Gothic Architecture Research Paper
Gothic Architecture
The technical revolution in architecture known as "Gothic" began at the end of the 12th century and lasted just over two hundred years. The advances made in architecture paralleled those in intellectual life. Gothic architecture was generally tall and inspiring and was a significant structural improvement upon the Romanesque buildings that preceded it.
Even though the Gothic era roughly lasted two hundred years (12th-14th century), it was long enough to voyage deep into the beautiful and complex world of architecture. These contributions revolutionized the building habits of the time, as well as, have a profound influence on the social, religious and political culture throughout the European world. This essay will provide …show more content…
Between 1130 A.D. and 1230 A.D. twenty-five cathedrals were built within 100 miles of Paris. All of them were "Gothic."
The historical style itself originated at the abbey church of St. Denis in Saint-Denis, near Paris, where it exemplified the vision of Abbot Suger. The first truly Gothic construction was the choir of the church, known as the Abbey of St. Denis, consecrated in 1144.
The architectural structure of the Abbey of St. Denis differed from previous churches in many ways. Most churches had wooden rafters, which were replaced with stone vaults, but Abbott Suger decided to replace the stone vaults with pointed arches and complex ribbed vaults. The pointed arches allowed for the stretching of the walls to an extreme height which later became a fundamental element to the ribbed groin vault.
The scholar H. W. Janson (1974) describes the Abbey of St. Denis this way, "...the entire plan is held together by a new kind of geometric order: it consists of seven identical wedge-shaped units fanning out from the center of the apse. This double ambulatory is a continuous space, whose space is outlined by a network of slender arches, ribs, and columns that sustains the vaults." (pg …show more content…
Although the Gothic revival was practiced throughout Europe, it attained its greatest importance in the United States and England. The Columbia Encyclopedia (2003) describes that the early works were designed in a fanciful late rococo manner, exemplified by Horace Walpole 's remodeled "gothick" house, "Strawberry Hill" in 1770. By 1830, however, architects turned to more archaeological methods. Thus, just as the classical revivalists had done, they began to copy the original examples more literally.
A. W. N. Pugin wrote two of the basic texts of the Gothic Revival. In "Contrasts," written in 1836, Pugin put forth the idea that the Middle Ages, in its way of life and art, was superior to his own time and ought to be imitated. He amplified his ideas in is writing of "The True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture," in 1841. He propounded that not only must Gothic detail be authentic but that the contemporary architect should achieve the structural clarity and high level of craftsmanship that were found in the Middle Ages by using the methods of medieval
The technical revolution in architecture known as "Gothic" began at the end of the 12th century and lasted just over two hundred years. The advances made in architecture paralleled those in intellectual life. Gothic architecture was generally tall and inspiring and was a significant structural improvement upon the Romanesque buildings that preceded it.
Even though the Gothic era roughly lasted two hundred years (12th-14th century), it was long enough to voyage deep into the beautiful and complex world of architecture. These contributions revolutionized the building habits of the time, as well as, have a profound influence on the social, religious and political culture throughout the European world. This essay will provide …show more content…
Between 1130 A.D. and 1230 A.D. twenty-five cathedrals were built within 100 miles of Paris. All of them were "Gothic."
The historical style itself originated at the abbey church of St. Denis in Saint-Denis, near Paris, where it exemplified the vision of Abbot Suger. The first truly Gothic construction was the choir of the church, known as the Abbey of St. Denis, consecrated in 1144.
The architectural structure of the Abbey of St. Denis differed from previous churches in many ways. Most churches had wooden rafters, which were replaced with stone vaults, but Abbott Suger decided to replace the stone vaults with pointed arches and complex ribbed vaults. The pointed arches allowed for the stretching of the walls to an extreme height which later became a fundamental element to the ribbed groin vault.
The scholar H. W. Janson (1974) describes the Abbey of St. Denis this way, "...the entire plan is held together by a new kind of geometric order: it consists of seven identical wedge-shaped units fanning out from the center of the apse. This double ambulatory is a continuous space, whose space is outlined by a network of slender arches, ribs, and columns that sustains the vaults." (pg …show more content…
Although the Gothic revival was practiced throughout Europe, it attained its greatest importance in the United States and England. The Columbia Encyclopedia (2003) describes that the early works were designed in a fanciful late rococo manner, exemplified by Horace Walpole 's remodeled "gothick" house, "Strawberry Hill" in 1770. By 1830, however, architects turned to more archaeological methods. Thus, just as the classical revivalists had done, they began to copy the original examples more literally.
A. W. N. Pugin wrote two of the basic texts of the Gothic Revival. In "Contrasts," written in 1836, Pugin put forth the idea that the Middle Ages, in its way of life and art, was superior to his own time and ought to be imitated. He amplified his ideas in is writing of "The True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture," in 1841. He propounded that not only must Gothic detail be authentic but that the contemporary architect should achieve the structural clarity and high level of craftsmanship that were found in the Middle Ages by using the methods of medieval