After the Roman town of Burdigala (current Bordeaux) ceased to exist, the inhabitants moved away from the river, and the new city centre became what is now the Saint-Pierre district. The first church was built on the premises of the former port in the Middle Ages. The current church dates from the 14th and 15th centuries and was built on the site of ancient Gallo-Roman port. The Flamboyant style appearance survived from the renovation in the 19th century.
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.