Medieval architecture
Medieval architecture was the art and science of designing and constructing buildings in the Middle Ages. The major styles of the period included pre-Romanesque, Romanesque, and Gothic. In the fifteenth century, architects began to favour classical forms again, in the Renaissance style, marking the end of the medieval period. Many examples of religious, civic, and military architecture from the Middle Ages survive throughout Europe.
Styles
[edit]Pre-Romanesque
[edit]The pre-Romanesque period lasted from the beginning of the Middle Ages (around 500 AD) to the emergence of the Romanesque style (from the 10th century). Much of the notable architecture from the period comes from France and Germany, under the Merovingians and the Carolingians and the Ottonians. Other regions also have examples of architecture from this period, including Iberia (especially in Asturias and León), Croatia, and Great Britain. In Lombardy, the pre-Romanesque style included many Romanesque features and is therefore known as the First Romanesque.
Romanesque
[edit]The Romanesque style was predominant across medieval Europe during the 11th and 12th centuries. It is characterized by rounded arches (unlike Gothic architecture), and by vaulting and thick walls (unlike much pre-Romanesque architecture). The first patrons of Romanesque architecture came from the Church, especially Cluniacs and the Cistercians, but examples of Romanesque civic and military buildings survive.[1]
The term 'Romanesque' (literally meaning 'in the manner of the Romans') was first used to describe the style in 1819.[2] Although the style did draw on ancient Roman architecture, it was ultimately an original style and had a wider range of influences than the name suggests.[1]
Examples of Romanesque architecture survive across Europe, including in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and England.
Gothic
[edit]The various elements of Gothic architecture emerged in a number of 11th and 12th century building projects, particularly in the Île de France area, but were first combined to form what we would now recognise as a distinctively Gothic style at the 12th century abbey church of Saint-Denis in Saint-Denis, near Paris. Verticality is emphasized in Gothic architecture, which features almost skeletal stone structures with great expanses of glass, pared-down wall surfaces supported by external flying buttresses, pointed arches using the ogive shape, ribbed stone vaults, clustered columns, pinnacles and sharply pointed spires. Windows contain stained glass, showing stories from the Bible and from lives of saints. Such advances in design allowed cathedrals to rise taller than ever.
Functions
[edit]Religious architecture
[edit]The architecture of religious buildings depended on the religion it served, the region it was located in, and the style during the time. Although it is common to see in many floor plans of medieval religious structures a nave – the central part of the church building, transepts-isle crossing the nave, and an altar located on the east side forming the shape of the Latin cross.[3] The buildings with this floor plan are considered cruciform churches, which is seen in a large amount of cathedrals and churches in the Romanesque and Gothic styles across Europe. Many religious buildings also had sacred elements such as relics and reliquaries for there patrons and far-off travelers to see that tells the story of saints and other biblical narratives.[4]
The different styles during the middle ages caused churches to have different design elements throughout the time period. In the Romanesque period a common religious building was the basilica.[5] This structures were tall with a rather simple design of a nave, an alter, transepts, and clerestory windows. Gothic cathedrals had features such as stain glass, ribbed vaults, tall piers, buttresses, and pinnacles their structure is very unique due to these details. The cathedrals are also identifiable due to their height, stone structure, and wooden roofs.[6]Some examples of these religious structures are St. Peter's Basilica, and Cologne Cathedral.
Religious structures during the medieval period had a large amount of meaning behind the elements they contained. Many columns or portals for religious buildings tell a story or have some kind of religious symbolism. Some of the commonly displayed biblical narratives are the creation story of Adam and Eve, and judgement day invoking visuals of sin and fear for the viewer.[7] A few examples of these elements are west tympanum of Saint-Lazare,[8] and Lorenzo Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise.[9]
Military architecture
[edit]Surviving examples of medieval secular architecture mainly served for defense, these include forts, castles, tower houses, and fortified walls. Fortifications were built during the Middle Ages to display the power of the lords of the land and reassure common folk in their protection of property and livelihood. [10]In the early Middle Ages, fortifications were made from wood and earth, these were called Motte and bailey castles. These consist of a stockade or palisade surrounding an enclosed courtyard and man-made mound. This fortification acted as a passive obstacle that potential enemies would have to face to attack the civilization. However, this method of fortification had its downside including being vulnerable to fires so more methods of fortification were created.
Military architecture began to start being created with stone in the 11th century, it was also used to indicate wealth and power of the are protected with it. Stone was much more durable and provided better defense for the people. They also began to adopt the use of cylindrical ground plans. There were many benefits to a cylindrical shape, it reduced blindspots, they were more resistant, and was especially fireproof.[11] Some examples of cylindrical fortifications are the gate towers at Harlech Castle and the Tour des Pénitents.
Medieval Fortifications also displayed many different defensive elements including, hoardings, loopholes or crosslets, and moats. Hoarding and loopholes were both beneficial for the archers or missile throwers, allowing them to see their targets better. Windows gained a cross-shape for more than decorative purposes, they provided a perfect fit for a crossbowman to shoot invaders from inside safely. Moats were used as a defensive mechanism for keeping attackers further away from the fort, while most were kept dry, moats were much more effective when wet.[12]
Civic architecture
[edit]While much of the surviving medieval architecture is either religious or military, examples of civic and even domestic architecture can be found throughout Europe. Examples include manor houses, town halls, almshouses and bridges, but also residential houses.
Regions
[edit]Central Europe
[edit]Byzantine Empire
[edit]Bulgarian Empire
[edit]Scandinavia
[edit]Kievan Rus
[edit]See also
[edit]- Medieval Serbian architecture
- List of medieval stone bridges in Germany
- List of medieval bridges in France
References
[edit]- ^ a b Hicks, Carola (2003-01-01), "Romanesque", The Oxford Companion to Western Art, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/acref/9780198662037.001.0001/acref-9780198662037-e-2260, ISBN 978-0-19-866203-7, retrieved 2024-12-09
- ^ "Romanesque, n. & adj.", Oxford English Dictionary (3 ed.), Oxford University Press, 2023-03-02, doi:10.1093/oed/9822227393, retrieved 2024-12-09
- ^ Bucher, François (1972). "Medieval Architectural Design Methods, 800-1560". Gesta. 11 (2): 37–51. doi:10.2307/766593. ISSN 0016-920X. JSTOR 766593.
- ^ Bonser, Wilfrid (1962). "The Cult of Relics in the Middle Ages". Folklore. 73 (4): 234–256. ISSN 0015-587X. JSTOR 1258503.
- ^ Müller, Valentin (1937). "The Roman Basilica". American Journal of Archaeology. 41 (2): 250–261. doi:10.2307/498415. ISSN 0002-9114. JSTOR 498415.
- ^ Mark, Robert (1972). "The Structural Analysis of Gothic Cathedrals". Scientific American. 227 (5): 90–101. Bibcode:1972SciAm.227e..90M. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican1172-90. ISSN 0036-8733. JSTOR 24922917.
- ^ Alexander, Jonathan J. G. (1993). "Iconography and Ideology: Uncovering Social Meanings in Western Medieval Christian Art". Studies in Iconography. 15: 1–44. ISSN 0148-1029. JSTOR 23923571.
- ^ Gislebertus, French, Romanesque. "Church of Saint Lazare, Autun: Apocalypse (Last Judgment)". Art History Survey Collection.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Ghiberti, Lorenzo, Florentine. "Baptistry of San Giovanni, Florence: Gates of Paradise – East Doors". Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise Collection.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Warner, Philip (1971). The medieval castle: life in a fortress in peace and war. New York: Taplinger Pub. Co. ISBN 978-0-8008-5186-6.
- ^ Kaufmann, Joseph Erich; Kaufmann, Hanna Wanda (2001). The Medieval fortress: castles, forts and walled cities of the Middle Age. Conshohocken (Pa.): Combined Publishing. ISBN 978-1-58097-062-4.
- ^ Oulmas, Mohand; Abdessemed-Foufa, Amina; Avilés, Angel Benigno Gonzalez; Conesa, José Ignacio Pagán (January 2024). "Assessing the Defensibility of Medieval Fortresses on the Mediterranean Coast: A Study of Algerian and Spanish Territories". ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information. 13 (1): 2. doi:10.3390/ijgi13010002. hdl:10045/139477. ISSN 2220-9964.
Further reading
[edit]- Braun, Hugh, An Introduction to English Mediaeval Architecture, London: Faber and Faber, 1951.
- "Building the House of God: Architectural Metaphor and The Mystic Ark," Codex Aquilarensis: Revista de arte medieval (2016)
- Fletcher, Banister; Cruickshank, Dan, Sir Banister Fletcher's a History of Architecture, Architectural Press, 20th edition, 1996 (first published 1896). ISBN 0-7506-2267-9. Cf. Part Two, Chapter 13.
- Hillson, J., Buchanan, A., Webb, N , Digital Analysis of Vaults in English Medieval Architecture, London: Taylor & Francis (2021).
- Rudolph, Conrad, "Building-Miracles as Artistic Justification in the Early and Mid-Twelfth Century," Radical Art History: Internationale Anthologie, ed. Wolfgang Kersten (1997) 398–410.
- Rudolph, Conrad, "The Architectural Metaphor in Western Medieval Artistic Culture: From the Cornerstone to The Mystic Ark," The Cambridge History of Religious Architecture, ed. Stephen Murray (2016).
- Rudolph, Conrad, "Medieval Architectural Theory, the Sacred Economy, and the Public Presentation of Monastic Architecture: The Classic Cistercian Plan," Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 78 (2019) 259–275.