Chapter 4 - 5

05 Architecture

Romanesque and Gothic Architecture

Around the 10th century, a new architectural style was making its debut across Western Europe.

Known for its massive quality and thick walls, the Romanesque style marked the beginning of a period that would be known for its large cathedrals and churches.

About 200 years after the development of Romanesque architecture, however, Gothic architecture became the preferred style for cathedrals and churches.

Even today, the structures inspired by Gothic style continue to amaze and dazzle onlookers.

Although Gothic architecture would succeed Romanesque architecture in popularity, it was strongly influenced by the style before it.

Still, there are also a number of differences between the two styles.

The most obvious difference between Romanesque and Gothic architectural styles is the construction of archways.

As the name suggests, Romanesque styles borrowed heavily from Roman architecture.

In Rome, semi-circular archways were popular, so most Romanesque buildings had semicircular archways.

The Gothic style that followed favored a pointed archway, where the two sides of an arch curve upward and meet at a point.

Pointed arches are more structurally sound than their semi-circular counterparts.

They also allow greater architectural flexibility.

With its pointed arches, Gothic architecture appears more vertical and almost seems as if it is reaching to the heavens.

More than any other feature, the pointed arch became the defining feature of Gothic style.

It would frame the windows, doors, and passageways of countless European cathedrals.

Many have argued that these early instances of pointed archways are reflective of an Islamic influence.

Indeed, pointed archways were popular in the Middle East for some time before they became popular in Europe.

The concept of the pointed arch allowed architects to change the way they approached vaults in churches and cathedrals.

The ceilings of Romanesque structures were fairly modest, favoring long halls topped with a long, continuous, semi-circular archway.

These ceilings are known as barrel vaults because they look like a large barrel that has been out in half vertically and made into a root.

Romanesque ceilings also include simple beam structures laid across a span of two walls.

Eventually, as pointed archways became more popular and their structural advantages were realized, they began to be incorporated into the vaults of Gothic structures.

Ribbed vaults, or ceilings that span square areas, also became popular in Gothic architecture.

By installing a pointed arch along the diagonals of a square and filling in the area between, ribbed vaults were a versatile alternative to traditional barrel vaults.

Most importantly, ribbed vaults transferred the weight of the ceiling differently than barrel vaults.

They also allowed for more architectural freedom.

The construction and use of buttresses also allows one to easily discern between Romanesque and Gothic architectural styles.

Since the barrel vaults of Romanesque ceilings required two strong wails for support; an architect was limited to long halls with minor variations.

Ribbed vaults allowed the weight of the ceiling to be distributed between four points along the corners of the vault’s expanse.

Since four points cannot bear the weight of an entire ceiling, the points were secured using buttresses.

In Gothic architecture, flying buttresses were preferred for their weight bearing abilities.

They were constructed outside of the actual structure along the sides.

Archways would then be constructed that connected the buttresses to the sides of the building.

Using this method, flying buttresses could actually be used to transfer the weight of the ribbed vault ceiling outside of the building.

Due to their structural advantages, flying buttresses became a popular feature in Gothic architecture.

The architectural advantage of flying buttresses and their weight distribution also allowed for ornate windows.

Since Romanesque barrel vaults required strong walls, an architect could not insert windows without compromising the integrity of the ceiling.

As flying buttresses allowed weight to be distributed through a small portion of the wall to buttress outside, windows became a possibility.

Since Gothic architecture borrowed heavily from the Romanesque style that preceded it, there is no way to clearly define a point at which one style ended and the other began.

The adoption of Gothic stylistic elements, however, quickly took hold in Western Europe.

Gothic elements appeared in Romanesque churches and cathedrals long before Gothic architecture became part of the mainstream.

In spite of their similarities, though, it became clear around the 12th or 13th century that a new style was in place, independent from the Romanesque.

By understanding the differences between the two, one can better understand how one style contributed to another.