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Origin and history

The walls of Philippe Auguste, built between 1190 and 1215, were the second medieval wall of Paris, designed to protect the capital from the attacks of the Plantagenes during the third crusade. With a total length of 5,385 metres (2,850 m on the right bank, 2,535 m on the left bank), it covered 253 hectares and housed approximately 50,000 inhabitants at the end of the king's reign. Its route, still partially visible today, followed major axes such as Rue Saint-Honoré, Rue Saint-Denis and Rue Saint-Antoine, integrating rapidly expanding areas such as Champeaux and Rue Sainte-Geneviève.

The construction began with the right bank (1190–1209), a priority because of the Norman threat, before the left bank (1200–1215), less urbanized. Funded by the Royal Treasury (more than 15,000 pounds) and partly by the Parisian bourgeois, the enclosure consisted of a crenelated wall of 6 to 9 meters high, flanked by 77 semi-cylindrical towers and pierced by 14 main doors. Its initial absence of ditches was compensated in the 14th century by defensive developments, including flooded ditches and barbacans, to adapt to the progress of artillery.

Despite the construction of Charles V's enclosure in the 14th century, Philippe Auguste's was not demolished immediately. It played a key role in urban development, with streets attached to the rampart (such as the rue des Jardins-Saint-Paul) or traced on its old ditches (rue des Fossés-Saint-Bernard). The gates, like Saint-Honoré or Saint-Antoine, became major commercial nodes. In the 16th century, Francis I authorized the partial demolition of the doors, and the ditches, transformed into sewers, were filled in the 17th century, making the enclosure almost invisible.

Today, some 20 remains have been classified as historical monuments since 1889, including the best preserved portion of the street of the Jardins-Saint-Paul (4th arrondissement). This 60-metre stretch, including a tower called the Montgommery Tower, illustrates the medieval construction technique: two stone walls filled with rubble and mortar, with a round road of 2 meters wide. Other traces remain in private courtyards (rue du Temple, rue des Rosiers) or basements (lycée Charlemagne), testifying to the lasting footprint of this fortification on modern Paris.

The enclosure also symbolizes the affirmation of royal power under Philippe Auguste, who made Paris his principal residence and a political, cultural (naissance of the University) and economic (foire des Champeaux). Its financing includes compensation for expropriations (bishop of Paris, abbeys) and bourgeois contributions, reflecting a collaboration between the monarchy and urban elites. Subsequent changes, such as the poternes added in the 13th century (Coquillière, Comtesse-d'Artois), responded to the demographic boom, making Paris the largest city in Europe (250 000 inhabitants in the 14th century).

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