But, before, we enter the interior of this building, it may not be
amiss to give you some account of its construction, and describe to
you its exterior beauties.
The origin of this palace, as well as the etymology of its name, is
lost in the darkness of time. It is certain, however, that it
existed, under the appellation of _Louvre_, in the reign of Philip
Augustus, who surrounded it with ditches and towers, and made it a
fortress. The great tower of the _Louvre_, celebrated in history, was
insulated, and built in the middle of the court. All the great
feudatories of the crown derived their tenure from this tower, and
came hither to swear allegiance and pay homage. "It was," says St.
Foix, "a prison previously prepared for them, if they violated their
oaths."[1] Three Counts of Flanders were confined in it at different
periods.
The _Louvre_, far from being cheerful from its construction, received
also from this enormous tower a melancholy and terrifying aspect
which rendered it unworthy of being a royal residence. Charles V.
endeavoured to enliven and embellish this gloomy abode, and made it
tolerably commodious for those times. Several foreign monarchs
successively lodged in it; such as Manuel, emperor of Constantinople;
Sigismund, emperor of Germany; and the emperor Charles the Fifth.
This large tower of the _Louvre_, which had, at different periods,
served as a palace to the kings of France, as a prison to the great
lords, and as a treasury to the state, was at length taken down in
1528.
The _Tower of the Library_ was famous, among several others, because
it contained that of Charles V. the most considerable one of the
time, and in which the number of volumes amounted to nine hundred.