The Bastille was built in a rectangle shape, 70 meters (220 ft) long and 30 meters (90 ft) wide. It had eight towers and walls 25 meters (80 ft) high, with a wide moat going around the outside. There were two courtyards inside and houses against the walls. Pairs of towers on the east and west sides had gates through which the rue Saint-Antoine passed. In the 1400s, these were blocked up, and a new city gate was built to the north on the present day rue de la Bastille. A bastion on the eastern side was built later. The walls and towers were of the same height and width and joined by a broad path. Soldiers on the wall could move quickly to any part of the fortress without having to climb down inside the towers. It also meant that there was enough room for placing artillery. A similar design can be seen today at Château de Tarascon.