La arquitectura gótica es un estilo arquitectónico que prevaleció en Europa desde finales del siglo XII hasta el siglo XVI, durante la Alta y Baja Edad Media , sobreviviendo hasta los siglos XVII y XVIII en algunas áreas. [1] Evolucionó a partir de la arquitectura románica y fue sucedida por la arquitectura renacentista . Se originó en las regiones de Île-de-France y Picardía del norte de Francia . El estilo en ese momento a veces se conocía como opus Francigenum ( lit. ' obra francesa ' ); [2] el término gótico fue aplicado por primera vez despectivamente durante el Renacimiento tardío , por aquellos ambiciosos de revivir la arquitectura de la antigüedad clásica .
El elemento de diseño que define la arquitectura gótica es el arco apuntado . El uso del arco apuntado a su vez condujo al desarrollo de la bóveda de crucería apuntada y los arbotantes , combinados con tracerías elaboradas y vitrales . [3]
En la abadía de Saint-Denis , cerca de París, se reconstruyó el coro entre 1140 y 1144, reuniendo por primera vez los rasgos arquitectónicos góticos en desarrollo. De esta manera, surgió un nuevo estilo arquitectónico que enfatizaba la verticalidad y el efecto creado por la transmisión de la luz a través de vidrieras . [4]
Se encuentran ejemplos comunes en la arquitectura eclesiástica cristiana , en las catedrales y las iglesias góticas , así como en las abadías y las iglesias parroquiales . También es la arquitectura de muchos castillos , palacios , ayuntamientos , casas gremiales , universidades y, hoy en día de forma menos destacada, en viviendas privadas. Muchos de los mejores ejemplos de arquitectura gótica medieval están incluidos en la lista de Patrimonio de la Humanidad de la UNESCO .
Con el desarrollo de la arquitectura renacentista en Italia a mediados del siglo XV, el estilo gótico fue reemplazado por el nuevo estilo, pero en algunas regiones, en particular Inglaterra y Bélgica, el gótico continuó floreciendo y desarrollándose hasta el siglo XVI. Una serie de resurgimientos góticos comenzaron a mediados del siglo XVIII en Inglaterra , se extendieron por toda Europa en el siglo XIX y continuaron, principalmente en iglesias y edificios universitarios, hasta el siglo XX.
Los contemporáneos medievales describieron el estilo como en latín : opus Francigenum , lit. 'obra francesa' u ' obra franca ', como opus modernum , 'obra moderna', novum opus , 'obra nueva', o como en italiano : maniera tedesca , lit. 'estilo alemán'. [5] [6]
El término "arquitectura gótica" se originó como una descripción peyorativa . Giorgio Vasari utilizó el término "estilo bárbaro alemán" en sus Vidas de los artistas para describir lo que ahora se considera el estilo gótico, [7] y en la introducción a las Vidas atribuye varias características arquitectónicas a los godos , a quienes consideró responsables de destruir los edificios antiguos después de conquistar Roma y erigir otros nuevos en este estilo. [8] Cuando Vasari escribió, Italia había experimentado un siglo de construcción en el vocabulario arquitectónico vitruviano de órdenes clásicos revividos en el Renacimiento y vistos como evidencia de una nueva Edad de Oro de aprendizaje y refinamiento. Por lo tanto, el estilo gótico, al estar en oposición a la arquitectura clásica, desde ese punto de vista se asoció con la destrucción del avance y la sofisticación. [9] La suposición de que la arquitectura clásica era mejor que la arquitectura gótica estaba muy extendida y resultó difícil de refutar. [10] Vasari fue imitado en el siglo XVI por François Rabelais , quien se refirió a los godos y ostrogodos ( Gotz y Ostrogotz ). [a] [11]
El arquitecto erudito Christopher Wren desaprobó el nombre gótico para la arquitectura ojival. La comparó con la arquitectura islámica , a la que llamó « estilo sarraceno », señalando que la sofisticación del arco ojival no se debía a los godos sino a la Edad de Oro islámica . Escribió: [12]
A esto lo llamamos ahora estilo gótico de arquitectura (así llamaban los italianos a lo que no era de estilo romano), aunque los godos eran más bien destructores que constructores; creo que con más razón debería llamarse estilo sarraceno, pues esta gente no carecía ni de artes ni de conocimiento; y después de que nosotros en Occidente perdimos ambos, volvimos a tomar prestado de ellos, de sus libros árabes, lo que ellos con gran diligencia habían traducido de los griegos.
— Christopher Wren, Informe sobre la iglesia de San Pablo
Wren fue el primero en popularizar la creencia de que no fueron los europeos, sino los sarracenos , los que crearon el estilo gótico. El término «sarraceno» todavía se utilizaba en el siglo XVIII y se refería normalmente a todos los musulmanes, incluidos los árabes y los bereberes. Wren menciona la deuda arquitectónica de Europa con los sarracenos no menos de doce veces en sus escritos. [13] También rompió decididamente con la tradición al suponer que la arquitectura gótica no representaba simplemente un error violento y molesto, como sugería Vasari. Más bien, vio que el estilo gótico se había desarrollado con el tiempo siguiendo las pautas de una sociedad cambiante y que, por lo tanto, era un estilo arquitectónico legítimo por sí mismo. [14]
No era ningún secreto que a Wren le desagradaban profundamente las prácticas de construcción de estilo gótico. Cuando fue nombrado supervisor de la fábrica de la Abadía de Westminster en el año 1698, expresó su desagrado por el estilo gótico en una carta al obispo de Rochester: [15]
Nada se consideraba magnífico si no era alto más allá de lo que se podía imaginar, con el ondear de los contrafuertes de los arcos, como llamamos a los arcos inclinados que sostienen las bóvedas más altas de la nave. Los romanos siempre ocultaban sus contrafuertes, mientras que los normandos los consideraban ornamentales. He observado que estos son los primeros elementos que ocasionan la ruina de las catedrales, al estar tan expuestas al aire y al clima; la corona, que no puede defenderlas, falla primero y, si cede, la bóveda debe abrirse. Los pináculos no sirven y son igualmente un adorno.
- Christopher Wren, Parentalia
El caos del gótico dejaba mucho que desear a ojos de Wren. Su aversión por el estilo era tan fuerte que se negó a poner un techo gótico en la nueva catedral de San Pablo, a pesar de las presiones que recibió para que lo hiciera. [16] Wren prefería mucho más la simetría y las líneas rectas en la arquitectura, por lo que elogió constantemente la arquitectura clásica de los «antiguos» en sus escritos.
Aunque expresó abiertamente su desagrado por el estilo gótico, Wren no culpó a los sarracenos por la aparente falta de ingenio. Todo lo contrario: elogió a los sarracenos por sus técnicas de bóveda "superiores" y su uso generalizado del arco apuntado. [17] Wren afirmó que los inventores del gótico habían visto la arquitectura sarracena durante las Cruzadas , también llamadas Guerra de Religión o Guerra Santa, organizadas por el Reino de Francia en el año 1095:
La Guerra Santa dio a los cristianos que habían estado allí una idea de las obras sarracenas, que luego imitaron en Occidente; y la perfeccionaron cada día a medida que avanzaban en la construcción de iglesias.
- Christopher Wren, Parentalia
Esta afirmación plantea varias cuestiones cronológicas, una de las razones por las que muchos rechazan la teoría de Wren. Los primeros ejemplos de arco apuntado en Europa datan de antes de la Guerra Santa, en el año 1095, lo que se considera una prueba de que el estilo gótico no pudo derivar de la arquitectura sarracena. [18] Varios autores se han posicionado en contra de esta afirmación, afirmando que el estilo gótico probablemente se había filtrado en Europa por otras vías, por ejemplo a través de España o Sicilia. La arquitectura española de los moros podría haber favorecido la aparición del estilo gótico mucho antes de que tuvieran lugar las Cruzadas. Esto podría haber sucedido gradualmente a través de comerciantes, viajeros y peregrinos. [19]
Según un corresponsal del siglo XIX en la revista londinense Notes and Queries , el término gótico era un término despectivo e inapropiado; los arcos apuntados y la arquitectura de la Baja Edad Media eran bastante diferentes de los arcos redondeados que prevalecían en la Antigüedad tardía y el período del Reino Ostrogodo en Italia:
No cabe duda de que el término «gótico», aplicado a los estilos ojivales de la arquitectura eclesiástica, fue utilizado al principio con desdén y burla por aquellos que ambicionaban imitar y revivir los órdenes arquitectónicos griegos, tras el resurgimiento de la literatura clásica. Pero, sin citar a muchas autoridades, como Christopher Wren y otros, que prestaron su ayuda para depreciar el antiguo estilo medieval, al que denominaron gótico, como sinónimo de todo lo que era bárbaro y rudo, puede ser suficiente referirse al célebre Tratado de Sir Henry Wotton , titulado Los elementos de la arquitectura , ... impreso en Londres en fecha tan temprana como 1624. ... Pero fue una extraña aplicación errónea del término utilizarlo para el estilo ojival, en contraposición al circular, antes llamado sajón, ahora normando, románico, etc. Estos últimos estilos, como el lombardo , el italiano y el bizantino , pertenecen por supuesto más al período gótico que las estructuras ligeras y elegantes del orden apuntado que los sucedieron. [20]
El estilo arquitectónico gótico estuvo fuertemente influenciado por la arquitectura románica que lo precedió; por la creciente población y riqueza de las ciudades europeas, y por el deseo de expresar la grandeza local. [21] Fue influenciado por doctrinas teológicas que exigían más luz [22] y por mejoras técnicas en bóvedas y contrafuertes que permitieron una altura mucho mayor y ventanas más grandes. También fue influenciado por la necesidad de muchas iglesias, como la Catedral de Chartres y la Catedral de Canterbury , de acomodar a un número creciente de peregrinos. [23] Adaptó características de estilos anteriores. Según Charles Texier (historiador, arquitecto y arqueólogo francés) y Josef Strzygowski (historiador de arte polaco-austriaco), después de una larga investigación y estudio de las catedrales de la ciudad medieval de Ani , la capital del reino medieval de Armenia concluyó haber descubierto el arco gótico más antiguo. Según estos historiadores, la arquitectura de la iglesia de Santa Hripsime cerca de la sede religiosa armenia Etchmiadzin fue construida en el siglo IV d.C. y fue reparada en 618. La catedral de Ani fue construida entre 980 y 1012 d.C. Sin embargo, muchos de los elementos de la arquitectura islámica y armenia que se han citado como influencias en la arquitectura gótica también aparecieron en la arquitectura romana tardía y bizantina, siendo el ejemplo más notable el arco apuntado y el arbotante. [24] El ejemplo más notable son los capiteles, que son precursores del estilo gótico y se desviaron de los estándares clásicos de la antigua Grecia y Roma con líneas serpentinas y formas naturalistas.
La arquitectura "se convirtió en una forma de expresión artística de primer orden durante la Baja Edad Media". [25] La arquitectura gótica comenzó a principios del siglo XII en el noroeste de Francia e Inglaterra y se extendió por toda la Europa latina en el siglo XIII; hacia 1300, se había desarrollado un primer "estilo internacional" del gótico, con características de diseño y lenguaje formal comunes. Un segundo "estilo internacional" surgió hacia 1400, junto con innovaciones en Inglaterra y Europa central que produjeron las variedades perpendicular y flamígera. Por lo general, estas tipologías se identifican como: [25]
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La arquitectura normanda a ambos lados del Canal de la Mancha se desarrolló en paralelo hacia el gótico temprano . [25] Las características góticas, como la bóveda de crucería , habían aparecido en Inglaterra, Sicilia y Normandía en el siglo XI. [25] Las bóvedas de crucería se emplearon en algunas partes de la catedral de Durham (1093–) [25] y en la abadía de Lessay en Normandía (1098). [26] Sin embargo, los primeros edificios que se consideraron completamente góticos fueron la abadía funeraria real de los reyes franceses, la abadía de Saint-Denis (1135-1144), y la catedral arzobispal de Sens (1135-1164). Fueron los primeros edificios en combinar sistemáticamente bóvedas de crucería, contrafuertes y arcos apuntados. [25] La mayoría de las características del inglés temprano posterior ya estaban presentes en la cabecera inferior de Saint-Denis. [1]
El Ducado de Normandía , parte del Imperio angevino hasta el siglo XIII, desarrolló su propia versión del gótico. Una de ellas fue la cabecera normanda , un pequeño ábside o capilla adosada al coro en el extremo este de la iglesia, que normalmente tenía una media cúpula. La torre linterna era otra característica común en el gótico normando. [26] Un ejemplo del gótico normando temprano es la Catedral de Bayeux (1060-1070), donde la nave y el coro de la catedral románica se reconstruyeron en estilo gótico. La Catedral de Lisieux se comenzó en 1170. [27] La Catedral de Rouen (comenzada en 1185) fue reconstruida del románico al gótico con características normandas distintivas, incluyendo una torre linterna, decoración profundamente moldeada y altas arcadas apuntadas. [28] La Catedral de Coutances fue rehecha en estilo gótico a partir de 1220 aproximadamente. Su característica más distintiva es la linterna octogonal en el crucero del transepto, decorada con nervaduras ornamentales y rodeada por dieciséis tramos y dieciséis ventanas lanceoladas. [27]
Saint-Denis fue obra del abad Suger , consejero cercano de los reyes Luis VI y Luis VII . Suger reconstruyó partes de la antigua iglesia románica con bóveda de crucería para eliminar muros y hacer más espacio para ventanas. Describió el nuevo deambulatorio como "un anillo circular de capillas, en virtud del cual toda la iglesia brillaría con la luz maravillosa e ininterrumpida de las ventanas más luminosas, impregnando la belleza interior". [29] Para sostener las bóvedas, también introdujo columnas con capiteles de diseños vegetales tallados, inspirados en las columnas clásicas que había visto en Roma. Además, instaló un rosetón circular sobre el portal de la fachada. [29] Estas también se convirtieron en una característica común de las catedrales góticas. [29] [30]
Algunos elementos del estilo gótico aparecieron muy pronto en Inglaterra. La catedral de Durham fue la primera catedral en emplear una bóveda de crucería, construida entre 1093 y 1104. [31] La primera catedral construida íntegramente en el nuevo estilo fue la catedral de Sens , iniciada entre 1135 y 1140 y consagrada en 1160. [32] [33] La catedral de Sens cuenta con un coro gótico y bóvedas de crucería de seis tramos sobre la nave y los pasillos colaterales, pilares alternados y columnas dobles para sostener las bóvedas, y contrafuertes para compensar el empuje exterior de las bóvedas. Uno de los constructores que se cree que trabajó en la catedral de Sens, Guillermo de Sens , viajó más tarde a Inglaterra y se convirtió en el arquitecto que, entre 1175 y 1180, reconstruyó el coro de la catedral de Canterbury en el nuevo estilo gótico. [32]
La catedral de Sens fue influyente por su aspecto fuertemente vertical y por su elevación en tres partes, típica de los edificios góticos posteriores, con un triforio en la parte superior sostenido por un triforio , todo ello sostenido por altas arcadas de arcos apuntados. [25] En las décadas siguientes se empezaron a utilizar arbotantes, lo que permitió la construcción de muros más ligeros y altos. [25] Las iglesias góticas francesas estuvieron fuertemente influenciadas tanto por el deambulatorio y las capillas laterales alrededor del coro de Saint-Denis, como por las torres pareadas y las puertas triples de la fachada occidental. [25]
A Sens le siguieron rápidamente la catedral de Senlis (iniciada en 1160) y Notre-Dame de París (iniciada en 1160). Sus constructores abandonaron los planos tradicionales e introdujeron los nuevos elementos góticos de Saint-Denis. Los constructores de Notre-Dame fueron más allá al introducir los arbotantes, columnas pesadas de apoyo fuera de los muros conectadas por arcos a los muros superiores. Los arbotantes contrarrestaban el empuje hacia afuera de las bóvedas de crucería. Esto permitió a los constructores construir muros más altos y delgados y ventanas más grandes. [34]
Tras la destrucción por el fuego del coro de la catedral de Canterbury en 1174, un grupo de maestros de obras fue invitado a proponer planes para la reconstrucción. El maestro de obras Guillermo de Sens , que había trabajado en la catedral de Sens, ganó el concurso. [25] Las obras comenzaron ese mismo año, pero en 1178 Guillermo resultó gravemente herido al caer del andamio y regresó a Francia, donde murió. [35] [36] Su trabajo fue continuado por Guillermo el Inglés , que reemplazó a su homónimo francés en 1178. La estructura resultante del coro de la catedral de Canterbury se considera la primera obra del gótico inglés temprano . [25] Las iglesias catedralicias de Worcester (1175–), Wells ( c . 1180–), Lincoln (1192–) y Salisbury (1220–) son, junto con Canterbury, ejemplos importantes. [25] Los terceletes (nervaduras decorativas para bóvedas) parecen haber sido los primeros en usarse en las bóvedas de la Catedral de Lincoln, instaladas alrededor de 1200. [25] En lugar de un triforio, las iglesias inglesas primitivas solían conservar una galería. [25]
El alto gótico ( c. 1194-1250 ) fue un período breve pero muy productivo, que produjo algunos de los grandes hitos del arte gótico. El primer edificio del alto gótico (en francés: Classique ) fue la catedral de Chartres , una importante iglesia de peregrinación al sur de París. La catedral románica fue destruida por un incendio en 1194, pero fue reconstruida rápidamente en el nuevo estilo, con contribuciones del rey Felipe II de Francia , el papa Celestino III , la nobleza local, comerciantes, artesanos y Ricardo Corazón de León , rey de Inglaterra. Los constructores simplificaron la elevación utilizada en Notre Dame, eliminaron las galerías de tribunas y utilizaron arbotantes para sostener las paredes superiores. Las paredes se llenaron de vidrieras, que representaban principalmente la historia de la Virgen María , pero también, en una pequeña esquina de cada ventana, ilustraban las artesanías de los gremios que donaron esas ventanas. [23]
El modelo de Chartres fue seguido por una serie de nuevas catedrales de una altura y un tamaño sin precedentes. Entre ellas se encuentran la catedral de Reims (iniciada en 1211), donde se celebraban las coronaciones de los reyes de Francia ; la catedral de Amiens (1220-1226); la catedral de Bourges (1195-1230) (que, a diferencia de las demás, siguió utilizando bóvedas de crucería de seis tramos); y la catedral de Beauvais (1225-1239). [25] [37]
En Europa central, el estilo gótico alto apareció en el Sacro Imperio Romano Germánico , primero en Toul (1220–), cuya catedral románica fue reconstruida al estilo de la catedral de Reims; luego en la iglesia parroquial Liebfrauenkirche de Tréveris (1228–), y luego en todo el Reich , comenzando con la Elisabethkirche en Marburgo (1235–) y la catedral de Metz ( c . 1235–). [25]
En el gótico alto, toda la superficie del triforio estaba dedicada a ventanas. En la catedral de Chartres, se utilizó tracería de placas para el rosetón, pero en Reims la tracería de barras era exenta. [25] Las ventanas ojivales fueron suplantadas por múltiples luces separadas por tracerías de barras geométricas . [1] La tracería de este tipo distingue el estilo ojival medio del estilo ojival más simple . [1] En el interior, la nave estaba dividida en tramos regulares, cada uno cubierto por bóvedas de crucería cuatripartitas. [25]
Otras características del gótico alto fueron el desarrollo de rosetones de mayor tamaño, utilizando tracerías de barrotes, arbotantes más altos y largos, que podían llegar hasta las ventanas más altas, y muros de esculturas que ilustraban historias bíblicas llenando la fachada y los frentes del crucero. La catedral de Reims tenía dos mil trescientas estatuas en la parte delantera y trasera de la fachada. [37]
Las nuevas iglesias del gótico alto compitieron por ser las más altas, con estructuras cada vez más ambiciosas que elevaban aún más la bóveda. La altura de 38 m de la catedral de Chartres fue superada por la de 48 m de la catedral de Beauvais, pero debido al derrumbe de esta última en 1248, no se hizo ningún otro intento de construir más alta. [25] La atención se desvió de lograr una mayor altura a crear una decoración más imponente. [37]
El gótico rayonnant maximizó la cobertura de vidrieras de tal manera que las paredes están efectivamente completamente vidriadas; ejemplos son la nave de Saint-Denis (1231–) y la capilla real de Luis IX de Francia en la Île de la Cité en el Sena , la Sainte-Chapelle ( c. 1241–1248). [25] Los muros altos y delgados del gótico rayonnant francés permitidos por los arbotantes permitieron extensiones cada vez más ambiciosas de vidrio y tracería decorada, reforzada con herrería. [25] Poco después de Saint-Denis, en la década de 1250, Luis IX encargó la reconstrucción de los transeptos y los enormes rosetones de Notre-Dame de París (década de 1250 para el transepto norte, 1258 para el comienzo del transepto sur). [38] Este primer "estilo internacional" también se utilizó en el triforio de la catedral de Metz ( c . 1245–), luego en el coro dela catedral de Colonia ( c . 1250–), y nuevamente en la nave de la catedral de Estrasburgo ( c . 1250–). [25] Los masones elaboraron una serie de patrones de tracería para ventanas, desde las geométricas básicas hasta las reticuladas y curvilíneas, que habían reemplazado a la ventana lanceolada. [1] La tracería de barras de los tipos curvilíneo, fluido y reticulado distingueestilo apuntado . [1]
El gótico decorado también buscaba enfatizar las ventanas, pero sobresalía en la ornamentación de sus tracerías. Entre las iglesias con características de este estilo se encuentran la Abadía de Westminster (1245–), las catedrales de Lichfield (después de 1257–) y Exeter (1275–), la Abadía de Bath (1298–) y el coro retro de la Catedral de Wells ( c . 1320–). [25]
El Rayonnant desarrolló su segundo "estilo internacional" con molduras de tracería cada vez más autónomas y de bordes afilados, evidentes en la catedral de Clermont-Ferrand (1248–), la colegiata papal de Troyes , Saint-Urbain (1262–) y la fachada oeste de la catedral de Estrasburgo (1276–1439)). [25] Hacia 1300, había ejemplos influenciados por Estrasburgo en las catedrales de Limoges (1273–), Ratisbona ( c . 1275–) y en la nave de la catedral de York (1292–). [25]
Europa Central comenzó a liderar el surgimiento de un nuevo estilo flamígero internacional con la construcción de una nueva catedral en Praga (1344–) bajo la dirección de Peter Parler . [25] Este modelo de tracería rica y abigarrada e intrincada bóveda de crucería reticulada fue definitivo en el gótico tardío de la Europa continental, emulado no solo por las colegiatas y catedrales, sino por las iglesias parroquiales urbanas que rivalizaban con ellas en tamaño y magnificencia. [25] La catedral de Ulm y otras iglesias parroquiales como la Heilig-Kreuz-Münster en Schwäbisch Gmünd ( c .1320–), la iglesia de Santa Bárbara en Kutná Hora (1389–), y la Heilig-Geist-Kirche (1407–) y la iglesia de San Martín ( c .1385–) en Landshut son típicas. [25] El uso de ojivas fue especialmente común. [1]
El estilo flamígero se caracterizó por la multiplicación de las nervaduras de las bóvedas, con nuevas nervaduras puramente decorativas, llamadas tiercons y liernes, y nervaduras diagonales adicionales. Un adorno común del estilo flamígero en Francia es el arc-en-accolade , un arco sobre una ventana rematado por un pináculo, que a su vez estaba rematado con florones y flanqueado por otros pináculos. Ejemplos de edificios flamígeros franceses incluyen la fachada oeste de la catedral de Rouen , y especialmente las fachadas de la Sainte-Chapelle de Vincennes (1370) y el coro de la iglesia abacial del Mont-Saint-Michel (1448). [34]
En Inglaterra, las bóvedas de crucería ornamentales y las tracerías del gótico decorado coexistieron con, y luego dieron paso a, el estilo perpendicular de la década de 1320, con tracerías ortogonales enderezadas rematadas con bóvedas de abanico . [1] [25] El gótico perpendicular era desconocido en la Europa continental y, a diferencia de los estilos anteriores, no tenía equivalente en Escocia o Irlanda. [1] [39] Apareció por primera vez en los claustros y la sala capitular ( c. 1332 ) de la antigua catedral de San Pablo en Londres por William de Ramsey . [39] El presbiterio de la catedral de Gloucester ( c. 1337-1357 ) y sus claustros de finales del siglo XIV son ejemplos tempranos. [39] Los arcos de cuatro centros se usaban a menudo, y las bóvedas de lince vistas en los primeros edificios se desarrollaron en bóvedas de abanico, primero en la sala capitular de la catedral de Hereford (demolida en 1769) y los claustros de Gloucester, y luego en la capilla del King's College de Reginald Ely , Cambridge (1446-1461) y la capilla de Enrique VII de los hermanos William y Robert Vertue ( c. 1503-1512 ) en la abadía de Westminster . [39] [40] [41] La perpendicular a veces se llama de tercer punto y se empleó durante tres siglos; la escalera con bóveda de abanico en Christ Church, Oxford, construida alrededor de 1640. [1] [39]
Los patrones de encaje de tracería continuaron caracterizando la construcción gótica continental, con bóvedas muy elaboradas y articuladas, como en Santa Bárbara, Kutná Hora (1512). [1] En ciertas áreas, la arquitectura gótica continuó empleándose hasta los siglos XVII y XVIII, especialmente en contextos provinciales y eclesiásticos, en particular en Oxford . [1]
A partir de mediados del siglo XV, el estilo gótico perdió gradualmente su dominio en Europa. Nunca había sido popular en Italia y, a mediados del siglo XV, los italianos, basándose en antiguas ruinas romanas, volvieron a los modelos clásicos. La cúpula de la catedral de Florencia (1420-1436) de Filippo Brunelleschi , inspirada en el Panteón de Roma , fue uno de los primeros hitos renacentistas, pero también empleó tecnología gótica; la piel exterior de la cúpula estaba sostenida por un marco de veinticuatro nervaduras. [42] En el siglo XVI, cuando la arquitectura renacentista de Italia comenzó a aparecer en Francia y otros países de Europa, el estilo gótico comenzó a describirse como anticuado, feo e incluso bárbaro. El término "gótico" se utilizó por primera vez como una descripción peyorativa . Giorgio Vasari utilizó el término "estilo bárbaro alemán" en sus Vidas de los artistas de 1550 para describir lo que ahora se considera el estilo gótico. [43] En la introducción a las Vidas , atribuyó varias características arquitectónicas a los godos , a quienes consideró responsables de destruir los edificios antiguos después de conquistar Roma y erigir otros nuevos en este estilo. [44] En el siglo XVII, Molière también se burló del estilo gótico en el poema de 1669 La Gloire : "... el gusto insípido de la ornamentación gótica, estas monstruosidades odiosas de una época ignorante, producidas por los torrentes de la barbarie..." [45] Los estilos dominantes en Europa se convirtieron a su vez en la arquitectura renacentista italiana , la arquitectura barroca y el gran clasicismo del estilo Luis XIV .
Los reyes de Francia conocieron de primera mano el nuevo estilo italiano, debido a la campaña militar de Carlos VIII en Nápoles y Milán (1494), y especialmente a las campañas de Luis XII y Francisco I (1500-1505) para restaurar el control francés sobre Milán y Génova. [46] Trajeron pinturas, esculturas y planos de construcción italianos y, lo que es más importante, artesanos y artistas italianos. El cardenal Georges d'Amboise , primer ministro de Luis XII, construyó el castillo de Gaillon cerca de Rouen (1502-1510) con la ayuda de artesanos italianos. El castillo de Blois (1515-1524) introdujo la logia renacentista y la escalera abierta. El rey Francisco I instaló a Leonardo da Vinci en su castillo de Chambord en 1516, e introdujo una galería larga renacentista en el palacio de Fontainebleau en 1528-1540. En 1546, Francisco I comenzó a construir el primer ejemplo del clasicismo francés, el patio cuadrado del Palacio del Louvre diseñado por Pierre Lescot . [47]
No obstante, se siguieron construyendo nuevos edificios góticos, en particular iglesias. Entre las nuevas iglesias góticas construidas en París en este período se encuentran Saint-Merri (1520-1552) y Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois . Los primeros signos de clasicismo en las iglesias de París no aparecieron hasta 1540, en Saint-Gervais-Saint-Protais . La iglesia nueva más grande, Saint-Eustache (1532-1560), rivalizaba con Notre-Dame en tamaño, 105 m (344 pies) de largo, 44 m (144 pies) de ancho y 35 m (115 pies) de alto. A medida que continuaba la construcción de esta iglesia, se añadieron al diseño elementos de decoración renacentista, incluido el sistema de órdenes clásicos de columnas, lo que la convirtió en un híbrido gótico-renacentista. [48]
En Alemania, algunos elementos italianos se introdujeron en la Capilla Fugger de la Iglesia de Santa Ana, Augsburgo , (1510-1512) combinados con bóvedas góticas; y otros aparecieron en la Iglesia de San Miguel en Múnich, pero en Alemania los elementos renacentistas se utilizaron principalmente para la decoración. [47] Algunos elementos renacentistas también aparecieron en España, en el nuevo palacio iniciado por el emperador Carlos V en Granada, dentro de la Alhambra (1485-1550), inspirado por Bramante y Rafael, pero nunca se completó. [49] La primera gran obra renacentista en España fue El Escorial , el monasterio-palacio construido por Felipe II de España . [50]
Bajo el reinado de Enrique VIII e Isabel I , Inglaterra estuvo en gran medida aislada de los desarrollos arquitectónicos del continente. El primer edificio clásico en Inglaterra fue la Old Somerset House en Londres (1547-1552) (después demolida), construida por Edward Seymour, primer duque de Somerset , que fue regente como Lord Protector de Eduardo VI hasta que el joven rey alcanzó la mayoría de edad en 1547. El sucesor de Somerset, John Dudley, primer duque de Northumberland , envió al erudito en arquitectura John Shute a Italia para estudiar el estilo. Shute publicó el primer libro en inglés sobre arquitectura clásica en 1570. Las primeras casas inglesas en el nuevo estilo fueron Burghley House (década de 1550-1580) y Longleat , construidas por asociados de Somerset. [51] Con esos edificios, comenzó una nueva era de la arquitectura en Inglaterra. [52]
La arquitectura gótica, generalmente iglesias o edificios universitarios, continuó construyéndose. Irlanda fue una isla de arquitectura gótica en los siglos XVII y XVIII, con la construcción de la Catedral de Derry (finalizada en 1633), la Catedral de Sligo ( c. 1730 ) y la Catedral de Down (1790-1818) como otros ejemplos. [53] En los siglos XVII y XVIII se construyeron varios edificios góticos importantes en la Universidad de Oxford y la Universidad de Cambridge , incluida la Torre Tom (1681-1682) en Christ Church, Oxford , por Christopher Wren . También apareció, de manera caprichosa, en la villa de Twickenham de Horace Walpole , Strawberry Hill (1749-1776). Las dos torres occidentales de la Abadía de Westminster fueron construidas entre 1722 y 1745 por Nicholas Hawksmoor , abriendo un nuevo período de renacimiento gótico . [ cita requerida ]
La arquitectura gótica sobrevivió al período moderno temprano y floreció nuevamente en un renacimiento a partir de fines del siglo XVIII y durante todo el siglo XIX. [1] El perpendicular fue el primer estilo gótico que revivió en el siglo XVIII. [39]
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En Inglaterra, en parte como respuesta a una filosofía propuesta por el Movimiento de Oxford y otros asociados con el resurgimiento emergente de las ideas de la "alta iglesia" o anglocatólicas durante el segundo cuarto del siglo XIX, el neogótico comenzó a ser promovido por figuras influyentes del establishment como el estilo preferido para la arquitectura eclesiástica, cívica e institucional. El atractivo de este resurgimiento gótico (que después de 1837, en Gran Bretaña, a veces se denomina gótico victoriano ), se amplió gradualmente para abarcar clientes tanto de la "alta iglesia" como de la "baja iglesia". Este período de atractivo más universal, que abarca desde 1855 hasta 1885, se conoce en Gran Bretaña como el alto gótico victoriano . [54]
El Palacio de Westminster en Londres, obra de Sir Charles Barry, con interiores de un destacado exponente del neogótico temprano, Augustus Welby Pugin , es un ejemplo del estilo neogótico de su período anterior, en el segundo cuarto del siglo XIX. Entre los ejemplos del período gótico victoriano alto se incluyen el diseño de George Gilbert Scott para el Albert Memorial en Londres y la capilla de William Butterfield en el Keble College de Oxford . A partir de la segunda mitad del siglo XIX, se hizo más común en Gran Bretaña el uso del neogótico en el diseño de edificios no eclesiásticos y no gubernamentales. Incluso comenzaron a aparecer detalles góticos en los proyectos de vivienda para la clase trabajadora subvencionados por la filantropía, aunque, dado el coste, con menos frecuencia que en el diseño de viviendas para la clase alta y media. [ cita requerida ]
La mitad del siglo XIX fue un período marcado por la restauración, y en algunos casos la modificación, de monumentos antiguos y la construcción de edificios neogóticos como la nave de la Catedral de Colonia y la Santa Clotilde de París, a medida que la especulación de la arquitectura medieval se convertía en una consideración técnica. El Palacio de Westminster de Londres, la estación de tren de St Pancras , la Iglesia de la Trinidad de Nueva York y la Catedral de San Patricio también son ejemplos famosos de edificios neogóticos. [55] El estilo también llegó al Lejano Oriente en el período, por ejemplo, la Catedral anglicana de San Juan ubicada en el centro de Victoria City en Central, Hong Kong . [ cita requerida ]
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La característica definitoria del estilo gótico es el arco apuntado , que se utilizó ampliamente tanto en la estructura como en la decoración. El arco apuntado no se originó en la arquitectura gótica; se habían empleado durante siglos en Oriente Próximo en la arquitectura preislámica e islámica para arcos, arcadas y bóvedas de crucería. [56] En la arquitectura gótica, particularmente en los estilos góticos posteriores, se convirtieron en el elemento más visible y característico, dando una sensación de verticalidad y apuntando hacia arriba, como las agujas. Las bóvedas de crucería góticas cubrían la nave, y los arcos apuntados se usaban comúnmente para las arcadas, ventanas, puertas, en la tracería y especialmente en los estilos góticos posteriores que decoraban las fachadas. [57] También se usaban a veces para fines más prácticos, como para llevar las bóvedas transversales a la misma altura que las bóvedas diagonales, como en la nave y los pasillos de la catedral de Durham , construida en 1093. [58]
Los primeros arcos apuntados góticos eran ventanas ojivales , que son ventanas estrechas que terminan en un arco ojival. Un arco ojival tiene un radio más largo que su ancho y se asemeja a la hoja de una lanceta . [59] [60] En la primera fase ojival del siglo XII de la arquitectura gótica (también llamada estilo ojival ) y antes de la introducción de tracerías en las ventanas en estilos posteriores, las ventanas ojivales predominaban en los edificios góticos. [61]
El estilo flamígero de la arquitectura gótica es particularmente conocido por sus suntuosos detalles ojivales, como el arc-en-accolade , en el que un arco ojival sobre una puerta estaba rematado por un ornamento escultórico ojival llamado florón y por pináculos ojivales a cada lado. Los arcos de la puerta estaban además decorados con pequeñas esculturas en forma de repollo llamadas chou-frisés . [62]
La bóveda de crucería gótica fue uno de los elementos esenciales que hicieron posible la gran altura y los grandes ventanales de la arquitectura gótica. [63] A diferencia de la bóveda de cañón semicircular de los edificios romanos y románicos , donde el peso presionaba directamente hacia abajo y requería paredes gruesas y pequeñas ventanas, la bóveda de crucería gótica estaba hecha de nervaduras arqueadas cruzadas en diagonal. Estas nervaduras dirigían el empuje hacia afuera, hacia las esquinas de la bóveda, y hacia abajo a través de esbeltas columnillas y columnas agrupadas, hacia los pilares y columnas de abajo. El espacio entre las nervaduras se rellenaba con paneles delgados de pequeños trozos de piedra, que eran mucho más ligeros que las bóvedas de arista anteriores . El empuje hacia afuera contra las paredes era contrarrestado por el peso de los contrafuertes y, posteriormente, los arbotantes . Como resultado, los muros macizos y gruesos de los edificios románicos ya no eran necesarios, ya que, dado que las bóvedas estaban sostenidas por columnas y pilares , las paredes podían hacerse más delgadas y altas, y llenarse de ventanas. [64] [32] [65]
Las bóvedas de crucería góticas anteriores, utilizadas en la catedral de Sens (iniciada entre 1135 y 1140) y Notre-Dame de París (iniciada en 1163), estaban divididas por las nervaduras en seis compartimentos. Eran muy difíciles de construir y solo podían cruzar un espacio limitado. Dado que cada bóveda cubría dos tramos, necesitaban apoyo en la planta baja de columnas y pilares alternados . En la construcción posterior, el diseño se simplificó y las bóvedas de crucería se dividieron en solo cuatro compartimentos. Las filas alternas de columnas y pilares alternados que recibían el peso de las bóvedas fueron reemplazadas por pilares simples, cada uno con el mismo peso. Una sola bóveda podía cruzar la nave. Este método se utilizó en la catedral de Chartres (1194-1220), la catedral de Amiens (iniciada en 1220) y la catedral de Reims . [66] Las bóvedas de cuatro partes hicieron posible la construcción de edificios más altos. Notre Dame, que había comenzado con bóvedas de seis tramos, alcanzó una altura de 35 m (115 pies). La catedral de Amiens, que había comenzado con las nuevas nervaduras de cuatro tramos, alcanzó una altura de 42,3 m (139 pies) en el crucero. [64] [67]
En Francia, la bóveda de crucería de cuatro tramos, con dos diagonales que se cruzan en el centro del travesaño, fue el tipo utilizado casi exclusivamente hasta el final del período gótico. Sin embargo, en Inglaterra se inventaron varias bóvedas nuevas e imaginativas que presentaban elementos decorativos más elaborados y que se convirtieron en un sello distintivo de los estilos góticos ingleses posteriores. [68]
La primera de estas nuevas bóvedas tenía una nervadura adicional, llamada tercerón , que corría por la mediana de la bóveda. [69] Apareció por primera vez en las bóvedas del coro de la catedral de Lincoln a finales del siglo XII, luego en la catedral de Worcester en 1224, y luego en el crucero sur de la catedral de Lichfield . [68]
The 14th century brought the invention of several new types of vaults which were more and more decorative.[70] These vaults often copied the forms form of the elaborate tracery of the Late Gothic styles.[69] These included the stellar vault, where a group of additional ribs between the principal ribs forms a star design. The oldest vaults of this kind were found in the crypt of Saint Stephen at Westminster Palace, built about 1320. A second type was called a reticulated vault, which had a network of additional decorative ribs, in triangles and other geometric forms, placed between or over the traverse ribs. These were first used in the choir of Bristol Cathedral in about 1311. Another late Gothic form, the fan vault, with ribs spreading upwards and outwards, appeared later in the 14th century. An example is the cloister of Gloucester Cathedral (c. 1370).[68]
Another new form was the skeleton vault, which appeared in the English Decorated style. It has an additional network of ribs, like the ribs of an umbrella, which criss-cross the vault but are only directly attached to it at certain points. It appeared in a chapel of Lincoln Cathedral in 1300.[68] and then several other English churches. This style of vault was adopted in the 14th century in particular by German architects, particularly Peter Parler, and in other parts of central Europe. Another exists in the south porch of the Prague Cathedral[68]
Elaborate vaults also appeared in civic architecture. An example is the ceiling of the Vladislav Hall in Prague Castle in Bohemia designed by Benedikt Ried in 1493. The ribs twist and intertwine in fantasy patterns, which later critics called "Rococo Gothic".[71]
In early French Gothic architecture, the capitals of the columns were modeled after Roman columns of the Corinthian order, with finely-sculpted leaves. They were used in the ambulatory of the Abbey church of Saint-Denis. According to its builder, the Abbot Suger, they were inspired by the columns he had seen in the ancient baths in Rome.[29] They were used later at Sens, at Notre-Dame de Paris and at Canterbury in England.
In early Gothic churches with six-part rib vaults, the columns in the nave alternated with more massive piers to provide support for the vaults. With the introduction of the four-part rib vault, all of the piers or columns in the nave could have the same design. In the High Gothic period, a new form was introduced, composed of a central core surrounded several attached slender columns, or colonettes, going up to the vaults.[72] These clustered columns were used at Chartres, Amiens, Reims and Bourges, Westminster Abbey and Salisbury Cathedral.[73] Another variation was a quadrilobe column, shaped like a clover, formed of four attached columns.[73] In England, the clustered columns were often ornamented with stone rings, as well as columns with carved leaves.[72]
Later styles added further variations. Sometimes the piers were rectangular and fluted, as at Seville Cathedral, In England, parts of columns sometimes had contrasting colours, using combining white stone with dark Purbeck marble. In place of the Corinthian capital, some columns used a stiff-leaf design. In later Gothic, the piers became much taller, reaching up more than half of the nave. Another variation, particularly popular in eastern France, was a column without a capital, which continued upward without capitals or other interruption, all the way to the vaults, giving a dramatic display of verticality.[73]
An important feature of Gothic architecture was the flying buttress, a half-arch outside the building which carried the thrust of weight of the roof or vaults inside over a roof or an aisle to a heavy stone column. The buttresses were placed in rows on either side of the building, and were often topped by heavy stone pinnacles, both to give extra weight and for additional decoration.[74]
Buttresses had existed since Roman times, usually set directly against the building, but the Gothic vaults were more sophisticated. In later structures, the buttresses often had several arches, each reaching in to a different level of the structure. The buttresses permitted the buildings to be both taller, and to have thinner walls, with greater space for windows.[74]
Over time, the buttresses and pinnacles became more elaborate supporting statues and other decoration, as at Beauvais Cathedral and Reims Cathedral. The arches had an additional practical purpose; they contained lead channels which carried rainwater off the roof; it was expelled from the mouths of stone gargoyles placed in rows on the buttresses.[75]
Flying buttresses were used less frequently in England, where the emphasis was more on length than height. One example of English buttresses was Canterbury Cathedral, whose choir and buttresses were rebuilt in Gothic style by William of Sens and William the Englishman.[36] However, they were very popular in Germany: in Cologne Cathedral the buttresses were lavishly decorated with statuary and other ornament, and were a prominent feature of the exterior.
Towers, spires and flèches were an important feature of Gothic churches. They presented a dramatic spectacle of great height, helped make their churches the tallest and most visible buildings in their city, and symbolised the aspirations of their builders toward heaven.[76] They also had a practical purpose; they often served as bell towers supporting belfries, whose bells told the time by announcing religious services, warned of fire or enemy attack, and celebrated special occasions like military victories and coronations. Sometimes the bell tower is built separate from a church; the best-known example of this is the Leaning Tower of Pisa.[76]
The towers of cathedrals were usually the last part of the structure to be built. Since cathedral construction usually took many years, and was extremely expensive, by the time the tower were to be built public enthusiasm waned, and tastes changed. Many projected towers were never built, or were built in different styles than other parts of the cathedral, or with different styles on each level of the tower.[77] At Chartres Cathedral, the south tower was built in the 12th century, in the simpler Early Gothic, while the north tower is the more highly decorated Flamboyant style. Chartres would have been even more exuberant if the second plan had been followed; it called for seven towers around the transept and sanctuary.[78]
In the Île-de-France, cathedral towers followed the Romanesque tradition of two identical towers, one on either side of the portals. The west front of the Saint-Denis, became the model for the early Gothic cathedrals and High Gothic cathedrals in northern France, including Notre-Dame de Paris, Reims Cathedral, and Amiens Cathedral.[79]
The early and High Gothic Laon Cathedral has a square lantern tower over the crossing of the transept; two towers on the western front; and two towers on the ends of the transepts. Laon's towers, with the exception of the central tower, are built with two stacked vaulted chambers pierced by lancet openings. The two western towers contain life-size stone statues of sixteen oxen in their upper arcades, said to honour the animals who hauled the stone during the cathedral's construction.[80]
In Normandy, cathedrals and major churches often had multiple towers, built over the centuries; the Abbaye aux Hommes (begun 1066), Caen has nine towers and spires, placed on the façade, the transepts, and the centre. A lantern tower was often placed the centre of the nave, at the meeting point with the transept, to give light to the church below.
In later periods of Gothic, pointed needle-like spires were often added to the towers, giving them much greater height. A variation of the spire was the flèche, a slender, spear-like spire, which was usually placed on the transept where it crossed the nave. They were often made of wood covered with lead or other metal. They sometimes had open frames, and were decorated with sculpture. Amiens Cathedral has a flèche. The most famous example was that of Notre-Dame de Paris. The original flèche of Notre-Dame was built on the crossing of the transept in the middle of the 13th century, and housed five bells. It was removed in 1786 during a program to modernize the cathedral, but was put back in a new form designed by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc. The new flèche, of wood covered with lead, was decorated with statues of the Apostles; the figure of St Thomas resembled Viollet-le-Duc.[81] The flèche was destroyed in the 2019 fire, but is being restored in the same design.
In English Gothic, the major tower was often placed at the crossing of the transept and nave, and was much higher than the other. The most famous example is the tower of Salisbury Cathedral, completed in 1320 by William of Farleigh. It was a remarkable feat of construction, since it was built upon the pillars of the much earlier church.[82] A crossing tower was constructed at Canterbury Cathedral in 1493–1501 by John Wastell, who had previously worked on King's College at Cambridge. It was finished by Henry Yevele, who also built the present nave of Canterbury.[83] The new central tower at Wells Cathedral caused a problem; it was too heavy for the original structure. An unusual double arch had to be constructed in the centre of the crossing to give the tower the extra support it needed.[82]
England's Gothic parish churches and collegiate churches generally have a single western tower.[citation needed] A number of the finest churches have masonry spires, with those of St James Church, Louth; St Wulfram's Church, Grantham; St Mary Redcliffe in Bristol; and Coventry Cathedral. These spires all exceed 85 m (280 ft) in height.[84][page needed]
Westminster Abbey's crossing tower has for centuries remained unbuilt, and numerous architects have proposed various ways of completing it since the 1250s, when work began on the tower under Henry III.[85] A century and half later, an octagonal roof lantern resembling that of Ely Cathedral was installed instead, which was then demolished in the 16th century.[85] Construction began again in 1724 to the design of Nicholas Hawksmoor, after first Christopher Wren had proposed a design in 1710, but stopped again in 1727. The crossing remains covered by the stub of the lantern and a 'temporary' roof.[85]
Later Gothic towers in Central Europe often followed the French model, but added even denser decorative tracery. Cologne Cathedral had been started in the 13th century, following the plan of Amiens Cathedral, but only the apse and the base of one tower were finished in the Gothic period. The original plans were conserved and rediscovered in 1817, and the building was completed in the 19th century following the origin design. It has two spectacularly ornamented towers, covered with arches, gables, pinnacles and openwork spires pointing upwards. The tower of Ulm Minster has a similar history, begun in 1377, stopped in 1543, and not completed until the 19th century.[86]
Regional variants of Gothic towers appeared in Spain and Italy. Burgos Cathedral was inspired by Northern Europe. It has an exceptional cluster of openwork spires, towers, and pinnacles, drenched with ornament. It was begun in 1444 by a German architect, Juan de Colonia (John of Cologne) and eventually completed by a central tower (1540) built by his grandson.[87]
In Italy the towers were sometimes separate from the cathedral; and the architects usually kept their distance from the Northern European style. the leaning tower of Pisa Cathedral, built between 1173 and 1372, is the best-known example. The Campanile of Florence Cathedral was built by Giotto in the Florentine Gothic style, decorated with encrustations of polychrome marble. It was originally designed to have a spire.[83]
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Tracery is an architectural solution by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone bars or ribs of moulding.[88] Pointed arch windows of Gothic buildings were initially (late 12th–late 13th centuries) lancet windows, a solution typical of the Early Gothic or First Pointed style and of the Early English Gothic.[88][1] Plate tracery was the first type of tracery to be developed, emerging in the later phase of Early Gothic or First Pointed.[88] Second Pointed is distinguished from First by the appearance of bar–tracery, allowing the construction of much larger window openings, and the development of Curvilinear, Flowing, and Reticulated tracery, ultimately contributing to the Flamboyant style.[1] Late Gothic in most of Europe saw tracery patterns resembling lace develop, while in England Perpendicular Gothic or Third Pointed preferred plainer vertical mullions and transoms.[1] Tracery is practical as well as decorative, because the increasingly large windows of Gothic buildings needed maximum support against the wind.[89]
Plate tracery, in which lights were pierced in a thin wall of ashlar, allowed a window arch to have more than one light – typically two side by side and separated by flat stone spandrels.[88] The spandrels were then sculpted into figures like a roundel or a quatrefoil.[88] Plate tracery reached the height of its sophistication with the 12th century windows of Chartres Cathedral and in the "Dean's Eye" rose window at Lincoln Cathedral.[89]
At the beginning of the 13th century, plate tracery was superseded by bar-tracery.[88] Bar-tracery divides the large lights from one another with moulded mullions.[88] Stone bar-tracery, an important decorative element of Gothic styles, first was used at Reims Cathedral shortly after 1211, in the chevet built by Jean D'Orbais.[90] It was employed in England around 1240.[88] After 1220, master builders in England had begun to treat the window openings as a series of openings divided by thin stone bars, while before 1230 the apse chapels of Reims Cathedral were decorated with bar-tracery with cusped circles (with bars radiating from the centre).[89] Bar-tracery became common after c. 1240, with increasing complexity and decreasing weight.[89] The lines of the mullions continued beyond the tops of the window lights and subdivided the open spandrels above the lights into a variety of decorative shapes.[88] Rayonnant style (c. 1230 – c. 1350) was enabled by the development of bar-tracery in Continental Europe and is named for the radiation of lights around a central point in circular rose windows.[88] Rayonnant also deployed mouldings of two different types in tracery, where earlier styles had used moulding of a single size, with different sizes of mullions.[89] The rose windows of Notre-Dame de Paris (c.1270) are typical.[89]
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The early phase of Middle Pointed style (late 13th century) is characterized by Geometrical tracery – simple bar-tracery forming patterns of foiled arches and circles interspersed with triangular lights.[88] The mullions of Geometrical style typically had capitals with curved bars emerging from them. Intersecting bar-tracery (c.1300) deployed mullions without capitals which branched off equidistant to the window-head.[88] The window-heads themselves were formed of equal curves forming a pointed arch and the tracery-bars were curved by drawing curves with differing radii from the same centres as the window-heads.[88] The mullions were in consequence branched into Y-shaped designs further ornamented with cusps. The intersecting branches produced an array of lozenge-shaped lights in between numerous lancet arched lights.Y-tracery was often employed in two-light windows c.1300.[88]
Second Pointed (14th century) saw Intersecting tracery elaborated with ogees, creating a complex reticular (net-like) design known as Reticulated tracery.[88] Second Pointed architecture deployed tracery in highly decorated fashion known as Curvilinear and Flowing (Undulating).[88] These types of bar-tracery were developed further throughout Europe in the 15th century into the Flamboyant style, named for the characteristic flame-shaped spaces between the tracery-bars.[88] These shapes are known as daggers, fish-bladders, or mouchettes.[88]
Third Pointed or Perpendicular Gothic developed in England from the later 14th century and is typified by Rectilinear tracery (panel-tracery).[88] The mullions are often joined together by transoms and continue up their straight vertical lines to the top of the window's main arch, some branching off into lesser arches, and creating a series of panel-like lights.[88] Perpendicular strove for verticality and dispensed with the Curvilinear style's sinuous lines in favour of unbroken straight mullions from top to bottom, transected by horizontal transoms and bars.[89] Four-centred arches were used in the 15th and 16th centuries to create windows of increasing size with flatter window-heads, often filling the entire wall of the bay between each buttress.[88] The windows were themselves divided into panels of lights topped by pointed arches struck from four centres.[88] The transoms were often topped by miniature crenellations.[88] The windows at Cambridge of King's College Chapel (1446–1515) represent the heights of Perpendicular tracery.[89]
Tracery was used on both the interior and exterior of buildings. It frequently covered the façades, and the interior walls of the nave and choir were covered with blind arcades. It also often picked up and repeated the designs in the stained glass windows. Strasbourg Cathedral has a west front lavishly ornamented with bar tracery matching the windows.[89]
The plan of Gothic cathedrals and churches was usually based on the Latin cross (or "cruciform") plan, taken from the ancient Roman Basilica,[91] and from the later Romanesque churches. They have a long nave making the body of the church, where the parishioners worshipped; a transverse arm called the transept and, beyond it to the east, the choir, also known as a chancel or presbytery, that was usually reserved for the clergy. The eastern end of the church was rounded in French churches, and was occupied by several radiating chapels, which allowed multiple ceremonies to go on simultaneously. In English churches the eastern end also had chapels, but was usually rectangular. A passage called the ambulatory circled the choir. This allowed parishioners, and especially pilgrims, to walk past the chapels to see the relics displayed there without disturbing other services going on.[92]
Each vault of the nave formed a separate cell, with its own supporting piers or columns. The early cathedrals, like Notre-Dame, had six-part rib vaults, with alternating columns and piers, while later cathedrals had the simpler and stronger four-part vaults, with identical columns.
Following the model of Romanesque architecture and the Basilica of Saint Denis, cathedrals usually had two towers flanking the west façade. Towers over the crossing were common in England (Salisbury Cathedral), York Minister) but rarer in France.[92]
Transepts were usually short in early French Gothic architecture, but became longer and were given large rose windows in the Rayonnant period.[93] The choirs became more important. The choir was often flanked by a double disambulatory, which was crowned by a ring of small chapels.[93] In England, transepts were more important, and the floor plans were usually much more complex than in French cathedrals, with the addition of attached Lady Chapels, an octagonal Chapter House, and other structures (See plans of Salisbury Cathedral and York Minster below). This reflected a tendency in France to carry out multiple functions in the same space, while English cathedrals compartmentalized them. This contrast is visible in the difference between Amiens Cathedral, with its minimal transepts and semicircular apse, filled with chapels, on the east end, compared with the double transepts, projecting north porch, and rectangular east end of Salisbury and York.[94]
Gothic architecture was a continual search for greater height, thinner walls, and more light. This was clearly illustrated in the evolving elevations of the cathedrals.[93]
In Early Gothic architecture, following the model of the Romanesque churches, the buildings had thick, solid walls with a minimum of windows in order to give enough support for the vaulted roofs. An elevation typically had four levels. On the ground floor was an arcade with massive piers alternating with thinner columns, which supported the six-part rib vaults. Above that was a gallery, called the tribune, which provided stability to the walls, and was sometimes used to provide seating for the nuns. Above that was a narrower gallery, called the triforium, which also helped provide additional thickness and support. At the top, just beneath the vaults, was the clerestory, where the high windows were placed. The upper level was supported from the outside by the flying buttresses. This system was used at Noyon Cathedral, Sens Cathedral, and other early structures.[93]
In the High Gothic period, thanks to the introduction of the four part rib vault, a simplified elevation appeared at Chartres Cathedral and others. The alternating piers and columns on the ground floor were replaced by rows of identical circular piers wrapped in four engaged columns. The tribune disappeared, which meant that the arcades could be higher. This created more space at the top for the upper windows, which were expanded to include a smaller circular window above a group of lancet windows. The new walls gave a stronger sense of verticality and brought in more light. A similar arrangement was adapted in England, at Salisbury Cathedral, Lincoln Cathedral, and Ely Cathedral.[93]
An important characteristic of Gothic church architecture is its height, both absolute and in proportion to its width, the verticality suggesting an aspiration to Heaven. The increasing height of cathedrals over the Gothic period was accompanied by an increasing proportion of the wall devoted to windows, until, by the late Gothic, the interiors became like cages of glass. This was made possible by the development of the flying buttress, which transferred the thrust of the weight of the roof to the supports outside the walls. As a result, the walls gradually became thinner and higher, and masonry was replaced with glass. The four-part elevation of the naves of early Cathedrals such as Notre-Dame (arcade, tribune, triforium, clerestory) was transformed in the choir of Beauvais Cathedral to very tall arcades, a thin triforium, and soaring windows up to the roof.[95]
Beauvais Cathedral reached the limit of what was possible with Gothic technology. A portion of the choir collapsed in 1284, causing alarm in all of the cities with very tall cathedrals. Panels of experts were created in Sienna and Chartres to study the stability of those structures.[96] Only the transept and choir of Beauvais were completed, and in the 21st century, the transept walls were reinforced with cross-beams. No cathedral built since exceeded the height of the choir of Beauvais.[95]
Churches traditionally face east, with the altar at the east, and the west front, or façade, was considered the most important entrance. Gothic façades were adapted from the model of the Romanesque façades.[66] The façades usually had three portals, or doorways, leading into the nave. Over each doorway was a tympanum, a work of sculpture crowded with figures. The sculpture of the central tympanum was devoted to the Last Judgement, that to the left to the Virgin Mary, and that to the right to the Saints honoured at that particular cathedral.[66] In the early Gothic, the columns of the doorways took the form of statues of saints, making them literally "pillars of the church".[66]
In the early Gothic, the façades were characterized by height, elegance, harmony, unity, and a balance of proportions.[97] They followed the doctrine expressed by Saint Thomas Aquinas that beauty was a "harmony of contrasts".[97] Following the model of Saint-Denis and later Notre-Dame de Paris, the façade was flanked by two towers proportional to the rest of the façade, which balanced the horizontal and vertical elements. Early Gothic façades often had a small rose window placed above the central portal. In England the rose window was often replaced by several lancet windows.[66]
In the High Gothic period, the façades grew higher, and had more dramatic architecture and sculpture. At Amiens Cathedral (c. 1220), the porches were deeper, the niches and pinnacles were more prominent. The portals were crowned with high arched gables, composed of concentric arches filled with sculpture. The rose windows became enormous, filling an entirely wall above the central portal, and they were themselves covered with a large pointed arch. The rose windows were pushed upwards by the growing profusion of decoration below. The towers were adorned with their own arches, often crowned with pinnacles. The towers themselves were crowned with spires, often of open-work sculpture. One of the finest examples of a Flamboyant façade is Notre-Dame de l'Épine (1405–1527).[98]
While French cathedrals emphasized the height of the façade, English cathedrals, particularly in earlier Gothic, often emphasized the width. The west front of Wells Cathedral is 146 feet across, compared with 116 feet wide at the nearly contemporary Amiens Cathedral, though Amiens is twice as high. The west front of Wells was almost entirely covered with statuary, like Amiens, and was given even further emphasis by its colors; traces of blue, scarlet, and gold are found on the sculpture, as well as painted stars against the dark background on other sections.[99]
Italian Gothic façades have the three traditional portals and rose windows, or sometimes simply a large circular window without tracery plus an abundance of flamboyant elements, including sculpture, pinnacles and spires. However, they added distinctive Italian elements. as seen in the façades of Siena Cathedral ) and of Orvieto Cathedral, The Orvieto façade was largely the work of a master mason, Lorenzo Maitani, who worked on the façade from 1308 until his death in 1330. He broke away from the French emphasis on height, and eliminated the column statutes and statuary in the arched entries, and covered the façade with colourful mosaics of biblical scenes (The current mosaics are of a later date). He also added sculpture in relief on the supporting contreforts.[100]
Another important feature of the Italian Gothic portal was the sculpted bronze door. The sculptor Andrea Pisano made the celebrated bronze doors for Florence Baptistry (1330–1336). They were not the first; Abbot Suger had commissioned bronze doors for Saint-Denis in 1140, but they were replaced with wooden doors when the Abbey was enlarged. Pisano's work, with its realism and emotion, pointed toward the coming Renaissance.[101]
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Cathedrals and churches were traditionally constructed with the altar at the east end, so that the priest and congregation faced the rising sun during the morning liturgy. The sun was considered the symbol of Christ and the Second Coming, a major theme in Cathedral sculpture.[102] The portion of the church east of altar is the choir, reserved for members of the clergy. There is usually a single or double ambulatory, or aisle, around the choir and east end, so parishioners and pilgrims could walk freely easily around east end.[103]
In Romanesque churches, the east end was very dark, due to the thick walls and small windows. In the ambulatory of the Basilica of Saint Denis, Abbot Suger first used the novel combination rib vaults and buttresses to replace the thick walls and replace them with stained glass, opening up that portion of the church to what he considered "divine light".[29]
In French Gothic churches, the east end, or chevet, often had an apse, a semi-circular projection with a vaulted or domed roof.[104] The chevet of large cathedrals frequently had a ring of radiating chapels, placed between the buttresses to get maximum light. There are three such chapels at Chartres Cathedral, seven at Notre Dame de Paris, Amiens Cathedral, Prague Cathedral and Cologne Cathedral, and nine at Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua in Italy. In England, the east end is more often rectangular, and gives access to a separate and large Lady Chapel, dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Lady Chapels were also common in Italy.[103]
Sculpture was an important element of Gothic architecture. Its intent was present the stories of the Bible in vivid and understandable fashion to the great majority of the faithful who could not read.[105] The iconography of the sculptural decoration on the façade was not left to the sculptors. An edict of the Second Council of Nicaea in 787 had declared: "The composition of religious images is not to be left to the inspiration of artists; it is derived from the principles put in place by the Catholic Church and religious tradition. Only the art belongs to the artist; the composition belongs to the Fathers."[105]
In Early Gothic churches, following the Romanesque tradition, sculpture appeared on the façade or west front in the triangular tympanum over the central portal. Gradually, as the style evolved, the sculpture became more and more prominent, taking over the columns of the portal, and gradually climbing above the portals, until statues in niches covered the entire façade, as in Wells Cathedral, to the transepts, and, as at Amiens Cathedral, even on the interior of the façade.[105]
Some of the earliest examples are found at Chartres Cathedral, where the three portals of the west front illustrate the three epiphanies in the Life of Christ.[106] At Amiens, the tympanum over the central portal depicted the Last Judgement, the right portal showed the Coronation of the Virgin, and the left portal showed the lives of saints who were important in the diocese. This set a pattern of complex iconography which was followed at other churches.[66]
The columns below the tympanum are in the form of statues of saints, literally representing them as "the pillars of the church".[107] Each saint had his own symbol at his feet so viewers could recognize them; a winged lion meant Saint Mark, an eagle with four wings meant Saint John the Apostle, and a winged bull symbolized Saint Luke. Floral and vegetal decoration was also very common, representing the Garden of Eden; grapes represented the wines of Eucharist.[107]
The tympanum over the central portal on the west façade of Notre-Dame de Paris vividly illustrates the Last Judgement, with figures of sinners being led off to hell, and good Christians taken to heaven. The sculpture of the right portal shows the coronation of the Virgin Mary, and the left portal shows the lives of saints who were important to Parisians, particularly Saint Anne, the mother of the Virgin Mary.[66]
To make the message even more prominent, the sculpture of the tympanum was painted in bright colors. following a system of colours codified in the 12th century; yellow, called gold, symbolized intelligence, grandeur and virtue; white, called argent, symbolized purity, wisdom, and correctness; black, or sable, meant sadness, but also will; green, or sinople, represented hope, liberty and joy; red or gueules (see gules) meant charity or victory; blue or azure symbolised the sky, faithfulness and perseverance; and violet, or pourpre, was the colour of royalty and sovereignty.[108]
In the later Gothic, the sculpture became more naturalistic; the figures were separated from the walls, and had much more expressive faces, showing emotion and personality. The drapery was very skilfully carved. The torments of hell were even more vividly depicted.[109] The late Gothic sculpture at Siena Cathedral, by Nino Pisano, pointing toward the Renaissance, is particularly notable. Much of it is now kept in a museum to protect it from deterioration.
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Besides saints and apostles, the exteriors of Gothic churches were also decorated with sculptures of a variety of fabulous and frightening grotesques or monsters. These included the chimera, a mythical hybrid creature which usually had the body of a lion and the head of a goat, and the strix or stryge, a creature resembling an owl or bat, which was said to eat human flesh. The strix appeared in classical Roman literature; it was described by the Roman poet Ovid, who was widely read in the Middle Ages, as a large-headed bird with transfixed eyes, rapacious beak, and greyish white wings.[110] They were part of the visual message for the illiterate worshippers, symbols of the evil and danger that threatened those who did not follow the teachings of the church.[111]
The gargoyles, which were added to Notre-Dame in about 1240, had a more practical purpose. They were the rain spouts of the church, designed to divide the torrent of water which poured from the roof after rain, and to project it outwards as far as possible from the buttresses and the walls and windows so that it would not erode the mortar binding the stone. To produce many thin streams rather than a torrent of water, a large number of gargoyles were used, so they were also designed to be a decorative element of the architecture. The rainwater ran from the roof into lead gutters, then down channels on the flying buttresses, then along a channel cut in the back of the gargoyle and out of the mouth away from the church.[112]
Many of the statues at Notre-Dame, particularly the grotesques, were removed from the façade in the 17th and 18th century, or were destroyed during the French Revolution. They were replaced with figures in the Gothic style, designed by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc during the 19th-century restoration.[112] Similar figures appear on the other major Gothic churches of France and England.
Another common feature of Gothic cathedrals in France was a labyrinth or maze on the floor of the nave near the choir, which symbolised the difficult and often complicated journey of a Christian life before attaining paradise. Most labyrinths were removed by the 18th century, but a few, like the one at Amiens Cathedral, have been reconstructed, and the labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral still exists essentially in its original form.[113]
Increasing the amount of light in the interior was a primary objective of the founders of the Gothic movement. Abbot Suger described the new kind of architecture he had created in the east end of the Saint-Denis: "a circular ring of chapels, by virtue of which the whole church would shine with the wonderful and uninterrupted light of most luminous windows, pervading the interior beauty."[114]
Religious teachings in the Middle Ages, particularly the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, a 6th-century mystic whose book, De Coelesti Hierarchia, was popular among monks in France, taught that all light was divine.[115] When the Abbot Suger ordered the reconstruction of choir of the abbey church at Saint-Denis, he had the builders create seventy windows, admitting as much light as possible, as the means by which the faithful could be elevated from the material world to the immaterial world.[115]
The placement of the windows was also determined by religious doctrine. The windows on the north side, frequently in the shade, had windows depicting the Old Testament. The windows of the east, corresponding to the direction of the sunrise, had images of Christ and scenes from the New Testament.[116]
In the Early Gothic period, the glass was particularly thick and was deeply coloured with metal oxides; cobalt for blue, copper for a ruby red, iron for green, and antimony for yellow. The process of making the windows was described in detail by the 12th-century monk known as Theophilus Presbyter. The glass of each colour was melted with the oxide, blown, shaped into small sheets, cracked with a hot iron into small pieces, and assembled on a large table. The details were painted onto the glass in vitreous enamel, then baked in a kiln to fuse the enamel on the glass. The pieces were fit into a framework of thin lead strips, and then put into a more solid frame or iron armatures between the panels.[117] The finished window was set into the stone opening. Thin vertical and horizontal bars of iron, called vergettes or barlotierres, were placed inside the window to reinforce the glass against the wind.[118]
The use of iron rods between the panels of glass and a framework of stone mullions, or ribs, made it possible to create much larger windows. The three rose windows at Chartres (1203–1240) each were more than 12 m (40 ft) in diameter.[117] Larger windows also appeared at York Minster (1140–1160) and Canterbury Cathedral (1178–1200)
The stained glass windows were extremely complex and expensive to create. King Louis IX paid for the rose windows in the transept of Notre-Dame de Paris, but other windows were financed by the contributions of the professions or guilds of the city.[119] These windows usually had a panel which illustrated the work of the guild which funded it, such as the drapers, stonemasons, or coopers.[120]
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The 13th century saw the introduction of a new kind of window, with grisaille, or white glass, with a geometric pattern, usually joined with medallions of stained glass. These windows allowed much more light into the cathedral, but diminished the vividness of the stained glass, since there was less contrast between the dark interior and bright exterior. The most remarkable and influential work of stained glass in the 13th century was the royal chapel, Sainte-Chapelle (1243–1248), where the windows of the upper chapel, 15 m (49 ft) high, occupied all of the walls on the three sides, with 1,134 individual scenes. Sainte-Chapelle became the model for other chapels across Europe.[117]
The 14th century brought a variety of new colours, and the use of more realistic shading and half-toning. This was done by the development of flashed glass. Clear glass was dipped into coloured glass, then portions of the coloured glass were ground away to give exactly the right shade.[117] In the 15th century, artists began painting directly onto the glass with enamel colours. Gradually the art of glass came closer and closer to traditional painting.[117]
One of the most celebrated Flamboyant buildings was the Sainte-Chapelle de Vincennes (1370s), with walls of glass from floor to ceiling. The original glass was destroyed, and is replaced by grisaille glass.[62] King's College Chapel (15th century), also followed the model of walls entirely filled with glass.
The stained glass windows were extremely complex and expensive to create. King Louis IX paid for the rose windows in the transept of Notre-Dame de Paris, while other windows were often financed by the contributions of the professions or guilds of the city.[119] These windows usually incorporated a panel which illustrates the work of the guild which funded it, such as the drapers, stonemasons, or barrel-makers.[120]
In England, the stained glass windows also grew in size and importance; major examples were the Becket Windows at Canterbury Cathedral (1200–1230) and the windows of Lincoln Cathedral (1200–1220). Enormous windows were also an important element of York Minster and Gloucester Cathedral.
Much of the stained glass in Gothic churches today dates from later restorations, but a few, notably Chartres Cathedral and Bourges Cathedral, still have many of their original windows[120]
Rose windows were a prominent feature of many Gothic churches and cathedrals. The rose was a symbol of the Virgin Mary, and they were particularly used in churches dedicated to her. The French Gothic cathedrals of Chartres,[121] Notre Dame de Paris, Reims, and Laon have them in the west façade, and in the transepts as well.[122] Amiens Cathedral,[123] Strasbourg Cathedral[124] and Westminster Abbey also have them in transepts.[125] The designs of their tracery became increasingly complex, and gave their names to two periods; the Rayonnant and the Flamboyant. Two of the most famous Rayonnant rose windows were constructed in the transepts of Notre-Dame in the 13th century.
The Gothic style was used in royal and papal residences as well as in churches. Prominent examples include the Palais de la Cité the Medieval Louvre, the Chateau de Vincennes in Paris, residences of the French kings, the Doge's Palace in Venice, and the Palace of the Kings of Navarre in Olite (1269–1512). Another is the Palais des Papes (Palace of the Popes), the former Papal residence in Avignon. It was constructed between 1252 and 1364, during the Avignon Papacy. Given the complicated political situation, it combined the functions of a church, a seat of government and a fortress.[126]
The Palais de la Cité in Paris, close to Notre-Dame de Paris, begun in 1119, which was the principal residence of the French kings until 1417. Most of the Palais de la Cité is gone, but two of the original towers along the Seine, of the towers, the vaulted ceilings of the Hall of the Men-at-Arms (1302), (now in the Conciergerie; and the original chapel, Sainte-Chapelle, can still be seen.[127]
The Louvre Palace was originally built by Philippe II of France beginning in 1190 to house the King's archives and treasures, and given machicoulis and features of a Gothic fortress. However, it was soon made obsolete by the development of artillery, and in the 15th century it was remodelled into a comfortable residential palace.[128] While the outer walls retained their original military appearance, the castle itself, with a profusion of spires, towers, pinnacles, arches and gables, became a visible symbol of royalty and aristocracy. The style was copied in chateaux and other aristocratic residences across France and other parts of Europe.[129]
In the 15th century, following the late Gothic period or flamboyant style, elements of Gothic decoration began to appear in the town halls of northern France, Flanders and the Netherlands. The Rouen Courthouse in Normandy is representative of Flamboyant Gothic in France. The Hôtel de Ville of Compiègne has an imposing Gothic bell tower, featuring a spire surrounded by smaller towers, and its windows are decorated with ornate accolades or ornamental arches. Similarly flamboyant town halls were found in Arras, Douai, and Saint-Quentin, Aisne, and in modern Belgium, in Brussels, Ghent, Bruges, Audenarde, Mons and Leuven.[130]
Gothic civil architecture in Spain includes the Silk Exchange in Valencia, Spain (1482–1548), a major marketplace, which has a main hall with twisting columns beneath its vaulted ceiling.[131]
The Gothic style was adopted in the late 13th to 15th centuries in early English university buildings, with inspiration coming from monasteries and manor houses.[132][133][page needed] The oldest existing example in England is probably the Mob Quad of Merton College at Oxford University, constructed between 1288 and 1378.[134]
The style was further refined by William of Wykeham, Chancellor of England and founder of New College, Oxford, in 1379. His architect, William Wynford, designed the New College quadrangle in the 1380s, which combined a hall, chapel, library, and residences for Fellows and undergraduates.[132] A similar kind of academic cloister was created at Queen's College, Oxford, in the 1140s, likely designed by Reginald Ely.[132]
The design of the colleges was influenced not only by abbeys, but also the design of English manor houses of the 14th and 15th century, such as Haddon Hall in Derbyshire. They were composed of rectangular courtyards with covered walkways which separated the wings. Some colleges, like Balliol College, Oxford, borrowed a military style from Gothic castles, with battlements and crenelated walls.[132]
King's College Chapel, Cambridge is one of the finest examples of the late Gothic style. It was built by King Henry VI, who was displeased by the excessive decoration of earlier styles. He wrote in 1447 that he wanted his chapel "to proceed in large form, clean and substantial, setting apart superfluity of too great curious works of entail and busy moulding."[135] The chapel, built between 1508 and 1515, has glass walls from floor to ceiling, rising to spreading fan vaults designed by John Wastell. The glass walls are supported by large external buttresses concealed at the base by side chapels.[135]
Other European examples include Collegio di Spagna in the University of Bologna, built during the 14th and 15th centuries; the Collegium Carolinum of the Charles University in Prague in the Czech Republic (c. 1400); the Escuelas mayores of the University of Salamanca in Spain; and the Collegium Maius of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Poland.
In the 13th century, the design of the castle (French: château fort) evolved in response to contact with the more sophisticated fortifications of the Byzantine Empire and the Islamic world during the Crusades. These new fortifications were more geometric, with a central high tower called a keep (French: donjon) which could be defended even if the curtain walls of the castle were breached. The donjon of the Château de Vincennes, begun by Philip VI of France was a good example. It was 52 m (171 ft) high, and, even though within the moat and walls of the fortress, had its own separate drawbridge to going to higher floor.
Towers, usually round, were placed at the corners and along the walls in the Phillipienne castle, close enough together to support each other. The walls had two levels of walkways on the inside, a crenellated parapet with merlons, and projecting machicolations from which missiles could be dropped on besiegers. The upper walls also had protected protruding balconies, échauguettes and bretèches, from which soldiers could see what was happening at the corners or on the ground below. In addition, the towers and walls were pierced with arrowslits, which sometimes took the form of crosses to enable a wider field of fire for archers and crossbowmen.[136]
Castles were surrounded by a deep moat, spanned by a single drawbridge. The entrance was also protected by a grill of iron which could be opened and closed. The walls at the bottom were often sloping, and protected with earthen barriers. One good surviving example is the Château de Dourdan, near Nemours.[137]
After the end of the Hundred Years War (1337–1453), with improvements in artillery, the castles lost most of their military importance. They remained as symbols of the rank of their noble occupants; the narrowing openings in the walls were often widened into the windows of bedchambers and ceremonial halls. The tower of the Château de Vincennes became a part-time royal residence until the Palace of Versailles was completed.[137]
Although Christianity played a dominant role in the Gothic sacred architecture, Jewish communities were present in many European cities during the Middle Ages and they also built their houses of prayer in the Gothic style. Unfortunately, most of the Gothic synagogues did not survive, because they were often destroyed in connection with persecution of the Jews (e. g. in Bamberg, Nürnberg, Regensburg, Vienna). One of the best preserved examples of a Gothic synagogue is the Old New Synagogue in Prague which was completed around 1270 and never rebuilt.[clarification needed][citation needed]
There are a few mosques in Gothic style. They are Latin Catholic churches converted into mosques. The conversion implied compromises since Latin churches are oriented towards the east and mosques are oriented towards Mecca.
Romanesque architecture and Norman architecture had a major influence upon Gothic architecture. The plan of the Gothic cathedral was based upon the plan of the ancient Roman basilica, which was adopted by Romanesque architecture. The Latin cross form, with a nave and transept, choir, disambulatory, and radiating chapels, came from the Romanesque model. The grand arcades of columns separating the central vessel of the nave from the collateral aisles, the triforium over the grand arcades, and the windows high on the walls allowing light into the nave were all also adapted from the Romanesque model. The portal with a tympanum filled with sculpture was another characteristic Romanesque feature, as was the use of the buttress to support the walls from the outside. Gothic architects improved them by adding the flying buttress with high arches connecting the buttresses to the upper walls. In the interior, Romanesque architecture used the barrel vault with a round arch to cover the nave, and a groin vault when two barrel vaults met at right angles. These vaults were the immediate ancestors of the Gothic rib vault. One of the first use of the Gothic rib vaults to cover a nave was in the Romanesque Durham Cathedral, (1093–1104).[138]
Norman Architecture, similar to the Romanesque style, also influenced the Gothic style. Early examples are found in Lessay Abbey in Normandy, which also featured early rib vaults in the nave similar to the Gothic vaults. Cefalu Cathedral (1131–1267) in Sicily, built when Sicily was under Norman rule, is another interesting example. It featured pointed arches and large Gothic rib vaults combined with ornamental mosaic decoration.[138]
Romanesque architecture had become a pan-European style and manner of construction, affecting buildings in countries as far apart as Ireland and Croatia, and Sweden and Sicily. The same wide geographic area was then affected by the development of Gothic architecture, but the acceptance of the Gothic style and methods of construction differed from place to place, as did the expressions of Gothic taste. The proximity of some regions meant that modern country borders did not define divisions of style. Many different factors like geographical/geological, economic, social, or political situations caused the regional differences in the great abbey churches and cathedrals of the Romanesque period that would often become even more apparent in the Gothic. For example, studies of the population statistics reveals disparities such as the multitude of churches, abbeys, and cathedrals in northern France while in more urbanised regions construction activity of a similar scale was reserved to a few important cities. Such an example comes from Roberto López, wherein the French city of Amiens was able to fund its architectural projects whereas Cologne could not because of the economic inequality of the two.[139] This wealth, concentrated in rich monasteries and noble families, would eventually spread certain Italian, Catalan, and Hanseatic bankers.[140] This would be amended when the economic hardships of the 13th century were no longer felt, allowing Normandy, Tuscany, Flanders, and the southern Rhineland to enter into competition with France.[141]
The pointed arch, one of the defining attributes of Gothic, was earlier featured in Islamic architecture,[142] Though it did not have the same functions. Precursor of pointed arch appeared in Byzantine and Sassanian architectures, This was evidenced in early church building in Syria and occasional secular structures, like the Karamagara Bridge; in Sassanian architecture, employed in palace and sacred construction. These pre-Islamic arches were decorative rather than structural in their function.[143][144][145] The pointed arch as an architectonic principle was first clearly established in Islamic architecture; as an architectonic principle, the pointed arch was entirely alien to the pre-Islamic world.[146] Use of the pointed arch seems to have taken off dramatically in Islamic architecture. It begins to appear throughout the Islamic world in close succession after its adoption in the late Umayyad or early Abbasid period. Some examples are the Al-Ukhaidir Palace (775 AD), the Abbasid reconstruction of the Al-Aqsa mosque in 780 AD, the Ramlah Cisterns (789 AD), the Great Mosque of Samarra (851 AD), and the Mosque of Ibn Tulun (879 AD) in Cairo. It also appears in one of the early reconstructions of the Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia, and the Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba in 987 AD. The pointed arch had already been used in Syria, but in the mosque of Ibn Tulun we have one of the earliest examples of its use on an extensive scale, some centuries before it was exploited in the West by the Gothic architects.[147]
A kind of rib vault was also used in Islamic architecture, for example in the ceiling of the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba. In Cordoba, the dome was supported by pendentives, which connected the dome to the arches below. The pendentives were decorated with ribs. Unlike the Gothic rib vault, the Islamic ribs were purely decorative; they did not extend outside of the vault, and they were not part of the structure supporting the roof.
The military and cultural contacts with the medieval Islamic world, including the Norman conquest of Islamic Sicily in 1090, the Crusades (beginning 1096), and the Islamic presence in Spain, may have influenced Medieval Europe's adoption of the pointed arch.[148][149] Another feature of Gothic architecture, a kind of rib vault, had also earlier appeared in Islamic architecture, and spread to Western Europe via Islamic Spain and Sicily.[146][150] The early rib vaults in Spain were used to support cupolas, and were decorative. The dome of the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba was supported by pendentives, rather than the vault. These were frequently used in Romanesque and Byzantine architecture, as in the dome of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, which also was supported by pendentives. The Gothic rib vault, among other features, such as the flying buttress, have their antecedents in Romanesque architecture, such as Durham Cathedral, constructed between 1093 and 1096.[148][31]
In those parts of the Western Mediterranean subject to Islamic control or influence, rich regional variants arose, fusing Romanesque and later Gothic traditions with Islamic decorative forms. For example, in Monreale and Cefalù Cathedrals, the Alcázar of Seville, and Teruel Cathedral.[151]
A number of scholars have cited the Armenian Cathedral of Ani, completed 1001 or 1010, as a possible influence on the Gothic, especially due to its use of pointed arches and cluster piers.[152][153][154][155] However, other scholars such as Sirarpie Der Nersessian, who rejected this notion as she argued that the pointed arches did not serve the same function of supporting the vault.[156] Lucy Der Manuelian contends that some Armenians (historically documented as being in Western Europe in the Middle Ages)[157] could have brought the knowledge and technique employed at Ani to the west.[158] --->
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{{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)Gothic arch or window rising to a point at its apex.
First Pointed Gothic of the late C12 before the introduction of tracery.
To Near Eastern scholars the Armenian cathedral at Ani (989–1001), designed by Trdat (972–1036), seemed to anticipate Gothic.
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