France · Restored
Tower of Philip the Fair
The Tour Philippe-le-Bel is a medieval stone tower at the Villeneuve-lès-Avignon end of the Saint-Bénézet Bridge, erected under Philip IV as the French bridgehead and part of a small fortress. The gatehouse, curtain wall and ancillary buildings have been demolished; the tower alone survives and is open to the public as a protected historic monument.
First raised
1292
Its prime
1350
Today
Restored
As it stood in 1350
The shape it held in its prime.
A massive, irregular quadrilateral limestone keep of three storeys, rising directly from a sloping rocky base beside the Rhône; pale, roughly rusticated ashlar on the lower levels and smoother limestone higher up. The flat roof is surrounded by a crenellated parapet with projecting machicolations and a small rectangular turret at one corner. Narrow vertical arrow-slits and window niches puncture very thick walls; traces of projecting bonding stones mark where a curtain wall was once planned or attached.
Its story
The story of Tower of Philip the Fair.
Philip IV — Philippe le Bel — raised the tower as the French bridgehead of the Saint-Bénézet Bridge across the Rhône, having ceded his claim to Avignon in 1290 to Charles II of Naples, Count of Provence. A tower of only two storeys was completed in 1302 and, despite protests from the Count of Provence and the population of Avignon, a gatehouse followed at the bridge end; with a curtain wall enclosing a chapel and a residence for the châtelain, the whole formed a small fortress. A third storey was added in the middle of the 14th century.
The Saint-Bénézet Bridge was abandoned in 1669 and the fortress ceased to serve any useful function; the crown paid for repairs until the French Revolution, after which the buildings fell into ruin. In 1822 the town of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon demolished everything except the present tower, selling the material to cover costs. Listed as a Monument historique in 1862, the tower is owned by the commune and open to the public.
Step inside
10 places to explore in 1350.
The record describes 10 distinct spots at Tower of Philip the Fair — including 3 interiors: ground-floor guardroom (interior), narrow spiral staircase (interior), first-floor reception hall (interior). Create your own photoreal reconstruction and walk through every one — more scenes means more photos, more angles and more rooms of the immersive experience.
Create History
Recreate Tower of Philip the Fair with AI to explore it.
The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1350 — a photoreal walk that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.
Recreate Castle to Explore →
