Where does ParentElement live in the IronWord API?

ParentElement is an abstract class in the IronWord.Models.Abstract namespace, shipped in IronWord.dll. It derives from ContentElement and is the base for child-holding nodes such as Paragraph, Run, Container, DocumentSection, and ListItem.

How do you add or remove child nodes in a Word document in C#?

Call AddChild to append nodes or InsertChildToIndex to place one at a position. Detach nodes with RemoveChildren, RemoveAllChildren, or Remove. Read the current children through the Children collection, or the typed Tables and Texts lists.

How do you find all elements of a type inside a ParentElement?

Call ExtractElements with the type you want; it returns a List of every matching descendant. Use GetChildByIndex with a type and position for a single typed child, and LogObjectTree to print the subtree while debugging.

Class ParentElement

Represents the base class for content elements which have children.

Inheritance

System.Object

ParentElement

Implements

IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject

IronSoftware.Abstractions.IDocumentObject

System.ICloneable

IronSoftware.Abstractions.IParent<IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObjectCollection, IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject>

Inherited Members

ContentElement.Replace(IWordDocumentObject)

ContentElement.GetIndex<T>()

ContentElement.Parent

ContentElement.Status

Namespace: IronWord.Models.Abstract

Assembly: IronWord.dll

Syntax

public abstract class ParentElement : ContentElement

Holding and arranging child content in a Word document in C# is what ParentElement provides. It is the base for every node that contains other nodes, so a Paragraph holding runs, a DocumentSection holding paragraphs, a ListItem, and a Container all draw their child-management behavior from one place. Where the plain ContentElement base gives a node its identity, ParentElement adds the ability to own a subtree.

Concrete and intermediate types that extend it include Paragraph, Run, Container, DocumentSection, ListItem, MultiLevelTextList, and the table-side bases TableElement and TableElements. A developer obtains one of these by building a document or by reading nodes out of an existing one, then works through the inherited surface to read and reshape its children. Because the behavior lives on this base, the same operations apply no matter which parent you hold.

The member surface groups into clear functions. **Reading children:** Children returns the full child collection, while Tables and Texts give typed lists of the Table and TextContent nodes inside. **Mutating children:** AddChild appends nodes, InsertChildToIndex places one at a position, and RemoveChildren, RemoveAllChildren, and Remove detach them. **Locating and copying:** GetChildByIndex<T> fetches a typed child by position, ExtractElements<T> collects every descendant of a type, and Clone deep-copies the element. **Diagnostics:** LogObjectTree prints the subtree as readable text, which is useful when verifying the structure of a node during development before you save.

using IronWord;
using IronWord.Models;

WordDocument doc = new WordDocument("input.docx");
Paragraph paragraph = doc.Paragraphs[0];
paragraph.AddChild(new Text("appended"));
Console.WriteLine(paragraph.LogObjectTree());

The add text how-to appends child content, the add table how-to builds nested structures, and the document element tutorial explains the parent-child tree.

Constructors

ParentElement()

Initializes a new instance of the ContentElement class.

Declaration

protected ParentElement()

ParentElement(IWordDocumentObject[])

Initializes a new instance of the ContentElement class with the specified child elements.

Declaration

public ParentElement(params IWordDocumentObject[] children)

Parameters

Type	Name	Description
IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject[]	children	The child elements to be added.

Properties

Children

Gets the list of child elements contained within this element.

Declaration

public IWordDocumentObjectCollection Children { get; }

Property Value

Type	Description
IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObjectCollection

Tables

A list of all table elements contained within this element or its children

Declaration

public List<Table> Tables { get; }

Property Value

Type	Description
System.Collections.Generic.List<Table>

Texts

A list of all text elements contained within this element or its children

Declaration

public List<TextContent> Texts { get; }

Property Value

Type	Description
System.Collections.Generic.List<TextContent>

Methods

AddChild(IWordDocumentObject[])

Adds the specified child elements to this element.

Declaration

public virtual void AddChild(params IWordDocumentObject[] children)

Parameters

Type	Name	Description
IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject[]	children	The child elements to be added.

Clone()

Creates a deep copy of the Element.

Declaration

public override object Clone()

Returns

Type	Description
System.Object	A new instance of the Image with all properties copied.

Overrides

ContentElement.Clone()

CloneObject()

Declaration

protected override object CloneObject()

Returns

Type	Description
System.Object

Overrides

ContentElement.CloneObject()

ExtractElements<T>()

Extracts all child elements of a specific type from this element.

Declaration

public List<T> ExtractElements<T>()
    where T : IWordDocumentObject

Returns

Type	Description
System.Collections.Generic.List<T>	A list of child elements of the specified type.

Type Parameters

Name	Description
T	The type of child element to extract.

GetChildByIndex<T>(Int32)

Gets the child element at the specified index, cast to the specified type.

Declaration

public IWordDocumentObject GetChildByIndex<T>(int index)
    where T : IWordDocumentObject

Parameters

Type	Name	Description
System.Int32	index	The index of the child element.

Returns

Type	Description
IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject	The child element at the specified index.

Type Parameters

Name	Description
T	The type of the child element to retrieve.

InsertChildToIndex(Int32, IWordDocumentObject[])

Inserts the specified child elements at the specified index.

Declaration

public void InsertChildToIndex(int index, params IWordDocumentObject[] children)

Parameters

Type	Name	Description
System.Int32	index	The index at which to insert the children.
IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject[]	children	The child elements to be inserted.

LogObjectTree()

Initiates logging of the object tree by traversing from the current object.

Declaration

public string LogObjectTree()

Returns

Type	Description
System.String

Remove()

Marks this element as deleted.

Declaration

public override void Remove()

Overrides

ContentElement.Remove()

RemoveAllChildren()

Removes all child elements from this element.

Declaration

public void RemoveAllChildren()

RemoveChildren(IWordDocumentObject[])

Removes the specified child elements from this element.

Declaration

public void RemoveChildren(params IWordDocumentObject[] children)

Parameters

Type	Name	Description
IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject[]	children	The child elements to be removed.

Implements

IronSoftware.Abstractions.Word.IWordDocumentObject

IronSoftware.Abstractions.IDocumentObject

System.ICloneable

IronSoftware.Abstractions.IParent<, >

Inherited members

Replace(IWordDocumentObject)

GetIndex<T>()

Parent

Status