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Development
of Gothic architecture: Gothic architecture, linked with innovations in Gothic religious sculpture, began at the Abbey Church of Saint-Denis
(fig.2) in about AD 1130, then spreading to the cathedrals of Sens (1140),
Noyons (1150), Senlis (1151), Paris (1163), Laon (1165), and Chartres (1194).
By the 13th century, Gothic architecture and sculpture had become fully developed
in the cathedrals of
Amiens
and Reims, and spread to major towns in Britain, Iberia, and Germany.
The Romans, who were influenced by the
techniques of the Etruscans, began the development of a mature vaulting system
in the 1st century AD, which included both the barrel and the groined vault
(fig.1), The groined vault is the intersection
of two barrel
vaults, producing a surface that has arched openings on its four sides, and
thus divides the area to be vaulted into squares known as bays. Rediscovered
by Romanesque architects, this type of vault became the basis for a more
complex and varied type of vault construction in the Middle Ages (Bony 1983;
Fitchen 1961).
The main shift of the Gothic era occurred
from the older, heavier style of Romanesque architecture, based on a  solid
stone vault, to the lighter, elevated Gothic style based on both the Romanesque
and Islamic use of the pointed arch and cross-ribbed vault. This shift coincided
with widespread rebuilding of many older Romanesque cathedrals which had
been destroyed by fire. The different phases of Gothic architectures in northern
France progressed from the Early Gothic to the High Gothic and Rayonnant
styles and the eventual Flamboyant style.
Fig.1: Diagram of Romanesque vs. Gothic
vaults.
The two main structural innovations of
Gothic architecture were pointed arches and ogival or ribbed vaulting (Bony
1983). By the 12th century, architects realized the superiority of the groined
vault compared to the barrel vault and started to add ribs, which were used
to support the weight of the vault. Cross-ribbed vaulting functions in much
the same manner as plain groined vaulting, except that it is reinforced with
ribs, and can be made much thinner. The vault uses a diagonally reinforced
arch resting on thin pillars, permitting the walls to be hollowed out (and
thus, filled with windows), while also allowing the vaults to extend higher.
At Amiens, for example, the introduction of an extra transverse rib between
the diagonal ribs of the vault allowed for a lighter and more elevated interior.
Such light, skeletal construction employing cross ribbed-vaults and other
thin carrying structures (interior columns, exterior flying buttresses),
replaced the massiveness of Romanesque vaults. This had the revolutionary
effect of opening up the interior space of a large building such as a church.
As the Gothic era progressed, vaulting became increasing complex and saw
the development of more varied forms such as the quatri-partite vault and
the sexpartite vault. Slender columns and stained glass windows also gave
the church a more spacious and heightened effect (fig.3).
Initially occurring at the Abbey Church
of Saint-Denis, architects now linked the transept and the choir together,
often reducing the size of the transept, and creating single or double
ambulatories with radiating chapels and side aisles (fig.2). The church exterior
was also characterized by double span flying buttresses and the light admitting
rose window along with a wealth
of
sculpture that became much more realistic as the Middle Ages progressed.
Increasing amounts of tracery, pinnacles, and gargoyles also became another
common feature.
Sources of
architectural influence: The new Gothic architecture in France
had its roots in older Romanesque forms of England, Italy, and Normandy.
The origin of the Gothic style has a strong Norman influence in the cathedrals
of Jumièges, Evreux, and Lesay, which inspired several architects
in the Paris region. By the late 11th century, there had already been efforts
to increase the height of Norman churches at Caen, Bayeux, Jumièges,
or Mont-Saint-Michel.
Fig.2: Saint Denis ambulatory (1140-1144),
showing ribbed vaults supported by a slender column (photo: Athena
Review).
By the early 12th century, prototypes of
ribbed vaults and pointed arches had developed at the Rivolta d'Adda in Italy
(1100), Durham cathedral in England (1093), and Jumièges in Normandy
(ca.1120-1125). Some scholars also suggest that the ribbed vault may have
first appeared at the Church of Sant' Ambrogio in Milan (1060). As noted,
ribbed vaulting may have originated in Islamic Spain, where it had appeared
as early as the second half of the 10th century (Bony 1983).
Likewise, the pointed arch has its origin
in the Islamic architecture of the near East of the 8th century which then
spread rapidly throughout Egypt and Tunisia into Moorish Spain and towards
Italy. According to one theory (Bony 1983), the pointed arch may have been
used on the island of Sicily, which soon spread to France via the Norman
Conquests of the island in the 1060s and
1070s.
The spread of Gothic architecture from
northern France to other regions occurred partly through the movement of
architects and master masons or sculptors to new building projects or, through
widespread competition between bishops, monasteries, and other patrons of
cathedrals (see related article in this issue by
Schöller). The Gothic style was quickly absorbed in England, which then
had political ties with France. Durham cathedral, consecrated in AD 1133
(which had already pioneered the use of ribbed vaults) showed continuing
early Gothic influences in its construction. The main breakthrough in En gland
occurred in the 1170s with the cathedrals of Canterbury, Lincoln, and slightly
later at Salisbury. Soon the first Gothic cathedrals were erected on the
Iberian peninsula, starting in the 1190s at Evora in Portugal, and from the
1220s at Léon, Burgos, and Toledo in Spain.
The influence on cathedral art within
the territories of present-day Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy started
slightly later at about 1230-50, although some earlier buildings had already
introduced initial elements of the Gothic style. Whereas Gothic architecture
had difficulty establishing a secure foothold in Italy, with its artistic
traditions inspired by the classical style, it had an enormous impact in
Germany, which eventually took over the leading role as an innovative center
of the Gothic tradition. As in England, where also specific, but more nationally
restricted Gothic styles developed, the German late Gothic art survived into
the 16th century.
Fig.3: Nave and choir of Noyon cathedral, showing the increased
height of the Gothic style (photo: Athena Review). .
.
References:
Bony, J. 193. French Gothic Architecture of the 12th and 13th
centuries. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London, University of California
Press.
Fitchen, J. 1961. The Construction of Gothic Cathedrals: A Study
of Medieval Vault Erection. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
This article appears on pages 20-21 of Vol.4 No.2 of Athena
Review.
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