Caerleon is the historically important site of the Roman legionary fortress of Isca Augusta. St Cadoc's Church stands over the principia (headquarters), where the legionary standards were kept and statues of the Roman emperors venerated. The earliest surviving part of the church dates back to just after the kingdom of Glywysing was overrun by the Normans during the twelfth century and is thought to be the work of Hywel ap Iowerth, who was also the founder of the Cistercian Llantarnam Abbey.
The current church is in the Perpendicular style, which was fashionable in the fifteenth century. The tower, which stands at the southwest corner of the church, has a lower stage that was probably part of the original Norman church, incorporating twelfth/thirteenth century lancet windows. The church features a series of impressive stained-glass windows depicting the life of Christ and symbolising the faith and devotion of the saints associated with Caerleon.
References:Château de Niort is a medieval castle in the French town of Niort. It consists of two square towers, linked by a 15th-century building and dominates the Sèvre Niortaise valley.
The two donjons are the only remaining part of the castle. The castle was started by Henry II Plantagenet in the 12th century and completed by Richard the Lionheart. It was defended by a rectangular curtain wall and was damaged during the Wars of Religion. In the 18th century, the castle served as a prison.
The present keeps were the central point of a massive fortress. The southern keep is 28m tall, reinforced with turrets. The northern tower is slightly shorter at 23m. Both are flanked with circular turrets at the corners as well as semicircular buttresses. Each of the towers has a spiral staircase serving the upper floors. The Romanesque architecture is of a high quality with the dressed stones closely jointed.