Palais des Papes

The Palais des Papes dominates the city with its massive stone walls, twelve defensive towers, and an imposing Gothic silhouette that rises high above the square. This fourteen-thousand-square-meter structure is the largest Gothic palace in the world. It served as the administrative heart of Western Christianity for nearly seventy years, from thirteen oh nine to thirteen seventy-seven, when seven successive popes resided here instead of Rome to escape factional violence.