English Gothic is an
architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century.
The style was most prominently used in the construction of
cathedrals and churches.
Gothic architecture's defining features are
pointed arches,
rib vaults,
buttresses, and extensive use of
stained glass. Combined, these features allowed the creation of buildings of unprecedented height and grandeur, filled with light from large stained glass windows. Important examples include
Westminster Abbey,
Canterbury Cathedral and
Salisbury Cathedral. The Gothic style endured in England much longer than in
Continental Europe.
The Gothic style was introduced from France, where the various elements had first been used together within a single building at the
choir
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...
of the
Abbey of Saint-Denis
The Basilica of Saint-Denis (french: Basilique royale de Saint-Denis, links=no, now formally known as the ) is a large former medieval abbey church and present cathedral in the commune of Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris. The building ...
north of
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, completed in 1144.
The earliest large-scale applications of Gothic architecture in England were
Canterbury Cathedral and
Westminster Abbey. Many features of Gothic architecture had evolved naturally from
Romanesque architecture (often known in England as
Norman architecture
The term Norman architecture is used to categorise styles of Romanesque architecture developed by the Normans in the various lands under their dominion or influence in the 11th and 12th centuries. In particular the term is traditionally used f ...
). The first cathedral in England to be both planned and built entirely in the Gothic style was
Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
, begun in 1175. Other features were imported from the
Ile-de-France, where the first French Gothic cathedral,
Sens Cathedral
Sens Cathedral (french: Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Sens) is a Catholic cathedral in Sens in Burgundy, eastern France. The cathedral, dedicated to Saint Stephen, is the seat of the Archbishop of Sens.
Sens was the first cathedral to be built in ...
, had been built (1135–64). After a fire destroyed the choir of Canterbury Cathedral in 1174, the French architect
William of Sens
William of Sens or Guillaume de Sens (died August 11, 1180) was a 12th-century French master mason and architect, believed to have been born at Sens, France. He is known for rebuilding the choir of Canterbury Cathedral between 1174 and 1177, cou ...
rebuilt the choir in the new Gothic style between 1175 and 1180. The transition can also be seen at
Durham Cathedral, a Norman building which was remodelled with the earliest
rib vault known. Besides cathedrals, monasteries, and
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
es, the style was used for many secular buildings, including university buildings,
palaces,
great house
A great house is a large house or mansion with luxurious appointments and great retinues of indoor and outdoor staff. The term is used mainly historically, especially of properties at the turn of the 20th century, i.e., the late Victorian or ...
s, and
almshouses and
guildhalls.
Stylistic periodisations of the English Gothic style are
*
Early English or ''First Pointed'' (late 12th–late 13th centuries)
*
Decorated Gothic
English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed ar ...
or ''Second Pointed'' (late 13th–late 14th centuries)
*
Perpendicular Gothic or ''Third Pointed'' (14th–17th centuries).
The architect and art historian
Thomas Rickman
Thomas Rickman (8 June 17764 January 1841) was an English architect and architectural antiquary who was a major figure in the Gothic Revival. He is particularly remembered for his ''Attempt to Discriminate the Styles of English Architecture'' ...
's ''Attempt to Discriminate the Style of Architecture in England'', first published in 1812, divided Gothic architecture in the British Isles into three stylistic periods.
Rickman identified the period of architecture as follows:
*
William the Conqueror () to
Henry II () as ''Norman''
*
Richard the Lionheart
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...
() to
Edward I () as ''Early English''
* reigns of
Edward II () and
Edward III () as ''Decorated''
* from
Richard II () to
Henry VIII () as ''Perpendicular''
From the 15th century, under the
House of Tudor, the prevailing Gothic style is commonly known as
Tudor architecture. This style is ultimately succeeded by
Elizabethan architecture
Elizabethan architecture refers to buildings of a certain style constructed during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland from 1558–1603. Historically, the era sits between the long era of the dominant architectural style o ...
and
Renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...
under
Elizabeth I ().
Rickman excluded from his scheme most new buildings after Henry VIII's reign, calling the style of "additions and rebuilding" in the later 16th and earlier 17th centuries "often much debased".
Architect and art historian
Edmund Sharpe, in ''The Seven Periods of English Architecture'' (1851), identified a pre-Gothic ''Transitional Period'' (1145–90), following the ''Norman'' period, in which pointed arches and round arches were employed together.
Focusing on the windows, Sharpe dubbed Rickman's Gothic styles as follows:
* Rickman's first Gothic style as the ''Lancet Period'' (1190–1245)
* Rickman's second Gothic style divided into the ''Geometrical'' period (1245–1315) and then the ''Curvilinear'' period (1315–1360)
* Rickman's third style as the ''Rectilinear'' period (1360–1550).
Unlike the Early English and Decorated styles, this third style, employed over three centuries was unique to England.
In the
English Renaissance
The English Renaissance was a cultural and artistic movement in England from the early 16th century to the early 17th century. It is associated with the pan-European Renaissance that is usually regarded as beginning in Italy in the late 14th cent ...
, the stylistic language of the ancient
classical orders
An order in architecture is a certain assemblage of parts subject to uniform established proportions, regulated by the office that each part has to perform.
Coming down to the present from Ancient Greek and Ancient Roman civilization, the arch ...
and the Renaissance architecture of southern Europe began to supplant Gothic architecture in Continental Europe, but the British Isles continued to favour Gothic building styles, with traditional Perpendicular Gothic building projects undertaken into the 17th century in England and both Elizabethan and
Jacobean architecture incorporating Gothic features, particularly for churches.
Classical-inspired architecture predominated after the
Great Fire of London The rebuilding of the
City of London
The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...
was so extensive that the numbers of workers employed broke the monopoly of the medieval
livery company of stonemasons and the
Worshipful Company of Masons and the role of master-mason was displaced by that of the early modern architect.
The new
St Paul's Cathedral designed by
Christopher Wren and his
Wren churches mostly dispensed with the Gothic idiom in favour of classical work.
Outside London however, new ecclesiastical buildings and repairs to older churches were still carried out in Gothic style, particularly near the
ancient university towns of
Oxford and
Cambridge, where the
university colleges were important patrons of 17th-century Gothic construction.
By the 18th century, architects occasionally worked in Gothic style, but the living tradition of Gothic workmanship had faded and their designs rarely resembled medieval Gothic buildings. Only when the
Gothic Revival movement of the late 18th and 19th centuries began, was the architectural language of medieval Gothic relearned through the scholarly efforts of early 19th-century art historians like Rickman and
Matthew Bloxam
Matthew Holbeche Bloxam (12 May 1805 – 24 April 1888), a native of Rugby, Warwickshire, England, was a Warwickshire antiquary and amateur archeologist, author of a popular guide to Gothic architecture. He was the original source of the legend o ...
, whose ''Principles of Gothic Ecclesiastical Architecture'' first appeared in 1829.
Alongside the new Gothic building work of the 19th century, many of England's existing Gothic buildings were extensively repaired, restored, remodelled, and rebuilt by architects seeking to improve the buildings according to the
Romantic,
high church
The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...
aesthetic of the
Oxford Movement and to replace many of the medieval features lost in the
iconoclastic
Iconoclasm (from Ancient Greek, Greek: grc, wikt:εἰκών, εἰκών, lit=figure, icon, translit=eikṓn, label=none + grc, wikt:κλάω, κλάω, lit=to break, translit=kláō, label=none)From grc, wikt:εἰκών, εἰκών + wi ...
phases of the
Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
, the
Dissolution of the Monasteries, and the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms. In the process of this
Victorian "restoration", much of the original Gothic architecture of the Middle Ages was lost or altered beyond recognition. However, medieval works left unfinished were often completed or restored to their "original" designs. According to
James Stevens Curl
James Stevens Curl (born 26 March 1937)Contemporary Authors, vols. 37–40, ed. Ann Every, Gale/Cengage Learning, 1979, p. 110 is an architectural historian, architect, and author with an extensive range of publications to his name.
Early life an ...
, the revival of Gothic architecture was "arguably, the most influential artistic phenomenon ever to spring from England".
The various English Gothic styles are seen at their most fully developed in cathedrals, monasteries, and collegiate churches. With the exception of
Salisbury Cathedral, English cathedrals–having building dates that typically range over 400 years–show great stylistic diversity.
Early English Gothic (late 12th–late 13th centuries)
File:SalisburyCathedral-wyrdlight-EastExt.jpg, Salisbury Cathedral (1220–1258) (Tower and spire later.)
File:1023581-Cathedral Church of St Mary (12).jpg, Salisbury Cathedral choir
File:Temple Church 1, London, UK - Diliff.jpg, Temple Church choir
File:Southwell Minster Choir and High Altar, Nottinghamshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Southwell Minster
Southwell Minster () is a minster and cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is situated miles from Newark-on-Trent and from Mansfield. It is the seat of the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the Diocese of Southwell and N ...
choir
File:Worcester Cathedral West Window, Worcestershire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Worcester Cathedral nave
File:Beverley minster 018.JPG, Beverley Minster transept
File:SW York Minster 061215 (cropped).JPG, York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
south transept
File:Hereford cathedral 002.JPG, Hereford Cathedral (1079–1250) Lady chapel
File:Peterborough Cathedral Exterior 1, Cambridgeshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Peterborough Cathedral
Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Pau ...
west front
File:Wells Cathedral West Front Exterior, UK - Diliff.jpg, Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
west front
File:Wells Cathedral 17 (9320456934).jpg, Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
nave
File:Lincoln Cathedral Nave 1, Lincolnshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Lincoln Cathedral nave
File:Worcester Cathedral choir, Worcestershire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Worcester Cathedral choir
File:The first bay of the Lady Chapel (c.1220-30s), Winchester Cathedral, Winchester, Hampshire, England - Flickr - Spencer Means.jpg, Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
Lady chapel
File:Fountains Abbey - North Yorkshire, England - DSC00601.jpg, Lancet window, Fountains Abbey
Fountains Abbey is one of the largest and best preserved ruined Cistercian monasteries in England. It is located approximately south-west of Ripon in North Yorkshire, near to the village of Aldfield. Founded in 1132, the abbey operated for 40 ...
File:Whitby Abbey image.jpg, Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey was a 7th-century Christian monastery that later became a Benedictine abbey. The abbey church was situated overlooking the North Sea on the East Cliff above Whitby in North Yorkshire, England, a centre of the medieval Northumbrian ...
choir
File:Rievaulx Abbey (206163907).jpeg, Rievaulx Abbey choir
File:Lanercost Priory, West Front, Cumbria.JPG, Lanercost Priory west front
File:Durham Cathedral - England P1200693 (13335758425).jpg, Durham Cathedral east transept
Early English Gothic predominated from the late 12th century until midway to late in the 13th century,
It succeeded
Norman Architecture
The term Norman architecture is used to categorise styles of Romanesque architecture developed by the Normans in the various lands under their dominion or influence in the 11th and 12th centuries. In particular the term is traditionally used f ...
, which had introduced early great cathedrals, built of stone instead of timber, and saw the construction of remarkable abbeys throughout England. The Normans had introduced the three classical orders of architecture, and created massive walls for their buildings, with thin pilaster-like buttresses. The transition from Norman to Gothic lasted from about 1145 until 1190. In the reigns of
King Stephen and
Richard I
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was ...
, the style changed from the more massive severe Norman style to the more delicate and refined Gothic.
Early English was particularly influenced by what was called in English "The French style". The style was imported from
Caen in Normandy by French Norman architects, who also imported cut stones from Normandy for their construction. It was also influenced by the architecture of the
Ile-de-France, where
Sens Cathedral
Sens Cathedral (french: Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Sens) is a Catholic cathedral in Sens in Burgundy, eastern France. The cathedral, dedicated to Saint Stephen, is the seat of the Archbishop of Sens.
Sens was the first cathedral to be built in ...
had been constructed, the first Gothic cathedral in France. The chancel of
Canterbury Cathedral, one of the first Early English structures in England, was rebuilt in the new style by a French architect,
William of Sens
William of Sens or Guillaume de Sens (died August 11, 1180) was a 12th-century French master mason and architect, believed to have been born at Sens, France. He is known for rebuilding the choir of Canterbury Cathedral between 1174 and 1177, cou ...
.
The Early English style particularly featured more strongly-constructed walls with stone vaulted roofs, to resist fire. The weight of these vaults was carried downwards and outwards by arched ribs. This feature, the early
rib vault, was used at
Durham Cathedral, the first time it was used this way in Europe.
Another important innovation introduced in this early period was the
buttress, a stone column outside the structure that reinforced the walls against the weight pressing outward and downward from the vaults. This evolved into the
flying buttress, which carried the thrust from the wall of the nave over the roof of the aisle. The buttress was given further support by a heavy stone pinnacle. Buttresses were an early feature of the chapter house of
Lichfield Cathedral.
Early English is typified by
lancet windows, tall narrow lights topped by a pointed arch. They were grouped together side by side under a single arch and decorated with mullions in tracery patterns, such as ''cusps'', or spear-points. Lancet windows were combined similarly pointed arches and the ribs of the vaults overhead, giving a harmonious and unified style.
Characteristics
File:Canterbury Cathedral Choir 01.JPG, Choir of Canterbury Cathedral rebuilt by William of Sens
William of Sens or Guillaume de Sens (died August 11, 1180) was a 12th-century French master mason and architect, believed to have been born at Sens, France. He is known for rebuilding the choir of Canterbury Cathedral between 1174 and 1177, cou ...
and William the Englishman
William the Englishman (active from 1174, died circa 1214) was an English architect and stonemason. He completed the work done on Canterbury Cathedral in England by the French architect William of Sens, after the latter was badly injured in a fall ...
(1174–1184)
File:Wells cathedral nave clerestory.JPG, The three levels of the nave (1192–1230) of Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
, the first in England to use pointed arches exclusively in the ceiling vaults, the windows of the clerestory and arcades of the triforium, and the arcades on the ground floor.
File:Lincoln Cathedral, Dean's Eye window (N.31) (21975539699).jpg, The Dean's Eye Window, a rare English rose window, at Lincoln Cathedral (1220–1235)
File:Salisbury Cathedral Detail Bosses.jpg, Early four-part rib vaults at Salisbury Cathedral, with a simple carved stone boss at the meeting point of the ribs (1220–1258)
File:Catedral de Salisbury, Salisbury, Inglaterra, 2014-08-12, DD 35-37 HDR.JPG, Lancet windows in the north transept of Salisbury Cathedral (1220–1258)
* The vertical plan of early Gothic Cathedrals had three levels, each of about equal height; the
clerestory, with arched windows which admitted light on top, under the roof vaults; the
triforium a wider covered arcade, in the middle; and, on the ground floor, on either side of the
nave, wide arcades of columns and pillars, which supported the weight of the ceiling vaults through the ribs.
* The most distinctive element of this period was the
pointed arch
A pointed arch, ogival arch, or Gothic arch is an arch with a pointed crown, whose two curving sides meet at a relatively sharp angle at the top of the arch. This architectural element was particularly important in Gothic architecture. The earlie ...
, (also known as the
lancet arch, which was the key feature of the Gothic
rib vault, The original purpose of rib vault was to allow a heavier stone ceiling, to replace the wooden roofs of the earlier Norman churches, which frequently caught fire. They also had the benefit of allowing the construction of higher and thinner walls. They appeared first in an early form in
Durham Cathedral.
Gradually, pointed arches were used not only for rib vaults, but also for all of the arcades and for
lancet windows
A lancet window is a tall, narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural element are typical of Gothic church edifices of the earliest period. Lancet ...
, giving the nave its unified appearance. The first structure in England to be built entirely with the pointed arch was
Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
(1175–1260), but they were soon used in all Cathedrals.
* The Early English
rib vaults were usually quadripartite, each having four compartments divided by ribs, with each covering one bay of the ceiling. The horizontal ridge ribs intersected the summits of the cross ribs and diagonal ribs, and carried the weight outwards and downwards to pillars or columns of the triforium and arcades, and, in later cathedrals, outside the walls to the buttresses.
* The
lancet window, narrow and tall with a point at the top, became a common feature of English architecture. For this reason, Early English Gothic is sometimes known as the Lancet style. The Lancet openings of windows and decorative arcading are often grouped in twos or threes. This characteristic is seen throughout
Salisbury Cathedral, where groups of two lancet windows line the nave and groups of three line the clerestory. At
York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
the north transept has a cluster of five lancet windows known as the Five Sisters; each is 50 feet tall and still retains its original glass.
*
Stained glass windows began to be widely used in the windows of the
clerestory,
transept
A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...
and especially west façade. Many were elaborately decorated with
tracery
Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support the ...
; that is, thin
mullions or ribs of stone which divided the windows into elaborate geometric patterns. as at
Lincoln Cathedral (1220).
*
Rose Windows
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be e ...
were relatively rare in England, but
Lincoln Cathedral has two notable examples from this period. The oldest is the Dean's Window in the north transept, which dates to 1220–1235. It is an example of an Early English plate-tracery rose window. The geometric design, with concentric tiers of circular window lights, predates the geometric tracery of the later decorated style of Gothic architecture. The principal theme of the window is the second coming of Christ and the last judgement. Some scenes are associated with death and resurrection, such as the funeral of Saint Hugh, the founder of the cathedral, and the death of the Virgin.
* Square east end. The typical arrangement for an English Gothic east end is square, and may be an unbroken cliff-like design as at York, Lincoln, Ripon, Ely and Carlisle or may have a projecting Lady Chapel of which there is a great diversity as at Salisbury, Lichfield, Hereford, Exeter and Chichester.
* Sculptural decoration. Unlike the more sombre and heavy Norman churches, the Gothic churches began to have elaborate sculptural decoration. The arches of the arcades and triforium were sometimes decorated with dog tooth patterns, cusps, carved circles, and with
trefoil
A trefoil () is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings, used in architecture and Christian symbolism, among other areas. The term is also applied to other symbols with a threefold shape. A similar shape with four ring ...
s,
quatrefoils, as well as floral and vegetal designs. Simple floral motifs also often appeared on the capitals, the
spandrels, the
roof boss that joined the ribs of the vaults.
* The clustered column. Instead of being massive, solid pillars, early Gothic columns were often composed of clusters of slender, detached shafts, which descended the vaults above. These were often made of dark, polished
Purbeck "marble", surrounding a central pillar, or
pier
Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...
, to which they are attached by circular moulded shaft-rings. One characteristic of Early Gothic in England is the great depth given to the hollows of the
mouldings with alternating fillets and rolls, and by the decoration of the hollows with the dog-tooth
ornament and by the circular
abacus
The abacus (''plural'' abaci or abacuses), also called a counting frame, is a calculating tool which has been used since ancient times. It was used in the ancient Near East, Europe, China, and Russia, centuries before the adoption of the Hi ...
or tops of the
capitals of the columns.
Examples
* the east end of
Canterbury Cathedral (1174–84) rebuilt by French masons following a fire
* transept, nave and west front of
Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
(1176–1260; western towers added in the Perpendicular period, 1365–1435)
* clerestory and vaults of
Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of ...
(1187–99)
* retro-choir at
Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
(1189–93; not including the Lady chapel)
*
Lincoln Cathedral and chapter house (1192–1255; Not including the "Angel Choir", south transept, towers, and cloisters)
* east end and transept of
Rochester Cathedral
Rochester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an English church of Norman architecture in Rochester, Medway, Rochester, Kent.
The church is the cathedral of the Diocese of Rochester in the Church o ...
(1200–27)
* west front of
Peterborough Cathedral
Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Pau ...
(1200–22)
* the east end of
Worcester Cathedral (1202–18)
* at
Hereford Cathedral; the Lady chapel (1217–25) and upper part of the choir (1235–40)
*
Salisbury Cathedral (1220–1266; not including Decorated central tower, 1334–80 and Perpendicular crossing arches, 1388–95)
* great transept of
York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
(1226–55)
* east end of
Southwell Minster
Southwell Minster () is a minster and cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is situated miles from Newark-on-Trent and from Mansfield. It is the seat of the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the Diocese of Southwell and N ...
(1234–50)
* east end of
Ely Cathedral (1234–54)
* presbytery of
St. Albans Cathedral (1235–50)
* the chapter house at
Lichfield Cathedral (1239–49)
* Chapel of Nine Altars at
Durham Cathedral (1242–80)
* at
Chester Cathedral; the chapter house (1249–65) and Lady chapel (1265–90)
*
Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey was a 7th-century Christian monastery that later became a Benedictine abbey. The abbey church was situated overlooking the North Sea on the East Cliff above Whitby in North Yorkshire, England, a centre of the medieval Northumbrian ...
*
Rievaulx Abbey
Decorated Gothic (late 13th–late 14th centuries)
The second style of English Gothic architecture is generally termed Decorated Gothic, because the amount of ornament and decoration increased dramatically. It corresponded roughly with the
Rayonnant
In French Gothic architecture, Rayonnant () is the period from about the mid-13th century to mid-14th century. It was characterized by a shift away from the High Gothic search for increasingly large size toward more spatial unity, refined decora ...
period in France, which influenced it. It was a period of growing prosperity in England, and this was expressed in the decoration of Gothic buildings. Almost every feature of the interiors and facades was decorated.
File:North transept window of Westminster Abbey 2006-05-08.jpg, Westminster Abbey north transept rose window
File:London - Westminster abbey - chapter house 04.jpg, Westminster Abbey chapter house
File:Salisbury Cathedral Chapter House roof.jpg, The vault of the chapter house at Salisbury Cathedral (1275–85)
File:Salisbury Cathedral (St. Mary) (14651659629).jpg, Salisbury Cathedral chapter house and cloisters
File:Wells Cathedral Chapter House, Somerset, UK - Diliff.jpg, Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
chapter house
File:York Minster Chapter House, Nth Yorkshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
chapter house
File:Lady chapel, Chichester Cathedral.jpg, Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of ...
Lady chapel
File:Wells Cathedral Choir (42768529955).jpg, Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
choir
File:Exeter Cathedral Quire, Exeter, UK - Diliff.jpg, Exeter Cathedral choir
File:York Minster Nave 1, Nth Yorkshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
nave
File:Merton College Chapel Interior 1, Oxford, UK - Diliff.jpg, Merton College Chapel
File:Ripon cathedral (25443844272).jpg, Ripon Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Wilfrid, commonly known as Ripon Cathedral, and until 1836 known as Ripon Minster, is a cathedral in Ripon, North Yorkshire, England. Founded as a monastery by monks of the Irish tradition in the 660s, i ...
east end
File:Gisborough priory snow landscape.jpg, Gisborough Priory, North Riding of Yorkshire
File:St Mary's Abbey, York (13442479703).jpg, St Mary's Abbey, York
The Abbey of St Mary is a ruined Benedictine abbey in York, England and a scheduled monument.
History
Once one of the most prosperous abbeys in Northern England,Dean, G. 2008. ''Medieval York''. Stroud: History Press. p. 86 its remains li ...
, nave
File:Newstead Abbey Church 03.jpg, Newstead Abbey
Newstead Abbey, in Nottinghamshire, England, was formerly an Augustinian priory. Converted to a domestic home following the Dissolution of the Monasteries, it is now best known as the ancestral home of Lord Byron.
Monastic foundation
The prio ...
, Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The trad ...
, west front
File:Southwell Chapter House1.jpg, Southwell Minster
Southwell Minster () is a minster and cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is situated miles from Newark-on-Trent and from Mansfield. It is the seat of the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the Diocese of Southwell and N ...
, Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The trad ...
, chapter house
File:Cathedral antiquities (1814) (14769063331).jpg, Hereford Cathedral north transept
File:Looking across nave.jpg, Howden Minster, East Yorkshire, nave
File:Howden Minster tower - geograph.org.uk - 1266857.jpg, Howden Minster south transept
File:Augustine Abbey1.jpg, St Augustine's Abbey, Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
, gatehouse
Historians sometimes subdivide this style into two periods, based on the predominant motifs of the designs. The first, the Geometric style, lasted from about 1245 or 50 until 1315 or 1360, where ornament tended to be based on straight lines, cubes and circles, followed by the Curvilinear style (from about 1290 or 1315 until 1350 or 1360) which used gracefully curving lines.
File:Hull Minster south view.jpg, Hull Minster chancel
File:St Marys, Nantwich.jpg, St Mary's Church, Nantwich, east end
File:St.Andrew's church, Heckington - geograph.org.uk - 183007.jpg, St Andrew's Church, Heckington
Heckington is a village and civil parish in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated between Sleaford and Swineshead Bridge, and south of the A17 road. Heckington, with 1,491 households, is one of the largest vill ...
, nave
File:Ely Cathedral Lady Chapel, Cambridgeshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Ely Cathedral Lady chapel (1321–1351)
File:Lichfield Cathedral Choir 2, Staffordshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Lichfield Cathedral choir
File:St.Botolph's nave - geograph.org.uk - 992285.jpg, St Botolph's Church, Boston, nave
File:Ely Cathedral Choir, Cambridgeshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Ely Cathedral choir
File:Ely Cathedral Octagon Lantern 1, Cambridgeshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Ely Cathedral crossing and lantern
File:Wells Cathedral Lady Chapel, Somerset, UK - Diliff.jpg, Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
Lady chapel
File:Carlisle Cathedral Choir, Cumbria, UK - Diliff.jpg, Carlisle Cathedral
Carlisle Cathedral is a grade-I listed Anglican cathedral in the city of Carlisle, Cumbria, England. It was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is also the seat of the Bishop of Carlisle.Tim Tatton-Brown and John ...
choir
File:Ely School buildings including Prior Crauden's Chapel (1324-5).JPG, Prior Crauden's Chapel, Ely
File:WTC badgersruleok a18.jpg, Old Grammar School, Coventry, east end
File:Bolton Abbey 7.jpg, Bolton Abbey
Bolton Abbey in Wharfedale, North Yorkshire, England, takes its name from the ruins of the 12th-century Augustinian monastery now known as Bolton Priory. The priory, closed in the 1539 Dissolution of the Monasteries ordered by King He ...
choir
File:Walsingham Priory ruins - 2016-05-25.jpg, Walsingham Priory
File:Chester Cathedral - interior, view of south transept window with glass by Heaton Butler and Bayne.jpg, Chester Cathedral south transept window
File:Selby Abbey Interior 10.jpg, Selby Abbey choir
File:Stained glass window, St Mary Magdalene church, Newark (20507030626).jpg, Church of St Mary Magdalene, Newark-on-Trent
The Church of St Mary Magdalene, Newark-on-Trent is the parish church
of Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire, England. It is dedicated to Mary Magdalene and is the tallest structure in the town.
There has been a church on this site for 1,000 yea ...
, south aisle west window
File:Abbeygate Bury St Edmunds.jpg, Bury St Edmunds Abbey gateway
Additions in the Decorated style were often added to earlier cathedrals. One striking example is found at
Ely Cathedral; the architect
Thomas Witney built the central tower from 1315 to 1322 in Decorated style. Soon afterwards another architect, William Joy, added curving arches to strengthen the structure, and made further extensions to join the Lady Chapel to the Choir. In 1329–45 he created an extraordinary double arch in the decorated style.
Characteristics
*
Lierne vaulting.
Vaulting became much more elaborate in this period. The
rib vault of earlier Early Gothic usually had just four compartments, with a minimum number of ribs which were all connected to the columns below, and all played a role in distributing the weight and outwards and downwards. In the Decorated architecture period, additional ribs were added to the vaulted ceilings which were purely decorative. They created very elaborate star patterns and other geometric designs.
Gloucester Cathedral and
Ely Cathedral have notable lierne vaults from this period.
The
buttress became more common in this period, as at
Lichfield Cathedral. These were stone columns outside the walls which supports them, allowing thinner and high walls between the buttresses, and larger windows. The buttresses were often topped by ornamental stone pinnacles to give them greater weight.
*
Fan vaulting. An even more elaborate form, appeared late in the Decorative. Unlike the lierne vault, the fan vault had no functional ribs; the visible "ribs" are mouldings on the masonry imitating ribs. The structure is composed of slabs of stone joined into half-cones, whose vertices are the springers of the vault. The earliest example, from 1373, is found in the cloisters of
Gloucester Cathedral. It made a notable backdrop in some of the ''
Harry Potter'' films.
*
Tracery
Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support the ...
. Decorated architecture is particularly characterised by the elaborate
tracery
Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support the ...
within the stained glass windows. The elaborate windows are subdivided by closely spaced parallel
mullions (vertical bars of stone), usually up to the level at which the arched top of the window begins. The mullions then branch out and cross, intersecting to fill the top part of the window with a mesh of elaborate patterns called
tracery
Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support the ...
, typically including
trefoil
A trefoil () is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings, used in architecture and Christian symbolism, among other areas. The term is also applied to other symbols with a threefold shape. A similar shape with four ring ...
s and
quatrefoils. The style was
geometrical at first and
curvilinear, or curving and serpentine, in the later period, This curvilinear element was introduced in the first quarter of the 14th century and lasted about fifty years.
A notable example of the curvilinear style is the East window of
Carlisle Cathedral
Carlisle Cathedral is a grade-I listed Anglican cathedral in the city of Carlisle, Cumbria, England. It was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is also the seat of the Bishop of Carlisle.Tim Tatton-Brown and John ...
, (about 1350). Another notable example of decorated curvilinear is the west window of
York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
(1338–39).
* Sculpture also became more ornate and decorative. The
ball flower and a four-leaved flower motif took the place of the earlier
dog-tooth
In architecture, a dog-tooth or dogtooth pattern is an ornament found in the mouldings of medieval work of the commencement of the 12th century, which is thought to have been introduced by the Crusaders. The earliest example is found in the hal ...
. The foliage in the
capitals was less conventional than in Early English and more flowing, Another decorative feature of the period was
diapering
Diaper is any of a wide range of decorative patterns used in a variety of works of art, such as stained glass, heraldic shields, architecture, and silverwork. Its chief use is in the enlivening of plain surfaces.
Etymology
For the full etymolo ...
, or creating multi-colour geometric patterns on walls or panels made with different colours of stone or brick.
File:West porch Lichfield by Francis Frith.jpeg, Decorated ornament on the west porch of Lichfield Cathedral (1195–1340)
File:Exeter cathedral 002.jpg, Tracery
Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support the ...
, diapering
Diaper is any of a wide range of decorative patterns used in a variety of works of art, such as stained glass, heraldic shields, architecture, and silverwork. Its chief use is in the enlivening of plain surfaces.
Etymology
For the full etymolo ...
and sculptural decoration on Exeter Cathedral (1258–1400)
File:Chapter House, Lichfield Cathedral (exterior 5).JPG, Early buttresses, topped by pinnacles, at Lichfield Cathedral (1195–1340)
File:26-Ely-005.jpg, Pinnacles on the roof of Ely Cathedral (1321–1351)
File:Carlisle Cathedral Tracery, Cumbria, UK - Diliff.jpg, East window of Carlisle Cathedral
Carlisle Cathedral is a grade-I listed Anglican cathedral in the city of Carlisle, Cumbria, England. It was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is also the seat of the Bishop of Carlisle.Tim Tatton-Brown and John ...
, with curvilinear tracery (about 1350)
File:Exeter cathedral 010.jpg, Floral boss joining the ribs of the vaults of Exeter Cathedral (1258–1400)
File:Bristol Cathedral south choir aisle.jpg, transverse arches in the aisle of Bristol Cathedral
Bristol Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is the Church of England cathedral in the city of Bristol, England. Founded in 1140 and consecrated in 1148, it was originally St Augustine's Abbey but after the Dissolu ...
(1298–1340)
File:Ely Cathedral Octagon Lantern 1, Cambridgeshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, The octagon and lantern, Ely Cathedral, rebuilt following the collapse of the central tower in 1321
File:York Minster West Window, Nth Yorkshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, The great west window of York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
(1338–39), featuring a motif known as the Heart of Yorkshire
Examples
*
Westminster Abbey (transitional; 1245–72, east end, transept & chapter house; 1376–1400, nave)
* choir of
Carlisle Cathedral
Carlisle Cathedral is a grade-I listed Anglican cathedral in the city of Carlisle, Cumbria, England. It was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is also the seat of the Bishop of Carlisle.Tim Tatton-Brown and John ...
(transitional; 1245–1398)
* at
Hereford Cathedral; north transept (transitional; 1245–68) and central tower (1300–10)
* at
Lincoln Cathedral; the Angel Choir and east end (1256–80), cloisters (ca. 1295), central tower (1307–11), and upper part of the south transept, including the Bishop's Eye window (ca. 1320–30)
* at
Lichfield Cathedral; the nave and west front (1265–93), central tower (ca. 1300) and Lady Chapel (1320–36)
* Little Wenham Hall, Suffolk (1270–80)
*
St Wulfram's Church, Grantham
St Wulfram's Church, Grantham, is the Anglican parish church of Grantham in Lincolnshire, England. The church is a Grade I listed building and has the second tallest spire in Lincolnshire after Louth's parish church.
In his book ''England's ...
(1280–1350)
*
Merton College chapel, Oxford (1289–96; tower and ante-chapel added 1424–50)
* at
York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
; the chapter house (1260–96), nave and west front, including the Heart of Yorkshire window (1291–1375)
* at
Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
; the chapter house (1275–1310), east end (1310–19, Lady chapel; 1329–45, choir and retro-choir), central tower (1315–22) and strainer arches (1415–23)
* the chapter house at
Salisbury Cathedral (1275–85)
* east end of
Bristol Cathedral
Bristol Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is the Church of England cathedral in the city of Bristol, England. Founded in 1140 and consecrated in 1148, it was originally St Augustine's Abbey but after the Dissolu ...
(1298–1340)
* at
Southwell Minster
Southwell Minster () is a minster and cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is situated miles from Newark-on-Trent and from Mansfield. It is the seat of the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the Diocese of Southwell and N ...
; the chapter house (1293–1300), and pulpitum (1320–35)
* the Lady chapel at
St. Albans Cathedral (1308–26)
* the chapel of
Alnwick Castle
Alnwick Castle () is a castle and country house in Alnwick in the English county of Northumberland. It is the seat of the 12th Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman conquest and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a G ...
(1309–50)
* the nave and west front at
Worcester Cathedral (1317–95)
* at
Ely Cathedral; the Lady chapel (1321–49; east window, 1371–74) and the octagon, lantern and west bays of nave (1322–62)
* the nave and west front at
Exeter Cathedral (1328–42; Image Screen added 1346–75)
* The Lady Chapel at
Melrose Abbey
St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of th ...
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
,
Perpendicular Gothic (late 13th to mid-16th century)
File:WinchesterCathedral-west-wyrdlight.jpg, Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
west front
File:St. Georges Chapel, Windsor Castle (2).jpg, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is both a Royal Peculiar (a church under the direct jurisdiction of the monarch) and the Chapel of the Order of the Gart ...
(1475–)
File:Sherborne abbey.jpg, Sherborne Abbey
File:MK17792 Eton College Chapel.jpg, Eton College Chapel
Eton College Chapel is the main chapel of Eton College, a public school in England.
The chapel was planned to be a little over double its actual length, but this plan was never completed owing to the downfall of the founder Henry VI. A plaque ...
File:Henry VII Chapel Westminster Abbey (5133296937).jpg, Henry VII Chapel at Westminster Abbey (1503–), with Perpendicular tracery and blind panels.
File:New College, Oxford (3915150445).jpg, New College Chapel, Oxford
File:Collegiate Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Katherine & All Saints, Edington (14642630549).jpg, Edington Priory
Edington Priory in Wiltshire, England, was founded by William Edington, the bishop of Winchester, in 1351 in his home village of Edington, about east of the town of Westbury. The priory church was consecrated in 1361 and continues in use as the ...
west front: Decorated and Perpendicular
File:Warwick, St Mary's church, Beauchamp chapel (36583800662).jpg, Beauchamp Chapel, Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick
The Collegiate Church of St Mary is a Church of England parish church in Warwick, Warwickshire, England. It is in the centre of the town just east of the market place. It is grade I listed, and a member of the Major Churches Network.
The church ...
File:Manchester Cathedral Choir.jpg, Manchester Cathedral chancel
File:1 christ church hall 2012.jpg, Hall of Christ Church, Oxford
File:HullMinster43.jpg, Hull Minster nave
File:St. Giles church, Wrexham.jpg, St Giles' Church, Wrexham
St Giles' Parish Church ( cy, Eglwys San Silyn) is the parish church of Wrexham, Wales. The church is recognised as one of the finest examples of ecclesiastical architecture in Wales and is a Grade I listed building, described by Sir Simon Jenkin ...
File:Merton College Chapel from just north of the Meadow.jpg, Merton College Chapel tower
File:Gloucester Cathedral Choir.jpg, Gloucester Cathedral, choir and chancel
File:Bath Abbey Eastern Stained Glass, Somerset, UK - Diliff.jpg, Bath Abbey chancel
File:York Minster, York (13451378175).jpg, York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
chancel, looking west
File:Canterbury Cathedral Nave 1, Kent, UK - Diliff.jpg, Canterbury Cathedral nave
File:Winchester Cathedral Nave 2, Hampshire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
nave
File:Canaletto - The Interior of Henry VII's Chapel in Westminster Abbey.JPG, The Henry VII Chapel at Westminster Abbey (1503–) painted by Canaletto
Giovanni Antonio Canal (18 October 1697 – 19 April 1768), commonly known as Canaletto (), was an Italian painter from the Republic of Venice, considered an important member of the 18th-century Venetian school.
Painter of city views or ...
File:Magdalen College Tower.jpg, Magdalen Tower
Magdalen Tower, completed in 1509, is a bell tower that forms part of Magdalen College, Oxford. It is a central focus for the celebrations in Oxford on May Morning.
History
Magdalen Tower is one of the oldest parts of Magdalen College, Oxford, ...
File:York Minster (8406).jpg, York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
crossing tower
File:St Mary Magdalene Taunton.jpg, St Mary Magdalene, Taunton
File:Evesham Abbey Bell Tower.jpg, Evesham Abbey
Evesham Abbey was founded by Saint Egwin at Evesham in Worcestershire, England between 700 and 710 following an alleged vision of the Virgin Mary by a swineherd by the name of Eof.
According to the monastic history, Evesham came through the Nor ...
bell tower
File:BridlingtonPriory.JPG, Bridlington Priory west front
File:Gloucester Cathedral Front.jpg, Gloucester Cathedral east end (1331–1350), with a four-centred arch window
File:Canterbury Cathedral 10.JPG, Canterbury Cathedral crossing tower and transepts
File:Crossing Tower, Wells Cathedral.jpg, Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...
crossing tower
File:Beverley Minster (49792708446).jpg, Beverley Minster west front
File:Norwich Cathedral (geograph 3639003).jpg, Norwich Cathedral
Norwich Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Norwich, Norfolk, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. It is the cathedral church for the Church of England Diocese of Norwich and is one of the Norwich 12 heritage sites.
The cathedra ...
spire and west window
File:Chichester Cathedral (16074455605).jpg, Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of ...
spire
The
Perpendicular Gothic (or simply Perpendicular) is the third and final style of medieval Gothic architecture in England. It is characterised by an emphasis on vertical lines, and is sometimes called rectilinear.
The Perpendicular style began to emerge in about 1330. The earliest example is the
chapter house of
Old St Paul's Cathedral, built by the royal architect
William de Ramsey in 1332. The early style was also practised by another royal architect,
John Sponlee, and fully developed in the works of
Henry Yevele
Henry Yevele (''c''. 1320 – 1400) was the most prolific and successful master mason active in late medieval England. The first document relating to him is dated 3 December 1353, when he purchased the freedom of London. In February 1356 he was su ...
and
William Wynford
William Wynford or William of Wynford (flourished 1360–1405) was one of the most successful English master masons of the 14th century, using the new Perpendicular Gothic style.
Life and career
He is first mentioned in 1360 when at work at Winds ...
.
Walls were built much higher than in earlier periods, and stained glass windows became very large, so that the space around them was reduced to simple piers. Horizontal transoms sometimes had to be introduced to strengthen the vertical
mullions.
Many churches were built with magnificent towers including
York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
,
Gloucester Cathedral,
Worcester Cathedral, and
St Botolph's Church, Boston,
St Giles' Church, Wrexham
St Giles' Parish Church ( cy, Eglwys San Silyn) is the parish church of Wrexham, Wales. The church is recognised as one of the finest examples of ecclesiastical architecture in Wales and is a Grade I listed building, described by Sir Simon Jenkin ...
,
St Mary Magdalene, Taunton. Another outstanding example of Perpendicular is
King's College Chapel, Cambridge.
The interiors of Perpendicular churches were filled with lavish ornamental woodwork, including
misericords
A misericord (sometimes named mercy seat, like the biblical object) is a small wooden structure formed on the underside of a folding seat in a church which, when the seat is folded up, is intended to act as a shelf to support a person in a par ...
(choir stalls with lifting seats), under which were grotesque carvings; stylized "poppy heads", or carved figures in foliage on the ends of benches; and elaborate multicoloured decoration, usually in floral patterns, on panels or cornices called
brattishing. The sinuous lines of the tracery in the Decorated style were replaced by more geometric forms and
perpendicular
In elementary geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at a right angle (90 degrees or π/2 radians). The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the ''perpendicular symbol'', ⟂. It ca ...
lines.
The style was also affected by the tragic history of the period, particularly the
Black Death, which killed an estimated third of England's population in 18 months between June 1348 and December 1349 and returned in 1361–62 to kill another fifth. This had a great effect on the arts and culture, which took a more sober direction.
The perpendicular Gothic was the longest of the English Gothic periods; it continued for a century after the style had nearly disappeared from France and the rest of the European continent, where the Renaissance had already begun. Gradually, near the end of the period, Renaissance forms began to appear in the English Gothic. A
rood screen, a Renaissance ornament, was installed in the chapel of
King's College Chapel, Cambridge. During the
Elizabethan Period (1558–1603), the classical details, including the five orders of classical architecture, were gradually introduced. Carved ornament with Italian Renaissance motifs began to be used in decoration, including on the tomb of
Henry VII in
Westminster Abbey. The pointed arch gradually gave way to the Roman rounded arch, brick began to replace masonry, the roof construction was concealed, and the Gothic finally gave way to an imitation of Roman and Greek styles.
Characteristics
File:Gloucester Cathedral High Altar, Gloucestershire, UK - Diliff.jpg, The choir of Gloucester Cathedral conveys an impression of a "cage" of stone and glass. Window tracery and wall decoration form integrated grids.
File:The Cloisters at Gloucester Cathedral.jpg, Gloucester Cathedral cloisters (1370–1412)
File:Worcester Cathedral Cloister, Worcestershire, UK - Diliff.jpg, Worcester Cathedral cloister: mullions are reinforced with horizontal transoms (1404–1432)
File:Great Gate, Trinity College, Cambridge (inside).jpg, Gate of Trinity Great Court
Great Court is the main court of Trinity College, Cambridge, and reputed to be the largest enclosed courtyard in Europe.
The court was completed by Thomas Nevile, master of the college, in the early years of the 17th century, when he rearranged ...
, Cambridge, with a Tudor arch
File:Westminster abbey colonne.jpg, Henry VII Chapel at Westminster Abbey (completed 1519)
File:Kings College Chapel 2018 002.jpg, King's College Chapel, Cambridge (1446–1515)
File:Christ Church Oxford-6166605366.jpg, Fan vaulting outside the great hall of Christ Church, Oxford ()
*Towers were an important feature of the perpendicular style, though fewer spires were built than in earlier periods. Important towers were built at
Gloucester Cathedral,
York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
,
Worcester Cathedral, and on many smaller churches. Decorative
Battlements
A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...
were a popular decoration of towers in smaller churches.
* Windows became very large, sometimes of immense size, with slimmer stone
mullions than in earlier periods, allowing greater scope for
stained glass craftsmen. The mullions of the windows are carried vertically up into the
arch moulding of the windows, and the upper portion is subdivided by additional mullions (supermullions) and
transoms, forming rectangular compartments, known as panel tracery. The
Tudor Arch window was a particular feature of English Gothic.
*
Buttresses and wall surfaces were divided into vertical panels.
* Doorways were frequently enclosed within a square head over the arch mouldings, the
spandrel
A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame; between the tops of two adjacent arches or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fill ...
s being filled with
quatrefoils or tracery.
Pointed arches were still used throughout the period, but
ogee
An ogee ( ) is the name given to objects, elements, and curves—often seen in architecture and building trades—that have been variously described as serpentine-, extended S-, or sigmoid-shaped. Ogees consist of a "double curve", the combinat ...
and four-centred
Tudor arches were also introduced.
* Inside the church the
triforium disappeared, or its place was filled with panelling, and greater importance was given to the
clerestory windows, which often were the finest features in the churches of this period. The mouldings were flatter than those of the earlier periods, and one of the chief characteristics is the introduction of large elliptical hollows.
* Flint architecture. In areas of
Southern England using
flint
Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...
architecture, elaborate
flushwork decoration in flint and
ashlar was used, especially in the
wool churches of
East Anglia.
Examples
* at
Gloucester Cathedral; the choir and transepts (1330–74, remodel of Norman work), cloisters (1370–1412), west front, western nave vaults, and south porch (1421–37), tower (1450–67) and Lady chapel (1457–83)
* at
York Minster
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
; the east end (1340–1408), central tower (1420–72), Kings Screen (1420–22) and west towers (1433–72)
* at
Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
; the west front (1346–66), and nave (1399–1419, remodel of Norman work)
* at
Norwich Cathedral
Norwich Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Norwich, Norfolk, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. It is the cathedral church for the Church of England Diocese of Norwich and is one of the Norwich 12 heritage sites.
The cathedra ...
; the clerestory of the presbytery (1362–69; transitional in style), and vaults (1446–72, nave; 1472–99, presbytery; 1501–36, transepts)
* at
Worcester Cathedral, the central tower (1374) and cloisters (1375–1438)
* at
Canterbury Cathedral; the nave, west front and cloisters (1379–1414), chapter house (1400–12), transepts (1404–14, south; 1470–82, north), pulpitum (1410–39), southwest tower (1423–34; northwest tower added 1834–41), and central tower (1493–97)
*
New College, Oxford (1380–1400; including chapel, hall, Great Quad, cloisters and bell-tower)
* the chapel of
Winchester College, Hants. (1387–94)
*
Manchester Cathedral (1422)
*
Divinity School, Oxford (1427–83)
* Front Quad and chapel of
All Souls College, Oxford (1438–42)
*
Eton College Chapel, Eton (1441–82)
*
King's College Chapel, Cambridge (1446–1515)
* Old Court, hall and chapel of
Queens' College, Cambridge (1448–49)
*
Magdalen College, Oxford (1474–90, including old library, chapel, cloisters, and founder's tower;
Magdalen Tower
Magdalen Tower, completed in 1509, is a bell tower that forms part of Magdalen College, Oxford. It is a central focus for the celebrations in Oxford on May Morning.
History
Magdalen Tower is one of the oldest parts of Magdalen College, Oxford, ...
built 1492–1509)
* Collegiate Church of the Holy Trinity,
Tattershall, Lincolnshire ()
)
* choir of
Sherborne Abbey (1475 – c. 1580)
* presbytery and lady chapel at
Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
(1493–1500)
* at
Chester Cathedral; the south transept, western front, central tower and cloisters (1493–1530)
* the retro-choir at
Peterborough Cathedral
Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Pau ...
(1496–1508)
*
Bath Abbey (1501–39)
* Towers of
St Giles' Church, Wrexham
St Giles' Parish Church ( cy, Eglwys San Silyn) is the parish church of Wrexham, Wales. The church is recognised as one of the finest examples of ecclesiastical architecture in Wales and is a Grade I listed building, described by Sir Simon Jenkin ...
, and
St Mary Magdalene, Taunton (1503–1508)
* the
Henry VII Lady Chapel
The Henry VII Lady Chapel, now more often known just as the Henry VII Chapel, is a large Lady chapel at the far eastern end of Westminster Abbey, paid for by the will of King Henry VII. It is separated from the rest of the abbey by brass gates a ...
at
Westminster Abbey (1503–09; heavily restored in the 1860s)
* *First Court,
Christ's College, Cambridge (1505–11; including chapel and hall)
* First Quad (1511–20, including hall) & Second Quad (1598–1602),
St. John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corporation established by a charter dated 9 April 1511. The ...
* Front Quad,
Corpus Christi College, Oxford (1515–et seq.; including hall & chapel)
*
Tom Quad
The Great Quadrangle, more popularly known as Tom Quad, is one of the quadrangles of Christ Church, Oxford, England. It is the largest college quad in Oxford, measuring 264 by 261 feet. Although it was begun by Cardinal Wolsey in 1525–1529, h ...
,
Christ Church, Oxford (1525–29, including great hall)
*
Great Court,
Trinity College, Cambridge (1599–1608; including hall and chapel)
Roofs
File:Trad-queen-post.png, A Queen-post truss
File:Westminster Hall edited.jpg, Hammerbeam timber roof of Westminster Hall (1395)
File:Chambers 1908 Hammerbeam.png, Section of a Hammerbeam timber roof.
File:Kings dining hall.JPG, Dining Hall of King's College, Cambridge, with a hammerbeam roof
File:St Katharine Cree Church Interior 2, London, UK - Diliff.jpg, Vaults of St Katharine Cree
The Guild Church of St Katharine Cree is an Anglican church in the Aldgate ward of the City of London, on the north side of Leadenhall Street near Leadenhall Market. It was founded in 1280. The present building dates from 1628 to 1630. Formerly ...
, London
The pitched Gothic timber roof was a distinctive feature of the style, both in religious and domestic architecture. It had to be able to resist rain, snow and high winds of the English climate, and to preserve the integrity of the structure. A pitched roof was a common feature of all the Gothic periods. During the Norman period, the roofs normally were pitched forty-five degrees, with the apex forming a right angle, which harmonised with the rounded arches of the gables. With the arrival of the pointed
rib vault, the roofs became steeper, up to sixty degrees. In the late perpendicular period, the angle declined to twenty degrees or even less. The roofs were usually made of boards overlaid with tiles or sheet-lead, which was commonly used on low-pitched roofs.
The simpler Gothic roofs were supported by long
rafters of light wood, resting on wooden
trusses
A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure.
In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembla ...
set into the walls. The rafters were supported by more solid beams, called ''purlins'', which were carried at their ends by the roof
truss
A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure.
In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembl ...
es. The ''tie-beam'' is the chief beam of the truss. Later, the roof was supported by structures called a King-point-truss and Queen-post truss, where the principal rafters are connected with the tie beam by the head of the truss. The King-Point truss has a vertical beam with connects the centre of the rafter to the ridge of the roof, supported by diagonal struts, while a Queen-Post truss has a wooden collar below the pointed arch which united the posts and was supported by struts and cross-braces. A Queen-Post truss could span a width of forty feet. Both of these forms created greater stability, but the full weight of the roof still came down directly onto the walls.
Gothic architects did not like the roof truss systems, because the numerous horizontal beams crossing the nave obstructed the view of the soaring height. They came up with an ingenious solution, the
Hammerbeam roof. In this system, the point of the roof is supported by the collar and trusses, but from the collar curved beams reach well downward on the walls, and carry the weight downward and outwards, to the walls and buttresses, without obstructing the view. The oldest existing roof of this kind is found in
Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
. The most famous example of the
Hammerbeam roof is the roof of
Westminster Hall (1395), the largest timber roof of its time, built for royal ceremonies such as the banquets following the coronation of the King. Other notable wooden roofs included those of
Christ Church, Oxford,
Trinity College, Cambridge, and
Crosby Hall. A similar system, with arched trusses, was used in the roof of Wexham Cathedral.
University Gothic
File:Merton College, Oxford (Mob Quad).jpg, Mob Quad, Merton College, Oxford (1288–1378)
File:Balliol front quad.jpg, Balliol College, Oxford front quad (1431)
File:Kings College Chapel Cambridge.JPG, Tudor arch window at King's College Chapel, Cambridge (1446–1531)
File:Oriel College First Quad.jpg, East range of First Quad, Oriel College, Oxford (1637–1642)
File:St John's College Second Court, Cambridge, UK - Diliff.jpg, Second Court, St John's College, Cambridge
The Gothic style was adopted in the late 13th to 15th centuries in early English university buildings, due in part to the close connection between the universities and the church. The oldest existing example of University Gothic in England is probably the
Mob Quad of
Merton College, Oxford, constructed between 1288 and 1378.
Balliol College, Oxford has examples of Gothic work in the north and west ranges of the front quadrangle, dated to 1431; notably in the medieval hall on the west side, (now the "new library") and the "old library" on the first floor, north side. The architecture at Balliol was often derived from castle architecture, with battlements, rather than from church models.
King's College Chapel, Cambridge also used another distinctive Perpendicular Gothic feature, the
four-centred arch.
Gothic Revival (19th and 20th centuries)
File:Wills building from Cabot Tower 2.JPG, Wills Memorial Building
The Wills Memorial Building (also known as the Wills Memorial Tower or simply the Wills Tower) is a neo-Gothic building in Bristol, England, designed by Sir George Oatley and built as a memorial to Henry Overton Wills III , University of Bristol (1915—1925)
File:Westminster palace.jpg, Palace of Westminster, rebuilt by Barry and Pugin 1840–1876
File:StMarysSydneyCathedral1.jpg, St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney
The Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Mother of God, Help of Christians (colloquially, St Mary's Cathedral) is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney and the seat of the Archbishop of Sydney, curre ...
(1868—1928)
File:Manchester Town Hall from Lloyd St.jpg, Manchester Town Hall, (1868–1877)
File:Tower Bridge from Shad Thames.jpg, Tower Bridge, London, (1886–1894)
The Perpendicular style was less often used in the
Gothic Revival than the Decorated style, but major examples include the rebuilt
Palace of Westminster (i.e. the Houses of Parliament),
Bristol University's
Wills Memorial Building
The Wills Memorial Building (also known as the Wills Memorial Tower or simply the Wills Tower) is a neo-Gothic building in Bristol, England, designed by Sir George Oatley and built as a memorial to Henry Overton Wills III (1915–25), and
St. Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney.
See also
*
Architecture of the medieval cathedrals of England
The medieval cathedrals of England, which date from between approximately 1040 and 1540, are a group of twenty-six buildings that constitute a major aspect of the country's artistic heritage and are among the most significant material symbols of ...
*
Building a Gothic cathedral
*
Cathedral architecture of Western Europe
The architecture of cathedrals and great churches is characterised by the buildings' large scale and follows one of several branching traditions of form, function and style that derive ultimately from the Early Christian architectural traditio ...
*
Collegiate Gothic
*
English Gothic stained glass windows
*
French Gothic architecture
French Gothic architecture is an architectural style which emerged in France in 1140, and was dominant until the mid-16th century. The most notable examples are the great Gothic cathedrals of France, including Notre-Dame Cathedral, Reims Cathedra ...
*
Gothic Revival architecture
*
Poor Man's Bible
The term ''Poor Man's Bible'' has come into use in modern times to describe works of art within churches and cathedrals which either individually or collectively have been created to illustrate the teachings of the Bible for a largely illiterate ...
References
Bibliography
*
* Ducher, Robert, ''Caractéristique des Styles'', (1988), Flammarion, Paris (in French);
*
*
*
External links
Britain Express: Decorated Gothic architecture
{{Authority control
12th-century architecture
13th-century architecture
14th-century architecture
15th-century architecture
16th-century architecture
England in the High Middle Ages
Architecture in England
Gothic architecture