(1100-1526)

During the early Middle Ages, the people of Paris poached entire sections of the sturdier Roman walls to use for their own buildings. You can still find roman stones in the cellars of the medieval half-timbered buildings found mostly in the 4th arrondissement but also in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 6^th.

Interiors have low pier and beam ceilings, walls are half-timber or exposed stone, and the layout tends to have small and irregular sized rooms. These Pain de Bois buildings are structured around a staircase with a wooden or stone load-bearing axis at the center and a cellar of vaulted caves, both of which make installing an elevator in these buildings almost impossible.

Religious buildings also survive, beginning with the Romanesque style (round arched windows) and then evolving into Gothic style (pointed arches, cross vaults and flying buttresses). 

(1515-1643)

When François I took over the French throne, he surrounded himself with the best creative minds of the time, inviting Leonardo da Vinci to Paris and hiring Italian architects to renovate the Louvre; the French capital surged with life and new buildings.

When François died in 1547, the city was torn apart by Catholic and Protestant factions. Henri IV, finally brought peace to Paris and was determined to restore its brilliance. He completed the Pont Neuf, extended the Louvre and reorganized the entranceways of the city. His most beautiful public legacy is the Place Royale. This was also the era of the magnificent private urban chateaux known as “hôtels particuliers,” which developed in the Latin Quarter, the Faubourg Saint-Germain, and the Quartier du Palais-Royal (Rue Saint-Honoré) for the noble class.

While Louis XIV (1643-1715) was exploring the Baroque style, ordinary Parisians of this era saw the development of the humble immeuble de rapport: rental apartment buildings for the middle class which continued in popularity for several hundred years. Found in the 3^rd, 4^th, 9^th, 10^th, and 11^th arrondissements, the facades are simple cut stone with interior walls made of “Paris stone” (plastered), and a brick fireplace. The floors are oak parquet with parallel slats; the ceilings are medium or low in height. Shorter, less expensive wood beams were used, so rooms were rectangular and small. Most apartments were studios or one bedroom but over the years many have been combined to create larger apartments. The stairwell in this type of building is small but elevators are generally possible.