The best examples of seignorial castles are: Troyes, which was built by the Counts of Champagne, and inhabited by them till they removed to Provins in the thirteenth century; and the palace of the Counts of Poitiers at Poitiers, one of the most interesting of such buildings; it was burnt by the English in 1346, and repaired or rebuilt at the close of the fourteenth century by the brother of Charles V., Jean, Duke of Berry, to whom we owe, among other architectural works, the curious fireplace of the great vestibule, called the _Salle des Pas Perdus_, in the _Palais de Justice_. [Illustration: 232. BISHOP'S PALACE AT LAON] The bishops' palaces were differently planned. They usually adjoined the cathedrals, with which they communicated either on the north or the south, according to the facilities afforded by the site. The characteristic symbol of episcopal power which, in the earlier centuries of the Middle Ages, claimed jurisdiction both in spiritual and temporal matters, was the great hall, in later days the synod house and the council chamber of the executive. The bishop's palace in Paris, rebuilt by Maurice de Sully in 1160, preserved this mediæval feature, which is even more conspicuous at Sens, in the magnificent annexe known as the _salle synodale_ (synod house). [Illustration: 233. ARCHBISHOP'S PALACE AT ALBI. PLAN] The canons' lodgings were also in close proximity to the cathedral, but on the side opposite to the bishop's palace. They were surrounded by an enclosure, the gates of which were fastened at night. It was the duty of the canons to aid the bishop in his ministrations. They lived together in annexes which communicated with the cathedral by means of galleries and cloisters.[74] [74] See Part II., "Monastic Architecture," the cloisters of Puy-en-Velay and Elne in Roussillon. The bishops' palaces were often remarkable for their elaborate construction. Fragments of the primitive buildings are still preserved in the palaces of Beauvais, Angers, Bayeux, and Auxerre. [Illustration: 234. ARCHBISHOP'S PALACE AT ALBI. GENERAL VIEW] The ancient episcopal palace of Laon[75] marks a development in thirteenth-century architecture. It is a good example of that system of construction by which the palace was connected with the city ramparts and formed a secondary line of defence. [75] The episcopate was transferred to Soissons in 1809. This system was also adopted at Narbonne. At the close of the thirteenth and during the fourteenth century the palace was transformed into a fortress, the importance of which bore witness to the power of its bishops. After Avignon, it is perhaps the most imposing of episcopal dwellings.