The small cluster of Gothic architecture that was based on the  Abbey of  St.Denis stood out against the purely Romanesque landscape. The architecture of this  light filled soon became popular.

 

The choir of St. Denis

Here is an example - Toulouse Cathedral

ENGLISH GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE

England was developong its own version of Gothic.

Roche Abbey has one of the most complete ground plans of any English Cistercian monastery.

The soaring early Gothic transepts of this Cistercian monastery still survive to their original height and are ranked in importance with the finest early Gothic architecture in Britain.

ROCHE ABBEY RUINS

Next came great originality in English Gothic architecture, This is WORCESTER Cathedral which shows a great inventiveness.

The Anglican Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Mary the Virgin of Worcester.

Built between 1084 and 1504, Worcester Cathedral represents every style of English architecture from Norman to Perpendicular Gothic. It is famous for its Norman crypt and unique chapter house, its unusual Transitional Gothic bays, its fine woodwork and its “exquisite” central tower which is of particularly fine proportion.

interiors Worcester Cathedral

CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL

The reconstruction of Canterbury Cathedral started in 1174.  The new choir was began after 1214. One of fascinating things is the English architectural self sufficiency because this  cathedral had the complete absence of French influences after 1214. The was a result of the war between England and France.

FLOOR PLAN OF CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL

CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL

The pivotal moment in the history of Canterbury Cathedral was the murder of Thomas Becket in the north-east transept on Tuesday 29 December 1170 by knights of King Henry II. The king had frequent conflicts with the strong-willed Becket and is said to have exclaimed in frustration, “Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?” The knights took it literally and murdered Becket in his own cathedral. Becket was the second of four Archbishops of Canterbury who were murdered .

Following a disastrous fire of 1174 which destroyed the entire eastern end, William of Sens rebuilt the choir with an important early example of the Early English Gothic design, including high pointed arches, flying buttresses, and rib vaulting. Later, William the Englishman added the Trinity Chapel as a shrine for the relicsof St. Thomas the Martyr. The Corona (‘crown’) Tower was built at the eastern end to contain the relic of the crown of St. Thomas’s head which was struck off during his murder.

The buildings at Canterbury form separate groups. The church forms the nucleus. In immediate contact with this, on the north side, lie the cloister and the group of buildings devoted to the monastic life. Outside of these, to the west and east, are the halls and chambers devoted to the exercise of hospitality, with which every monastery was provided, for the purpose of receiving as guests persons who visited it, whether clergy or laity, travellers, pilgrims or paupers.

Lincoln Cathedral

Lincoln Cathedral (in full The Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, or sometimes St. Mary’s Cathedral) is a historic Anglican cathedral in Lincoln in England and seat of the Bishop of Lincoln in theChurch of England. It was reputedly the tallest building in the world for 249 years (1300–1549) The central spire collapsed in 1549 and was not rebuilt. It is highly regarded by architectural scholars; the eminentVictorian writer John Ruskin declared, “I have always held… that the cathedral of Lincoln is out and out the most precious piece of architecture in the British Isles and roughly speaking worth any two other cathedrals we have.”

The cathedral is the 3rd largest in Britain (in floor space) after St Paul’s and York Minster, being 484 feet (148 m) by 271 feet (83 m). It is Lincolnshire’s largest building and until 1549 the spire was reputedly the tallest medieval tower in Europe, though the exact height has been a matter of debate. Accompanying the cathedral’s large bell, Great Tom of Lincoln, is a quarter-hour striking clock

This the interior of the Lincoln Cathedral. The ceiling height is one of the highest in the world. Look at the person on the left hand side to appreciate the height.

Wells Cathedral

Perhaps the most beautiful of the great English cathedrals

The present structure was begun under the direction of BishopReginald de Bohun, who died in 1184. Wells Cathedral dates primarily from the late 12th century and early 13th century; the nave and transept are masterpieces of the Early English style of architecture. It was largely complete at the time of its dedication in 1239.

The interior of the cathedral is based on three aisles, with stress being placed on horizontal, rather than vertical lines. A unique feature in the crossing are the double pointed inverted arches, known as owl-eyed strainer arches. This unorthodox solution was found by the cathedral mason, William Joy in 1338, to stop the central tower from collapsing when another stage and spire were added to the tower which had been begun in the 13th century. The capitals in the south west arm of the transept include depictions such as a bald-headed man, a man with toothache, a thorn-extractor, and a moral tale: fruit thieves being caught and punished.

The west façade, is 100 feet (30 m) high and 150 feet (46 m) wide with niches for more than 500 medieval figure sculptures of which 300 survive. Between 1975 and 1986 the west front underwent a major cleaning and restoration programme, including Silane coating and Lime treatment for many of the statues.

The West front is composed of a yellow stone, inferior oolite, of the middle Jurassic period which came from the Doulting Stone Quarry about 8 miles (13 km) to the East.

Wells Cathedral contains one of the most substantial collections of medieval stained glass in England

Stained glass at the eastern end of Wells Cathedral

Salisbury Cathedral

The Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Salisbury

Salisbury Cathedral- looking east.

The history of Salisbury Cathedral begins two miles away at Old Sarum, an ancient fortified plateau where a Norman cathedral was built by Bishop St. Osmund in 1075. The sight must have been impressive, but the location proved to be a constant headache due to its exposure to the elements and lack of sufficient water.  Finally, in 1217, Bishop Richard le Poore wrote to the Pope for permission to abandon the site for a better location two miles away, at the confluence of two rivers. The petition was granted and the clergy moved to the new site in 1219.  Construction on Salisbury Cathedral began in the Early English Gothic style in 1220. The work was completed quickly, resulting in a unity of architecture rarely seen in England. Even after Bishop le Poore moved to Durham, the builders adhered to the original design until its completion.  In accordance with common practice, construction began at the east end and worked west. The Chapel of the Holy Trinity and All Saints was completed in 1225, after which the tomb of St. Osmund was moved there from Old Sarum. Next came the choir, transepts and nave, which were complete by 1258, when the cathedral was consecrated. The elaborate west front was finished in 1255, the cloister in 1270 and the chapter house in 1284.  The only major element to be added later was the famous spire, which came along in 1310-33. But its shape matches the cathedral perfectly and is made from the same stone, quarried from Chilmark 12 miles away. The spire was a daring addition, forcing the structure below to carry a dangerous amount of weight (6,500 tons with the tower). Only a multitude of buttresses, bracing arches and iron ties have kept it from collapsing over the centuries.

Salisbury Cathedral has many notable features, but the most famous is its towering central spire. The tallest in England, it rises 404 feet tall and weights 6,400 tons. A climb of 332 steps up the tower (on a guided tour only) is rewarded with rare glimpses of the timber scaffolding above the nave and inside the spire as well as fine views of Salisbury and the surrounding countryside.

The west front was completed in 1255 and the statues were added by 1300. Unfortunately, only 10 of the original medieval sculptures survive today. Sixty statues were added in the Victorian period. They depict a hierarchy of bishops and doctors, saints and martyrs, apostles and evangelists, prophets and patriarchs below Christ in Majesty seated at the top.

Inside, the nave is striking for its great height, unusual narrowness, and strong visual rhythm due to the use of light grey Chilmark stone for the walls and dark polished Purbeck marble for the columns. The entire length of the nave is in the Early English Gothic style of the early 13th century. It has three levels: a tall pointed arcarde, an open gallery and a small clerestory.

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey is steeped in more than a thousand years of history. Benedictine monks first came to this site in the middle of the tenth century, establishing a tradition of daily worship which continues to this day.

The Abbey has been the coronation church since 1066 and is the final resting place of seventeen monarchs.

The present church, begun by Henry III in 1245, is one of the most important Gothic buildings in the country, with the medieval shrine of an Anglo-Saxon saint still at its heart.

A treasure house of paintings, stained glass, pavements, textiles and other artefacts, Westminster Abbey is also the place where some of the most significant people in the nation’s history are buried or commemorated. Taken as a whole the tombs and memorials comprise the most significant single collection of monumental sculpture anywhere in the United Kingdom.

The Library and Muniment Room houses the important (and growing) collections of archives, printed books and manuscripts belonging to the Dean and Chapter of Westminster, providing a centre for their study and for research into all aspects of the Abbey’s long and varied history.

The insides of Westminster Abbey is the most lavishly furnished great church of the 13th century. The cost per bay is twice the cost iof Salisbhury Cathedral. Westminster Abbey combined some of the features and functions of three associated with the bFrench kings: Reims Cathedral, the coronation church; St. Denis, where the coronation regalia was stored, Sainte Chapel, where the French crown was kept.

Choir of Westminster Abbey

Floor Plan of WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Next we will see Late Gothic- I hope you are enjoying this series

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Gothic cathedrals brought spaciousness and natural light where past cathedrals were dark, dungeon like churches. The first Gothic Cathedral was consecrated in 1134. This first Gothic Cathedral was St. Denis in Paris.  This first Gothic Cathedral created spaciousness and light  by changing the interior walls to columns. Louis Kahn, considered by many the greatest American architect of the 20th century, thought this change from walls to columns created by Gothic cathedrals as the momentous event in architecture.

Consider the momentous event in architecture when the wall parted and the column became. Louis Kahn St. Denis ROMANESQUE CATHEDRAL REIMS CATHEDRAL After a fire in 1210 destroyed the cathedral of Reims, the new structures goal was to excel Chartres. The Reims Cathedral became the most richly sculptured cathedral in France.   The  key place of Reims in the history of Gothic architecture is the design of its windows. The major originality of the Reims Cathedral lies in the clarity and the articulateness of its exterior appearance resulting from the repition of the same composed window type. At Chartres the the three parts of the windows were placed together that you read them as a single composition, though they are three distinct openings. At Reims , the windows area single opening voiding the area between vault , column, and the triforium( the storey below the clearstory(top story), into which are built bar-like mullions, arches and oculi. Hence the name “bar tracery”.  Every intervening space is glazed and flat wall is completely eliminated. Reims is renowned for the invention of bar tracery. Layout of Reims Cathedral The plan is singularly compact, There are no secondary volumes project and even the major artic ulation of this plan is reduced to to the minimum one bay. South facade Reims Cathedral- showing bar tracery Front of REIMS Cathedral Interior showing sculpture

Amiens Cathedral

Amiens Cathedral, began in 1220,  is the most magnificent achievement of High Gothic architecture,  The height and spatial composition is now tremendously expanded in height. The height of the nave is 139 feet- ( a 13 story building). The nave is 48 feet wide- this gives a ratio of 3 to 1 for height and width. This ratio had never been reached before. The vertical movement becomes overpowering.

Interior of Amiens Cathedral

Front facade – Amiens Cathedral

Rayonnant Gothic

Around 1230 a new architectural style emerged called Rayonnant. or Rayonnant Gothic. The French word rayonnant means radiating. The giant rose windows above the front facade were thought to be giant, radiating compositions. The vast clerestory windows at Amiens were stretched , this may have been the beginning of this style.(Bony, French Gothic Architecture of the 12th and 13th Centuries). Notre Dame. Paris was given a huge rose window in about 1267,.

Notre Dame Cathedral-Paris – note the large round window above the entrance- the ROSE WINDOW

The climax of the Royonnant style was the Strasbourg Cathedrak began in 1277. The most original features of this Cathedral were area above the portal and the tremendous surging verticals.

Layout of the Strasbourg Cathedral

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Strasbourg Cathedral

James San Jule was one of the most creative and well read individual I have ever met. James San Jule was the originator  of  educational seminars. James San Jule was the educational director of the National Association of Home Builders(NAHB) when I met him. James San Jule had developed an NAHB seminar on developing apartments. Inn the 1960′s Jim San Jule asked me to be a speaker at this seminar. By virtue of  Jim’s efforts, the seminar  was a huge success and drew a packed audience from all parts of the US. Jim San Jules seminars were a huge financial success. This success allowed the  NAHB’s to take a much more  active role in lobbying  for improved US housing policies. The NAHB wanted to expand single family home builders perspectives to and to have the ability to develop more than single family houses.

How did Jim San Jule get this job?   . The NAHB went to the largest US advertising agency to get help in choosing the right person who could both develop and market  this program. Jim San Jule, a brilliant innovator at the agency was their recommendation.

Before Jim was working at the ad agency in New York City, he was living in San Francisco. There  James San Jule  had a storied career in housing. Jim was the founding sales manager of the very innovative Eichler Homes.  The astonishing modern  Eichler homes designed by by the architects, Anshen and Adams , were promoted in nationwide media by Jim San Jule. San Jules efforts made Eichler Homes became the American symbol of a modern house  The importance of good design is highlighted by these 40 and 50 year old homes still being in  great demand today.

Meanwhile, Jim was besieged by housing developers in the private sector with lucrative offers. Finally, San Jule accepted an offer to direct a huge mixed use development in downtown St. Louis. This development included then offices of TWA, a large US airline, retail, and at the time the largest FHA financed apartment development in the entire country. When I visited Jim in St. Louis, we always ate at a spectacular restaurant. San Jule had the uncanny ability to find the best restaurants. One of the best Italian restaurants I have ever been to, Jim found in St, Louis.

After a several brutal winters in St. Louis, Jim decided to return to San Francisco. There Jim  started a new career as a housing consultant. He beseeched me to move to San Francisco by telling me that the San Francisco area was a great opportunity for a developer like our company. In the 1970′s  San Jule sent a letter to many Northern California cities i telling them about our company and what we could do for them. Jim asked if they were interested, to set aside time for him to meet with them. San Jule received a reply of interest from almost every community he had written to. Up to then, I did not know anything about these letters. Finally after he met with these communities , he told me about appointments he had made for me.  Development was in a slump then. I just had married and my wife, Jill,  was from Northern California. Jill did not like living in cold winters ,etc. I was always traveling throughout the US. The only requirement was to be near a major airport. San Francisco certainly qualified. So we moved. Jim was getting married soon. So went to California to live and attend his wedding to Joan. At the wedding I met many of Jim’s old friends from the 1930′s. There were among the most fascinating folks I had ever met. During the Depression, they were all young radicals, Now many were millionaires, but they still had a strong social conscience. They regaled us with great stories about Jim and of all them in 1930′s and 1940′s. I learned that Jim San Jule was in OSS, the forerunner to the CIA, during WWII.

Jim told me about San Jose being a great opportunity. We started a 400 unit development there. It was very apparent that Jim San Jule was right, there were many opportunities all over the Bay Area. Jill and I were renting a town house in San Francisco. She wanted to buy  a home in Mill Valley, where she was born and her family lived.. Mill Valley is across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. She found her dream house in Mill Valley. I was reluctant to buy a house because I wanted as much capital as possible for all these great deals I had been told about. I asked Jim for advice.  Jim and I  drove  to Mill Valley to see the home Jill had chosen. He then asked me, how important my marriage was to me? I answered very important. Then Jim said , then you better buy this house, which we did. Jim had introduced me to the Director of the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency(SFRDA) several years before. The SFRDA had purchased a ten acre urban site near the downtown ten years before. The site was on the edge of the Fillmore area, an area primarily occupied by African-Americans. Lenders had been steadily refused to finance a large project in this area. James San Jule told the then Director, Rev. Wilbur Hamilton, that only my company could get this financed. Wilbur Hamilton called me and after we met asked whether I was interested.

The secret was how to raise the funds for this huge development- the 10 acres were zoned for 1,200 units, offices, and retail. In 1985 after getting a preliminary plan from our architects, our first rough cost estimate was $120,0000,000. Our plan was to sell the tax losses to raise $40,000,000. Then  obtain a first mortgage for the balance. A month before the funding was to close, the ability to sell tax losses was repealed by Congress. So we innovated a tax exempt second mortgage bond with high interest rates . We were able to sell about $40,000,000 of these bonds.

Jim was a prodigious reader. San Jule’s huge library was all non-fiction- much about planning, architecture, and urban problems. He loved magazines like the Futurist.

Meanwhile Joan and Jim San Jule visited Vancouver, British Columbia. The San Jules saw False Creek,  an almost abandoned industrial waterfront converted by the Canadian Railroad to beautiful mixed use developments. The San Jules brought the Mayor of Vancouver, who spearheaded False Creek, to San Francisco to talk to local officials and the private sector about converting San Francisco’s similar almost abandoned industrial waterfront  to beautiful mixed use developments. All who heard this story, were wild about the concept. But nothing happened . Joan and Jim continued to push this plan. The San Jules efforts have resulted in some piecemeal False Creek like waterfront developments. More are planned.

The San Francisco Catholic Diocese tried for many years to develop an elderly complex for the less fortunate senior citizens. Despite the Diocese’s good faith and hard work, nothing happened. They then hired Jim San Jule as their consultant. Within a year of the ground breaking, the complex was finished and full of happy tenants. The San Jule touch.

San Francisco is full of such San Jule victories. As evidence of this,  the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association sponsors the annual Silver SPUR Awards Luncheon . This is San Francisco’s largest and most important civic event of the year. Over 2,000 people  pay tribute to a few people who make San Francisco and the Bay area, a better place to live and work. This event has evolved over several decades, but its purpose remains the same: to recognize the contributions and dreams of remarkable San Franciscans, A few years ago James San Jule was was given this prestigious award for all he had accomplished for his city, San Francisco.

Each city must have  public spirited visionaries like James San Jule to vision and work for a city that ALL of its residents and visitors can  enjoy. I am very fortunate to have known Joan and Jim San Jule,  as is San Francisco.

They leave a  heritage of unselfishly working to improve their city. ANY JOINERS?

The Cathédrale St-Étienne in Bourges, near the Loire Valley, is a magnificent  Gothic cathedral on par with its more famous neighbors to the north. It is based on the Notre-Dame in Paris but with improvements in design, which can be seen especially in the astonishing height of the aisles.  For its unique feats of architecture, impressive sculptures and glorious 13th-century stained glass windows, Bourges Cathedral has been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. here is the citation by UNESCO:

The Cathedral of St Etienne of Bourges, built between the late 12th and late 13th centuries, is one of the great masterpieces of Gothic art and is admired for its proportions and the unity of its design. The tympanum, sculptures and stained-glass windows are particularly striking. Apart from the beauty of the architecture, it attests to the power of Christianity in medieval France.

BOURGES CATHEDRAL

Bourges Cathedral has a highly unique floor plan. It has no transepts, which form the cross-shape of most churches. This lends the cathedral a unique appearance inside and out. On the exterior, thick walls and a myriad of flying buttresses support the unbroken weight of the long nave (122m/400 ft).

Inside, around the central nave wrap two side aisles that flow continuously into two ambulatories at the east end. This unique, transept-free layout allows for a much longer view down the aisles, which is made even more striking by the exceptionally great height of the aisles. In other churches these are much lower than the nave.

The west facade is among the broadest of the Gothic cathedrals in France at over 40 meters. Each aisle has its own door at the west end, making a total of five portals. All are beautifully carved with sculptures; one tells the life story of St. Stephen. The central door’s 13th-century tympanum is of the highest quality, depicting the Last Judgment in figurative carvings alive with movement and imagination. The devils come complete with snakes’ tailes and faces appearing below the waist, symbolic of the soul enslaved to sinful appetites.

The north and south portals are also filled with sculptures, which are even older than those on the west portals. They date from about 1160 and were reused from the earlier Romanesque cathedral. The south portal has a tympanum of Christ in Majesty with the Four Evangelists and full-length statues of prophets and kings on the side columns. It is very similar in subject, layout and style to the central bay of Chartres Cathedral’s Royal Portal (c.1150). The north portal at Bourges has a theme of the Virgin Mary and as such was savagely attacked by Protestants in 1562. The wood doors in both portals date from the end of the 15th century.

Magnificent stained glass windows fill the cathedral, but are especially astonishing in the ambulatory at the east end, where they can be examined up close at eye-level. The beautiful jewel-toned windows of the ambulatory date almost entirely from between 1215 and 1225 (overlapping with the stained glass at Chartres).

Of the original 25 windows, a remarkable 22 survive. The three windows in the central east chapel were lost. The large windows in the main wall of the ambulatory are entirely original. Unfortunately the narrower windows in the chapels have lost their original lower registers, due to Baroque altar installation in the 17th century. These panels were replaced in the 19th century withmedieval-style stained glass of high quality, but without reference to the lost originals.

interior -Bourge

WINDOWS OF BOURGES CATHEDRAL

south facade- BOURGES CATHEDRAL

Floor of Bourges Cathedral, showing the exceptionally simple layout with long nave and no transept

Chartres Cathedral (full name Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres) is located in the medieval town of Chartres, about 50 miles from Paris.
Not only is Chartres Cathedral one of the greatest achievements in the history of architecture, it is almost perfectly preserved in its original design and details. Chartres’ extensive cycle of portal sculpture remains fully intact and its glowing stained-glass windows are all originals. Chartres is thus the only cathedral that conveys an almost perfect image of how it looked when it was built.
The medieval Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres, (French: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres),in Chartres, about 80 kilometres (50 mi) southwest of Paris, is considered one of the finest examples of the French High Gothic style. The current cathedral, mostly constructed between 1193 and 1250, is one of at least five that have occupied the site since the town became a bishopric in the 4th century.What makes the cathedral special from an art historical viewpoint is its exceptional state of preservation. The majority of the original stained glass windows survive intact, while the architecture has seen only minor changes since the early 13th century. The building’s exterior is dominated by heavy flying buttresses which allowed the architects to increase the window size significantly, while the west end is dominated by two contrasting spires — one, a 105 metre (349 ft) plain pyramid dating from the 1140s, and the other a 113 metre (377 ft) tall early 16th century Flamboyant spire on top of an older tower. Equally notable are the three great facades, each adorned with hundreds of sculpted figures illustrating key theological themes and narratives.

Since at least the 12th century the cathedral has been an important destination for travellers – and remains so to this day, attracting large numbers of Christian pilgrims, many of whom come to venerate its famous relic, theSancta Camisa, said to be the tunic worn by the Virgin Mary at Christ’s birth, as well as large numbers of secular tourists who come to see this Unesco World Heritag

On 10 June 1194 another fire caused extensive damage to the then cathedral. The true extent of the damage is unknown, though the fact that the lead cames holding the west windows together survived the conflagration intact suggests contemporary accounts of the terrible devastation may have been exaggerated. Either way, the opportunity was taken to begin a complete rebuilding of the choir and nave in the latest style. The undamaged western towers and facade were incorporated into the new works, as was the earlier crypt, effectively limiting the designers of the new building to the same general plan as its predecessor. In fact the present building is only marginally longer than the former cathedral.

One of the unusual features of Chartres cathedral is the speed with which it was built – a factor which helped contribute to its consistency of design as there appear to have been relatively few changes in plan as it proceeded. Australian architectural historian John James, who made a detailed study of the cathedral, has estimated that there were about 300 men working on the site at any one time, although it has to be acknowledged that our knowledge of working practices at this time is severely limited. The order of construction remains controversial. Normally medieval churches were built from east to west so that the choir could be completed first and put into use (with a temporary wall sealing off the west end) while the crossing and nave were completed. At Chartres however it appears that the building work started at the crossing and proceeded outwards from there, the eastern bays of the nave being the oldest and the ambulatory bays of the choir the newest parts.^[11] It had been argued that the original scheme was for an entirely new western facade but that plans were subsequently changed to incorporate the surviving west-work (which is why the westernmost bay of the nave is narrower than the rest) and the elements which had been prepared for its replacement were relocated to the south transept portal.

It is important to remember that the builders were not working on a clean site but would have had to clear back the rubble and surviving parts of the old church as they built the new. Nevertheless, work progressed rapidly. The south porch with most of its sculpture was installed by 1210, and by 1215 the north porch had been completed and the western rose installed. The high vaults were erected in the 1220s, the canons moved into their new stalls in 1221, and the transept roses were erected over the subsequent two decades.

Each arm of the transept was originally meant to support two towers, two more were to flank the choir, and there was to have been a central lantern over the crossing – nine towers in all. Plans for a crossing tower were abandoned in 1221 and the crossing was vaulted over. Work on the remaining six towers continued at a slower pace for some decades, until it was decided to leave them without spires (as at Laon Cathedral and elsewhere). The cathedral was consecrated in 1260, in the presence of King Louis

Floor plan of Chartres Cathedral, showing its harmonious and symmetrical proportion

Not only is Chartres Cathedral one of the greatest achievements in the history of architecture, it is almost perfectly preserved in its original design and details. Chartres’ extensive cycle of portal sculpture remains fully intact and its glowing stained-glass windows are all originals. Chartres is thus the only cathedral that conveys an almost perfect image of how it looked when it was built.

In addition to its architectural splendor, Chartres Cathedral has been a major pilgrimage destination since the early Middle Ages. Its venerable history, exquisitely preserved architecture, and centuries of fervent devotion make for an atmosphere of awe and holiness that impresses even the most nonreligious of visitors.

The UNESCO designated the Chartres Cathedral as a world heritage site with the following description:

Partly built starting in 1145, and then reconstructed over a 26-year period after the fire of 1194, Chartres Cathedral marks the high point of French Gothic art. The vast nave, in pure ogival style, the porches adorned with fine sculptures from the middle of the 12th century, and the magnificent 12th- and 13th-century stained-glass windows, all in remarkable condition, combine to make it a masterpiece..

Rayonnant Gothic Architecture

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rayonnant rose window fron Notre-Dame de Paris\

Rayonnant is a term used to describe a period in the development of French Gothic architecture, ca. 1240–1350. Developing out of the High Gothic style, Rayonnant is characterised by a shift in focus away from the great scale and spatial rationalism of buildings like Chartres Cathedral or the nave of Amiens Cathedral, towards a greater concern for two dimensional surfaces and the repetition of decorative motifs at different scales. After the mid 14th century, Rayonnant gradually evolved into the Late Gothic,Flamboyant style, though as usual with such arbitrary stylistic labels, the point of transition is not clearly defined.

Whilst all phases of Gothic architecture were concerned to some degree with levels of illumination and the appearance of structural lightness, Rayonnant takes this to the extreme. More of the wall surface than ever before was pierced by windows (see for example theSainte-Chapelle in Paris) and buildings were often given lace-like tracery screens on the exterior to hide the bulk of load bearing wall elements and buttresses (such as at Strasbourg Cathedral or the Church of St Urbain in Troyes).

Facade of The Church of St Urbain, Troyes, showing the use of gables, pinnacles and open tracery

As well as increasing the size of window openings, the Rayonnant period coincided with the development of the band window, in which a central strip of richly coloured stained glass is positioned between upper and lower bands of clear or grisaille glass, which allowed even more light to flood in.

cologne cathedral - Construction of Cologne Cathedral began in 1248 and took, with interruptions, until 1880 to complete. It is 144.5 metres long, 86.5 m wide and its towers are approximately 157 m tall.[3] The cathedral is one of the world’s largest churches and the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe. For four years, 1880-84, it was the tallest structure in the world, until the completion of the Washington Monument. It has the second-tallest church spires, only surpassed by the single spire of Ulm Minster, completed 10 years later in 1890. Because of its enormous twin spires, it also presents the largest façade of any church in the world. The choir of the cathedral, measured between the piers, also holds the distinction of having the largest height to width ratio of any Medieval church, 3.6:1, exceeding even Beauvais Cathedral which has a slightly higher vault.[4]

Cologne’s medieval builders had planned a grand structure to house the reliquary of the Three Kings and fit its role as a place of worship of the Holy Roman Emperor. Despite having been left incomplete during the medieval period, Cologne Cathedral eventually became unified as “a masterpiece of exceptional intrinsic value” and “a powerful testimony to the strength and persistence of Christian belief in medieval and modern Europe”.

this shows the huge facade of the Cologne Cathedral

The cathedral suffered fourteen hits by aerial bombs during World War IIbut did not collapse. The repairs to the building were completed in 1956. In the northwest tower’s base, an emergency repair carried out with bad-quality brick taken from a nearby war ruin remained visible until the late 1990s as a reminder of the War, but then it was decided to reconstruct this section according to the original appearance.

Now we move to the next generation of Gothic architecture. By the late 1160′s Gothic architecture had become a perfected style.  The technical aspects were truly remarkable. The  enclosed space was much wider, much taller, more spacious  than prior churches. The repetitive  grid like elevations were most impressive. The openness of the structures made apparent the  structure of the building. Gone were the dungeon like thick walls of the prior churches. No longer was the entire weight of the structure  carried by these thick walls. Bays were created by the columns that now carried the weight rather than walls. The columns that created  openings through which  natural light flooded the interiors.   Windows at the top and sides also poured light into interior of the Gothic structure. Gothic architecture did not stop nat this point. This was just the beginning.  The designers imagined more powerful designs and sought to incorporate these ideas in new churches. By 1180, the familiar faces of Gothic design was changing.

Chartres Cathedral- a masterpiece of Gothic architecture started in 1194

This diagram below best demonstrates why the Gothic Cathedrals made light filled, spacious buildings. The structure rests on columns, not walls as previous churches had.  Note how the space between the columns created open lighted bays.  The double flying buttresses carry much of the thrust created by the  the ribbed vaults and arches. The placings of these buttresses at much higher locations than the earlier  Gothic structures permitted much greater height to these buildings. The openings developed by the use of vaults and columns provide light. This structure promoted spaciousness, natural light, and openness-  a completely new architectural.experience

STRUCTURE OF A TYPICAL GOTHIC CATHEDRAL

In the late 12th century, the skeleton of a Gothic structure appeared thinner. This increased the sharpness its lines and made it stand out more against the background. This evolved in the reduction of the wall space to a web of windows. In England, dark marble was used for vertical shafts. The horizontal lines below the triforium were also treated with dark stone. A classic example of this is in the Canterbury Cathedral. This was a method of accenting the vertical shafts. The use of dark marble never gained acceptance in French Gothic buildings.

Even more powerful refinement of Gothic architecture was the exploitation of the double walled system. The adaption of a triforium of wall passage type in the Laos Cathedral created a two layer effect. This continuous layer of compartmented space, hugging the wall, suggesting a an originally heavy  wall eaten away by some powerful erosion and now reduced to the mere shell of its primitive thickness. The effect of structural lightness was so effective that it was used without change for many years.

When all these new ideas were being evolved, some architects were tired of the tight patterns and the principles of insistent repetitions. They yearned for more simplicity especially fewer stories. As a result, the design of the St.-Yved at Braine in 1190. A widened grid in two major stories,  separated by the triforium.  Because of its harmony and definition, this St.-Yved Cathedral at Brainef was very influential in its time. It is considered the model for this type cathedral.

Saint- Yved at Braine

FLYING BUTTRESSES

In the early Gothic cathedrals, these structures had the look of a hunched back. The clerestory was short because of the way the structure was stabilized.

The lateral support for the thrust of the vaults was under the roof  The raising of the lateral volumes with their concealed buttresses to the springing line of the central vault little height in the upper nave walls in which windowsv might be pierced. This is why the clerestory remained a compressed story, this restricted the building height to the height of the nave vault itself. These flying buttresses restricted the churches to a height of two stories.

Starting in the the 1190′s, the buttress system radically changed. First, the flying buttresses were doubled- that is one buttress on top of another.

here is the flying buttress in an early Gothic Cathedral- Saint Remi Basilica- note the hunched look.

Saint Remi Basilica (1160

Starting at the end of 12th century- 1194- Gothic Architecture had a rebirth- Gothic architecture started all over again- but this time on a larger scale with new, powerful technical tools.The cathedrals at Bourges and Chartres started this. Chartres is at the top of  this page and Bourges is below. These cathedrals  went back to double aisles. They extended the width of the choir for more spaciousness.

‘To build the flying buttress, it was first necessary to construct temporary wooden frames which are called centering. The centering would support the weight of the stones and help maintain the shape of the arch until the mortar was dry. The centering was first built on the ground by the carpenters. Once that was done, they would be hoisted into place and fastened to the piers at the end of one buttress and at the other. These acted as temporary flying buttresses until the actual stone arch was complete” Gothic Cathedrals-Lee et al.

Because the majority of the load is transmitted from the ceiling through the upper part of the walls, making the buttress as a semi-arch extending far from the wall provides almost the same load bearing capacity as a traditional buttress engaged with the wall from top to bottom, yet in a much lighter and cheaper structure. And because the flying buttress relieves the load bearing walls with a much smaller area of contact, much larger voids are able to be built into those walls, such as for windows, than would otherwise be possible.

Often on Gothic churches, two arched ‘flyers’ were used one above the other. In such cases the lower flyer (positioned a little below the springing point of the vault) is designed to take the lateral force of the vault while the upper one resists the effect of wind-loading on the roof.[6]

The vertical buttresses at the outer end of the flyers were often capped with pinnacles which provide additional vertical loading to help resist the lateral thrust transmitted by the flyer.

BOURGES CATHEDRAL STARTED IN 1196 USING DOUBLE DOUBLE FLYING BUTTRESSES- TWO SETS OF TWO BUTTRESSES

Bourges rises in three regular tiers. The great flying buttresses of Bourges were made to conform to the steep slope to the tiered  progression in height, so as not disturb the silhouette of  the building against the sky.

The next part more of Chartres and Bourges, and their successors

The work completed at St. Denis in the 1140′s suddenly made other buildings seem out-of-date.

The Basilica of Saint Denis

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris

In this context, the ancient ancient cathedral in Paris inevitably came to seem antiquated, poorly adopted to the ambitions of its rapidly expanding diocese. What’s more the momentum to build was spreading throughout Northern France.  In 1160, Maurice de Sully was elected bishop of Notre Dame. Sully’s concerns was the reorganization of parish life through clarification of the role specific to the cathedral. Bishop Sully believed that a diocesan church is intended to serve the entire community, it also served as a parish church for congregants living within the island’s ancient wall. Soon after assuming his office, Bishop raised funds for a new cathedral.

The new Notre Dame was the most colossal building of its generation: colossal in length and area as well as colossal in height. Alt6hough the Gothic master builders of the 13th century were to build on an even larger scale, but a knowledge of Amiens or Cologne does not diminish the impact of Notre Dame. The impression on entering Notre Dame is still today one of amazement  at the sheer size of the nave and the loftiness of its proportions. Its plan is packed tightly within the re3straining limits of a continuous outline, even the transept does not project beyond this limit.

In the transept, which offers a magnificent cross-swection of the building, one becomes conscious of the systematic quality of this three-dimensional gridwork. The interior is honeycombed of little hallowed blocks, from which the central space is sliced out cleanly, leaving exposed sheer faces imprinted with a surface grid one reads the partitioning of the lateral volumes into modular cases which encase the whole building and sustain it. Here lies the key to the ordered spatial vision of Notre Dame. The austere beauty of this nave reflects tension which alone could produce such a complex and perfectly regulated universe. This wonderful Cathedral became a  a model for early Gothic churches. No wonder this 750 year old Cathedral has 13,000,000 visitors and worshippers visit Notre Dame each and every year – testimony to the long cherished appreciation for great architecture!!!

Notre Dame Cathedral

Details of Rose window

looking east – Notre Dame Cathedral interior

Next, let us look at floor plan of another masterpiece of Early Gothic architecture, the Laon Cathedral, that also served as a model for Gothic churches. You will note that the transept is not contained by the interior lines of the Cathedral as it is in the Notre Dame Cathedral.

Laon Cathedral                                                          NORTH

SOUTH

This the floor plan of the Laon Cathedral- like all cathedrals, Laon  goes from west at the entrance through the nave to east at the choir.

A few definitions

The triforium is the shallow passage above the archesof the nave and choir and below the clerestory; characteristically opened into the nave. The clerestory is an upper zone of wall pierced with windows  that admit light to below.  The lantern is a windowed superstructure crowing a roof or dome.(Dictionary of  Historic Architecture)

“The spatial magnificence of Laon is of an entirely order : far from compact as Notre Dame is. Laon stretches in all directions. The crossing of the transept from which emanates in five different directions -north, south, west, east, and upward. Triforium and clerestory windows   are repeated at two levels: at the top of the nave walls and again in the lantern. Laon is remarkable now for its enormous  length cut right in the middle by the transept and by the great shaft of light hat falls from the lantern. …..But to this Laon added another major element its multiplication of towers. Two of the five towers have been left unfinished. Here the Gothic sense of space was at work and it tended to openness.

Another particularity of Laon is the presence on the east side of the transepts of tall chapels. They fall in a deep cascade of light from the height of the unfinished towers, and their modeling in the light of day gives a clue to the intentions of the master-builder of Laon for him the play of volumes was not just a matter of compact and rigorous order as at Notre Dame, it is the art of sculpture on the grand scale.

Even in the regularity of the interior elevation, at Laon there is the sense of the plastic quality of matter: the linear framework is substantial, it stands out in the round and defines itself in terms of light and shadow, in contris not so much ast to the almost abstract quality of the thin shafts which separate the bays at Notre Dame. Depth at Laon is not so much an element to be evaluated and measured in terms of a cubic system of space systems: space becomes a dramatic element of contrast  between successive  planes; it is a background against which the gridwork of the elevation becomes more meaningful.  The triforium passage,with the recession of planes it involves, is perhaps the motif which expresses most clearly that exploitation of depth as mere background for a detached linear framework.”( French Gothic Architecture of the 12th & 13th Centuries, Jean Bony)

Interior Laon Cathedral

cross section of Laon Cathedral showing unusual four tier construction