French history and the succession of architects and decorators who have left their mark on it.