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CAROLINGIAN AND ROMANESQUEARCHITECTURE 8oo-r 2oo

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..,r--..rearuui*r*^ KENNETHJOHN CONANT

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Kenneth John Conant

CAROLINGIAN AND ROMANESQL E

ARCHITECTL RE 8OO TO 12OO

Yale Uniaersity Press' New Haaen and London

First published 1959 by Penguin Books Ltd

Fourth edition r978. New impression rgg3 by Yale University Press

z o r g 1 8 r y 1 6 t 5 1 4 1 3 1 2 r r r o g 8 7 6 5

Copyright @ Kenneth John Conant, ry59, 1966, ry74, ry78

Set in Monophoto Ehrhardt, and printed in Hong Kong through World Print Ltd

Designed by Gerald Cinamon and Inge Dyson

All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form(beyond that copying permitted by Sections ro7 and ro8 of the U.S. Copyright Law andexcept by reviewers for the public press), without written permission from the publishers.

ISBN o-3oo-o5zg8-7

Library of Congress catalog card number 78-r4g8or

To my two namesakes

Ken and Kenny

This new edt ion, in addi t ion to rout ine minor

rectifications, contains text changes suggested

by increasing knowledge of the development of

the Romanesque style, and figures have been

introduced which tend to make this develop-

ment clearer. The text has new material on

Montecassino, Saint-Benoit-sur-Loire, Saintes,

Cluny, Florence, and Saint-Denis. It presents

the great church at Cluny as embodying the

classic moment of the Romanesque, with

Saint-Denis and Sens Cathedral as the first

Gothic churches provided with flying but-

tresses of systematic design

The original drawings were made or adapted

by Donald Bell-Scott, further drawings were

done for this edition by Ian Stewart, and the

maDS were drawn bv Sheila Waters.

CONTENTS

Note on the Second Intesrated Edition 6

Foreword r r

Maps:

Carolingian Divisions in and near France c. 8oo 814 14

France and Contiguous Areas about rooo r5

Medieval Ecclesiastical Metropolitanates (France) and Provinces (Germany) 16-ry

The Sty l is t ic Boundar ies of Romanesque France r8-rg

The Pilgrimage Routes to Santiago de Compostela 20

Spain and Portugal 2r

Germany, Neighbouring Lands, and Hungary 22-23

Italy and Yugoslavia 24

British Isles 25

Scandinavia 26

The Holy Land 27

Part One: The Pre-Romanesque and Proto-Romanesque Styles

r . The Preparation for Medieval Architecture 3 r

The Institutional Background 3r

Primitive and Local Architectural Trends 34

The Persistence of Roman Architectural Ideas and Practice 36

The Transition from Roman to Early Medieval Architecture 37

z. The Carolingian Romanesque 43

Northern Architecture in the Reign of Charlemagne,TTr 8rq 43

Church Architecture in the Northern Part of the Empire under the Later Carolingians

3. Pre-Romanesque Architecture in the North, outside the Empire 69

Ireland 69

Ninth- and Tenth-Century Architecture in Saxon England 72

Scandinavia 77

5 5

8 c o N r n N r s

4. Proto-Romanesque Architecture in Southern Europe 87

The Asturian StYle 87

The Mozarabic Style in Northern Spain 93

The Lombard Kingdom roo

The Byzantine Exarchate ro2

Part Tpo: The Earlier Romanesque Styles

5. The 'First Romanesque' ro7

Lombardy ro7

Dalmatia r r I

Catalonia and Andorra r r I

The Kingdom of Arles r r9

Germany r rg

Romanesque Architecture in Germany

under the Saxon and Franconian Emperors (936 r rz5) r2r

The Ottonians; the Ottonian Romanesque 12r

The Salian or Franconian Emperors r3I

France: goo ro5o r3g

The Ambulatory r3g

BurgundianDevelopments r4r

The Spacious Wooden-Roofed Basilicas I53

Part Three: The Mature Romanesque as Inter-Regional and International Architecture

8. The Great Churches of the Pilgrimage Roads r57

The Preparation: General Considerations r57

St Martin at Tours t6z

Saint-Martial at Limoges t6z

Sainte-Foi at Conques r63

Saint-Sernin at Toulouse and Pilgrimage Sculpture r65

Santiago de Compostela, Goal of the Pilgrimage 167

Reflex from the Pilgrimage ry7

The Role of Cluny in the History of Romanesque Architecture r85

The Early Abbots;the'Ecole Clunisienne' r85

Abbot Hugh of Semur 187

Abbot Pons, or Pontius, de Melgueil zo8

Abbot Peter the Venerable 213

r r. The Cistercians and their Architecture 227

Part Four: The Mature Rornanesque of Midd,k and Southern France

rz. General Considerations in regard to the Regional Schools 49

r3. The Kingdom of Arles, and Burgundy 243

Ducal Burgundy 243

Provence 2So

Aquitania, with Bordering Areas on the Loire and the Mediterranean 263

The West of France 26+

The School ofAuvergne 293

The School ofLanguedoc 297

Part Fiz:e: The,44ature Romanesque Architecture of Spain, Portugal, and the Holl Land

r7. Styles dependdnt on the Moors and on Lombardy 3o3

Mud6far Romanesque Architecture in Brick 303

The Mature Catalan Romanesque Style 306

18. Styles dependent on France 3r I

Prel iminary Considerat ions 3rr

Aragon and Navarre 3r2

Leon , Cas t i l e . and Ga l i c i a J I 5

Portugal 329

The Templars and the Hospitallers 333

The Holy Land 336

Exchange of Inf luences: The Problem of Armenia 34I

Part Six: .I4ature Romanesque Architecture

in the Land.s Asstttiated pithin the Holy Roman Empire

Introduction to Chapters rg zz 343

rg. The Two Sic i l ies 345

Apulia 345

The Basilicata 352

I O C O N T E N T S

Sicil-v 3Sz

Campania and Neighbouring Regions 362

zo. Central ltalY 367

Rome and the Papal State 367

Tuscany 372

zr. Northern I ta ly 38-5

Venice 385

Lombardy 386

Neighbouring Regions showing Components of Mature Lombard Style ,+o3

zz. Germany, with the Netherlands and Flanders 4I r

South Germany 4r-1

Saxony and Neighbour ing Regions 4I5

The Lower Rhine Main District 121

The Netherlands +27

Part Sez;en: Mature Romanesque Architectarc in Scandina.^ia, Britnin, and Northern France

zq. Scandinavia 43I

Denmark 43r

Sweden $+

Norway' 436

24. Northern France and Norman England +Jg

French Romanesquc of the School of the East , or Rhineland France -+39

The Royal Domain (ile-de-France) and Champagne 4j9

Normandy 442

England: l'he Saxo-Norman Overlap ,+54

Norman England 4-5.+

Notes $j

Bibliography 49.1

List of I l lustrat ions 50I

Index 5og

F O R E W O R D

The present volume is devoted to the genesis,

development, and transformation of Romanes-

que architecture and is concerned with the prin-

cipal artistic effort of four centuries, but the

chronological limits are not as strict as this state-

ment would imply. To understand Romanesque

architecture well, it is necessary to understand

the monasticism and the incipient medievalism

of Late Classical times, before the creative spirit

ofthe Carolingian Age gave them a special direc-

tion. Following the epoch of mature Romanes-

que achievement, the after-life of the Romanes-

que extended into the thirteenth and fourteenth

centuries in regions where the style offered a

suffrcient answer to local needs. and exoressed

the local temper well.

General works on Romanesque architecture

are not numerous. In view ofthe enduring value

of Paul Frankl's Fr il hmit te la h er lic he und r omani-

sche Bauhunst, rather encyclopaedic in charac-

ter, a freer pattern has been adopted for this

treatise, which is somewhat more personal, cast

when possible in the form of a narrative. The

theme of the book is carried by' church archi-

tecture, but that is natural in the work ofan au-

thor who is academically the heir of Herbert

Langford Warren and his teachers Henry Hob-

son Richardson and Charles Eliot Norton, the

latter an intimate f riend ofJohn Ruskin.

The greatest direct indebtedness ofthe author

is, however, to his mentor, colleague, and liiend,

Arthur Kingsley Porter, whose wide-ranging

re-study ofRomanesque art and chronology re-

sulted in considerable activity on the part ofart

historians. His interest in Cluny, shown in

important work of his own, was responsible for

several significant studies in the Cluniac am-

bient by Americans during the period when

Dr Joan Evans was engaged on her com-

prehensive publications in England, and M.

Charles Oursel on his learned works concerning;

Cluniac and Cistercian art in Burgundy. Nt.

Marcel Aubert. to whom the author is much

beholden for many kindnesses, was at the same

time preparing his encyclopaedic work on

Cistercian architecture in France.

With all these materials now available, it is

possible to present - as such - the monastic

accomplishment in church architecture. The

reader will find here, following an account of

the renewal in Charlemagne's time, a record of

the architectural advances by which the highly

organized conventual establishment and the

beauti(ully articulated great monastic church

were achieved. This record, during Rornan-

esque times, brings forward a synthesis of

traditional forms culminating at Cluny and

Citeaux. Its foil, in our exposition, is the flower-

ing o{' the many and varied regional styles,

some of them carried forth by missionaries or

colonists as the Romanesque area expanded

into Spain, the Holy Land, middle Europe,

and Scandinavia.

In the Holy Roman Empire there was a

particularly wide panorama of interesting re-

gional styles: older architectural forms were

perfected and embellished, and the noble monu-

ments which resulted in such great numbers

have been admired ever s ince the Romanesque

centuries. But they do not show the drive for

logical synthesis in structure which charac-

terized the North-western region. Therefore at

the end of our work we ref'er to Romanesque

Normandy, England, and the i le-de-France in

contrast wi th the Empire; the resul t of their

effbrt in architecture was the creation ofa new

1 2 F O R E W O R D

structural unit which had elements drawn from

all of the older types of vaulting, but surpassed

them all. Fully developed, this unit the typical

ribbed groin-vaulted bay with its spur or flying

buttress - was universally applicable, and be-

came the mainspring of Gothic architecture. It

was further remarkable in that designers, by its

use, could reinterpret and carry on all of the

effects achieved in local varieties of the parent

Romanesque. By making clear these facts the

author hopes to enrich the reader's appreciation

both of Romanesque and of Gothic archi-

tecture.

The author wishes to express his gratitude

to the medievalists who have been mentioned

for the benefits which have come from their

scholarly work and their counsel. He is grateful

for the generosity of the Hon. John Nicholas

Brown, who made excavations at Cluny pos-

sible through the Mediaeval Academy of

America; he also owes thanks to Miss Helen

Kleinschmidt, to Dr Harry H. Hilberry, to

Dr Elizabeth Read Sunderland, and to Dr Alice

Sunderland Wethey for their work in fittingparts of the Cluniac puzzle together; to Dr

Isabel Pope Conant for thoughtful criticism;

and to Mrs Hart Chapman and to Mrs JudyNairn for expert handling of the manuscript.

Special thanks are due to Dr Turpin C.

Bannister for a searching review and discussion

of the text while it was in proof. And thanks are

most particularly due to the Editor, Professor

Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, who is deeply versed in

the subiect matter of the volume; his work on

the manuscript was that of a wise colleague and

friend, far exceeding the merely editorial

function.

K E N N E T H J O H N C O N A N T

.28 June r954

Maps

r4 . Carol ingian Div is ions in and near France r .8oo 8r4 France and Contiguous Areas about rooo

F L A N D f R

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P A R T O N E

THE PRE-ROMANESQUE

AND PROTO-ROMANESQUE STYLES

C H A P l . E R I

T H E P R E P A R A T I O N F O R M E D I E V A L A R C H I f ' E C T U R E

T H E I N S T I T L I T I O N A L B A C K G R O T J N D

The Leaders

The 1'ear 8oo came to a Western rvorld readv

for a great revival of'man1' things which Anti-

quity held dear. The barbarian torment and

the civil strife which had overturned the f'alter-

ing late Empire were far from ended, but the

lorces of order were decisivelv rallied, and

great men like Charlemagne and his com-

panions were hnding, in the pattern of classic

life and thought, the wa].s in which the half

Roman. half German medieval rvorld could be

organized. The consular d igni ty 'conferred in

5o8 upon Clovis, who rvas al ready King of the

Franks in 476, when Romulus Augustulus was

deposed, had implications which began to be

realized as the Frankish settlers showed their

sturdy worth and their power to build an endur-

ing state. The implic'.rtions \\ere further real-

ized when Charlemagne's grandfather, Charles

N{artel, repulsed the Saracenic advance near

Poitiers in 732; when his irather, Pepin, aided

in establ ishing the papal Patr imonl ' ; and most

of a l l when Char lemagne himsel f created a pan-

Germanic state with an orderlv political system,

and enlarged the boundaries of Christendom

by his conquests.

It is fiair to sa]' that the great triangle formed

by the Rhine, the Loire, and the sea, quiescent

before, now put forward almost all the grand

conceptions on which the new medier,al world

of gor,ernment, philosophl', and art was to be

based. Char lemagne extended the area to in-

clude all the mid-continental Germans, pro-

moted the Chr ist ianizat ion of th is vast dom-

in ion, and bound i t by strong ecclesiast ical and

political links to Rome. Bv his care fbr the

Roman Church he gave new impetus to that

institution, which was perhaps the greatest

s ingle inher i tance f rom Ant iqui tv, and b1'act ive

favours to learning he made a beacon of his

court .- Ihus,

by the year 8oo, learning and legal

svstem rvere being advanced again, and the mon-

asteries, by addressing themselves to Rome's old

task of administrative and economic develop-

ment, \1ere fbrming the groundwork on rvhich

an1'' lasting renaissance perforce would rest.' l 'h is

socien, rvhich had been confused and

periphcral, found its direction and its unil-ving

pr incip le ; i t made a svnthesis of Germanic cul-

ture wi th t radi t ional late Roman lbrms and per-

sistent influences from B1'zantine and Oriental

lands, under the conf ident and energet ic C.har le-

magne, whose coronation as Roman Emperor

? 2 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

at Christmastide,8oo, happily marks a symbolic

new beginning.

Art is t ic in i t ia t ive st i r red, and new aesthet ic

lbrms were created which e\'!ntuall)' became

symbols of the age. 'I'he

creation of Carolingian

art, with its reflexes of oriental, northern, and

Mediterranean origin, is a very complex pheno-

menon, and only the architecture can concern

us here; suffice it to say that the fecund and

dynamic character so notable in the other arts

is equal ly found in the archi tecture. In archi-

tecture also, designers had the opportuni ty to

merge what was good in all the old forms within

the ample horizon of vast civic and religious

conceptions, though the architects were rela-

tively more dependent on Mediterranean mo-

dels. The abounding energy and initiative ofthe

Emperor himself, and the great gifts for under-

standing, organization, and synthesis which

were possessed by the gireat masters of rhe

Palace Alcuin and Einhard part icular ly were

strongly I'elt in architecture. The brilliant ideas

developed by the church architects of Charle-

magne's day were of enduring importance. J'hev

have been interpreted in successive styles

throughout the centuries, up to modern times.

The leading Carolingian architects antici-

pated certain Romanesque characteristics, but

scholars hesitate to sav that Romanesque archi-

tecture proper ly so cal led began in the Caro-

lingian Ren:rissance. 'f

hel prefbr to reserve the

term fbr the better integrated art which flou-

r ished f rom the t ime of Otto the Great (936-73)

in western Europe, and receded before Gothic

art l rom about r r3o onward. This is perhaps

because Carolingian painting, manuscripts, and

sculpture differ more sharply than architecture

lrom acknowledged Romanesque works. Be-

cause l hc Roman componen t i s \ e r \ impo r tan t .

the name C:rrolingian Romanesque is suitable

for the architecture. For the discerning historian

can see that the general programme of earll'

medieval architecture was already understood

at the court of CharlemaEne and that charac-

T H E P R E P A R A T I O N F O R M E D I E V A L A R C H I T E C T U R E 3J

teristic Romanesque I'eatures or elements were

created and used, though not on the scale nor

wi th the great assurance of later t imes. f 'he

Carol ingian Romanesque was inr ent i r e I i t was

also experimental Romanesque in the test-

tube rather than a well-knit. fullv articulated

sty le.

The Arc hitectural Ambit

It is important to realize in this connexion that

the Carolingian Romanesque was an architec-

ture intended for relatively small groups of

people, and not a great urban architecture suclt

as classic architecture had been. The popula-

tion of the entire Roman Empire in Hadrian's

time is believed to have been about 55,ooo,ooo.

There were several cities approaching r,ooo,ooo

in population, but all were in the south and east.

The cities in the north and west had always

been small, and the countrvside rather sparsely

peopled. In the late classical period the popula-

tion of the Empire declined, particularly in the

cities, Rome being an e\treme example with a

decline from nearly r,ooo,ooo to its nadir of

about ro,ooo. Constantinople, which main-

ta ined a populat ion of near ly r ,ooo,ooo in the

\{iddle Ages, seemed labulous to visitors from

the West. Medieval London had only about

z5,ooo people, and al l England only 5,ooo,ooo,

while the German urban centres had from

5ooo to ro,ooo people; l'rance was relativelv

more settled and prosperous. It seems clear

that most of the building operations were tradi-

tional, and were done, even in late medieval

times, on the modest scale which we associate

with villages.l The conditions of society were

such that the solutions developed in Roman

and barbarian times for the various problems ol'

ordinary architecture were still sufficient, so

that there was little occrsion for the exercise of

new ingenuity in such work. Ambitious pro-

jects involving new problems were few in num-

ber, and with rare exceptions they were long

under construction even when favoured by ex-

cept ional resources and other c i rcumstances.

The impulse fbr novel alchitectural develop-

ment came chiefly lrom the monasteries. A

monastery of importance of ten served near ly a l l

the needs of a thousand persons or more, and

thus presented architectural problems on the

scale of a whole town. Yet its design would be

more monumental, and integrated in a more

sophisticated manner than that of a town, with

the consequence that novel problems would

arise spontaneously'.

.Monasticistn

Monasticism itself came to Carolingian times

w i t h t he s t r ong Roman imp r i n r g i r en t o an

originally Egvptian and cenobitical institution

by St Benedict of 'Nursia ( r . 48o 5.13). ' l 'here

is

indeed something of Roman grandeur and dura-

bility in the Rule which he compiled for his own

monastery of Montccassino about 5zg. This

Rule made i ts rvav throughout Western C.hr is-

tendom on its os'n mcrits, and acted as an inter-

national constitution in the early Middle Ages

when temporal government had broken down,

and the monastic commonwealth remained as

the only stable community 2

The way of Roman churchmanship in Gaul

was smoothed by Pepin I I I , who introduced

the Roman, and prohib i tcd the Gal l ican, l i turgv

tn the Frankish k ingdom, j54 68. Char lemagne

reinforced the tcndencv by imposing on all

monks a rule of Bencdictine character. Roman

in spirit (78g).

Benedictinism itself. then in relativc decline

because of uphcavals. was enormously bene-

fited by Charlemagne and his successors from

779 onward, when a refbrm was inaugurated

under St Benedict of Aniane (d ied 8zz). A

splendid nt :w monrster ] ' was bui l t at Aniane,

which l ies nerr Saint-Gui lhem-le-D6scrt or

Gellone in Languedoc, between Arles and Nar-

bonne. I t drew on al l the rcsources of 'ar t and

liturgy fbr its magnificence. Priories on identical

l ines were soon founded. Louis the Pious, who

succeeded Charlemagne in 8r,1, built the Cor-

nelimiinster on the Inden, near Aachen, for

Benedict, and instructed him to regularize

monastic life in the Emperor's dominions.s

The groups of men who withdrew fiom the

ordinary pursuits of the world to live together

under the ru le ofan abbot, tak ing vows ofpov-

erty, chastity, obedience, and stability, lbund

r ich rewards in the spir i tual pat tern of the

monastic liturgies. Such conmunities became

oases of Christian life in the midst of wild

countr) or socia l chaos; sound and strong, the

monastic institute was able to accept manifbld

opportunities to preserve piety and learning, to

aid communications by turnishing hospitality

to wayfbrers ofer,ery degree, and to enlarge the

borders of Christianitv bv missionary endea-

YOUr.

.{lthough the monks were individualll ' ' vowed

to poverty, the communities received great gifts

of land and endou'ment; and in general thel

managed their quite considerable resources

well. f'he monks patiently developed and im-

proved their properties, which were often large-

lv uncultir,ated or dcsolate when g;iven, and bv

this process a ty'pical monastery would become

the garner and the agricultural capital for a

considerable surrounding area ; because of large

land hold ings i t would have certa in adminis-

t rat ive and judic ia l lunct ions too, in addi t ion to

being the spir i tual capi ta l . Much invect ive

against usurping and unsuccessful administra-

tors has come down to us in the texts, and this

f'act tends to obscure the excellent general re-

cord ofthe monasteries as orderly and peacclul

islands within a society ruhich was struggling

out ofdeep confusion. ' l 'hei r industry la id the

lbundations of economic recoverl in Europe

after the Dark Ap;es. The larger monasteries

presented intr icatc administrat ive problems,

and were the accepted schools for men of busi-

ness and government. In addition they were the

L

3 4 p R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

training places for talent in the arts, and the

refuge of intellectual activity.

Thus the monasteries did yeoman service in

creating all four ofthe bases on which medieval

civilization was to rest: (r) economic revival,

(z) the fusion of the Latin and the Teutonic

peoples, in which the conversion of the in-

vaders, the unified world view presented by

Christianity, and its common mode of thought

were fundamental, (3) the afterlife of Roman

law in the monastic Rule, the canon law of the

Church, and the Holy Roman Empire, (4) the

feudal system, which set up new hierarchies of

power, and enabled the monastic orders to ex-

tend their influence and their benefits generally.

The great monasteries, thus developing as

imposing hnancial, educational, and territorial

corporations, were lar larger, more complex,

and more influential than they had ever been in

Antiquity. Since many of their architectural

problems were new, their architecture became

the living and growing architecture of the time.

r. Lojsta, palace (restored). Original ofr. rooo

T H E P R E P A R A T I O N F O R M E D I E V A L A R C H I T E C T U R E 35

P R I M I T I V E A N D L O C A L

A R C H I T E C T U R A L T R E N D S

With the creation of' a central power in the

north of Europe, it would be natural to expect

Northern influences in architecture lrom the

year 8oo onwards. The situation is well ex-

pressed in Charles Rufus Morey's reference to'the

naive effort of the barbarian races them-

selves to revive the Rome which their fathers

had ruined', and his definition of Romanesque

art as that'which reflects the gradual sinking of

Latin culture below the Celtic and Teutonic

surf'ace'. The architecture of these migrant and

primitive peoples could hardly have the superb

beauty, the 'coiling vitalitv' of their works of

minor art, but as their compositions sought out

the eccentric effects of nature itself, so their

architecture alwavs was both functional and

organic.a

In the North-east, where primeval timber

was abundant, the adze was the builder's prin-

cipal tool, and a traditional log-wall construc-

tion developed which came to its culmination

in the Russian medieval spire churches.

In the West, more sophisticated tools were

used. and several schemes of more efficient,

lighter construction were worked out. In the

palace halls there was evidently foinery ofa high

order adorned with intricate carving, of which

the wagons and sledges found with the Norse

grave-ships probably offer us specimens. At

Lojsta on the Isle of Gotland a palace ruin as-

cribed to the period about a.o. rooo has been

restored, and here one may see how handsome

the primitive wooden forms can be, even with-

out the lavish carving and colour which the

original work doubtless possessed Ir, 36.t]. Ac-

cumulating evidence shows that halls of the

Lojsta type were used all over northern Europe

for many centuries in noble, domestic, farm, and

(later) church construction [4e]. They may even

be responsible for the introduction of the 'bay

system' in stone-built Romanesque.

z. Greenstead, wooden Saxon church (part), ror3,

brick base modern

Palisade wall construction was used by the

Saxons, and a solitary example of their work,

dated ror3, st i l l ex ists in the church at Green-

stead, Essex [zl. Wooden frames with vertical

sheathing and braced mast construcf ion were

used by the Norse. The clinker construction

of the Scandinavian ships is essentially like

weather-boarded construction in building. It

may go back as f'ar as the third century a.o.'Half-timber'

construction among the bar-

barians may also be lairlv ancient, as Strzygow-

ski believed.

Excar,ations in the Gallo-Roman area have

shown that Roman work in outlying regions

must often har,e adjoined that of the bar-

barian settlers; indeed it seems likely that the

barbarian builders near the borders ofthe Em-

pire learned something also from the Romans.5

The prosperous household among the Ger-

mans would have a hall like that at Loista. or a

more sophisticated building of similar char-

acter. Subsidiarl' buildings of' the same sort

would gather, arranged about courtvards, and

the number of such courts would be the measure

of ' the household 's importance. I t is probable

that the 'prol i f 'erat ing quadrangles ' o1 ' the great

monasteries carry on something of this mode of

agglomeration.b

Such ' r ,ernacular 'or

fo lk archi tecture was of

course f-ar from adequate lbr the nccds of an

imperial building programme, but being rooted

and nat ive in the north, i t would be bound to

have some efl'ect on an-v imported st1,le. Speci-

ficallv, the mode of design where liamed wooden

compartments make up a building is quitc

different from that of classic architecture in

brick, stone, or concrete. L,r'cn in the first at-

tempts at strict imitation, the local habits and

condi t ions would inevi tably make themsel les

f 'e l t . Northern bui lders preler austere shapes,

lbr their climate is severe on involved e\terior

fbrms. Northern rooI.s arc stecp, in order to

evacuate rain more quickll' and diminish the

hazard of snow and icc. The exter ior mater ia ls

>-

3 6 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S T H E P R E P A R A T I O N F O R M E D I E V A L A R C H I T E C T U R E 3 7

which resist the weather well are nearly all

either red or gre)', so that the colour range is

limited.

Yet in the Carolingian period the north-

ern 'vernacular' architecture was obviousll' so

simple that almost any really monumental new

development would be largely dependent on

Roman sources. l'he elements. the items, the

f'eatures of great buildings would be Roman, but

the manner of their employ would be affected by

northern artistic discipline and taste. During

the Carolingian period both Roman and native

elements were used increasingly, with admir'

able inventiyeness. in church architecture.

T H E P E R S I S T E N C E O F R O M A N

A R C H I T E C T U R A L I D E A S A N D P R A C T I C E

The Romanesque which came after the Carolin-

gian period profited by these erperiments, and

b1' the dreadful experience of the Viking and

Hungar ian invasions. These incurs ions, wi th

their burnings of towns and churches, occasion-

ed a considerable ellbrt to build fireproofchur-

ches in the ensuing period of revival, after the

middle of the tenth century. Perforce the de-

signers drew on the constructional experience

of imperial Roman vaulted architecture. The

nidespread and sucttss.ful use of Roman types of

vaulting as a clntrollins Jeature in design marks

a distinction between the newer, Romanesque,

architecture, irnd the older Carolingian.

Examples of the ancient Roman stv le were

built throughout noarly the entire area in which

the Romanesque later flourished. The Roman

manner of building, although it degenerated in

the Dark Ages, remained as an ideal, and was

never quite lost in practice. A Roman architect

and a Roman engineer would easilv have under-

s tood t he uo rk o f t he i r Romanesque con t i nu -

ators.

Yet there are obvious differences. Apart from

commemoratiVe works and garden architecture,

onlv the Roman temples had a character which

we should now call fully monumental. All other

tvpes of building, even the most ambitious, ten-

ded to have plain or uninteresting exteriors, and

the layout of the cities gave little opportunit]',

apart from the fora, for individual structures to

present imposing effects, or to become dynamic

elements in the city picture and the landscape.

Such effects are achieved almost as a matter of

course 6rst in medieval, then in Renaissance,

Baroque, and neo-classical planning. On the

contrarv, Roman civic works were often masked

fiom the street or forum b1'enclosing porticoes,

so that the compositions were inward-looking;

typically they had the classical horizontality and

self-contained unitv.

In contrast the Romanesque, through bold

imagination, came to be characterized by free,

active, and arresting combinations of architect-

ural forms. The Romanesque contributed great-

lv to the development ofhighly articulated, ex-

pressive exterior and interior design. It laid the

tbundation ofGothic successes in that field, and

thus i t under l ies st i l l fur ther achievements of

Renaissance and modern date: a notable d i f fer-

entiation, surell' ', from the Roman.

Romanesque variety developed out of Roman

unity. For, from the first years of our era, the

architecture of the city of Rome was the model

throughout the whole area of the Western Em-

pire. Provincial approximations, often imper-

f'ect because of different materials and other

conditions, nevertheless departed little in essen-

t ia l s t ructure, and not at a l l in ideals, l rom the

augustexemplars in the imperialcity. The grow-

ing centralization ofthe state, the constantly in-

creasing property holdings of the Emperor

(amounting, it is said, to about a quarter of the

area of the Empire in Diocletian's time), and the

consequent spread ofuniform control in the de-

s igning of bui ld ings, encouraged qui te general

con(brmitv in practice to the architecture and

engineer ing of ' the capi ta l .

Although Rome's primacy in architecture de-

pa r t cd du r i ng t he f i f t h cen lu r ) , i t s impos ing

Early Christian churches remained as an active

inspiration while new ideals were developing for

the Romanesque. Other tvpes of building made

static rather than d1'namic contributions, but

retained prestige as classic works. Even the

wretched estate of medieval Rome shrunken

to a fraction ofits ancient size, and scourged by

malaria, private warfare, and disturbers from

abroad did not prevent high-minded popes

from maintaining the dignity ofthe ancient trad-

itions of the Church, and with that dignity some-

thing ofthe lofty ideals ofancient architecture.

Ancient Rome created no ne\ry monumental

types after the Christian Roman basilica. Later

designers, struggling on new problems without

Rome's leadership, worked on a regional basis.

Departing from the common and Roman theme,

though conscious ofits significance, the provin-

cial architects and engineers capitalized on the

special variations in materials, skills, climate,

and predisposition which fbrmer conditions,

under the Romans, had tended to minimize.

They even gained from such self-imposed limit-

ations. Buildings with such local savour could

be constructed more cheaply and would com-

mand the affection of folk in the locality from

the very fact of being 'their

own'. The result

was, in the many regional schools of Romanes-

que architecture, a rich varietv unexampled in

the parent imperial st1.le.

T H E T R A N S I T I O N F R O M R O M A N

T O E A R L Y M E D I E V A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

Rome was indeed not built in a dav; but bv the

beginning ofthe fourth centur]'ofour era it had

been built, and the grandiose civic and religious

organs of the Empire were becomingly housed.

Coming in a time of decal', this meant that the

wonderful system of working co-ordination

which had produced these buildings would

wither away through disuse. The tradition of

masonrv vaulting on a grand scale was lost in

this manner. Ordinarl., every-day,'r,ernacular'

architecture continued to be built. Indeed it

continued to be built fbr centuries. often with

l i t t le change because i t was wel l adapted to cur-

rent needs. Just as the wooden archi tecture of

the north was the 'background

architecture'

there. so the 'vernacular'

architecture of the old

Roman districts was the background architec-

ture of the south. Almost the onlv demand fbr

large new buildings came from the Church, and

in consequence ecclesiastical architecture be-

came the premier architecture from the time of

Constant ine onward.

The imperial architects achieved brilliant re-

sults in the new Earlv Christian architecture.

-{ f ter the Peace of the Church (3r3) , thel ' put

the impr int of 'unmistakable Roman grandeur

on the Constantinian basilicas of Old St Peter's

in the Vat ican [3] and St Paul 's outs ide the

\Ualls. The churches which had been destroved

throuehout the Empire dur ing the persecut ion

of Diocletian (:o: +) were pJenerally replaced

rvi th new bui ld ings ol th is same basi l ican char-

acter - ty-p ical ly 'wi th a gatewa] 'o1 'approach, an

atr ium, a wooden-rooled nave and ais les, and

an apse, often with a transept and perhaps sac-

r is t ies adjo in ing i t .

Eastern Christendom was able to continue

the t radi t ions ofRoman vaul ted archi tecture as

a living stvle, and applv them successfullv to the

problems of church building, thoup5h under

strong oriental influence. When the architects

began to build masonrv domes in churches, the

Byzant ine sty le was const i tuted, in the t ime of

Justinian (specifically, with the design of St

Sophia in Constant inople, 5-12).

Carolingian designers usually had to be satis-

fied with cheaper buildings basilicas roof'ed in

rvood. It is characteristic that thev sought mod-

els in the new East Christian sil' le when thel-

at tempted ambit ious laul ted bui ld ings, but thel

d id not possess the sophist icated techniques by

which Byzant ine works were achieved. Such

Carolingian works acquired a local salour be-

cause the builders had to do rvhat thev could on

>-

3 8 P R E - R O M , \ N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y I - F - S

the basis of their Roman commonplace archi-

tecture and the wooden architecture of the

North.

Yet a traditional feature of church polity

maintained the need fbr church bui ld ings on a

grand Roman scale. Or ig inal ly , each c i t f in

F-arlv Christendom had had only a single church,

and the whole communin'expected to meet for

services at one building. Increase of numbers

meant that this would be a large building. Rome

was exceptional in possessing three churches

which, when they were built, could accommo-

date such inclusive serr ices namely, the cathe-

dral of ' the Saviour (324, rebui l t as St John

Lateran) and the pi lgr image churches of Old St

Peter 's (323 6; the nave and atr ium hnished

about 4oo, episcopia later) and St Paul 's outs ide

the Wal ls (386-423). - I 'hese

were bui l t for a

community' which numbered about 5o,ooo at

the time. As a matter of course the congregations

stood at the services, chairs being provided for

dignitaries only. Later, when the chief metro-

politan centres became entirelv Christian, such

inclusive assemblies were no longer possible, but

the medieval cities of the West, being smaller,

were able to maintain the old Roman practice.

No doubt there was a compelling appeal fbr

the bishops and architects of the West alike, in

th is s i tuat ion. Ful lv r5,ooo people could crowd

into the Ottonian cathedral of N{ainz (987

ro36). ; ' I 'he

phenomenon obviousl l ' points to

an ideal of church br.rilding whereby the whole

population could be accommodated on both the

communitJ' and the parochial levels.8

With the disintegration of the Roman state in

the West, the bishops gained in importance as

leaders; c i r , ic spir i t was moulded by these men,

who above al l others were desirous of bui ld ing

noblv fbr the Chr ist ian communit ies, and could

command the necessarv resources because of

thc responsib i l i t ies which they inher i ted f rom

thc Roman l iovernment. Thus, in an odd way,

Roman architectural thought is responsible for

the huee bulk of the churches which inefface-

ably mark the silhouette of medieval towns. The

vigour ofthe utterly un-Roman sky-line ofthese

tolvns is the measure of the local initiatir,e, im-

aginat ion, and aesthet ic pouer which was gene-

rated in Carolingian, Romanesque, and Gothic

t imes.

The powerful monasteries, when their turn

crme in the Carolingian period and later, built

churches on a comparable scale to house the

manl a l tars, to sat is fy the extensive require-

ments for choir space, and to provide an impres-

sile setting for processionrl liturgies. Like the

cathedral of a metropolitan centre, the church

of a monasterv invariablv dominated its en-

semble, even when the conventual buildings

themselves were veritable cities. The orderly

thought which produced these composi t ions re-

calls the planning which created the Roman

colonia l c i t ies. The groupings are picturesque.

but i t is an ordered picturesqueness, based on

an organic distribution of functional elements.

From the beginning even in Constant ine 's

t ime the resul t was strong ar t iculat ion in p lan,

and consequent ly 'bold shapes in the mass of the

church bui ld ings.'l 'o

review this process, for better under-

standing, we may recall that the first of the new

elements to appear was the transept, which

provided additional capaciq'to one side and an-

other of the sanctuary and choir p lat forms. The

ascet ical Ear ly Chr ist ians known as monai0nt(s,

devoted confraterni t ies. and s ingers appear to

have had a claim on this desirable interior space.

In Old St Peter's (323 6) [3] its separate charac-

ter was indicated by its narrow entrances from

the aisles, constricted as the]'were by columnar

screens. Such a T-shaped plan resulted in an ele-

vation of bold form which could easily be distin-

guished f tom the c iv ic works of the age. By the

filih century the Greek as well as the Latin cross

plan (the former with arms of equal length, the

latter with a west arm longer than the others)

were also accepted, the latter perhaps suggested

by svmbolism. All such buildiqgs were easily re-

;:t'

3. Rome, Old St l 'eter's, 323 6, with additions, ro i. 5oo (the approach, the episcopia, rhe arrrum,the Imperial mausolet). Restoration study. Thc columns flanking the main portals were moved fromrecessed lateral porticos, f i l led in when the episcopia wrre built. The Triclinium is omitted (K.J.C.)

cognizable as Christian; for the pagan crucilbrm

buildings were small, and not for congrega-

tional uses. By contrast, this special purpose of

the church was most obvious: the light con-

struction and thin walls. so different from the

voluminous imperial vaulted works, admitted of

no disguise for the functional interior shapes

arising from practical needs.

Pylons and towers were also established by

the sixth centur]' as important but ancillary ele-

ments. Their advent marks the beginning of averticality which became increasingly charac-teristic as Early Christian and Carolingian de-sign gave way to later Romanesque, and that inturn to Gothic, where almost every structuraland decorative line f-eels the vertical imoulse.The pylons ol thc exrer ior propr l rea ol the(never finished) late classical temple ofBaalbekwere inherited bv a basilican church erected inIts main courtyard by Theodosius. Thus, acci-dentally, Theodosius's basilica was one of thevery first to have a truly monumental entrance

way. 'I'his

precedent was probably fbllowed in

the f'agades of the Syrian Early Christian chur-

ches, but their pylons or dwarftowers, flanking

a porch, were attached to the west fronts, and at

once gave an unclassical look to the designs.')

Towers for Fortification were a sign ofthe new

times. 'I'hey

were occasionally built beside

S1'rian churches during the Late Roman period.

In the West the coming of the barbarians and

perdistent local war made them importanr;

for the church building was usually the mosr

capacious and substantial building in the com-

munity, and consequently the refuge.'Lantern'

towers, with windows admitting

light above the space in front of the altar, were

also brought into church architecture on a prac-

tical and f unctional basis.l'r In the East, masonry

domes were replacing such towers by a.o. -5oo,and Byzantine architecture was the result; the

Early Christian lantern towers live on, to the

present day, in the central domes ofByzantine,

Armenian, and Russian churches.

P'i iI1,; d, r.:r

',;

Lt^i,-':--.

, i - t " :

ffif,

L

r ' . O P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q T ] E S T Y L E S

In the West, mere constructional expediency

might have caused low towers to be built at the

crossing of the nave and transept in basilican

churches, where intersecting trusswork is awk-

ward to construct and ugly to behold. A low

tower is easily built at the crossing, with the nave

and transept roofs stopping against its walls.

Windows are easily introduced into such a tower

without much extra weight or risk, and thus by

the fifth century such lantern towers were much

used in the West, even in churches without

transepts.

The use of church bells provided another

practical element which distinguished the new

Christian style. Small bells were used in Late

Roman times to call the faithful to prayer. The

monks used them in their liturgies, and for a

long time the bell-ringer stood in the space be-

tween the sanctuary and the monks'choir , wi th

the bell mounted on a roof turret overhead.

often above a lantern.ll

Because all three of'the tower types previously

mentioned fortification, lantern, and belfry

towers appeared in the design ofthe influential

monastic (later collegiate) church of St Martin

at f'ours, this building was clearly, from our

point of view, proto-medieval [4]. The vertical

elements had transformed radically and for good

the basic Roman basilican theme.12 Aestheti-

cally and symbolically, this is a matter of great

importance. The composition of St Martin was

not horizontal, self-contained, and inward-

looking, as classical compositions are; rather it

was made up of aspiring and intersecting forms.

In St Martin, with its two axial towers, the new

dvnamic mode is unmistakable. Once estab-

l ished. th is new mode of composi t ion was in-

stinctively accepted in the Roman area leavened

by Frankish immigration and versed in non-

classical artistic modes. Once it was well assimi-

lated in Charlemagne's dominion, the Caro-

lingian Romanesque style was fully constituted.

The scheme of the church of St Martin,

archaic though it was in medieval terms, and de-

T H E P R E P A R A T I O N F O R M E D I E V A L A R C H I T E C T U R E 4 I

spite the lact that the original church was re-

placed in the sixth century, showed its vitality

in later works of considerable historical and

artistic importance. Among these were the mon-

astic churches ofCentula or Saint-Riquier (79o-

8oo) [5], Gernrode (96r-twelfth century) [75,

76], and Saint-Benoit-sur-Loire (c. ro8o,

twelfth century) [zor, zo3]; also the cathedrals

of Ely (ro83, 1323).374l and Avignon (twelfth

century) [r94]. St Louis IX, King of France,

was baptized in such a building, of Early Gothic

style, at Poissl'-sur-Seine. The destroved Gothic

cathedral of Cambrai exemplified the theme

handsomely. The flamboyant church at Saint-

Riquier is, like the church of Saint-Quentin, an

example of such a Gothic building being carried

fbrward and finished in Renaissance times.

French colonists brought the new theme to the

New World, as is shown by the old church of

Saint-Jean-Port-Joli near Quebec (r779). In

view ofwhat the Franks and the French achieved

with this idea in the development of medieval

architecture, there is a happy historic sym-

bolism in the fact that Clovis, their first great

king, received the Roman consular insignia in

the old church of St Mart in at Tours.

4. Tours, St \{artin, as in 47o, restoration studl

The elements are certain,

but all details are hvpothetical (K J C.)

O 5 M .

o 1 5 F T .

4e. Early South German constructions

Brenz, St Gallen. Rcstoration based on excavations

by Boda Cichy (K.J.C.). Wooden church,

r. 65o, on stones and chassis; successor church,

r. 73o, in stone (destroyed)

>-

C H A P T E R 2

T H E C A R O L I N G I A N R O M A N E S q U E

N O R T H E R N A R C H I T E C T U R E I N

T H E R E I G \ O F C H A R L L M . { G \ E . 7 ? r - 8 r - t

The character of Carolingian Romanesque mav

easily be seen in the buildings raised under

Charlemagne's own patronage. The themes are

in general Roman, and the labric continues

Roman traditions, but there are evident ex-

amples of Bvzantine and oriental influence.

More important still, there is an originality

which achieves often captivating effects both

in architecture and decoration. 'I'he

buildings

made up an orderly programme, like the politi-

cal acts of Charlemagne.

Earliest among the churches was a new build-

ing at Saint-Denis (later roy'al pantheon). The

old church (built about 475 by- St Genevidve and

dedicated, according to legend, bv Christ him-

self, 636?) was replaced, beginning about 75.1,by a new work dedicated in 775. According to

careful studies based on partial excavarion,' this

was a wooden-rool-ed columnar basilica with a

spacious transept extending slightll. beyond the

aisle walls, a lantern tower, and a west end

of experimental form. Charlemag;ne's f'ather,

Pepin, was buried at the entrance. To augment

the dignity of this part of the church an apsewas projected, which would have made the

building a 'double-ender' like many notable

later Carolingian churches, but t$ o small towersand a porch were ultimatell. built, linking thechurch with the more usual type of Roman-esque church f'acade. This earlv church wasbased on the t radi t ional Roman basi l ic , r : see rheplan, i l lustrat ion j78.

Next among the important churches bui l t b1.Char lemagne was rhai which uas .onr, r r . r .d

in 78.2 fbr the monasterv of Aniane. Ret'erence

has al ready been made to i ts great reforming

abbot, Benedict of Aniane. Nothing remains of

the church, reportedlv a magnificent building

with a 'westwork'

erected on the advice of'

Charlemagne. The edi{ice may be ultimatelv

responsible for the earlv medier,al flowering of

church ar ts in the region. I t of fered a sump-

tuous beauty to the sen ice of the l i turgv.r Bene-

dict's project was indeed lbrward-looking, and

it came to full fruition in the North at a later

date.

Following this, during the decade after 7go.

came the most characteristically- Northern and

energetic ofthe church designs, the reconstruc-

t ion of the important monastery of Centula or

Saint-Riquier, near Abbeville [5]. T'he work

was on a very considerable scale, and it was

carried out when Angilbert was abbot, the'Homer '

of the Palat ine Court and one of i ts

l ivel iest personal i t ies. He leaves the impression

that he was an e\ t rovert and a rathel show! '

man; and perhaps th is character is t ic has some-

thing to do with the remarkably novel and

monumental character of h is bui ld ings.s LIe

was linked to Charlemagne b1'mutual afl-ection,

and the bui ld ing had much di rect a id f iom

Char lemagne in the fbrm of generous funds ancl

the lurnishing of craf tsmen to work in stone,

malble, g lass, stucco, and wood;moreover, the

great patron ordered bases, columns, and

mouldings to be specia l ly t ransported f rom

Rome.

The nerv church lvas dedicated to the Saviour

and Al l Saints, but the chicf a l tar , in the apse,

$as r c l a ted t o t he t omb o l S t R iuu ie r , an i r s cc t i c

who died in 645.

E-

4 4 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E

! , . i r ( . , ' ' 6 . i c l i 3 - r q r n s o Z i i l r u : ' l v ' A N D ' ( ' . x

' , f - i , l , . u l i ^ r . , , . i t ( ' P : o c a o r c E

- L ( e ^ ' - r ' r " r ;

The scheme wls basi l ic : rn, u i th two ar ia l

rowers, as at St \ {ar t in in ' I 'ours,

but so imagin-

atilell ' elaborated and so d-vnamic:tllv composed

as to er idencc I l l l matur i tv in the Carol ingian

Romanesque st1le. The church rvas about 2-5o

{'eet long, and rvith its atrium mcasured about

qo feet morc. ' I 'hc

crossing and the main fhgade,

each crowned bv an elaborate tower, reached a

height of 'about I80 feet .+ J 'he atr ium had ar ia l

and lateral entrance-$ 'avs, each wi th a tower;

the port icoes of the atr ium supported an upper

passagc giving acccss to a chapel installed in

each to\ ler the ear l iest example we know of

th is interest ing arrangement.

5r an i l n . Sr in t -R iqu ie r . H i r r iu l i manuscr . ip t d rawing o f Io l l8 , cngrarcd in t6 tz ( le . l i ) ,

antl skctch restoration as in 3oo (K J C ; rrylr). F,xcar ations show that the tower

o1'tlrc chapcl ofthe virgin and the Apostles (b\ttom tl '5t) was bascd on a srmbolic dodecagon

uith aislcs. not radirting chapcls, and thrt thc clclister {f,s I ler} large tri:tnglc

. . _ q

* _ . -

' . 9

, , : ' .t ir, ,a1i1,i l i l : ,, ,- ,.,,.;.tc,

Grander in sc:rle and more imaginative still

was thc 'westwork', or entrance element, of the

main church, which was the ear l iest real l ) ' im-

posing and boldll- articulated fagade in church

architecture a historical landmark. At the base

there was a vaulted outer vestibule which con-

ta ine d the tomb of Angi lbert and a remalkable

painted stucco relief of the Nativitl ' on a gold

mosaic ground, surelv the forerunner of the

sculptures which gathered about the porta ls of

Romanesque and Gothic churches. Be1'ond this

there was an inner vest ibule which served as

narther or antechurch - in effect a low, sha-

dowed western transept rvith its vault carried

on a forest of piers and columns. It contained a

font and an altar.

The vaults ofthis whole section of the church

served as a platfbrm for a chapel ofthe Saliour

in the fbrm ofa tall spire-like central altar space,

cut off from the main nave b]' an arched screen

and surrounded on the other three sides by-

aisles and salleries. The placing and bold firrm

ofthe chapel were c learh didact ic in intent : to

emphasize the cult of the Saviour in a rather

superstitious period when it tended to be ob-

scured bv devotions to local saints and wonder-

workers. The growth of medieval feeling since

St N{artin in Tours was built is well shorvn by

the fact that at Saint-Riquier the entrance ele-

ment was an entire vertical church, with vesti-

bule, subsid iarv a l tar and lbnt below, and a

chiefaltar, dedicated to the Saviour, at the plat-

form level.

The galleries of the westwork were assigned

to a boys'choir dur ing serr , ices; the bovs sang

with great effect as an angel choir in thc solenn

liturgies, when one or two choirs of men sang in

the main church. Two slender round stair tur-

rets of stone flanking the outer vestibule fur-

nished access to the upper parts of the west-

work, and composed beautilulll ' with a tall

rounded staged tower set over the central space

as the Chronic le of Har iu l l 'shows.5

New studies conducted bv the : ruthor indi-

cate that the masonrJ 'construct ion ol the west-

work extended upward onll' as f'ar as the base

of the round drum, and th:r t th is drum, l ikc the

spire above [5] , was of wood. l ' rvo engraved

copies of Hariulf's manuscript show the drum

opening up into the spire, :rnd suggest a criss-

cross of 'beams at the base of the soire. We hcar

o fa chu rch o l ' 735 -87 a t S r i n t - \ \ ' and r i l l c . nea rSaint-Riquier , in which rhe spire was bui l tabout a mast, with the supports of the r,ariousstages arranged like horizontal wheels on themast.t' Possibly the criss-cross ol beams at thebase of the Saint-Riquier spire supported such

T H E C A R O T - I N G I A N R O [ , l A N E S Q U E . 4 5

a mast. ' l 'h is

scheme ol ' f raming lbr wooden

spires has continued in use down to the present

t ime; i t lvas dor. rbt less an or ig inal developrnent

in medier ,a l carpentrv. I l ' the drum and spire

lverc open, as the engravings show, an observer

on the pavement at Saint-Riquier would see a

most intriguing telescopic efl-ect lrom below.

Beyond the westwork lav the nave of the

main church, basi l ican, wi th a is les, and a wood-

en roof-. In the middle of the nar,e stood the altar

of ' the Cross. as is usual in monast ic churches.

Space to the west was left open lbr congrega-

t ional use and processions, whi le the area

far ther erst was kcpt pr i \ate, the main part of

it being marked off by a chancel paraper or

screcn as the rcgular choir of the monks. Tlvo

minor a l tars were near the scrcen in f ront o l ' i t

or beside i t (perhaps in the ais les) .

f 'he monks'choir probably extcnded into the

crossing ol the tlansept, and the transept as

usual had minor altars (fbur at Saint-Riquier).

Here, as wls customary, the monks entered the

church by the transept lvhen conring lbr ser-

vices; typicallr. the altar ncar the cloister door-

wav was more important than the orher minor

altars becirusc relics placcd there were venerated

bl each monk as he cntercd. 1 'he bel l - r inger

stood bet lveen the choir and the main sanctuary

of the church, under the bel f ry. Stucco re l ief i

(e.r g ipsr) of the Passion, Rcsurrect ion, and

.{scension dccorated th is part o1 ' the bui ld ing.

. { t Sa in t -R iqu ie r l he c ross ing roue r was l r v i n

(at4ual is l to the drum and spire of the chapel of '

the Saviour, and, l ike i ts mate, was f lanked by

two ta l l round sta i r toners. The main sanctui l rv

extended castward bct*een ancl bevond thc

stair towers, composing handsomell. in an ar-

rangement which became tradition:rl.

Imme diatc lv east of the crossing there rvas a

sanctuarr bay which contained an altar dedi-

cated to St Peter , and bchind that thc tombs of '

St Riquicr and his two companions. 1 'he ba1'

seems to have scrved as choir spi rce lbr thc

S T Y L E S

"1-ilqlt

1...-';- '-

1 r l " :

L-.

-FF

a 6 p n e - n o u A N E S Q U E A N D P R o r o - R o M A N E S Q U E s r Y L E s

'-fhrone ol' St Riquier', a semicircular apse

paved at a level h igher than the nave, and con-

taining the altar of St Riquier with a baldacchino

or,er it. This apse was marked offby a screen of

six marble columns brought from Rome, and

thirteen small reliquaries were placed on the

beam. Monrstel ies usual lv have, in the sanc-

tuary area, an altar for the chief'ceremonies, in-

c luding the capi tu lar mass of the day, and a

lesser a l tar where the morrow mass is said. In

th is, as in so many other wa) 's , Saint-Riquier

,"o5 6.1,pical.;

The wonderf ul design fbr Angilbert's church,

dedicated in 7gg, evidentll made a sensation,

and echoes of it are perceptible in ecclesiastical

architecture fbr centuries.

The west*ork theme, that is the theme of a

tower-like lvcst block with an entrance and

\,estibule and a chapel above this, underwent

a long development. F6camp in Normandy'had

an ear ly 'west \ \ .ork, f iom which, perhaps, the

mot i f pa\sed to England. Reinrs, a great ar l is t ic

centre in the ninth centurv, as the Utrecht

Psalter demonstrates, built a cathedral in the

grcat da! 's of Archbishops Ebbo (8r6 4I) and

Hincmar (8+-s 8z) . This bui ld ing was dedicated

in 86. : , ant l i t sccms rv i thout quest ion to have

becn reprcsented on Hincmar 's sarcophagus,

where the \lestern torver, the nave, the lantern

tower at thc crossing, and thc apse were shown

in somc detai l . I r rom Saint-Ric lu ier , Reims, and

also C-orbic the mot i l ' rvent to Germanl .

The westuork of Reims uas the inspirat ion

of that of thc cathedral of Hi ldesheim (dedi-

cated in 872. s incc rebui l t ) , and the westrvork

of 'Corbic in Picardy ' inspired that , dedicated in

88.5, at Ciorver on thc \ \ 'eser lzz, z3l . In f lc t ,

the design of Saint-Riquicr had an endur ing

succcss in Germanl', where its influencc can be

traced from gcneration to generation, through

centur ies. ' l 'he

cathedral of \ [a inz comes to

mind: the bui ld ing ot 978 and i ts successive

transfbrmirtions through 85o 1-.ears are mcrelv

var iat ions on the Cenrula theme' [78, j i3 ] .

There were nine towers in all on Angilbert's

main church. I t is the 6rst known example of so

large a group of towers systemat ical lv arranged

on one church building.

There can be no doubt that similar groups of

later date are in debt to the astonishing original.

Examples are Saint-B6nigne at Di ion I ro8l of

roor-r? wi th n ine towers, Sant iago I rz3]

planned with nine, Cluny Ir.19] with seven, and

so on to the Early Gothic cathedrals such as

Tournai [339] planned with nine, Laon with

seven, and Chartres with six at least. All these

buildings as planned p;ave much llller expres-

sion to the vertical impulse than the executed

work. All were intended to be much more like

Saint-Riquier in external effect.

Befbre qui t t ing Saint-Riquier we should take

note o1' the two chapels in the c lo ister . Of the

conventual bui ld ings i t is not possib le to speak;

thel'', like the atrium, have been omitted from

the miniature, and have been ent i re lv replaced

on a different plan. 'I'he

arrangement of the old

cloister itself, reported as 'trianptular',

offers

dilficulties, but the chapels appear to be drawn

with knorv ledge and care.e The chapel dedi-

cated to the Ever-Virgin Mother of God and

the Holr ' - {post les was or ig inal ly a spire-church.

dodecagonal with an ambulator.v. It v'as a realll '

cxci t ing northern vers ion o1'San \ ' ' i t l le in Ra-

venna. The other chapel (of St Benedict and

the Hol l ' Abbots) was a barn church of the

pr imi t i r e or ' r 'ernacular '

t1 'pe, doubt less north-

ern, rvhich lve hare al readl ' considcred. This

chapel, the lean-to roofs or,er the transept and

lateral parts of ' the chapel of the Saviour in the

main chr. r rch, the crest ing of the church nave,

and thc three rcmarkablc spires, a l l conf i rm the

northern impr int on the archi tecturc of 'Saint-

Riquie r .

\Ve pass now to a considerat ion of the bcst

known of ' Char lemagne's bui ld ings, the Pala-

t ine f .hapel or l l inster at - {achen (AixJa-

Chapcl le)" ' [6-ro] . I t teaches intercst ing lessons

rcgarding Roman antl B1'zantine architectural

influences in the north. It was designed bv Odo

of Metz and begun in 792. The bui ld ing has

alwal 's had cathedrt l rank; i t was dedicated in

honour of the Virg in b l Pope Leo I I I in 8o5,

and by good fortune has come down to us almost

entire, though it underwent rcstoration in g81

and r88r. and has consequent ia l Gothic and

Renaissance additions- The area of the palace

courtyard also survives, surrounded bv later

buildings which incorporate some vesriges of

old work l6e and nl .

T H E C A R O L T N G T A N R O M A N E S Q U E . ; 1 7

It is easy to divine the general lavout of thegroup as i t was in Char lemagne's t ime. T 'hepalace has reta ined i ts o ld ar is , north and south.

and its arrangement about an oblong courtvard.

The Sala Regalis, with an apse added bv Charle-

magne fbr the throne, was at the north, on one

ol ' the short s ides, whi le the long s ides had other

apartments and gal ler ies, funct ional lv d isposed.'I'here

were quarters lbr officials, clerics, andservitors, for the School, and for the assemblv.'I'he

imperial aparrmenrs were dienified and

6e and n. -{achen, thc palacc. and thc palatine Chaoel.la rge lv 7qu t (o .s . p lan , and modc l u f r ,1 f , ; h r l , .n F i r rgu t

f,:.:;,

, t r r

E-

4 8 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

ample; they included a bath and an audience

chanrber. f'here is no doubt that the group \r'as

intended to be reminiscent ol'the Lateran Palace

in Rome, which gave i ts name to a part of ' the

establishment, and suggested the placing of a

bronze statue brought from ltaly. Reminis-

cences of Rar,enna also a Roman capital are

most c lear ly ' seen in the design of the Chapel ,

which fbrmed the south end of the ensemble.

Rebui ld ing and addi t ions have destroved the

unity of the Minster gioup, which, in the begin-

ning, had a noble and easill ' understood monu-

mentality. The church building was the climar

ol- a vast centralized s)'mmetrical composition

measur ing about 3oo f -eet on the pr incipal and

transverse axes. The whole design wrs more

elaborate than that of San Vi ta le in Ravenna.

which obviouslv inspired i t . There was a monu-

mental entrance wa\ at the r , rcs lern errremit l

of the main axis, lb l lowed by an atr ium wi th

gal ler ies on two levels rvhich was dominatcd by

the tall westu'ork i'acade of the church. l'he

courtvard could be crowded i f need be wi th

about Tooo people. The Emperor could make

official appcarances at the tribune in the wcst-

work o1'the church. which rvith its niche recalls

the laqade of the Palace ot the Exarchs in

Ravenna. Flanking spiral stairwa-vs in cylindri-

cal turrets Eiave access to the throne room in the

tr ibune of the Minster , and cont inued upward

to a chapel rvhich containcd Clrarlemagne's

remarkable collection of relicsrr [(r,t and al.

f'he \Iinster itsclf was a compler composi-

tion arranged about a tall vaulted octagonal

central space. 'I'he

westwork connected the

Nlinster at the tribune level with the court and

the palace. The throne was in the tribune,

directlv over the main portll of the church.

F rom each side of the thronc area the tribune

continued as an annular gallerl-, divided from

thc octagonal central space by columnar screens,

to a sanctu:lrv of its own opposite the tribune.

At the ground level a decp porch led to the

inter ior [gJ. Therc the v is i tor f inds an annular

7 to g. Aachen, Palatine Chapel, 792 8o5, I igade, lateral view, and interior

. . 4_.,rii

>E;

I

I

5 0 p R E - R o M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

ais le, vaul ted and rather dark, which, l ike the

gal lery, embraces the octagonal centra l space.

This annular a is le led to a sanctuary 'opposi te

the entrance and below the upper sanctuarv,

where the great Gothic axial chapel norv stands,

and also provided access to twin chapels ofaisled

basilican type, now destroved, lvhich were sym-

metrically' placed on a cross axis, one to the

north and one to the south ofthe main building.

Unlike the galleries, the annular aisle opens

on the central space through undivided, big,

plain arches, well proportioned with respect to

the arches and screens of'the gallery above. The

exterior wall on both levels is ingeniously ar-

ranged with sixteen sides. In the aisles the cardi-

nal and diagonal sides join the eight arches of

the octagon in supporting groin vaults, and

clever triangular penetrations fill out the vault

on the remaining sides. 'lhese

same sides have

ramping triangular vaults above the gallery,

carried on generous diaphragm arches. The tri-

angles thus formed leave the cardinal and dia-

gonal ba1''s of the gallery with a square shape,

and here, on the diaphrxgm arches, eight ramp-

ing tunnel vaul ts are ra ised. These come into

the octagon above the screened arches and pro-

vide an unyielding support for the clerestory

wal l and the high vaul t . Smal l p i laster but t resses

st i f fen the exter ior corners of ' the c lerestorv

eli-ectively.

The tall octagonal central sprce has a very

specia l character . We must th ink i f i t as en-

riched rvith several altars and their liturgical

furniture, but even so its tallness and the per-

sistent sense of compartmentation make it seem

verv different fi 'om an ordinarv church. 'I'his

lends colour to the idea that Odo of Nletz con-

ceir,ed it basically' as a tomb house, but the

similar and slightl5' earlier dodecagon at Saint-

Riquier was nevertheless a chapel.

The net effect produced by the building is

not Roman, yet there is an assurance and ur-

banity which make it a worthy successor to the

works of Antiquitl'. In spite of its resemblance

to San Vitale in Ravenna, it is more Roman than

Byztntine. Rich fittings, including a mosaic on

the centra l vaul t ( restored in I88I) , marble col-

umns and bronze parapets brought fiom Italv,

an organ ofByzant ine type (8rz or 856, now

lost), a splendid pulpit (gift of Emperor Henrl'

I I , about ror4) , and a huge l ight crown (given

by Frederick Barbarossa in r r68) contributed a

superficial Byzantinism, to be sure. (n fact,

however, the theme of San Vitale was radically

simplified. Brick and the Bvzantine technique

of l ight terracot ta raul t construct ion uere not

available; the warped and domed Byzantine

forms were replaced by tunnel and groin vaults,

and on the highest level by an octagonal domical

(or cloister) vault, all of Roman inspilation. The

fact that Roman ruins had to be demolished to

obtain the necessary stone, and that rich mate-

rials were scavenged elsewhere, shows what a

special effort the Minster was.

Linked by date (8o6) and by programme wi th

the Minster at Aachen is the interesting Palatine

group at Germignr, -des-Pr6s I r r - r j ] , near

Saint-Benoi t -sur-Loire,r2 bui l t fbr Theodulph,

bishop of Orl6ans, a Goth from Septimania(Provincia Narbonensis), and member of theImperial court circle.

'I 'here are slisht remains

o f t he pa in red ha l l s and t he rmae o f r he pa lace , i r s

oratory of( iod the Creator and Preserver ofAl lThings existed, wi th l i t t le change, unr i l thenineteenth century.'r Heretofbre we have seenhow Carolingian architects used Roman, EarlvChr ist ian, Byzanr ine, and Germanic lbrms. . \ tGermigny-des-Pr6s the tincture is Bvzantineand o r i en ta l . I Mo reo rc r . t he o the r e ramp lesare grand in scale ; Germignv_des_pr6s is minus_cute - a charming architectural plavthing.

'I'here

ts a tower- l ike square centra l space. the middleone of a set of nine vaulted comDartments sus-ta ined on four p iers in rhe middic of rhe bui ld-

t r and I:. Gcrntignv-dcs-l)rds, C)ratorr', f lo(r

rcbu i l t ;867 76 , p lan an t l

r icw h'om thc eirst (the mlin apsc orig-inallr

had fl:rnking absidiolcs)

Io. Aachen, Palatine Chapel as represcntcd on the Krrlsschrcin

L-_

< 2 P R E - R O ] \ T A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

regrettably because the rich fittings ofthe chapel

- the furniture in white and coloured marble,

the metalwork, and the fabrics have all been

lost . '

Connected with Germigny-des-Prds by its

horseshoe arches and their stucco decoration is

the little church of San Benedetto at llals or

Malles, near Trent. It is dated about the year

8oo. The horseshoe arches, three in number,

look in upon an open, box-like central space,

which is the nave. There are traces of fresco

decoration. Near-by Mtinster in Graubiinden

(Grisons), in Switzer land, is a contemporarv

add more monumental example of the same

arrangement, thoup;h without the horseshoe

arches.

Another building, in old Neustria, with finer

wall-work than those which we have considered,

brings up the question of the Gallic masons.

It is doubtful that Notre-Dame-de-la-Basse-

(Euvre at Beauvais actually dates fiom the life-

time of Charlemagne, but after being accepted

as Carolingian, it is now assigned to the period

of 987 98.le It is a fragment of the compound

early medieval cathedral establishment of Beau-

vais. The entire tenth-century church of

Saint-Pierre, and all the easterlv parts ofNotre-Dame made way tbr the celebrated

Gothic building It+]. Notre-Dame-de-la-Basse-(Euvre was a handsomely proportioned

basilica with a plain interior and a sreep roofwhich gives much characler ro the f inc gable,adorned by a great cross, on the l'aqade. Thewall-work is regular and excellent, with pattern-work in the masonry over the windows. Othertragments of such construction, datable to thetenth and ear ly e ler .enth centur ies. point ro awel l -establ ished school in rhe north and ,nest o l 'France.

The 'Gallic masons' of rhe resion had an

establ ished reputat ion, which was wel l de-served. Texts speak of heavv work in larse cutstone blocks more antiquorun which *"r-oaar-

T H E C A R O L I N G I A \ R O M . 1 ) , I E S Q U E 5

r4. Bcauvais, Notre-Dame-de-la-Basse (Euvre,

eighth centurl( i) or 987-98

sionally used, but such masonry was ordinarilv

conf ined to quoining or a l ternale coursing. as

seen in the tenth-century works for the monks

of Saint-Philibert at Grandlieu and at Tournus,

where 'Gallic

masons' were obvious[v emoloved

[24, g9).

f'he more usual Gallic wall-work of good

character was composed of much smaller mate-

rials - a rough core ofrubble enclosed by neatll '

cut facing-blocks of stubbv rectangular lbrm,

set with wide mortar ioints. Pattern-work facing

often recalls the barbarian r/oisazzy'stvle.'where

r.3. Gcrnrigni-des-l)r6s, Oratorr', tlo6,rcbuilt r867 76, interior

ing. On the main and t ransverse axes there are

tunnel r ,aul ts at an intermediate level , wi th apses

just bevond, and the corner compartments \\ ere

vaul ted wi th l i t t le domes on squinches at a

lorver level. The corner compartments at the

eirst opened on lateral apses flanking the main

apse. The or iental f lavour of the bui ld ing is due

to horseshoe arches in p lan and elevat ion. ' fhese

were certainly inspired by Visigothic art, and

the plan and elevat ion of ' the bui ld ing mar a lso

have been inspired b1' old Christian work in

Spain.

But the type is one which we owe to the

Roman world, and its effective development

took place in Armenia and the Byzantine hnds.

The general arrangement is anticipated in the

Roman praetorium at Phaena (Mousmieh, near

Damascus), r5 before a.o. r69, and i t appears in

the cathedral ofEtchmiadzin as rebui l t in 628.r0

By the tenth centurv it was established in the

Eastern Empire as the typical 'lbur-column

church' , which is the most important of a l l the

later Bvzantine church types.

The chapel at Germigny-des-Pr6s antedates

an-v knorvn Bvzantine example, but the strong

oriental flavour makes it clear that the type was

not originated in Neustria. Yet something must

be conceded to the Carolingian architect. He

laid the church out as a 'double-ender ' l ike

cer-

ta in of ' the great Carol ingian basi l icas, though,

un l i ke t hem. i t had rhe ma in en t rance cu t t i ng

through the western apse. He verv ingeniously

and picturesquely placed Carolingian arcaded'flving

screens' under the tower walls, where the

l ight p lays very pret f i ly on them. The rather

barn-like nave is a much later addition.

The central space was lbrmerly about tlvelve

l'eet higher than it is at present, and formed a

tal l lantern and bel l ry . Exact l l 'how th is was ar-

ranged in Theodulph's time is lar from certain,

fbr the oldest drawings seem to show a Roman-

esque centra l tower; but we may perhaps sup-

pose that this was a reconstruction resulting

f iom a hre in the tenth century. In anv case the

tall lantern and belfry is a Germanic scheme,

and the oriental elements were) so to speak,

arranged around and below i t . r t

A brutal and ignorant restorat ion of r867-

76, carried out over the protests of the Soci6t6

fi'angaise d'Arch6ologie, has left us rvith an in-

accurate modern counter f e i t of th is important

Carolingian monument. Some fragments of the

original were incorporated in the reconsttuc-

tion. Interesting remains of its fine decoration

in stucco lvere destrol'ed or denatured, the more

b-_

L

5 4 p R E - R O N I A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

everything becomes decoration'. but it was de-

rived from the classicRoman 0Pern (reticulatum,

sl)icatum, mittum). Occasionally there are whole

walls of pattern-work, interspersed sometimes

with degenerate gable and panel decoration in

relief. The work of the Gallic builders may be

traced to England: Benedict Biscop called for

Gal l ic masons about 685, to bui ld Jarrow" ' I r5] .

e ighth-centur l ' church o1' the monastery (at

Lorsch) there was a large open court, and the

gateway stood free near the entrance to it, like

a Roman tr iumphal arch in i ts forum;21 how-

ever, the Lorsch gatewa-v was built as a three-

arched open hall, like a propl'laeum illogically

standing unat tached. Abbot Richbod is known

to have replaced the wooden monastery bui ld-

transformed into a chapel, sometimes rvrongll'

identified rc the tcclesia xaria, achapel of'about

86o attached to the church. Nor is this trans-

formation at Lorsch out of line, fbr the pro-

pylaeum of Old St Peter 's had an al tar of St

Mary and could be used as a church upon occa-

sion , as, for example, when the emperor \ \as

received at the \iatican Basilic:r.

Another curious combination of Carolingian

medievalism and classical revivalism involving

Old St Peter's occurrcd at Fulda. The first

church there was founded by St Bonil'acc (W.vn-

frith, the great English missionarl') in 742; the

monastery, one of the great l ights o l 'nor thern

Europe, was founded in 744. A smal l church of

75 r was rebuilt after 7go in the lbrm of a basili-

can nave with its apse flanked bv tlvo round

towers, as at Saint-Riquier. The relics of

St Boniface, who was martvred in 754, were

brought to the monastery. To gir,c them a pro-

per set t ing, a t ransept and apse were bui l t west

of the new nave, on the model ofOld St Peter 's

in Rome, where, in fact, the transept was at the

west. The end compartments of Old St Pcter 's ,

and even their bulls-eye windows, were repro-

duced at Fulda; fur thermore, the length of ' the

western transept, z5o f-eet, is close to that ofthe

great original. Behind the ncw apse a large

courtyard was arranged, as at the cathedral of

Rome (StJohn Lateran). - l -he

nera 'work at Fulda

was proiected in 8oz, dedicated in 8 r g, and pro-

v ided wi th i ts uestern c lo ister in 8zz.

A comprehensive recent studv convincingly

brings out the importance of Old St Perer's inthe Carolingian revi'r,al.2: Old St Peter's stoodfor the last glorious moments of the ancientcapi ta l , in Constant ine 's golden age ol 'Romantmperial Christianity. The Carolingian archi-tects turned aside lrom buildings of inter-mediate date which had resulted from the riseofByzantine power, the influx oforiental monks,and the succession ofGreek and Syr ian popcs.Santa Anastasia (about 8oo), Santo Stefano

T H E C A R O L I N G I A N R O M A N F : S Q U E 5 q

degl i Abessin i (befbre 8r5) , and Santa Prassede

(about 8r7) are r ight ly adduced as examples of

basilicas in Rome which, by their imitation of

I'eatures of Old St Peter's, show the tendency to

look into Rome's own past for inspiration, at a

time when Charlemagne himself was lamiliarly

cal led Flavius Anic ius Caelus bv ' \ lcuin.

Thus, in the sum, we f ind in Char lemagne's

time an architcctural revival lvhich was archaiz-

i.rg but it was f'ar more than that. The new

idcas set forth in the major buildings have a basic

importance for the wholc historv of Roman-

esque architecture. The Basse-(Euvre at Beau-

r,ais stands fbr the fine tradition of Gallic mason

work. Lorsch, Fulda, and the Roman churches

stand fbr the wi l l to make Rome l ive again in a

classical rer ival . Saint-Riquier stands lbr the

northern vigour and bravura which transform-

ed Roman architecture. Aachen with its relative

simplicitv stands as a northern interpretation ofa

Bvzantine theme, representinB the old Roman

idea ol substant ia l s t ructure which surv i r ,es in

the hear'1' Romanesque of medieval Germany.

Finalll ', Germigny-des-Prds t1'pifies Gaul'ssus-

ceptibilitl ' to Byzantine and oriental influences,

and its greater receptiveness to sophistications

than Germany'; thus it is a fbrerunner of the ac-

compl ished. subt le Romanesque of France.

C H L I R C H A R C H I T E C T U R E

I N ' f I I E N O R T H E R N P A R T O F T H E E M P I R E

U \ D E R 1 ' I I F , L A T E R C A R O L I N G I A N S

Germany

The fhmous manuscr ipt p lan ol ' r . , t .o. 8zo in the

monast ic l ibrarv o l 'St Gal lzr l r7] was doubt less

preparcd in the ambit of Benedict of 'Aniane, or

of Einhard himself , that 'Beseleel,

the man filled

with the spir i t of God, in wisdom and in under-

s l and ing and i n know ledge and i n a l l manne r o f

workmanship', lirst commissioner of works and

director o l the imper ia l workshops. Einhard,

'l 'he accomplishments ofearll' masons prepared

the wal' fbr immense Early Romanesque con-

structions at Poitiers. at Chartres, and elsewhere

in the Loire country.'l 'he

famous three-arched gate\!a!.at Lorsch

seems to be connected somehou (perhaps

through Verdun and N1etz) wi th their rvork, be-

cause of the excellence ol the pattern-work

masonr\'. This f-eature and the remarkable com-

posite capitals, and other sophisticated details,

point to it as an interesting Carolingian example

ofc lassicalrevival ism anacademicdesignsuch

as might be expected to issue lrom the court of

Char lemagne I r6] . In f ront of ' the important

r6. Lorsch, monaster!', gatewa-v, .. 8oo

ings in stone, and the gateway may have l l i led

to be speciall.v recorded on this account, for such

propvlaea were used in the ceremonial monastic

liturgies as processional stations, iust like other

parts of'the conventual establishment. I'he di-

rect original of the Lorsch gatewa]. was ob-

l iousl l ' the propl ' laeum of 's imi lar design at Old

St Peter's in Rome [r]. where great visiting

digni tar ies were received. Lorsch repeats the

general shape, the arches, the columns, and the

windows of the propy'laeum of Old St Peter's.

A corresponding three-arched gateway was

bui l t at Cluny also. The lat ter became part of

the abbot 's oalace. whi le the one at Lorsch was

r5. Jarrow, wall-work, r. 685

L-.

. 5 6 P R E - R O N { A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O I \ t A N E S Q U E S T Y I , T , S

who came from the monasterv of Fulda shortly

after 7go to be a pupil of Alcuin in the Palace

School of Aachen, was intellectually a classicist.

He became the personal lriend and adviser of

Charlemagne and Louis the Pious.2a

Hence the plan of St Gall presents an autho-

rized conception ofa large, well-organized mon-

as.terl', which might have been built in any pros-

perous part of the Carol ingian realm. I t is now

clear that the layout was drawn up after a coun-

cil of 8 r 6 at Inden, near Aachen, and this some-

what imperf-ect copv sent with alternative di-

mensions b-v Abbot Hei to of Reichenau (8o6-23)

to Abbot Gozbert of 'St Gal l (8r6-37), who had

not attended the council.

f'he method of drawinp; and the fact that the

plan was not closely folloq'ed after the oldest

parts of the church rvere built (at the east, 83o-

5) have given the impression that it was merely a

diagrammatic lay'out, which is f'ar from being

the case. It could easily be translated into mo-

dern form and built with little change . 'l 'he

la1'-

out was in fact modular (4o-foot squales, z1-

lbot sub-module) as Walter Horn has shown.'l 'hus

we see that the Roman tradition of modu-

lar construction was present in Carolingian

rvork, and it was without doubt transmitted to

later times.

1'he group was intended to be constructed on

I'airly ler,el ground; fbr the whole scheme is in-

c luded wi th in a rectangle, s l ight ly d iminished

at the south-lvest because of'a wane in the parch-

ment. Var ious smal l e lements l ike beds, which

indicate scale, show that the great rectangle was

to measure about .16o b1 64o 3o,1-millimetreCarolingian f'eet.

'I 'he church nave with its lpses

was to be about joo feet long, and wi th i ts a is les

about go l-eet wide; the transept was to be about

rzo feet across, and the cloister about roo feet

square.

In imaginat ion we shal l v is i t th is group as i t is

known from rhe plan. When as t is i tors we are

surprised to 6nd the western or approach side

occupied by an area 45o i'eet wide and r4o f'eet

across assigned to the hostel for poor wayf'arers

and the quarters for servitors, horses, and larm

animals ( inc luding a pigger-r) , we must remem-

ber that the existence of the monks lbr whom

the group was built was a retired existence, in-

terior to the monastery and centred on the clois-

ter ancl the altar. The ancillary'buildings fbrmed

a sort of r ind about the essent ia l kernel ofchurch

and cloister. From the monks' point of view all

the ancillarv buildings were in the background

not in the fbreground. as thev appear to the ap-

proaching v is i tor . ' I 'he

terra in to the east of 'a

monast ic group tends to be someuhat pr ivate;

guests are l ikc ly to be placed to the north, menial

activities to the south. and service courts to the

west in the t radi t ion:r l monast ic lavout ; th is is

t rue at St Gal l .

Only one longi tudinal axis luns ent i reh

across the St Gall plan. On it an ample walled

avenue ertcnds for r6o f'cet from the westerlv

outskirts of the monastery to the entrancc svs-

tem of thc main estahlishment. The importance

of'this ke1- point of crrculation is signalized b1

the presence of two cylindrical towers, each

with a chapel at the summit.'Ihe suggestion for

the ctlindrical towers came ultimatelv from

the stair towers of the narthex <rf' Srrn Vitale

in Ravenna, perhaps; but pairs o l ' towers had

been bui l t at Fulda, Aachen, and Saint-Riquier

before the plan of St Gall was made.r5 Earl'r'

monasteries ofien showed lights in such towers.' I 'hc

arrangement fbr St Gal l , as shorvn on

the plan, difl 'ers Irom all of the others, for thc

towers 1r ere attached outside a semicircular por-

tico, *'hich looked across a little garden strip to-

wards the western apse, and gave entrance on

each s ic le o l the apse to an ais le o( ' the church.

r7. Plan lbr a monastcr t , c . 8zo.

Based on a diagram in the Chapter Librrrr_r, St Gall.

Some* hat rcsularized . small satcllite

bui ld ings omit ted. Gr id of ' .1o-f t ( rz rb-r 'netrc)

squarcs in the church, somcwhat more

looscll applied elsewherc, based on the church axis

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Adjoin ing the corners of the church there were

trvo vest ibules accessib le f iom the port ico. That

to the lef i led to a whole range of resident ia l ,

school , and hospi ta l bui ld ings. The vest ibule to

thc r ight gave access to the Hospice, the Cloister ,

and (be-lond a wall) to the menial parts of the

establ ishment. ' l 'he

church. which cont inues the

main axis, was bv f'ar the most important indi-

v idual e lement. The old p lan shows i t wi th a

single t ransept, and, l ikc Fulc ia, newlv cnlarged

in 8oz rg, wi than apseir teach end.

For the western apse, dedicated to St Peter ,

the lirst designer sacriliced the imposing axial

r i s t a wh i ch en te r i ng r i s i t o r s e rpec t i n g rea t

churches. ' lhe

smal l la tcral entrances indicate

that the lunct ion of the bui ld ing is d i ferent .

The monks' 'Opus

Dci ' is per lbrmed qui te wi th-

out regard to publ ic at tendance, which can

nevcr be more than incidental . T 'he spccia l

character of the monast ic regime also shous in

the interior arrangement. Although thc church

was basi l ican, wi th nave and ais les l ike the rast

ancient churches designed fbr public assembh',

the pavement area, instead of being openr was

cut up br parapct screens into a ser ies o l 'com-

partments, each with an altar, and accessible bv

paths, somewhat l iko corr idors. These wals

were also used as procession paths.

Thus we f ind the nar e d iv ided, l rom west to

east , into the western choir , the Chapel of St

John Baptist (with a fbnt), the chapel o1'the cru-

cifix (with a larse crucifir, t_v-picall-v'' placed at

the rltar), and the space in liont of the eastern

(s ingers ' ) choir . Each ol ' the ais les had fbur cha-

pels, making t rvelve compartments in a l l wi th in

the na re a rea . { nd t he comfa r tmen ta t i on con -

t inued in the t ranscpt , rvhich had a chapel and

an Apost les ' a l tar in each arm, and the monks'

choir between.

The sanctuarv at St Gal l had a spcci : r l h istor i -

cal interest. Here were sung at lcstival-time thc

oldest o l -extant t ropes, composed b1- the monk

Notker the starting-point fbr the historl. of

mcdieval drama and lvr ic . The sanctuary bav

was square, and contained the high altar, dedi-

cated to St Gal l , set over a crrpt . l 'he al tar in

the adioining eastern apse (pendant to that of St

Peter) was dedicated to St Paul. At the left of

the sanctuar l ' was the scr ibes' room, lv i th thc

librarl.above not a large room, fbr the medi-

eval l ibrar ies rvere numbered in scores or at nost

a f'ew hundred codices. in rrddition to the neces-

sarv service books. At the right ofthe sanctuarv

was the sircristv, lvith the restrl- above, and an

annexe where sacramental hosts and chrism

were prepared. The passages lbr cilculation in

the nave u'erc prolonged across the transcpt,

gir,ing access to the dir,isions there, and to thc

crvpt , which doubt less hat l an al tar a lso, ra is ing

the number of altars within the church to

sevcnteen.'l 'he

monks' entrance fi'om the cloister u as b1'

wa1' of the south t ransept; once arr ived at the

crossing, he tbund the main sanctuar l to h is

right and the minor altars stretching off to the

le l i towards the western apse. - I 'he 'doublc-

encler 'arrangement increased the sense of en-

c losure, and thus was desirable and natural in a

monast ic church. Because of i ts prest igc in n lon-

astic architecture, the arrangement came to bc

used in cathedrals too, where i t w:rs much less

appropr iatc.

The great axis of St Gall continued from the

church to a smal l curved court lard, and so intcr

the monastic quarters. These cannot be des-

cribecl here: thc reader mrrst be reI'erred to tl-re

diagram Ir7], or fbllow the itinerarl-, with a de-

tailcd commentarv on the monasterl"s life, in

Note 26.

What is known of the tvpe of lbbr ic in a l l of

these structures ? The church certa in ly ' , and as

much of the remainder ls possib le, hacl wel l -

built walls of stone. 'l 'he

rooling was o1'timber.

the wide spans being t russed and coveret l wi th

t in or shingles. NIan1. of the lesser bui ld ings

were o1' t imber or hal f - t imber and roofed wi th

shingles, whi le modest st ructures l ike stablcs,

pens, and herdsmen's shel ters might be of wat-

tle work and thatch. On looking at the plan ofst

Gal l one is st rucl i wi th the number of subsid i -

ary buildings which have a central hall with nar-

row apartments at the side, and which must,

therefore, have looked somewhat like basilican

churches. Such buildings might be constructed

with either framed or masonry rvalls. In some

cases the outer chambers were carried entirelv

around the central space, as in the Almonrv and

the School, while in other cases the Almonrl.

kitchen is an example - the smaller rooms occur

along one side onlr'. It is worth noting that such

one-sided buildings are lrequently represented

in Carolingian miniatures; they abound, lbr in-

stance, in the Utrecht Psalter (about 83.u ). Thel'

have been considered fanciful; the truth seems

to be that thev were a familiar part of thc archi-

tectural scene in Carolingian times. The sub-

sidiary buildings as represented on the plan give

us a lively idea of the lost traditional wooden

T H E C A R O I - I N ( ; I A N R O M A N E S Q U E q q

'vernacular' architccture of the North in the

Middle Ages a fact of great intercst and s is_ni f icance.

One would expect that this vert. important

establ ishment at St Gal l would be surrounded

bv a stockade, if not an actual girdle wall, em-phasiz ing the fact that i t was a wor ld in i tsel f . St

Gall was, however, insufficiently protected

when the Hungarians attacked it earlv in the

tenth centur ] . Of course, e\-en rhough i t was

self-centred, a great monastcr-v did look out-

ward. I t had i ts var ious possessions l l .om u,hich

it received supplies, its various ecclesiastical

dependencies, its associarions with other nron-

aster ies, and i ts connexions wi th Rome.

Once a monastery was well established, the

monLs de vol ed themsel les to manaeing i t s oper-

ations, rather than to labouring with their own

hands. The number of serr . i tors.and ar t isans

would be at least equal to the numbcr of ecclesi -

t8. Ingelheim, palace, r . 8ro

0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0

o 0 0 0 g a 0 0 g

L-

6 o p n n - n o t r A N E S Q U E A N D P R o r o - R o M A N E S Q U E s r Y L E s

astical persons, and might be more. The re-

formed orders, whose members performed

more manual work, usually had less to offer the

reviving medieval world than the illustrious

institutes which stror,e to be intellectual and

art is t ic capi ta ls for their respect ive regions,

granted that to serve as agricultural and indust-

rial capital of a region was indeed a great work

fbr a monasterv to perform.

Another ensemble of considerable impor-

tance which claims attention here is the palace

group at Ingelheim, near Mainz I r8] . 'Z i Works

were begun under Charlemagne and finished

under Louis the Pious. Excavat ions show that

the palace was la id out in the c lassical manner

and bui l t of masonr\ ' . Ranges of var ious rooms

occupied three s ides of a vast court , of which

the fourth side was bounded by a special axial

composition. There the great hall, set broad-

wise at the fbot of an atrium, communicated by

gal ler ies wi th the palace church, which lay at

the east . One is st ruck bv the numbel of cham-

bers augmented wi th apses, as i f ' they were cha-

pels; in fbct, however, these recesses were com-

monly used to give monumental character to

important rooms of several kinds. They were so

used in the Sacred Palace in Constantinople as

rvell as in the Lateran Palace at Rome during

this period. The second court at Ingelheim was

semicircular; the festival hall, which lay be-

tween the two courts, was a trefoil. Church

forms predominated in this palace.

We are fortunate in having a description o1'

the paintings at Ingelheim in an account br

Ermoldus Nigellus. In the church were scenes

of the Old Testament and, opposite, corres-

ponding scenes from the New. Such monu-

mental and lucidlv arranged cycles underlie the

didactic schemes developed later b1' Suger at

Saint-Denis, and others.

The great hall had paintings from secular his-

torv, deeds of ancient kings and heroes, Ninus,

Cyrus, Phalaris, Remus, Hannibal, and Alex-

ander the Great, and, opposite, scenes of a

more contemporarv history the ibundation

of Constantinople, and events of the reigns

of Theodoric, Charles Martel, Pepin, and

Charlemaene.r"

,7{

0

^ f t (aT

zo Mittelzell Minster, Reichenau, ilrg, ro,1l3; belfiv later

$',."i r

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Chapel ol St Jrnuarius above

6. Kitchen

7. Cloister garth

ll. Chapel of St Pirminius

r g. N{ittelzell tr l inster, Reichenau,

ske tch res tora t ion as in r . ro5o (Grubcr )

E--

6z P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y t , E S T l r E c A R o L I N G t A N R o M A N l s q u r . ( r 3

conser l 'a t iYe, a lmost c lassical . There are three Cor le, t ,ontheWeserIzz,z3la lsohelpsgreat-

sites - St Peter at Niederzell dating from 7g9; ly to visualize the developments of its period.

the Minsfer at Mittelzell, founded in 724, en- corr,ev is 'the

New corbie', founded in gzz bv

larged and dedicatedin l l rg (which rvas l i r ther a colonv of monks f rom Corbie in p icar. l r , nor

enlarged in the tenth centur]'i and provided fbr from Saint-Riquier. -{rchitectural influence

with a western apse and tower, dedicated in came from Saint-Riquier by way of Corbie to

ro48) [rg, zol, and st George, oberzell, 836 corvev, where a westwork was built between

(containing later construction also, including a 87j and t18,5. Though this design, being Ger-

crypt of 985) [zr ] . The churches are basi l ican, man, is hea.r , ier and less sophist icated, and

set in serene and opulent countrl'side, with the though, about r146, the middle of' its fagade

aura of the monastic centuries still hanging was carried higher between the old pair ofstair

about the scene. The School of Reichenau is towers, this rvestwork is the best existing repre-famous fbr i ts paint ings, both miniature and sentar ive o1' the Saint-Riquier f ront ispiece. Atarchitectural. St George, Oberzell, has a parti- Corvev the galleried spire church was not car_cularly impressive ensemble of old paintings. ried up to a rounded pinnacle, but rather to aThe churches have survived with forgivable square tower of the tvpe which the Germanschanges down to the present, and there are in- strikingly, cill a Halmhaus..l

deed f-ew places where one ma\. enjoy so satis- From the point of view of future develop_factory an impression of a Carolingian painted ments, this westwork at Corvev was less im-church. portant than the original east end.

-I.he two

z:. Con'e),on tlre \fcser. u,cstu'ork, 873 E5, looLing u.cst

Belbre the break-up of the empire of Louis

the Pious an ephemeral prosperity made pos-

sible the construction of many churches. Basili-

can churches are regularll 'triapsidal with tran-

sept, otien with passages and cr1''pt, regularll '

aisled, and pror,ided with towers and a narthex

or at least a narthex only at the west. Among

these are St Justin at Hiichst, near Frankfurt-

on-N{ain (af ter 8oo, or c. 825), and Einhard 's

own church at Steinbach (8zr) . : ' r Einhard 's

church largely survives, and its original form is

easily traceable. It had a p1''lon-like entry with

a lateral compartment to each s ide. The nave

terminlted in a sanctuar]-separated by a screen

and provided with an apse; lateral chapels with

apses fbrmed a sort of dwarf transept which

communicated only wi th the chancel . Each ais le

gave rccess to a crucilbrm crvpt under the cor-

responding transept, and a more elaborate cru-

ciform crypt lay on the axis between.

zr. Oberzell, Rcichcnlu, St George, 836 and later

Ref'erence should be made to the area, im-

portant in early Carolingian history, which lies

to the north of ltaly. Venerable for age among

its bishoprics are Chur (fbunded about 45o),

Constance (578), Augsburg (about 6oo), St Gall

(6r4) , Strassburg (r .675), and Regensburg

(739). The great early shrine ofthe region is St

Emmeram at Regensburg, where there was al-

readf in the eighth century (Z+o-8o) an impor-

tant basilican church of pilgrimage. Burned in

r o2o, restored under Henry II, it has interesting

sculpture of c. ro65 in a lateral porch, but has

lost character through further rebuilding.

Sentimentally and historically great is Reiche-

nau, the enchanting monastic 'Insula

Felix' of

Lake Constance.:ro It was a frequent stopping-

place on imperial iournevs, and a powerful

centre fbr missionarl' effort. Like a gentler,

more accessible Athos, it has had a profound

reliEious influence. Its church architecture is

L-

2-iA rnd B. Corrcl on thc \\ 'cscr, sketch restorirt ion shoring lvestlvork ot E7.1 8-5, uith plan ofcheret

64

's i l : i lt

D 'ODo$d:n

s0

sanctuarv a is les each had a chapel at the end,

and these chapels communicated bv an annular

corr idor, curv ing betwcen thern outs ide the

great apse, with a cruciform chapel beyond the

apse and on the main axis. Here indubi tably

we have the germ of the scheme ofapse, ambu-

latorr ' , and radiat ing chapels which is one of ' the

finest contributions of the Middle Ages to reli-

gious architecture. The German churches lbr

generations kept to simpler schemes fbr these

chapels. The idea was developed and systema-

tized chiefly in the area which we norv call

France.

Frantt

The great architectural achievement of France

in the period of Louis the Pious and Charles

the Bald is the basic solution of thc dillicult

problenr of thc apse, ambulatory, and radiat ing

chapels. In large measure the solution was

worked out in the basilican school of western

France, to which we have already referred.'l 'his

problem assumed importance with the

greatly increased interest in pilgJrimages and the

il:ilTT-

cult of relics. Until the eler.enth century the

bodies ofsaints la id awat in tombs or sarcophagi

werc, i f ' possib le, lef i undisturbed. Beginning

probably' with a reconstruction (r. 6oo) of thc

sanctuary of Old St Peter 's in Rome, the apses

of'churches with such relics were often arrangcd

rvith narrolv access corridors under the par,c-

ment.rr Such corridors followed the interior

curve of the apse, and connected axially with

the tomb chamber, or crypt , under the high

altar. 'I 'he

ever-increasing numbers of pilgrims

desirous of v is i t ing these tombs put into lerablc

pressure on the narrorv corridors and exiguous

crypts. At the same time, there was an increasc

in the number of ordained pr iests among thc

monast ic and canonical c lergy, which in turn

augmented the need fbr altars and chapels. Ad-

ditional altars could be used for the exhibitiorr

ofre l iquar ies ( thus increasing the interest of thc

pi lgr image) i l 'su i table access could be arranged.

Part i t ioning of t ' the nave, as at St Gal l , was im-

possible in a church where great crowds ol

pilgrims gathered fbr festival liturgies. The solu-

t ion lay in a corr idor round the apse, wi th

chapels radiat ing outward t rom i t .

At Corvey, and at Saint-Riquier in the later

crypr, the re l iquarr chapels lay belond the

church apse. There is good ant ique precedent

f91 this arrangement, and where it occurs' no

very difficult problems arise. But the most con-

spicuous precedent that ofOld St Peter 's in

Rome (about 6oe) p laced the main al tar d i rect-

ly above the Apostle's first tomb. In some cases

the church sanctuarv was elevlted because the

sacred spot was at or near the level of the nave

Davement; this was the case at Old St Peter's.

but in other cases the tombs were below ground,

and crypts rvith special srstems of access had

to be built.

From the time of thc construction in Rome

of St Paul's outside the Walls, sanctuaries and

chapels were customarilv oriented. If correctly

oriented chapels were attached to the access

corridors about the tomb chapel, an awkward

angular corridor resulted, and the circulation

T H E C A R O L I N G I A N R O M A N E S Q L I E b 5

of a press of pilgrims was difficult. Nevertheless

this arrangement marked an advance, and there

are two influential examples of it still in exis-

tence, which were bui l t in France dur ing the

period which we have under consideration.

The venerable monastery on the Isle of Noir-

moutier, off the west coast of France near

Nantes, bui l t a pr iory church in 8r4 rg at D6as,

near the Lake of Grandl ieuir [24-6] . This

church had a nave with aisles, a crossing with

stubby transepts, and the usual three apses.-I'he

island was so situated as to receive the full

brunt of' the Norse raids which began at this

period and continued through a dreadful cen-

tury. The monks had to abandon Noirmoutier,

but the1. took the relics of'their sainted patron

Phi l iber t wi th them to D6as, which thus became

Saint-Phi l iber t -de-Grandl ieu. A pi lgr image de-

veloped, and in 836 g the monks adapted the

priorv church ver.v cleverly fbr this cult. The

L---,*-1.,EJq

.-*) ETI't^<r it

i 'it

tilI

fiIf

I

LllI

l

24. Sa in t -Ph i l iber t -c le -Gr i rnd l ieu ,8r4 r . i i 47 , navc look ins eas t k ' s rnc tuar , \ ;nnc p ic rs . . tooo, roo f modern

L-_

bo P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

25. Saint-Phil ibert-de-Grandlicu, ambulatorv and chambers under sanctuary, looking west, r. 847

(or a little later) it was included within a little

vaulted crypt church possessing a corridor

around the tomb chamber. In 85o g an apse

!chelon with an angular processional path was

ingeniously built around the little crypt church,

and extended to join a rotunda at the head ofthe

main axis Iz6o]. This arrangement of apse 6che-

lon and rotunda also had an important future

in Romanesque and Gothic architecture. It

was becomingly inaugurated, for the Emperor

Char les the Bald himsel l 'caused the re l ics of St

Germain to be insta l led in the crvpt (859). I t

was then decorated with fine paintings, which

are among the oldest murals now existing in

France.3a

In 872 the relics of St Martin were brought

to this crypt from Tours, because of further

Norse forays. The clergy of St Martin's thenhad first-hand experience of this remarkablecrypt ; we shal l present lv see the resuh.

At Chartres Cathedral, because of the re-nowned pilgrima!ie, the church was rebuilt af tera fire of858 with a curved corridor arouncl theapse in the crypt l96l a great impro\emenr.tur thermore, the rounded apse wal l was pier-ced, giving a good view of the apse liom theambu la to r y and r i ce \ e r sa . , , p i e r ced apses goback to Roman r imcs, but the prerced apse wi than ambulatory was novel. It produced interest-rng.aesthetic

effects by uniting the apse lnd theambulatory spar ia l t ] . Fel ic i tous use of rh is ideawts made in the Romanesque sry le at Jumidgesa b b e y ( r o 3 7 6 8 ) l J 5 7 l , . n j i n t h . C o r h i c s t r l car 1\otre-Dame

in par is ( r r 63).

T H E c A R o L I N G I A N R o ] v T A N E S Q L ) E 6 ?

26. I )eve lopment o f ' the chere t : t c ( ahota ) .

r . 8 r ,1 .17 , Sa in t - l )h i l ibc r t -dc-Grand l ieu (Grecn) ;

o ( l t c lop) . r .8 -5o 9 , S l in t -Germain , Auxcr re .

crlpt (skctch rcstoration b1 K.J.C.)

o o

+

I tl r

a t

original apse was demolished, and a square sanc-

tuary bay was built with a new apse beyond it.

Narrow exterior corridors led to a chamber

under th is apse, where the sarcophagus ol 'St

Phi l iber t was insta l led b1'839 and st i l l remains.

The sarcophagus chamber and the narrow late-

ral passages were at ground level; consequently

the floor of the church apse was raised above

the level of the nave pavement.

In order to provide additional altars and a

better approach to the tomb under the apse, the

narrow corridors were soon replaced by a series

ofchapels. These were so arranged that a rather

awkward processionrl path (somewhat like that

of Corvey) was provided at the ground level.

running entirely around the apse. The path gave

access to the sarcophagus chamber from the

east, so that pilgrims could visit it without dis-

turbing serv ices in the main part of the church.

The new chapels were placed 'step-wise' or'ladder-wise'

in plan (t:n ichelon in French)

f z6a cl, whence the nrme of utrse iche lon for this

lc: r ture. which runs through a whole ser ies ( ) l

important churches dur ing the ent i re h istor-v o1

Romancsque ancl Gothic architecture. The apsc

!chelon of Saint-Philibcrt-de-Grandlieu \i'as

built befbre 847, but served the monks onll

until 858, when, the region being overwhelmeci

b.v the Norse, the community moved to Cunaul t

in Anjou.' I 'he

other important apse 6chclon of the ninth

ccn lu r . \ i s i n t he c r vp t o f t hc abbe l chu rch o l

Saint-Germain at Aurcrre. Here were venc-

ratcd the relics of that great fifih-centurl

chu rchman . who p repa red S t Pa t r i c k l b r h i .

I r ish mission ol 432-6r. St Germain 's tomb

was be low t he chu rch pa \emen t l e re l , anJ

under the main apse. In a reconstruct ion of8-1t

l r ) i I

L-.I

t rt l

r l

L--

6 8 p n E ' - n o v A N E s Q U E A N D P R o r o - R o M A N E S Q U E s r Y L E s

However, the Carolingian architects went

farther than this, cleverly uniting the lessons of

Saint-Germain at Auxerre (859) with those of

Chartres Cathedral (after 858), in a new church

of St Nlar t in at Tours, bui l t in go3 r8 af ter a

disastrous hre lz6, 95, 95A1.

Here the aisles and the larger part ofthe nave

were open to the pilgrims who thronged the

church. The remainder of the nave contained

the canons' choir, which continued eastward to

io in the sanctuarv and apse, wi th St Mart in 's

tornb at the head, close to the middle of the apse

wal l . The ais les were cont inued at approxi-

mately the same level into an ambulatory which

curved round the outer s ide of the apse and al -

lowed the faithful to reach 'St Martin's Rest',

viewing it liom the back through openings in

the apse wall. Quite as important, the minor

chapels which we have seen obstructing the

naves or making awkward corners in the apse

6chelons of older churches were here built as

round absidioles, like those of the cr.vpt of Saint-

Germain, Auxerre, but radiat ing f rom the outer

wall of the ambulator-v as a whole. This design

rvas a perf-ect tunctional solution, and a genuine

integration of the difficult elements of a pil-

grimage sanctuarY in a monastic church.3n'l'he

creation of such a remarkable feature as

the apse, ambulatory, and radiat ing chapels is a

z(rl. Skell ig \I iehael. monastic clustcr, ,. ft2-l I

Thc usual girdlc lvall is replaced in large part

b1'the cliffancl the precipicc

cliff

s)\\,

111 ' :

sign of maturity in the experimental French

Carolingian Romanesque. This achievement

marks a stage in our exposition; it is a landmark

on the road to the mature Romanesque sty'le.

I t is logical , therefore, to interrupt our studr

of French architecture at this point in order to

consider developments of Carolingian date and

marked national character in Ireland, England,

Scandinavia, Spain, and Italy. Localism and

practical experiments resulted in successful

buildings which, being admired, really al1'ected

the mature Romanesque and Gothic stylcs

which later came to these areas from abroad.

Yet the study of these ear ly regional works is

not really a digression. Mature Romanesquc

architecture resr-rlted when one ofthese success-

lul local stvles coalesced with two others. 'I 'he

'First Romanesque' style of north Italv carried

forward the tradition of Roman vaulting. Its

contact with Carolingian architecture in thc

Rhine Valley produced the splendid Rhenish

Romanesque. I ts synthesis in the Rh6ne Val lc l

with the Carolingian Romanesque basilican

st1'le of the west of France (the style of the

Basse-(Euvre at Beauvais, Saint-Riquier , St

Martin of Tours, and sirnilar works) resulted in

the mature phase of French Romanesque archi-

tecture - the dJ'namic group of stvles rvhich

under l ies Gothic archi tecture.

1 5 M

C H A P T E R 3

pRE-ROI , IANESqUE ARCHI f 'ECTURE IN THE NORTH,

O U T S I D E T H E E M P I R E

ir<

Northern design as developed in contact with

Roman traditions within the Empire showed

great vigour and originality. Outside the area of'

strong contact with Roman architecture the re-

sources available for building were smaller, the

problems simpler, and the results less specta-

cular. Yet these more remote buildinp;s often

have interest in their own right because ofinde-

pendent local conceptions, and the skilful use of

local materials and methods Celtic in lreland,

Germanic in England and Scrndinavia. Com-

positional types here in the North, as well as

in pre-Romanesque Spain and Portugal, tend to

be additive, or compartmental. Where pre-

Romanesque buildings have been preserved

they are now seen to hare a precious sarour,

though in the glorious days of the full Roman-

esque development rhey must have seemedsmal l , crude, 'home-made, and old- f 'ashioned.For this reason they have been replaced at allof the important sites, and we are left withcasual representatives no one of which excitedspecial wonderment in the ase in which it wasbui l t . These examples shoiv, hower.er . houtne tnvading Romanesque inher i ted somethingfrom the earlier styles, and thus developed localvarieties.

I R E L A N D

Ireland was the first of' the pre-Romanesqueareas to become creative. Its intellectual impor_tance and ecclesiastical influence, international

ll ..o-p. from abour 5so, are r.r.ell knor+.n. Re_

lt'^o_t_. ttoT Imperialcentres and led b1 an ascetic

stergy whose spir i rual roors reached back to

L6rins and the Egyptian desert, Ireland quite

naturally had an unassuming church architec-

ture. Many of the early structures were un-

doubtedly of wattle work or palisading, with

steep root-s as required bv thatch, and no such

sophistication as rounded apses. It is known

that the royal hall atTart was basilican.

Bui ld ings of any pretension at a l l were bui l t

with timber framing, m7re Scottorum as the

Venerable Bede say's (73r) of a Lindislarne

church ofr . 655. I t is possib le thar such struc-

tures affected Scandinavian building; for the

raiders (795 ff.) became settlers afrer 834 with-

out losing contact with the mother country.'Cogitosus',

about 8oo, tells of St Brigid's

church at Ki ldare, which'occupied a wide area,

and was raised to a towering height'. Common-

place buildings, many churches among them,

had the shape of simple cottages with steep

rool 's . In the monaster ies and at secular s i tes

these were often multiplied into 'church

clus-

ters' instead of being replaced by larger struc-

tures; the con!iregations would gather within

and around such church buildings. At monas-

teries the various conventual structures would

be arranged rather casual ly , wi th in a g i rd le wal l .

A number of buildings in permanent material

have surv ived f rom Carol ingian t imes, but s ince

their analysis more properly belongs in the

volume of the Pelican Histor.y oJ' Art which is

devoted to the ar t of the Br i t ish Is les,r only br ief

ment ion is made of them here.' I 'hc

is land of Skel l ig Nl ichael [26.r ] providcs

:r spectacular s i te fbr a group of smal l s tone-bui l t

monast ic bui ld ings, 'c lochains ' , o l 'dry-wal l con-

struction with flat corbelled beehive domes.

o

o

Preclplce

5 0 F l

L-

-

7 0 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

22. Gallarus Orator]', ncar Dingle,

seventh centurY or later

more oriental in character (as we should expect

in monast ic work) than is usual in I re land. - fhe

simple church and the austere cells are irregu-

larly placed on a shelf I 8o feet long and roo f'eet

wide, ofold reached by 67o steps along the lace

of the rock, which forms a precipice 7oo f'eet

high. The group has had its present character

s ince 823, or rather, perhaps, s ince 86o when i t

was re-establ ished af ter Vik ine ra ids. ' I 'he

P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N T H E N O R T H , O U T S I D E T H E E M P I R L ? ]

monks lefi it for the mainland at some

aftcr ro6-1 [u 6.r] .'I'he

Gallarus Oratory near Dingle lzTl ts an

elegant translation into corbelled stone of'the

cruck house ( 'al l roof, no wall ' ) . I t has been

variously dated from the seventh century to the

eleventh. Kells, a well-known site, famous for

i ts scr iptor ium, has 'St

Columba's House' , a

shrine-house dating fiom 8o4, or perhaps afier

gr8.r The church is rectangular in p lan, and

elegantly tall in proportion. In section the roof

is rather like an A. The outer part is of corbelled

construction in stone, with a small pointed

chamber at the apex. The space below this (rep-

resented bv the area under the cross-bar of the

A) is the tunnel vault over the main walls of the

chulch. 'St

Kevin 's Ki tchen' at Glendalough,

realll 'an oratory, is a similar building, of ninth-

century style [28]. It became a nave-and-chan-

cel church through the addition of a shed-like

sanctuary, now destroyed. A sacristy at the east

and a small finger-shaped tower on the ridge

were other ear ly addi t ions (about Iooo). Near

28. Glendalough, St Kevin's Kitchenand round towct, r. rooo

by stands the relatively large ruined cathedral

of St N{ary, formerly roofed in wood. It is stylis-

tically classified as Primitixe because ofits great

simplicity. Associated with it there is a charac-

teristic round tower, classified, as Transitional(to Romanesque) in stvle, ro3 feet in height,r6 feet in d iameter at the base.

The round torver tall, delicately tapering,smartly capped by a conical stone roof is themost poetic of the Celtic architectural creations.No towers are more gracef ul than these upward-pointing stone fingers of lreland. There is nobetter example of the bravura of basicallyNorthern design. It is likely that the beginnings

8o back to Carolingian date. Watch-towers anclrefuges were needed when the Norse raids be-

gan in 795. The tall tower identified the church

site liom a distance; it marked the cemetery,

and serr ,ed as a bel l ry and lantern of the dead.

Yet it was constructed as a practical refuge; the

door was set well above the ground and reached

by a ladder, and, moreover, a port made it pos-

sible to overturn the ladder ofan attacker. Spiral

stairs and floors of wood occupied the interior,

and loopholes made i t possib le to throw missi les

from every s ide. Of one hundred and eighteen

such towers which are reported, thirteen still

exist in fairly perfect condition - the tallest,

rzo feet high, on Scattery Island.

Note should be taken also of the Irish high

crosses, ofwhich near ly three hundred medieval

examples have been traced, and of very remark-

L.

11

7 2 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O ' R O M A N T ] S Q U E S T Y L F ' S

able cult oblects in metal' It was through such

works that the simple little churches were warm-

ed and embellished: in Prior and Gardner's

phrase, 'the crafi ofdecoration in Byzantine and

Carolingian buildings was the setting of pre-

cious objects against a background of struc-

ture'.r The old Irish churches are indeed

widowed now without their furnishings.

Norman influences play upon this architec-

ture in the twelfth century (as at Cormac Mac-

Carthy's Chapel on the Rock ofCashel , c . rr21-

34 L2gl, which is in the tradition of St Kevin's

at Glendalough) but the Cistercian influence,

beginning at Mell i font Abbey in I I .+2, was more

effective. Although such church buildings were

more imposing, they were severe, and earlier

Irish austerity of design lives on in them.

N I N T H - A N D T E N T H - C E N T U R Y

A R C H I T E C T U R E I N S A X O N E N G L A N D

Here again, because ofextended analysis in the

volume deloted to medieval architecture in

Britain,a only limited mention is given to the

architectural works in question. It was a much-

divided country'rvhich struggled towards unity

through the labours of Egbert of Wessex (829

39, the first to bear the title of King of England),

Alfred the Great (87 r 9oo), Athelstan (924-4o),

Edgar (9-59-75), and the great Danish sovereign

Cnut ( ror6 45), who wrought wel l as an

English king.

In the church architecture ofthe period there

are many reminiscences of older forms. The

nave-and-chancel plan was widely used both in

wood and in stone. The compartmented plan,

clearly that of Wil(rid's cathedral at York (767

8o), which had thirty altars, survived in smaller

buildings. Such a plan existed, Ibr example, at

the fabulous pilgrimage shrine of Glastonburv'

Excavations show that the letusta Ecclesia,5

P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E

originally of late antique date, was augmented

by a series of small elements built of stone, with

wooden roofing: a nave and plrticus about 7oo,

and a narthex, chancel, and lateral porticus be-

fore goo. Further, about g5o St Dunstan added

twolaterrl porticus and a tower at the east ofthe

church, as well as a free-standing tower-chapel

xt the west. This brought the length of the

group to about 25o feet. The plan was thus

cloisonni, and it exemplified the old scheme of

two axial towers, which became popular in Eng-

lish pre-Romanesque, Romanesque, and Gothic

architecture.

Continental relations were strong in the time

of King Edgar (959 75), under whom, wi th St

Dunstan, the refbrm of'the Benedictines made

salutary progress in England. St Dunstan, who

had been abbot o1' Glastonbury, became Pri-

mate (96o), and his companion monk, Ethel-

wold, Bishop of Winchester (963). Both men

were artists and loved the arts, and both were

well placed to further the cause ofthe fine arts

by precept and example. Winchester Cathedral

jo. Pembridge, bclfi r' torrcr, lburtccnth ccnturr(traditional lbrm)

r N T H E N O R T H . O U T S T D E T H E E M P T R E 7 3

[334] was rebui l t by Ethelwold, about g i3o, wi th

a lireat five-stage wooden tower. The organ at

Winchester has its place in the history of music

and the Winchester school of illumination is

iustiy renowned in the historl of manuscripts.

We knorv from terts that there was in this

period a considerable amount ofcathedral build-

ing, inc luding Canterbury, which was rebui l t

as a 'double-ender'

with two lateral plrticus.

These monuments, on a llirly grand scale, have

all been destroved. Hence we must fbrm our

ideas on the basis of secondarl' monuments, of

which about two hundred surv ive in whole or

part. From the viewpoint of this volume the

fol lowing ought to be ment ioned: Elmham

Cathedral," Deerhurst,t Wing,n Worth," Brea-

more,1 ' ' Barton-on-Humber,r l Ear ls Bartc ln

(originallv an excellent example of the Saxon' tower-nave'

church),1r and Bradford-on-

Avon.r3 Parenthet ical ly , Pembridge should be

mentioned for its fourteenth-century belfry-

tower, rvhich closelv approximates r Carolin-

gian rtrrritus aqes [3o).

zq. Cashel ofthe Kings. Buildings now roofless

except round towcr and

Cormac McCarthl' 's Chapel, of t. ttz4-11

,.#',]

Wfrffi" " "'"

yw&

L-_

P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

v-

. l r . Wor th , church , ten th cenfur \ (? ) , look ing eas t

qz. I3rcamore, chrrrch, tenth to\\'er

Elmham- a ruin, has a slcnder T-plan, plus an

apse and the t t ,vo compartments which f lank the

nave just ' r ies t of the t ransept. Dcerhurst is

interesting fb I its staunch western tower, its

lateral compartments ( three on each s ide, wi th

the usual rnarrow doors of access), its charac-

teristic narrorv chancel arch, and its exceptional

(destro l 'ed) s.=vcn-s ided apse. Worth has a

round apse, aL so ercept ional [3r ] . Breamore is

interest ing fbr i ts staged crossing tor , 'er [32] and

the remains , t f ' a Saxon carved rood panel .

Barton-on-Ht-mbcr has i ts substant ia l towcr,

ample, squarc, and ta l l , wi th b luf f cut-stone

quoining and str ips of cut stone in the wal l -

work, which give a dccorative suggestion of'

f iaming. This tower lbrmed the middle part of

the Saxon ctsrurch; i t was augmentcd bv a

smaller cornp;-rtment on thc cast, and a similar

one on the rvsst. The paired lvindorvs, archcd

or mitred, arc charactcristicalll ' divided b1. iolly'mid-rvall s haf'ts' with rings. Earls Barton tower

is grander 1 33 ' , and is indeed a lavour i te Saxon

monument. I r r a l l of these the masonrf is rather

L,h..nru.. ?% Tth roth N 98o 99.t /////////t

33A. Winchestcr, Saxon cathedral, gg.l rogr

lexcavations and studi bv Nlartin Biddle)

33. Earls Barton, church, tower, tcnth centurv( ?)

L-

7 0 p R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D p R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T y L E S P R E - R O N / t A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N T I I E N O R T H , O U T S I D E T I I E E I l T P I R E 7 7

rough and 'liee-hand',

but artractive. 'I 'he

ordi-

nar l 'wal ls are about z l leet th ick; specia l wal ls

ma1'be much th ickcr .

Among the er is t ing church bui ld ings, St

Lalr re 'nce at Bradlbrd-on-Aron is perhaps the

most sat is factorv. I t is a nave-and-chancel

bui ld ing, $ e l l constructed of cut stone. I t has a

charactcristically' narrow chancel arch with in-

teresting rcliels ofangcls (pcrhaps tiom a rood)

set in the wrrll above it [34]. There are narrow

doorwal's on thc other three sidcs of its minus-

cule nale (25 (eet long, r j feet 8 inches wide,

and verv h igh - just over 25 leer) . The windows

are, as usual , fe w, smal l , and placed high in the

wall. 'I 'he

lateral doors opened inlo plrticus, of

which thc southern onc has been destroyed.

Apart fiom this the exterior is verl perfect; it

is beautifulll proportioned and decorated with

elegant shal lorv arcading I rSl . Recent lv i t has

.1.1 and 35. Bradlbrd-on--{r'on,

St Lawrence, r .975(?)

been shown that the lower part of the church

probabl l 'dates back to Aldhelm (c. 7oo); i t was

reworked lvhen the parts above the belt course

sere added. For th is reconstruct ion, on account

ol ' i ts accompl ished character , we prefer thc

date of '973, in St Dunstan's t ime. l+

Sir Al t ied Clapham, in summing up th is ar t ,

rightlv savs that it 'was

a direct offshoot ofthe

Carolingian stem, guarding the salient charac-

ter is t ics of i ts parent stock ' but wi th a sort of

bumbl ing local ism. In the mid eleventh cen-

turv i t was much in need of the v igorous ne*

impulse which came from Normandy to Edward

the Conf'essor's Westminster Abbey.

Enigmatic still is the relationship of the Saxon

carvings to the sculptural art of Germanl. and

France. The influence of the Winchester illumi-

nat ions on French sculpture is admit ted, but

we do not have sufficient links to connect the

Saxon relieli some of considerable interest

wi thear lyRomanesqueworkin Languedoc, Bur-

gundy, and Fleury (Saint-Benoi t -sur-Loire) .15

S C A N D I N A V I A

The forays of ear l l 'medieval Scandinavi ln t i 'ee-

booters are wel l known, and several of the

beautiful ships rvhich were their instrument

so lithe in form, so beautilul in decoration

have been given back to us bt' archaeological

excavat ion and stud] ' . What is not so l l idelv

known is the histor ] 'of the widespread coloniza-

tion and trade which follorved the piratical raicls.

In the ninth and tenth centur ies S*edish dy-

nasts organized the oriental trade bv rva\. ofthe

Russian rivers and built the state which became

Christ ian Russia in 989.16 In the West their

colonization of Iceland (847) and Greenland

(98 r ) was endur ing, but their contact wi th main-

land America (q86 t i . ) pror ,ed ephemeral , l ikc

their hold on considerable terr i tor ies in the

British Isles. -{ll Scandinavian architectural

work of this earliest period is lost, and is to be

deduced only from foundations, fragmentan.

remains of superstructure, and the trad;tional

leatures of conservarive later buildings.

Sweden and Got land provide remains u 'h ich

indicate the character of the earlv palaces xnd

dwel l ings; at Loista on Got land a palace of some

size has been rebui l r on i ts or iEinal fbundar ions.

I t takes the lbrm ol a long rectangular hal l $ i rh

dwarf walls of earth and stones i the entrance is

at one end, and the hearth is near the middle.At intervals there are pairs of posts resting onstones in the earthen lloor, dir,iding the intcriorlnto a nave and t rvo ais les. Each pair ot postssupports a trans\erse liame lbr the roof' of'thatch, which sweeps in an unbroken slope oneach side from the dwarf wall to the ridge. Asmoke-hole opens over the hearth. The timbcrsare,rough in the reconstruct ion. rather thancarved and paintcd as rhev doubt lcss were in theortg inal , but the archi tectural l ines i r re f ine. and

the inter ior is st r ik inglv handsome Ir , 36,11.

Hal ls of th is sort had been bui l t lbr hundreds of

1'ears belbre the latest date about rooo which

can be assigned to Lojsta. At Onbacken in

Sweden there are remains of a double-aisled'gui ld

hal l ' . L ike I -o js ta th is bui ld ing had f rames'r t in tervals to support the roof st l 'ucture. How-

ever, the posts were lbur in numbcr in each

f iame. Instead of ' drvarf ' wal ls Onbacken had

wooden palisaded walls, r'ertical or slightlv in-

c l ined, at some distance outs idc the l rames

[36n1. Simplcr st ructures, s imi lar in pr incip le,

were grouped in the farm establ ishments.' l 'he

remains of p:rgan temples in the ear lv

per iocl inc l icate structures ol -square plan. At

Gamla Uppsala, which rvas probabl l ' the great-

est pagan cult ccntre of'the region, the mcdieval

church was bui l t largely 'on the s i te of the chief

temple. Excirvation has yielded a part of' the

stones which supported its timber-work, and the

pattern of its plan [3{rc, 348]. In this case there

was a square central compartrnent, with corncr

timbers or cr z f'eet in diameter and a smaller post

between on each side. Whether the central com-

partment was free-standing in a peribolos meas-

ur ing about 75 by 85 feet , or surrounded by '

aisles reaching to the enclosing wall, is a mattcr

fbr debatc. In anl 'case the outcr wir l l was sup-

ported bv l ight posts, and re lat ivelv low, whi le

the large corner timbers indicate a tower-like

proportion lbr the ccntral square. \\'c postulate

aisles, r'ith a gabled entrance. T'hus the tcmplc

was distinguishcd fiom the residcntial and guild

halls prer,iouslv referred to by its r all construc-

t ion and i ts centra l ized plan ; i t was, hou ever, a

relat ively late bui ld ing, not long anter ior to i ts

descl ipt ion by Adam of 'Bremen (about roTo).

He cal ls i t a t r ic l in ium, and notes that i t contain-

ed statues of 'Thor, Odin, and l i reya. ' ;

At the datc ment ioned, Chr ist ian bui ld ing

was al ready u el l advanced in Scandinavia. From

ncighbouring Germanv some influences mar

be t raced or suspected, but the Norse church

rvas set r , rp l rom Br i ta in, and i ts archi tectur l l h is-

L-_

I

. i6. Plans o[ errl l Scandinavinn buildings

A. Loista, palace, r. rooo

e. Onbacken, 'Gu i ld Ha l l '

c. Gamla Uppsala, temple fbundations

o. Bra t tah l id , ' l ' h jodh i ld 's church , r . roo t

s. Lund, St N'larr N,l inor, r. tooo .5o

o 5 15 .l\{!r-! l r

l_ l_

o r o 5() r 'T

r,. Holtilcn, church, eleventh centurv

c. Urnes, church, r . r rz5

u. l,omen, church, r. i tllo

t . Norc, church. r . r rgo

J ( belur ) . Garrison hall, Danish reconstructiDn

P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E

tory probably begins there. By the year goo the

5sxldinavian population was probablv Chris-

tian in the British areas controlled by the Norse

, the Earldom ofthe Orkneys, including parts ol'

Scotland; the Kingdoms of the Hebrides, of

Dubl in, of Northunlbr ia, and ofEast Angl ia; to-

gether with the Five Boroughs. Christianization

ofthe North rvas tardier, but it was well begun

by g5o, and it was established by law fbr Nor-

way, Iceland, and Greenland in the vear rooo.

Inevitably one is led to suppose that many early

Christian buildings on the Scandinavian penin-

sula were simpie wooden versions of the nave-

and-chancel type ofchurch which was common

in England and Ireland at the time, or three-

naved hal ls of ' the Lojsta or Brenz tvpe I r ,4aj .

Thfodhi ld 's t iny church (r . roor) , crcavrted

at Brattahlid near Gardar [36o and 3gB], re-

sembled Lojsta, except that it had a squarish

plan, like a temple, and a woodcn fagade. Thc

banks and roofinp; were ofsod.

Excavation has revealed the plan of a more

ambitious church in Sweden. This is St Mary

Minor at Lund, dated afier rooo (b,-v ro5oi)

[36E]. Its rvall-work was like that of Greenstead

church in Esser [z] - built, that is, ofvertical logs

f lat tened on rhree s ides and io ined b1'spl ines.

The chancel, z5 feet square, was offset from the

nave, which was about 33 feet wide lrom wall to

wall. Aisles were marked offin the nave by posts

which (two by'two) carried the transverse fram-

ing of the roofstructure. The sanctuary, open-ing from the nave, had a similar roof construc-tion, except that the posts were carried around atthe east end to form a sort ofnarrow ambulatorv.T.hus St I lary Minor, though resembl ing a ba-stllca, was a curious conllation ofthe basilica, thenave-and-chancel church, and the pagan hall.Unfortunately it is not possible to follow the sub_sequent historv ofthe tlmber church in Swcden.Although about zoo were built, not one isextant i only f ragments in museums remain.

,. On the other hand, Norway and Insular Scan-

dinavia have p..r..""d the elements for this his-

I N T I I E N O R T H , O U T S I D E T H E E M P I R E 7 9

tory. In Iceland and Greenland there are repre-

sentatives of pioneer and archaic forms. The old

Icelandic sees of Skdlholt and H6lar have lost

their ear ly bui ld ings, but rust ic s i tes st i l l possess

houses with banked lateral walls and interior

framing, like a simplified Lojsta. 'fhe

faqades

are o1'wood, and the roof cover ing is sod rather

than thatch. Churches werc bui l t in th is rvav,

even recent lv (Fhigumyr i , about 1875, and

\i 6imyri, r 8zz [371. -Ihe

St6ri-Nripur church in

Arnessysla [38], with aisles, recalls the palace at

Loista even more strongly. Groups of o ld barns

and houses ol ten seem but l i t t le changed in

general appearance lrom the prehistoric lirm

.i7. Vibimyri, Skagafjdrbur, vicw ol'church, rlizz

38. St6ri-Nipur, Arnessysla, model of'framing, r876

c

o '

, !

o

a

t

O

i " ' jF : 1t lt tl-- "J

H

ntl

F

' i

Srrpporrs Jorposts a

(H"l,potheticaL)

WoLLs -- - - - - - - - -

Roof Hips -----

" Ritlges --

Shoft of Tower ---

ffi\lBr-1!t ,

D

h L--

P R E - R O M { N E S Q L L , q R C H I T h C T U R E I N T H E N O R T H , O U T S I D E T H E E M P I R E E I

l l

establishments of Gotland and elsewhere. Some-

what the same story is told in Greenland, which

was evangelized through a mission entrusted

to Leif Ericson, shortly before his journey to

America (roo3). There were ultimately seven-

teen churches serving about two hundred and

eighty households, a monastery, and a nunnery.

The White Church (stuccoed), at Kakortok, a

perfectly simple little stone-walled building,

mentioned in r3o6, still survives, roofless; but

the cathedral of Gardar (Igaliko), founded in

trz4, has been destroyed. Excavations show

that it was a small cruciform stone building with

a wooden f'agade and roof construction [3ge].

Other buildings in the cathedral group, serving

as residences, were built like the traditional

Icelandic houses just mentioned. A related

group, much simpler, has been identified and

excavated at L'Anse aux Meadows, on the tip

of Newfoundland. It represents the eleventh-

century Norse colonization in Vinland.r8

Excavations (Trelleborg, Aggersborg, Fyrkat,

in Denmark) show that the grear Viking mili-

tary camps were very different from these settle-

ments. Within an encompassing earthwork

(circular at Trelleborg [3gcl), impressive garri-

son halls resembling the guild hall at Onbacken

[36n] were arranged in fours, lbrming square

courts, and these courts were reduplicated, with

passages (each in a quadrant at Trelleborg).

The walls were palisaded. Bowed out in plan

and supporting big roofi, they softened the

strict geometrical s)'stem [36JJ.

Churches built entirely oItimber represenred

an advance on ordinary wooden structures. In

r8g3 L. Dietrichson had traced three hundred

and thirtv-two timber churches in all Scan-

dinavia, of which trventy-fbur werc extant, all

in Norway. An important church (Trondheim,

996) is reported in the reign ofOlafTryggvason,

under whom the country became officially

Christian, and archaeological remains go back

ig\ ( abor'e and hclon, ) . Gardar, cathedral group, twelfth centurv

bank _

-1-1----:[i-]ilL rf i+.&"*1\

S/ / r*, , . , . - . - . . . : . . . . : l i :

*L ' A\\>Sr/, / / I l ' * .

*;i-^N// // -if}

N . -

{

--+4 - -

WN

t.-I\

o 5 0 r o o ML , i ' ' I ' I I

l_.]_]_

39c. Trelleborg, camp,

39u. Brattahlid. Thjodhild's church, r. r oo r (rcstorcd)

L-_

o J o 3oo FT

P R E . R O M A N E S Q L I E A R C H I T E C T U R E T N T H E N O R T H ' O U T S I D E ' T H E E M P I R E I ' - 1

u2 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U D S T Y I , F , S

to the re ign of St Ola{ ' ( roI5 3o), the church in

quest ion being that of Garmo (destroved r88z;

c l emen ts a t L i l l ehammer ) l t nas a na re -and -

chancel church in wood, an example of the old-

est, most persistent, and most numerous t]'pe

ofchurch.1"

Ho l t i l en chu rch ( r . l o -5o I l oo i no rv i n t he

Trondhcim Muscum) [36r] is the oldest er tant

esamp le . I t has t he t r p i ca l s t ou t pos t s a t t he s i r

sllient angles of the nave-and-chancel plan,

with rebated sills sustaining an ingenious

tongue-and-groole pal isade ol 's tave' wal l con-

struction. About ro6o a church of similar form

rvas bui l t at Urnes. Superb examples of Norse

carving survive on the wall planks and doorwav

of th is church - wonderfu l inter laced animal

lbrms, exultantly' r'ivacious, subtly modelled in

flat and bolcl relief classic examples of'tameless

r,igour and beaut-v [4o]. Such work must be de-

pendent u l t imately, in part , on I r ish i l lumi-

,1o. L. rncs. carr ings on flank ot'church'

r. ro(ro, re-uscd

nrtion. but the earlier Norse panels, unlike tht

Irish rvorks. contain little except animal fbrrns:

it wos later that scrolls of leaf'age, ribbons, antl

hunran figures were introduced The doors antl

doorwats ot t imber churches uere ol ien pr t -

served, on account of their beaut,v, when the

churches themselves were destroyed, and th is

is the case at Urnes, rvhere the door and f'agaclc

carv ings of the nave-and-chancel church of r o(ro

rvere built into the north side ofa more elaborate

church about r rz5 [36c] .

This church. Urnes I I , marks a decis ive ste l r

toward the c lassic type of fu l l l 'developed Norsc

timber church. The shallow oblong; sanctuarr

has two corner posts as usual , and two inter ior '

posts a l the east , rccal l ing the errangemcnt at SI

\ lar1 ' \ ' I inor in Lund. The nave at Urnes I I .

somewhat larger than usual , has wal ls sup-

ported b,v the customarr'lbur posts at the outcr

corners. But $'ithin there are sixteen tall frec-

sten. l ing mast- l iLe supports ' marLing ol l ' la tcrrr l

aisles and a returned aisle at both east and \\'csl

The masts rest on stones and a chassis; thcl alt

bracccl a l l round at mid-height , whcre t l ' re i r

nunrber is augmented bl two on the axis (omit-

tcd belo l r to make the intcr ior more spaciou: '

\ bo re t he a r s l cs t he mas l s ca r r \ a c l e res l o l \

rval l , and at the top the] 'are io ined togcther a l l

round b1'a p late, which carr ies the t russed rool

and a hel l iv p innacle. There are suegest iotr

that the dcsigners had b:rs i l ican churches t ' i

s tonc in mind. The mitsts, (br instance, hrr '

Romanesque capitals at mid-height uncler ap-

plrent arches (u h ie h are in f rct e r rch m' lde up ' '

t lvo adio in ing lvooden gusset braces) Th!

b r i dg ing l bo re t hu appa ren t a r ches sugges t s t

t r i tbr ium. and the smal l round rents abor ' '

( 'Windaugen') suggest c lercstorv windows'

Ho l r c re r much t hc chu rch r csemh lcs a ba : l l -

ica, the masted structure is essent ia l ly d i f f -ereni

a structure of ' the ccntra l t -vpe' l ike a group () l

flag-poles all bound together circumlerentialll

I t must have becn qui te str ik ing to see the m'rst '

whi le such a church was under construction ' On

lorpf.t ion they extended up into and sup-

olrr io tr, . ." ' i te upperstructure as well as rheir

I i"r. "f

the aisle roof 'and the braces rvhich

"..i.nra to the aisle walls' Despite its oblong'. i lp.

,na the Romanesque-looking carvings'

, t ." . f t .m. is in essence that of the tower-l ike

prgrn t. .Plt "t

Gamla UPPsala''

Th. r"-. p.r iod (about r r25)shows at Fiedal

in the Valdres a nave-and-chancel chttrch'

o,hara tha sanctuar-Y is augmented by an rtpse'

and the whole is circumscribed by an extenor

ambulatory with a proiecting porch on the axis'---These

architectural motifs, combined with

rhe masted scheme of the nave of Urnes Ii' re-

sult in the classic lbrm of the Norse tirnber

church, best represented at Borgund, the oldest

extant example (about r r5o) [4r]' The harmo-

nious efect of the many subtly related parts is

no less remarkable than the skilled craftstnan-

ship by which it is achieved Nave and sanct uary

leach with its pinnacle) rise confidentlY above

the arcaded exterior porch' their graceful sil-

houette breaking into gables, Iinials and spire-

lets. The delicate scale and small memb':ring

(ernphasized by cut shingles - now for saf'ety

often replaced by tile) are remarkably effective

in the natural setting ofrough upland vallel s'

Neither Urnes nor Borgund is an irnportant

ecclesiastical place, and one naturally looks else-

where for the genesis of so accomplished and

perfect a scheme. One thinks inevitably of King

Sigurd Magnusson's Church of the Holy ('ross

in Kungahilla which was built in r r 27, af ter the

King's return from a spectacular pilgrirnage

to the Holy Land. It was accounted a wo:tder,

but no detailed description oi it has surrived,

and it was destroyed in r I36. Another possible

protot lpe is the church which was constr l lcted

along with a palace lbr King Sigurd's brother

Eysten in Bergen, rrr7. The structure of the

Palace halls must have resembled that of simple

churches in manv respects. Perhaps indeed the

tall masted structure was invented to distin-

euish the churches bv emphatic vertical em-

phasis f rom the palaces in such groups I for the

palaces would be larger and predominantly hori--

zontal. One is struck, too, b1' the small scale of

the early mast churches; they would look like

iewel boxes - indeed, like enlarged lersions of

church models (a popular lbrm ol'reliquary)

beside the palaces. Only'the later churches are

generous in scale.

Such then is the background ofthe church of

Borgund, the details of which may be studied in

the diagram [421. The ingenious A trusses' the

various t-vpes of bridging, bracing, and gussets

are well worth attention' as is also the basic

chassis of the building. Pairs of supporting

beams cross at right angles, (#), and the masts

are raised about the central rectangle' The ex-

tended parts of the beams powerfully brace the

masted structure and support the aisles and

porches. Such a chassis or skid would be sup-

ported on stones; there is nothing like it in con-

tentional basilican construction' At Borgund

the main masts are twelve in number' with a

wide interra[ , and an upper hal f -mast ' on each

flank ofthe nave'

Grinaker (r. r r6o), Lomen [3(rH]' and other

chu rches i n t he \ a l d res reg ion da t cd r r 8o o r

later have four masts carrying the upper struc-

ture in what is otherwise a nave-and-chancel

church rvith an apse added These naves are not

very much smaller than those of Urnes II and

Borgund, and consequently the scale is larger'

forecasting the still ampler scale of the thir-

tecnth century. Strzvgowski belicved that pu-

rat i te earh ' eramples of the four-masred tvpc

generated the t radi t ion ofmtrstcd struclure ' but

without elidence. Free-standing four-mastcd

structures were developed for the belfries ofthe

churches; that of Borgund, with the masts

slanted against the swing ofthe bells, is t1'pical

Nore church (r. r rgo) [36 tl presents a square

nave with a post at each corner, and the whole

)b-

t t 4 p R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D p R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T y L E S

aJ ar,d 42. Borgund' r ' r I 5o; classic examplc

J f the Nor t eg ian 's ta r e -church ' , ex te t io t I t t l t f ' t t s t t ( I

s1d analYttcal secttsn

L-

8 6 p n E - n o n a A N r - s e u E A N D p R o r o - R o M A N E s e u E s r y L E s

middle part of the construction carried on a

single mast . Shal low t r : rnseptal recesses and a

square sanctui r rv a l l have a post at each corner,

making seventeen for the whole church. Fl i

( r . rzoo) and Nes ( i . rz4o) have the nave-and-

chancel plan, plus a rounded apse and a central

mast. The whole structure is arranged and

braced in stages around this mast, and therefbre

comes to rcsemble thc centra l mast of 'a Caro-

l ingian church spire) or the woodcn steeple of

an American Colonial church. 'I'his

n'pe flou-

rishes alongside the navc-and-chancel, the

quas i - bas i l i can (Lon r , ' l ' o rpu ,

, . r r go : . \ r da l ,

r ' . rzoo), and the Borgund ty 'pe (Fantof t , f rom

Fortun. r. r r 6o 8o ; Gol, now at B1'gdor-, Oslo,

. . r 2oo ;Hegge , r ' . r z ro ;R ingebu , r . r z - i o ; Hed -

dal or Hitterdalen in Telemark, near Hiarrdal.

r . r z5o ) .

In the inter iors which have best surv ived the

centuries the wood has largely been lefi un-

painted. The resul t ing r ich tobacco brown ui th

deep velvetv shadou s is terr ' f ine, and i t sets of f

the gl int of metalwork in the lurnishings and

l i turgical gear. The br ight colours ofvestments,

the gal hues and sober black of peasant cos-

tumes appear to great adr,antage in this warm

rtmosphere. The intcr ior carv ings of thc chur-

ches are relativell simple, but thel' happill,'

accentuate the structural membel ing, and give

a certa in movenent in the hal f l ight . The con-

trast between the sercnity of the Norse church

interiors, and the extraordinary r,err,e of their

er tcr iors. is not the least remarkable o l ' thei r

mi-tnv artistic Yirtues.

Because the mater ia l uas per ishable, woode n

churches began to g ive wav to stone structures

as ear ly as ro5o. Norman England, u ' i th i ts

characteristic heavy masonrv construction, be-

gan to influence Scandinar,ia er,en in the reign

of 'Sigurd Nlagnusson (r ro3 3o). At that t ime

the Anglo-Norman cousins of'the Norse werc

alreldv at work on the cathedrals of Norrvich

and El1 ' ; Stavanger Cathedral was being bui l t .

f rom about r rz3 onward, in a ref lected Ro-

manesque sty le.

The Scandinavians did not adopt the I r ish

idea of church clusters, and therefore, as timc

went on, the mast churches became unsatisfac-

torv not onlv because of their marer ia l , but a lso

because ol' their small scale and their limited

capaci ty (eren wi th the people standing at ser-

vices, as rvas usual in the N{iddle Ages). T'hc

congregations became larger, and the cere-

monies more elaborate, involving !reater num-

bers of c lergt than in ear lv t imes. Recent

at ten)pts to bui ld mast churches on a moder.n

scale, so as to provide space fbr sizable gather-

ings seated in pews, have been aesthetic f'ailures.

while the cutting away of masts, and other

changes in medier-al buildings, fbr the samt

purposc, h lve bcen most unlbr tunate.

\t'hen the stone-built Romanesque came ro

Scandinar ia, i t took on, as in the church ol

Gamla Uppsalat" 1347,348] , s imple and austere

Northern forms which make their aesthetic

point through the bold and elegant expression

of bulk so much so that modern imi tat ions of

French and I ta l ian Romanesque and Gothic

works seem unwelcome and intrusive. f 'he

ear l ier bui ld ings in masonr l ' were rather pr imi-

tir,e in construction, and thus carry an odtl

flavour of the First Romanesque which is r,err

appealing. Ilven the vitalitv ofthe timber church

tradition had little effect on buildings designecl

fbr stone, lnd it is indeed pr<lbable that thc

architects considered the fbrms of the woodcn

bui ld ings as a natural resul t of their engineer ing

t1'pe, and fhus not applicable in stone-buiit

work or suitable for an1' kind of superficirl

imi tat ion.

5 f l A P T E R {

pROTO-RO\ {ANE SqUE - {R CH I TE C l

It sounds like a plelsantr]- to say that Roman

architecture is proto-Romanesque that is to

say, a Romanesque architecture coming befbre

the authoritative and constituted medieval style.

But there is a kernel of truth in it. The methods

of commonplace Roman building were con-

tinued with little change during the Dark Ages

in the southern and more settled parts of the

Empire area, awaiting the time when a grander

architecture should be possible.

We have seen that Carolingian Roman-

esque architecture intellectuallv marked out

this future development. It is only rr habit of

thought which prevents our cal l ing i t s implv

Romanesque. That tcrnr calls up a group o('

styles of somewhat later date, somewhat more

mature structural character, more importantly

characterized by vaulting, and richer in plastic

embellishment, but not essentially different in

conception.

Similarly, the st1'les of' southern Europe

which come betrveen Roman and Romanesque

might simply be called Romanesque il'our habit

of thought were di f ferent . Two of them are so

close to both styles as to merir the name

ot proto-Romanesque. 'l 'he architecture of

Asturias, Galicia, and neighbouring Portugal in

the ninth and tenth cenruries was like a hbora-tory experiment in Romanesque, perlbrmed ina remote region lnd not absorbed into the maincurrent of architectural der,elooment. In theByzant ine Exarchate and Lombardl a s imi lardevelopment la id rhe sroundwork tb i rhe

' l : i rs t

Romanesque' ,tr-.I., *ii.h carried on the livingstream of Roman l rchi tecture, and contr ibutedsomething to a l l the mature Romanesque sty les.

U R E I N S O U T H E R N t r U R O P E

T H E A S T L T R I A N S T Y L E

Thc \ loors came f i rs t to Spain in 7r r as a smal l

interventionist fbrce under Tarik. lor whonr

Gibraltar is named. The ineffectual Visigothic

kingdom crumbled before them, and they em-

barkcd on a ser ious work of conquest which

brought them across the P1'renees into France

in 7r 8. ' - [ 'hey

wele onl l ' hal ted by Char le s

\,Iartel in 732 in the fbmous battle fought be-

tween Tours and Poitiers. The new state was

not well organized until the middle of the tenth

centur!'. and the Nloorish borders receded, but

the \loslems continued to alllict southern

lirance b1' (bra-vs, and b1' their' fierce, long-

cont inucd pi racl , in the \ ledi terranean. ' Iher

drore out the monks of 'X ' lontecassino in 8f i . i

and desolatcd the monastery; they captured

r\ ' Iayeul , abbot of 'Cluny, in 97z, and held h im

fbr ransom; their devastations are reported from

Switzerhncl in g4o and f rom northern Spain in

997 8.

Dur ing the in i t ia l per iod of re lat ive Moor ish

weakness, Sept imania was rcconquered (76o 8)

by Pepin I I I , a l ter which the Spanish March of

Charlernagne (Catalonia and Navarre) was lib-

erated (777). ' l 'he

act ion at Roncesval les, cele-

brated in the Song of 'Roland, occurred in 778.

Birrcelona was captured in Eor.

In the north-western corner of the peninsula,

where the old mountainous Astur ian realm of

the Sucvi (only subdued b1- ' the Vis igoths about

6zo) had not been o\rerrun b1' the Moors, the

Spanish Chr ist ian state was reconst i tuted jur i -

d ical l f in 7 I 3 by thr : l in tast ic band o1' c ler ical ,

mi l i tar l , and lay re lugees who had been dr iven

L-

Oviedo, San Julidn de los Prados, r

there by the invading Moors. Under Alfonso

the Cathol ic (Z3q 5Z), the new Kingdom of the

Asturias or of Galicia began to expand south-

ward, and to plant Christian colonies in the

border zone which had been desolated by the

constant raids from both sides. Legend has it

that the Apostle St James the Greater aided the

Galicians in battle, whence he acquired his

name of Nlatamoros, his rank (maintained even

in the twentieth century) of Colonel in the

Spanish army, and his association with cockle

shells. His supposed tomb, identilied as such in

8r3, became a nat ional shr ine almost imme-

diately, and led to the foundation of a Bene-

dictine monastery, Antealtares, in the reign of

Alfonso the Chaste (7gt-842). 'fhis

king made

Oviedo his capital, from which the kingdom

was ruled unt i l gr4. A metropol i tanate was

establ ished there in 8I r . r

By the end of the eighth century the archi-

tects had constituted a national pre-Roman-

escue stvle of considerable technical interest.

The oldest remains go back to about 78o, and

there are well-preserved examples covering the

whole span of the ninth and tenth centuries.

Among the chief monuments was the cathedral

of Oviedo, founded in 8oz, which was an inter-

est ing group of bui ld ings by a designer namerl'I' ioda.

A reliquary chapel, the I'amous Cdmara

Santa, still survives [58]. Another maior monr'r-

ment, now destroyed, was the double cathedral

at Santiago de Compostela (8lg-rt6), which has

been excavated in part, and is known to hare

resembled other Galician basilicas (Santullano.

Lourosa l54cl) , though the cast end, wi th thc

shr ine of St James, was rather more open and

elaborate. Yet satisfactory represcntatives of the

\stur ian st1 ' le of archirecture. paint ing, ant l

sculpture survive; they are being maintainecl

and cher ished.

At somot ime between 8rz and 842 (perhaps

about 83o) Tioda built for Alfbnso the Chaste'

adjoining his suburban palace in the fields neat'

Oviedo, the basi l ican church of 'San Jul i in dc

los Prados, or 'Santul lano'

[+1, ++] .The north

transept was elidently contiguous to the palace,

for the king's tribune opened into it. The tran-

sept is relatively wide, roofed in wood, and

higher than the rest of the church. The re-

mainder of the building is composed around

the transepr in the lamiliar agglomerative Ger-

manic fashion. ' I 'here is a p l r t icus at the south

end of the transept; the sanctuary and chapels

are oblong tunnel-vaulted compartmentsr of

which the central one, only, is brought to theeaves level ofthe transept b1'an upper chamber(perhaps a refuge). The ample nave, likewisewooden-roofed, also reaches merely to the tran-sePt eaves. It is providcd with aisles, a western

Porch' and a wall belfiy' or espadaia. The recentrestoration

has uncol.ered the rather rough, butBood and substantial masonrv of the church.and its astonishins interior decorations. Theseguite unexpectedly turned out to be a symboliccSmposi t ion

in the pompeian sr1le. ' fh i r ry-

ct8ht baldacchino mot i fs are f iqured, in refcr-

P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N S O U T H E R N E U R O P E d 9

ence (it is thought) to the thirty-eight Councils

which had thus lirr been held in the Spanish

Church. These paintings are among the most

interesting of their kind. Yet this court chapel

gives only a hint of the richness ol Alfbnso the

Chaste 's bui ld ings at Oviedo: 'everyth ing' , says

the Monk of Albelda (883), ' the

King adorned

diligentll ' with arches and columns of marble,

with gold and silver, and so with the royal

palace, which he decorated wi th d ivers p ictures,

all in the [Visilgothic wa\', as they were at'I'oledo

in church and palacc alike'. There

were a governmental building and a thermal

establ ishment in Oviedo also in these great

da1's.

One of the most interest ing Astur ian churches

dates l rom the re ign o1'Ramiro I (843 -5o). I Ie,

incidentally', contended successlully with the

Norse ra iders of whom wc have heard in pre-

v ious chapters; they did not get a lbothold in

Spain as they did in England, I re land, France,

and the' I ' rvo Sic i l ies. Ramiro 's church adio ined

L-

9o P R E _ R O N l A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S ' T ' Y I , E S

the palace and baths at Naranco, a p leasant h i l l -

s ide placc near Oviedo. I t was dedicated in 848

to Santa N{ar ia, and has come down to us in a

perf-ect state, except for the loss of a two-storcy

compartment on one of thc long sides ; opposite

the entrance, and balancing the entrance porch

l+S, +61. The archi tectural lbrm of the upper

part shows that i t was bui l t as a beh,edere; vet

the structure was certainly used fbr sacred cerc-

monial in connexion wi th the k ing as fbr

instance when he departed fbr war.

The cxist ing old parts of the church have no

suitable location fbr an altar. since the ends of

the hal l were doorways opening on unglazed

cxterior porches. 'I'he

best solution of the difii-

cul t f is to suppose that the al tar stood in the

destroyed compartment opposite the existing

entrance porch. The altar would then occupl,'

the thronc-place of a layout resembling a Ger-

manic palacc hall. ' l 'he

long hall itself would be

a sort of'transept lbr magnatcs, and thc pcople,

gathered outside the church, would hcar the

liturgl' through the open end compartments.

45 rnd 46. Santa Maria de Naranco, consecrated tl48

ilri

Similarll ', the populace gathered on the slofc

ncar thc inrperial palacc hall at Goslar [,.t+, ]rS

lb l lowed thc proccedings through openings rn

the f'aqade of the hall.

In point of development Santa N{ar ia c le

Naranco occupies the posi t ion lbr Spain which

Germignv-des-Prds has in France, Aachen in

Germanv, and 'St

Columba's House' in I re land.

The masonrv work is somewhat rough, but o l

excel lent qual i ty , having ashlar , used wi th ad-

mirable skill, to strcngthcn it in logical place'.' l

he me in b l ock o l r hc bu i l d i ng has a c r l p t , , 1

three compartments, the central onc covercLl

( o n d u a r l u a l l s ) h r a h e a r r a n d s l r o n g t u n n ( l

r au l t w i t h t r ans \e r se a r ches o l ash la r . 6n1 , , r

t he f i r s t o f i t s k i nd i n t he med ie ra l chu rch a r t h i -

tecture of the West. The end compartmcnt\

( o l ' r r h i ch onc \ \ as a ba th ) a re ce i l ed i n uo r , . l .

Each of the cr1'pt compartments sustains a conr-

partment of the superstructure, ta l ler in pr , , -

portion, lighter and more sophisticated rn

construct ion. Pairs o l atrachcd columns car. . , l

i n f i ne ba rha r i c s t t l e ca r r l an i n t e r i o r a r c r t . l c

which thins and stiffens the wall, so rhar it islogically designed to take the thrusts of thetunnel vault above it. The vault again has trans-verse arches, and an extra arch is placed in themiddle over the widest arcade arches (fbr thesize of these is graduated). Under the othertransverse arches there is a decorative strap-and-medallion inset which srrengthens the wall.

. Though i r was rauntet l u, ,urporr ing unl-

thing in Hispania (Moslem Spain) therc isneve r t he less a haun t i ng sense t ha t t he uho lebu i l d i ng i s somehow i n deb r t o onen ta l mo t l esor construction, probablv through \risigothicand Moslem ,..hi,..,u."1 works as much as

ln l L i "* e lse. Yer the Germanrc aspects ot the

l l t td]nt must nor be tbrgot ten. t ts palace hal l

: l i t l id the ef fect or 'making i r in to a

. r ransepr

; t lufn ' to, u r1 pe which is or herwise knou n in

I l l . i t . Abd in i n Vesopo ram ia ) , bu t r hc com-

iJ^titt l l l ] mode ar Naranco is Cermanic; tbr

l l,t- l-t ' ,0j"* is an agglomeratron or aspiring and'xr t rsect ing forms. The f lanks are div ided into'ct t D?YS by s lender ashlar spur hut t resscs.

There is no doubt as to the position and shape

of the missing two-storey compartment, in the

upper part of which we ma\ suppose the al tar

to have been placed ( in 848), Ibr the mare to th is

compartment st i l l ex ists on the opposi te s ide,

wi th i ts approach sta i rways and vaul t ing com-

plete, appl icd, or 'apposed' , to the main cham-

ber in Germanic l'ashion.

In fact, the building was composed, basicalll.,

in the manner of the Saxon church ofBradfbrd-

on-Avon [ :+, :Sl , exccpt thar rhe Astur ian work

is vaul ted wi th admirable sol id i t l ' . ' l 'he

cntrance

porch and i ts mate come in iust where thev are

structural lv needed to abut the main tunnel

vaults lbr such vaults, when ther. ha.r'c anv

considerable length, invar iablv tend to push out

their supports and sink at the crown. In Naranco

we have an appropr iate solut ion (on a smal l

scale to be sure) of the problem of vaulted

church architccture which pror.ed to be obsti-

nateh' difficult throughout the Romanesque

per iod. I t is a lso rvorth l of 'note that the spur

but t resses are proport ioncd l ike developcd

L-

wP R O T O - R O M A N L S Q U E A R C H T T E C T U R F _ t N S O L i T H E R N E t r R O p E 9 3

47 and 48 (oltposite and belon). Santa Cristina

de Lena, .. 9o5 Io

49 ( risht ) . Santa \{aria de \ 'Ielquc, r. 9oo

-lrl

Romanesque buttresses and logicalll ' disposed.

The embellishment of Santa Maria de Naranco,

while not Romanesque, nevertheless uses de-generate c lassic mot i fs , nor e l combinat ions, and

even minuscule f igure sculpture ( in the medal-

lions), and therefore we may say that it too gives

a hint of future Romanesque fbrms.

The church of San \ l iguel de Lin io, near

Naranco, lbunded in 848, is a curious and in-

genious r.aulted building, now incomplete. It

rvas laid out as a columnar basilica with a tunnel-

vaul ted nar e and angular sanctuar ies. The fbur

terminal bavs ofthe aisles had transverse tunnel

vaults at a high ler,el to abut the nave, and large

transennae in these transept-like bays (ofwhich

trvo st i l l ex ist ) gar,e a good l ight to the whole

interior. San Nliguel has remains of paintings

and a brave attempt at architectural sculpture.

There are interesting capitals and medallions.

as at Naranco; the column bases have carv ings,

and an ivorv book cover was reproduced, en-larged, in flat barbaric str,le on each iamb of thc

main portal. There is an odd suggesrion of Earh

Gothic tracerv, even, in the interesting tran-

sennae or pierced stone lvindow screens of San

\I iguel .

Ent i rc lv raul ted, l ike Sanra N1ar ia de Na-

ranco, the charming little church of Sanr,r(,ristina de Lena [+2, +8] must be included as

shorving an interestingl development ol'the Nir-

ranco thcme. Santa Cr ist ina has an entrance

compartment with a tribune lrom which onc

looks up a longitudinal tunnel-vaulted nave to ir

p lat form and sanctuarv compartment, markcd

off b1' a verv interesting and fastidiously carvecl

barbaric chancel parapet and arcade. The main

vault is abutted b1' chapelJike compartmenrs'apposed'

to the flanks ofthe nave. All the vaults

are tunnel vaults, and all, except that of the tiny

entrance way, have trans\rerse arches. All thewalls are stiffened b1' spur buttresses. Thischurch was probablv built shortly after go5,

or at any rate in the reign of Alfonso III, theGreat (866-9ro).

_ There remains to be ment ioned the engaging

little tunnel-vaulted basilican church ol Val de

Pios, d.d icuted in 893. f t has \ los lem-looking

horseshoe arches in th"e ,anctuarr and the c ler .e-story. and t ransennae but a lso an added lateralporch with prophetic, Romrrnesque-lookingg rouped p i e r s ca r r l . i ng a t unne l r au l t . da r cd i nrne tenth centur \ . On a t in l rc i r le, i t of fers aEood solut ion ro t l i f f icu l t problems. and. l i l , r :santa Mar ia de Naranco. has endured.

T H E \ I O Z A R A t s I C S T Y L E I N

N O R T H E R N S P A I N Z

Little if anl.thing survives to represent Earlv

Chr ist ian basi l ican archi tccturc as developed

b1' the Visigoths except San Juan Bautista at

Baios de Cerrato (66r) , rv i th i ts horseshoe

arches, i ts degenerate Roman carv ings, and i ts

square-endecl sanctuar) ' (one of three, widel l '

spaced, which lbrnerh, looked into a wide t ran-

sept). Vaulted architecture is represented by

the church of Quintanilla de las \' ' i ias, whcre

construct ion appears to have been interrupted

h r r he Conques r . sho r t l r a l i e r ' 7 r r .

What this Late Roman church st.vle beclme

under strong N{oorish influence we may infer

l iom the interest ing raul ted church of 'Santa

Maria de N{elque. dated about 9oo [49] . I t is

9 ; + P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

solidly built ofashlar stone on a cruciform plan,

and vaulted, with an efl'ectivc use of horseshoc

a rches i n t hc i n t e r i o r des ign .

Simpler lvorks resembling San Juan de Baios

and N{elque were bui l t by-refugees who were

drir,en out of the \'Ioslem dominions by a re-

crudescence of into lerance at the end of ' the

ninth centur.v. This episode was a catastrophe

for the Visigothic style, which was a citv archi-

tecture; fine churches were destrol.ed in the

\loslem dominions, and the similar buildings

in Christian territories to the north suffered in

the great ra ids of 'Almanzor at the end of the

tenth centur)-. The Christian kingdom, which

was centred at Le6n alier gr4, settled man!' of

the rellgees, who were called \{ozarabs. Moz-

arabic architecture under the circumstances $.as

reallv a local variation on Late Roman archi-

P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C T T I ' I ' L C ' I ' U R [ , I N S O U l ' I I L R N L U R O P E 9 5

5o. San Nliguel de la Escalada, near Le6n, c. gtz r3

tecture, representing the end ofan old tradition.

It undoubtedlv contributed a certain spice an(

oriental suavitv to Spanish Romanesque. Lobetl

rosettes, prominent eaves-brackets of oriental

character. and horseshoe arches were trans-

mitted to Romanesque by the Mozarabic st1,le.

Its influence is probablv to be traced in beauti-

full1' modelled leafage cut en lltargne or ett

riserxe that is, rounded back from the ashlar'

thce in N{oorish or Saracenic fashion. asainst ir

sunk background.

The church of San Miguel de la Escalada.

near Le6n [5o], is the finest and most accessiblc

of the N{ozarabic works. It was part of a mon-

asterv built for refugee monks from C6rdoba in

gr2-r3. The visitor linds himself in an austere

but surprisinglv sophisticated ensemble. Thc

architectural membering, the proportions, thc

scale, the manaeiement of'space and light are all

very lastidious. 'I'he

church is basilican and

wooden-rool'ed except for the apses, which are

fiorseshoe-shaped in plan, three in line rvithin a

blocky mass of masonrt' at the east end of the

church. Each apsc opens through a horscshoe

arch. The east bav ofeach ais le is vaul ted, and a

chancel screen of elegant horscshoe arches 1:

carries the line across the nave. Graceful horse-

shoe arches divide the nave fiom the aisles, and

the tin-v clerestorl.windorvs have the same prett\'

shape, which was once more used lr'hcn a finc

side porch was added about 9.1o; adioining,

there is a heavv tower, with a chapel, of still

later constructlon.

Sant iago de Penalba f5r l , founded in grg, is

a good, but a more rust ic bui ld ing. I t is an odd

composi t ion o1-pairs a nave o1-t rvo bavs, one

5r. Santiago de Pcialba, lbunded grg

newl l constructed. L ikc thc Astur ian bui ld-

ings, i t has a somer,hat Romanesque look, but

the cornice has character is t ic Nloor ish 'chisel-

cur l ' brackets. In the inter ior of Lebcia therc

;3. Cbrarrubias, ' l 'ouer o l l )ona Lrr i rca, r . t1-5o

ai-:-'. t

4

of them corerecl bv a lobccl dome; a lobed vaul tover each of the tlro apscs (onc of them ofnorseshoe plan, both of them in angular b locksof masonrv) ; a pair of ' la teral compartments,torming a sort of t ransept. at each s idc ol ' thcdomed bar,.

Santa Mar ia c lc l .ebeia, ncar Sanrander 1521,was bui l t in gz4, under Astur ian inf luence; i tresembles San \,Iiguel de Linio, rvhich rvas then

L-

9 0 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

are square piers with addossed columns which

look r,erv Romanesque, and suggest that Penin-

sular skill may har,e been drawn on in the tenth-

century revival of vaulting f'arther north. How-

ever, the bold horseshoe arches give Santa

Maria an unmistakably N,Ioorish atmosphere.

The tunnel r,aults have a diaphragm in the nave

to permit a c lereslor l . Thev are l ransrerse in

the aisles, and parallel over the sanctuaries. 'I 'his

arrangement is r,ery good statically, and it builds

up rather prettily in stages. \'Iiss King said

te l l ingl l of i t that ' the

Spanish remper, l ike the

Br.zantine, craved the myster],- of enclosed

spaces , whe re l i gh t f ' a l l s s t i l l 1 . . . . and . . . cu r ved

surlaccs bound the r,ision, and brood'.

A rare example of civic architecture of the

period is the Tower of Doia Urraca at Covar-

rubias,s dated about 95o [53] . I t is heavi ly bui l t

of Nloorish-looking ashlar, with a strongly bat-

tered prolile , and is empty to half-height, where

it is tunnel-r'aulted. The upper part (nolr de-

natured through rebuilding) is cntered through

a horseshoe-shaped arch at this ler.el. In Cata-

lonia, the intcresting horseshoc-arched portico

of San Fel i r i de Guixols has been preserved.

Catalonia entered upon a flourishing epoch

at this time, under the Counts of Barcelona,

who held it staunchll- against the -N{oors, but

were nevertheless in contact, as septimania had

been, with Peninsular cir,ilization and the N,Ios-

lems. -N1uch history centres in the abbe,v of

Ripoll, which became the dynastic pantheon;

in 977 a vaulted church with fir'c apses was

consecrated there. Surviv ing decorat ivc e le-

ments 01'this building have unmisrakable Ntloz-

arabic character, though it was not built b1.

refugees [7r ] .

Another abbel of importance, San Nl ichel de

Cura,+ was founded in 878. I ts ' f i f tv

monks,

twentv servants, extensive lands, thirtv-volume

librarl', hle hundred shcep, fifiy- mares, lbrty

pigs, t l ro horses, I i re donkevs, twent\ oxen,

and onc hundrcd other large horned animals '

were put under the protect ion ofNI i ron, Count

Wu

P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E r N S O U T I I E R N E U R O P E g ?

fluence is traceable in Catalonia from this time.

Cuxa actually represents the reorientation of

Cttalonta, towards France and Italy, and the

emergence of a Catalan nationality in the time of'

the great Abbot Oliba of Ripoll. It is quite fiir

to state that a national architectural style was

adumbrated ifnot rcalized in the churches built

under the auspices of Oliba and his family.

In Ol iba 's rebui ld ing at Cuxa (roog 4o), in-

fluences lrom abroad are fused with the abiding

east) has long been known. The ru ins of ' the

main storev, with its polyfbil nucleus, have re-

cently been uncovered; and it may be that there

was an upper level as wel l . The marble c lo ister

of Cuxa, dated about ro28, is wel l known. I t

has been part l ) rebui l t in the recent restorar ion,

as has the nave of the church.

Oliba's fbmily was connected with the con-

struction of San Pere de Roda,6 a castle-

monastery which stands up splendidly above

iitilI t o t l c r , . r ' t ' n r

of Conflent and Cerdagne. Within a centurv ol

these beginnings the abbe] ' rvas powerfu l ant l

had bui l t an important church (955 71) [51]

Parts of th is st ructure which st i l l surv ive shol

that it was sty'listically \'Iozarabic, like contem-

porarv Ripol l . I t had a pla in, long, stout ly con-

structed wooden-roof'ed nave and two shortc:'

aisles all opening on an extendcd transept. \

pair of absid io les opened through horscshoc

arches into each t ranscpt arm, and a deep oblong

sanctuarv extended eastrvard on the main axis.

In this period Count Oliba (-abrcto made rt

long risit to Itall', with a y-ear at Nlontecassino.

Returning, he mul t ip l icd Benedict ine mon-

as te r i c s i n h i s dom in ions . and mueh cn la rg t , l

the Catalan hor izon. ' i A Cluniac abbot, Guar in.

was insta l led at Cuxa in 962, and Cluniac in-

5p (npposite) and e. San \{ichel de Cuxa,

955-74 and eleventh centur)',

plan and south elevation of church

Moorish tradition. Investigations at the church

show, for instance, that some of the N{ozarabic

horseshoe arches were modified in Oliba's re-

building. Two large rowcrs of Lombardic char-acter were added. East of the old sanctuarv anangular ambulatory with three eastern chapelswas bui l t ; c lear lv there is a re lat ionship toFrench examples in the tradition of Saint-Philiberrde-Grandlieu.

West of the church o1'Cuxa, where there had been a stairu.al.and plat-Iormt the quatrefo i l chapel o l rhe Tr in i t r uasbu i l t on t he ax i s . l ea r i ne an a t r i um rn i r h l a re ra l

:ntrances (as at Parcnzo, or at an Ottonian sitc)rn tront of'the main cloors. Thc

'l 'rinitv was a

vau l t ed chu rch o l ' r hc cen r ra l r r pe w i t h I i ank i ng

l ' l : . ' o f wh i ch rhe c i r eu la r c r l p r ( a l so $ i r h

t lanking ais les, and a raul ted c\ tension ro the

O s I O A 1

O t o 3 0 F T

the coast near Gerona. As at Cuxa, there was

later building strongly influenced from Lom-

bardl--, but the temper of the whole church goes

back to Ol iba 's t ime, and, l ike Cuxa, i t has grand

scale and marked local feeling. A text ascribes

the interesting chevet to Tassi, who relbrmed

thc monastery ofSan Pere de Roda [55, 56] , and

obtained ro]'al French and papal diplomas for it

before his death in 958. A consecration is re-

ported in rozz. I t has becn establ ished by Seior

Gudiol Ricart that the building took its general

character at this time. The oldest work is a crypt

with an ambulatory, above which is an apse

with an ambulator]'. The ambulatory has an

upper gallery with windows which light the

apsc, and al tars were insta l led in i t ; one th inks

of Chartres (858), Char l ieu (r . 95o), Abbot

t.La

F-4trdlmPirururEl

-lir, L--

P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N S O U T H E R N E U R O p E g g

euarin (962), and Saint-B6nigne, Di jon (roor

lorT). Excellent ashlar stone was used for the

4chitectural membering. The applied columns,

the shape of the voussoirs, and the horseshoe

alches in an odd way recall Germigny-des-Pr6s,

which was built by Theodulph, who came from

this region'

San Pere de Roda has a trapezoidal sanctuary

bay, a transept with absidioles, and a capacious

nave with striking T-shaped piers; the latter

have applied shafts with a varietJ' of beautiful

half-Moorish capitals related to those of Moz-

arabic Cuxa. Quadrant vaults with transverse

arches cover the tall narrow aisles; the nave and

transept are covered with tunnel vaulting, with

an arch spanning between each opposite pair

of piers. This higher and more elaborate nave

is believed to be the result of a change of plan

in the eleventh century. The resulting design

probably influenced the nave of the eleventh-

century church of Saint-Andr6-de-Sordde in

French Catalonia - an examole noted for its

ear lv sculp lu ls 1156.

\\ihile we have followed the convention in

calling this Catalan work Mozarabic and Lom-

bard, Sefror Gudiol Ricart is nearer the truth

in classifying it as a voung national style, like

the Asturian.T Further study of the monuments

and svstematic presentation would help greatly.

One final Mozarabic monument, in Castile,

mav be introduced. As a kind of swan song of

the style in the eleventh century we have the

extraordinary hermitage of San Baudelio de

Berlanga, near Burgos [57]. The plan is like

that of a Norse single-masted church with an

oblong sanctuary, but the superstructure, all

vaul ted, is very d i f ferent . I ts very b lockl 'and

austere exterior conceals an interior of fantastic

architectonic richness. A central cylindrical pier

rises to sustain a set ofeight radiating horseshoe

diaphragm arches, which carry a domical vault

with a very ingenious little shrine arranged in

57 ( helon). San Baudelio de Berlanga,

c l rventh eentur \ ' . u i th tucl f rh-centurr paint i t rgs

,W<--11.tr-. , nLr Y',-,

,,,,

.8;l;.

S4t : . Lourosa, par ish church , g rz and la te r

55 and 56 ( abue und right ). san Pere de Roda, near Gcrona, consecratcd rozz, f inishcd latcr

L-

I O O P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U I S T Y L E S

the masonrv above the pier. A raised choir,

really an oratory, is sustained prettily on a forest

of slender shafts placed in quadrille (oriental

f'ashion); horseshoe arches carry the platform.

Formerly the interior was decorated by anextraordinary series of frescoes, dated aboutrr5o, which symbolize the reorientation of thearea, toward France, for the style is quite

Romanesque.d

The strong tide of influence lrom the Moorish

South of Spain in the tenth century, which wehave been considering, also prevented the ex-pansion and further development of the Astu-rian proto-Romanesque style. When, with theprogress of reconquest, the capital was movedto Le6n, the kingdom was much more open tooutside influences than distant Asturias andGalicia had been. As the eleventh century pro-gressed, irresistible artistic influences camefrom France with political reorientation andthe reform of the church which was effected bvCluniac monasl ic c lerg_v f rom France. Thetwellth-century rebuilding of the Cdmara Santa

in Oviedo [58] shows this clearly.

Conversely, however, knowledge of Moorish

architecture increased greatly, from the year

rooo onward, among lay folk, technicians, anclchurchmen who had contacts with Spain. Suchknowledge was widespread in areas whereRomanesque architecture was being formed arthe time. Saracenic elements are, in conse-quence, a component of the mature Roman_

esque stv le.

T H E L O M B A R D K I N G D O M

The strange Tempietto of Santa Maria in Vallcat Cividale'r [59, 6o] is perhaps most easily expli-cable as a proto-Romanesque work Romanarchitecture surviving in a local variation underSaracenic influence, like the Asturian and Moz-arabic churches. Santa Maria is traditionalh

idenr i f ied wi th a bui ld ing bui l t by pel t ru. la

Q6z 76) atwhich time the Lombards had southItalian connexions. The building has a groin-

vaulted nave and a sanctuary with three parallel

tunnel vaults carried in an unstructural fashion

upon columns. As is the case with San Baudelio

de Berlanga, the exrerior is very plain and theinterior is very rich; possibly Moslem influence

lrom south Italy is responsible for this. There

are no horseshoe arches at Cividale. and we

$ (oplosite) and 6o. Cividale, Santa Maria in Valle, the "Iempictto', c.762 76(?)

,/'

. O

58. Oviedo Cathedral, Cirnara Santa, r. goz.The nalc somcwhar rebuilt, and embellished withsculpture in the twellih ccnturt

o 5 , {

f f i a ! -

t I, l

-lilrl

tl L-

I O 2 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

should not expect them here at this time; lbr

they spread only after being assimilated into

the Nloorish art of Spain.

There is clearly some outside influence in the

decorative stucco mouldings and bands of the

interior of Santa Maria. Stucco work was prac-

tised with rare art by the Saracens and Byzan-

tines; also more often than we are likely to

remember, by pre-Romanesque and Roman-

esque sculptors in both France and Germany.

What is most remarkable at Cividale is the per-

fect preservation of a frieze ol six beautiful

standing figures in stucco, gracefully posed, and

boldly model lcd l ike f ine Romanesque carv ings.

They were applied as integral plaques to the

wall. Perhaps a refugee from the Byzantine

iconoclastic controversy was the artist; even the

Byzantinism of the near-by Exarchate and

Venice would explain the character of the

sculptures.

The Lombards, aggressors against Rome and

Montecassino, are generally thought of as

destroyers. However, they had a fairly well

organized state, with administrative cadres at

Pavia, their capital. After the conquest (774) the

Franks utilized these cadres, and thev aided in

the task of setting up Charlemagne's empire.

Yet there are two established facts which give

the Lombards a place in the history of proto-

Romanesque architecture. Rotharis, the first of

their kings to issue laws in his own name,

registered the privileges of the builders in 643,

and thus had something to do with the organi-

zation and revival of architecture in the region.

Again, about 7 r 4, King Liutprand issued a dip-

lomr with respect to a price scale for architec-

tural and structural work.lo

Milan, the metropolis of Lombardy, had been

a great centre in classical times, and came to be

so again, especially after the conquest of Lom-

bardy by the Franks under Charlemagne (774\.

One would expect an architectural revival to

begin there, and indeed this occurred in

the ninth century. I{owever, King Rotharis's

P R O T O _ R O M A N E S Q T J E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N S O U T H t r R N E U R O P E r03

charter of 643 ref'ers to the builders as magistri

commacini or comacini, and on this basis it has

been supposed that there was a guild at Como

which created and spread Lombardic architec-

ture. If the Comacine rdgime was observed ovcr

a wide area, comacini may have come to mean

simply builders, as lambardos came to mean

masons, even in Spain. That there was a guild

organization of some sort, involving establishcd

ideas of responsibility, training, and compensa-

tion does not admit of doubt, and we owe Lom-

bardic architecture to the creative work of thesc

guildsmen. On the other hand comacini is an

obscure word, and it cannot be shown to have a

connexion with Como, nor can Como be shown

to have had a centra l 'masonic ' gui ld organiza-

tion of wide importance. The word comacinr

dropped out of use in the early Middle Ages.

Because pryX,avi in Greek, machina in Latin,

and rnacina in Italian may mean a frame or'

scaffold, magistri comacini has been interpreted

,naster-clmpanions of the sco.ffold. Because the

tradition of architecture was better maintained

in the Greek Exarchate than in Lombardy, thc

name may be connected with some obscure

Greek word - or e\en p4xayrrd6, which mean:

contriver or designing architect.lr Whatever the

meaning, the comacini wrought well in prepar-

ing the architectural revival in Lombardy.

T H E B Y Z A N T I N E E X A R C H A T E

After Rome's glorious period, the centre of ad-

ministration fbr Italy was moved to Milan (in

Diocletian's time) and then to Ravenna (4oz),

but the life of the Empire at that time was most

vivid in the East. Yet Milan was flourishing in

the period, which is that of St Ambrose, its grett

bishop (374-97), who baptized St Augusttne

there in 384. The abounding fertility of the l)o

Val ley kept Mi lan prosperous even dur ing thc

unhappy rule of the Lombards, and when thrt

was terminated (774), the region cam! into el e n

closer re lat ionships wi th i ts neighbours, papal

Rome and the Exarchate. This latter iurisdic-

tion was set up by the East-Roman Emperor

ylaurice about 6oo' was conquered by the Lom-

bards in 7<2, and, because they threatened the

pope,it was freed from their rule by Pepin III,

pho gave it to the Roman pontiffs (7-5.1 6).

The Byzantine Exarchate, with its continued

Eastern connexions, maintained an architecture

which was at one and the same time a living

continuation of Late Roman architecture and

an active outpost of the newly-constituted By-

zantine style.lr No other early medieval stvle

had so august a lineage. As Ravenna paled in

turn, the Ravennate style was simplified until it

could successfully be put at the service of the

struggling barbarian kingdoms. Thus, without

a break, it became a proto-Romanesque style.

Its roots and its stem are Roman; its branches

are authentically the First Romanesque style,

6r. Ravenna, Tomb of Galla Placidia, r. 45o

aptly so named by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, who

first clearly discerned the significance of this

fact. Outside the Exarchate, the style was first

used and spread by the Lombards, which iusti-

fies its older name, Lombardic. In the end it

made an architectural reconquest ofa large part

of the area of the West-Roman empire, and for

that reason the French have called the style

tmperi,tl, or Ju Bas-EnPire.

The Erarchate has several important Byzan-

tine monuments, which our exposition takes up

merely in their proto-Romanesque aspect.

Galla Placidia's 1'amous tomb 16rl, built in

the decade or two before 45o, looks towards

Romanesque architecture through its perfectly

straightlbrward brick exterior, with simple cor-

bels and decorative arcading of the sort which

becomes the most ('amiliar adornment of the

First Romanesque sty le.

b-

r 0 4 P R E - R O M A N E S Q U E A N D p R O T O _ R O M A N E S Q U E S T y L E S

62. Ravenna, San Vitale, .526 47

San Vi ta le (Sz6-+l) [62] has a number of in-teresting f-eatures. Its plan suggested that ofthePalatine Chapel at Aachen, where the columnar

screens are simplifications of its pierced apses.'I'he

entrance-tower-and-reliquary chapel atAachen with its stairwavs is, though difi 'erentlvproportioned, partly dependent on the narthex

of San Vitale. This is true of the westwork ofSaint-Riquier also. The exterior of San Vitalehas decorative arcading and pilaster strips whichare bolder and more medier.al in 1brm than

those of the mausoleum of Gal la p lacid ia andare hencc to be counted in the prehistory ol'thcFirst Romanesquc style.

Flanking the apse at San Vitale there are twopylons somewhat resembling those of'the con_

P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N S O U T H E R N E U R O P E I O 5

temporar\, Svrian architecture. In I'act, San

Vita le has three types of tower the pylons ju:r

mentioned, a round stair tower attached to the

narthex, and its mate, carried up to form .l

cylindrical belfrv aftcr the Benedictines took

over the church in g r o. L3

Pylons, though thel 'are occasional ly .seen in

the early church architccture ol'the West, clid

not have a long history there. -I'he

round stair

tower continued in use, usually on a small scalc.' l 'here

were except ions l ike the I r ish round

towers, the f lanking sta i r towers ol ' Sainr-

B6nigne, Di jon (real ly Lombard First Romancs-

que), minor towers of cer ta in German churche s

(like Trier Cathedral), the belfrv of Pisa Carh-

edral (the famous leaning tower), one importanr

Soanish church (Fr6mista) . and a group ol

l iu t .h. t in and near Rarennai but the round

tower plays a distinctly minor role in church

design. Even the engaging idea ofa chapel at the

top ofa round tower ' recorded in the plan ofSt

Gall, was never represented as far as we know in

an actual building. The square belfry tower,

adumbrated at San Lorenzo in Milan (t. Zlil,

started supposedly with the one added in 754

to the east front ofOld St Peter's, spread rapidlv

to Lombardy and thencc, through the First

Romanesque style, became almost universal.

A bell large enough to be heard at a distance

could not properly and decorously be rung from

the crossing space ofa church becluse ofits verv

$eat inertia. Thus inevitabl.v the exterior belfr5'

wall (bell-cote or wall belfrl') and, for grcater

height, the belfry tower, were developed, the

nrme campanile being doubtfully connected

withCampania. ra

The Benedictines. centred at \Iontecassino,

which is in Canrpania, carll ' adoptcd bclls

Nothing certain remains at \'lontecassino, vet

Benedictines built some of the carliest known

belfry towers, in l'act square belfries veritable

Roman ,arra.s, built up integrally from the

ground at Ravenna. Earliest is that of San

Giovanni (Benedict ine in 89J); San Pier NIag-

giore has a contemporary square belfr-v, accord-

ing to Corrado Ricci. A sign of'carly date in the

various belfiies ofRavenna, he observes, is the

fact that thel,are not s]'stematic in their location

with regard to rhe churches. l :

Most important is thc fact that the squirre

belfry was adoptccl early in Lombardy', and

spread thence to Burgundl', where it appcaredoetore the end of tho renth centurv.

'l 'hrough

Abbot Odo of Clunv and his successors, wh<lxnew Lombardl wel l , thc squ:rre bel f rv becametami l iar in northern EuroDe. Both the narthcx ol 'Saint-Philibert at

'I 'ournus (rlatcd about t.;<.1o

totg) and that of the second church ar Clunr.bu i l t be twecn 948 o r q55 and t 18 r . r u r . l . . o - -ptete by the 1,car rooo, had a pair of beltiies on

the west f'agade, flanking the main door. At

Cluny the crossing beltry, instead of being a

wooden turritus uqet, was built as an oblong

tower of somewhat Lombard character' 'I 'his

process is a perl'ect case of a Roman idea living

on in the Exarchate, taking medieval form there,

and, after being systematized by monastic prac-

tice, being spread to Lombardy and thence to

great areas of Western Christendom.

Sant 'Apol l inare in Classe (S: : +9), though a

fine basilica ol'the ancient type, is also import-

ant lrom the point of view of incipient medi-

evalism. 'l 'he

apse and thc lateral chapels at the

east end build up in boldly articulated forms

which lbrecast the vigorous handling of masses

in medieval architecture. -I'he

bold west front

has an arcaded axia l porch; the adio in ing dwarf

tower with its mate (now destroyed) made a

pair of 'py lons l t the fbgade.r t ' Sant 'Apol l inarc

also has an archaic example of the ambulatorv

crvpt like that ot Olcl St Peter's. It is sometimes

dated as earll as 8oo; at anl rate it is an addition,

and probablv o l ' the ninth centur l ' .

Also interesting fbr our purpose is the upper

part of the Bapt istery 'ofNeon in l tavenna, pos-

sessing an undl ted but ear l l ' example of the

pilaster strip with arched corbel-table between,

which is to be the hal lmark of the First Roman-

esque st1 ' lc , rvherer-er i t is lbund, in I ta ly, Dal-

mat ia, France, Spain, Switzer land, and Ger-

many. 'I'his

part of the Baptisterv wall is olien

ascr ibed to the eighth centurv, but i t ma1'be

car l ier .

The same appl ies to the f iont ispiece of the

so-cal led Palace of thc Exarchsrt [6 j1. Here we

have a bui ld ing which is cxtraordinar i l .v l ike the

maturc Romanesque of Lombardl l'et in f unc-

t ion l ike thc gu:rrd quarters of ' thc ( -halk i at thc

main entrancc of the Sacrcd Palace in C,onstan-

t inople. The porch, guard room rv i th dormitor '1.

courtl'ard, and chapcl of the Sar iour, are orga-

nized in Blzant ine fashion, and were probablv

built, with the protcctive palace wall, when the

Lomb l r t l s b t ' g l n t o c \ l end t hc i r pouc r . a l t e r

iili L-

I O O P R E . R O M A N E S Q U E A N D P R O T O - R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

63. Ravenna, Palace ofthe Exarchs, after 7rz

7r2. All was surely built befbre the f'all of the

Exarchate in 752, and is descr ibed as old by

Agnello, writing befbre 85o. Yet the wall-work

ofbig bricks, the paired openings, the decorarivc

arcading, the vlulting, and the buttressing ale

practicall]- identical with Lombard Roman-

esque work produced in the four following

centur ies.

Corrado Ricci bel ieved that Romanesque

terracot ta insets as lbr example at Pomposa

P A R I T W O

THE EARL IER ROMANE,SQUE STYLES

illI

[3or] in the porch and campanile built in thc

eler,enth century by Abbot Guido ol'Ravenna

are of Ravennate or ig in. Other f 'catures of thc

citv's architecture were also widely known ancl

copied. Theobald, b ishop of Arezzo, speaks 01'Nlaginardo

arte architectonica optime erudit,i

whom he sent to study in Ravenna in the vear

Ioz6. Nlaginardo moved on a rvell-trarellerl

road. to a I'amous source of architectural

knowledge. lT

C H A P T E R 5

T H E . F I R S T R O M A N E S q U E '

L O M B A R D Y

The style created about the year 8oo in Lom-

bardy became the first reallv intern:rttonirl

Rornan..qn. style. Its ramifications were earll-

spread to Dalmatia, to southern France and

Catalonia, to Burgundy, to the Rhine countrv'

and even to Hungary' Late Carolingian work'

as we shal l see, formed a strong' sat is f ic tor ] '

and consistent style in the west of'France' with

imposing monuments (now lost) to its credit'

It had an excellent s-vstem of lvall constructlon

developed by the Gallic masons' but no tradi-

tion for vaulting on a large scale or at high ler els'

In the other regions named, the incoming Lom-

bardic style pushed local building methods into

discard; western France maintained its own

traditions unaffected by the 'First Roman-

esque' .

It was no mere 'style' in the literary sense

which was transmitted from the Exarchate to

Lombardy, but a living and efrfrcacious s-Ystem

of building, with a particular skill in vaulting'

In this we recognize Rome's ancient skill in co-

ordination. T'he practical, working s-vstcms

which produce a building are more important

than literary-minded critics suspect' and can

only be appreciatcd to the fu l l by personal

participation in the intricate teamwork b1'which

successful building operations are conducted

This aspect of the art can be traced tiom Ra-

venna to the comacine masters' and thence into

the current of Romancsqur; archi tect ure '

In the Dark Ages there was littlc building

which calted lbr the scrvices ofhighl!'instructed

prol'essional men, but there rvas probably never

a timc ruhen such nren rvere unavailable'

-l'he man who drew the plan of St Gall was

like a Greek p4XatrroE- the Greek namc tor an

'.rrchitect W4avi being the worcl for an intrl-.

cate device ol some sort ' The d 'p4rccrctav ot

the Greeks rvas a responsible, somewh'rt inde-

pendent 'clerk of the works''1 William of Vol-

o iano. abbot of 'Saint-B6nigne , Di ion, was both

1*1 Xav rx 6; and' itp pr trc trov "'

r e'- c.r e nd u s a b h a s

mugistrtts condttcentlo et ipsum rtpus tbctond0 ' tnsu-

t lautes t l ignun t l i i ' ino cul tu i tentplunt t l t ts t ru-

xerunt ' .2 Under medieral condi t ions the patron

would generally have a delegate to manage his

sirle of ihe builtling opcration' which might in-

clucle supply and transport o1'materials' Leo of

Ostia. u'ho carefullv described the rebuilding

of \[ontecassino b1. Abbot Desidenus' was pro-

bably the abbot's dclegate' l 'he master builder'

like ihe Greek dpVtircrrr;t' ' would direct the

r,arious groups of master masons and work

gangs. Gangs would hale their forcmen on a

iarg, proje.t, and somc would actuall-v come as

teams t o t hc s i t e .

The magistri in charge ol thc practtcal con-

struct ion lould hui lc l a rcr l bui ld ing' even i t .

the l1ryXavffi6E or 'idea man' gar'e them only a

L-

T H E . F I R S ' T R O M A N E S Q U E I 0 9

I O I ' E A R I - I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

linear diagram with the chief' dimensions as

guide, because exper ience, in that age of con-

vcnt ional and even habi tual procedurcs, d ic-

tated the sizc and matcrial of the walls. as well

as thc spans and the intcrior proportions. T'hat

is how the plan of St Gal l could sat is iy an ear ly

medieval master . ' I 'he dimensioned descr ipt ion

o1' thc abbc-v of Clunv of 1o,13 was madc f rom a

simi lar l inear d iagram, as we know from the

obserrcd fact that many-of the dimensions in-

c lude a room or corr idor width p lus one wal l .

With incrcasing s ize and compl icat ion in

buildings, a more numerous group o(' proii's-

sional desig;ncrs and clerks of the works came

into being the magistri par excellence. Evi-

dcncc lbr thern in the earll' period is shadowl',

but in Gothic t imcs their funct ion is f ar too wel l

recognizcd ancl too spccialized to be of recent

creation. 'l 'he

myth o1'thc dc\'oted f'aithful spon-

taneouslv ra is ing mcdicval shr ines is d issolr . ing,

now that re ier lnt documentarv evidencc lbr the

bui ld ings has bcen discorercd and studied. '

Unt i l the torvns and the monaster ies becamc

large, the masons neccssarilv worked as travel-

l ing bands. I t was the same wi th bel l - fbunders,

glass-makers, stucco workers, l resco painters,

and mosaicists, fbr a longer period. Bernardo,

who had l French name, and fiIn' master

masons, manv of thcm indubitablv French.

were crrlled b1' bishop Diego Pcldez to work

( t rom ro7-q onwards) at thc rcmore Gal ic ian

cathedral ofSant iago de Composteh. Yct Abbor

Suger lt Saint-Denis, onlv a f'erv miles from

medieval Paris, was no better oll. When his

grc l t church rvas undertaken (about r r1.5) he

rvas obl iged, as he sa\s, to cal l craf ismen f rom

var ious rcgions and considerable c l is tances.a

A,n atelier thus assembled might become

rooted; i t would gi r .e t ra in ing to local ta lent ,

and in time become a centre lrom rvhich crafts-

men coulc l he sent e lservhere. Wi l l iam o{ 'Vol-

p iano brought craf ismen l rom his nat ive Lom-

barcl r . , and i t is bel ieved that thei 'worked on his

abbel church in Di jon, begun in roor. From

the abbey of F6camp in Normandy, wh116

Wil l iam ruled, he received the plea: ' In 16.

mattcr o{ ' the craf tsmen sf our bui ld ings whiqS

we arc commencing, we beseech that you \ill

hastcn to send them to us, fbr we reall-v nce4

them Q,alde nnbis necessarii sunt)' - in a regiol

which was slowly recovering from the devasrr-

tions and (afier g r o) the new immigration of the

Norsemen.5

For a considerable area this process o{'crlli

dilfusion started in Lombardv. Lomhardus bc-

came the word for mason at an early pcriod.

Clearlr, the more-than-half-Latin Lombard

builders were onlv doing for the revir,ed Empir.r

what their forebears had done for the Romrn

Empire.

One might cal l the First Romanesque str lc

the st.vle ofthis Italian architectural reconqucsr.

I t is worth not ing also that a large port ion of

the work was clone lbr the monasteries. q'hich

from the ear l l " tenth century onwards becanre

increasinglv the instrument of papal pol icv and

implcmented the first stages of the pontific..il

conqucst of Europe which Gregory VI I and

Boni lhce VI I I achieved. Rome. revi r .ed once

again in the Renaissance, made another anrl

more lami l iar archi tectural reconquest .

The magistr i nmacini1 had more than thc

ancient re putat ion of ' I ta l ian bui ldcrs to recom-

mend them. 'l 'hey

had a new type of wall con-

struction, r'hvthmically decorated and pleasanr

to look at , which lvas pracr ical and proved i rs

tuscf u lness over the rvhole lv ic le area o1' the Firsr

Romanesque stvle, e\.en where conditions wer(

pr imi t ive. Thev adoptcd the B1'zant ine typc 0l

oblong brick (rvhich, because of thc mapistrr.

has come dorvn to us) and bui l t whole wal ls o l

it as we do. without fbrm work. instcacl of mak-

ing puddlcd concrete wal ls laced wi th t r iangular

ta i l ing br ick held b-v-- fbrms, as the Romans did

Such comacine walls wcre called opus ronra-

rr r rs, ' . ' fhc

ancient Romans had used facing

stoncs also, but the First Romanesque wal l -

work which der.eloped from this was called zrpr.ri

iio.r. tntt was doubtless suggested by the

,i i .n, rO,' spt(d.tu.tn or herr ingbone worl ' and

ir l iounat in bui ldings of the F irst Romrnesqut

lrtn "", , t

the elevcnth.centurr" ' l

he heart ing

^ j .o r . o f a s tone wa l l uas no t pudd led in

iroro, inr iat t facing and lbrm' but \4as rather

a rough rubble laid with some care'"'inJun.i.", credit is given these men lbr their

skill in finding excellent materials for therr mor-

"t, *nl.ft is almost invariably of good qualitv'

*h"r"u., found. It makes the wall-work endur-

, , , . , , - The masons merely spl i t smal l s tones

[r tut""" .^ ^ h" ic l r - l ike shaoe. and used them

ing, ancl the vaul ts sol id and st long The wal ls

were ofien covcred \\ ith stucco, which was occa-

sionallv ruled with tblse ioints to represent

ashlar. Ilut stucco, properly applied' has a

beauty o l i ts own. I t has too of ten been str ipped

{ iom inter iors; on the exter iors i t vanishcs in

about two hunclred vears '

\ - au l t s we rc hu i k , l i ke Romln rau l t s ' o r c r

centering or f-alse-work u'hich provided a great

support i ;g mould. Short l i t t le boards held in

poritio., bl trusses and poles formed the bed'So-.tim.,

earth was heaped on the tbrms lnd

moulded, where the Sieometrv of the vault was

difficult. On thc fbrm' roughll-' shapcd stones

wcre laid in mortar' and the haunches ol the

vault were brought up with hearting work ln

t!"i"iiio'" a- bri ck-ri k e. sh lt': ::1. I ilL .l ll]toub'"J

s or rounded r i rcr

i ik. bri.k"': '9i ' i1 : l ' l^:,. ^ _.r i.o^ninr rsrr

fi ,;, 1',t I *" ::Tl':: I I :."Tf,'l,Tll"-",1:[*;;; ' into

horizontalcourses ot : i l t ' l . t l l :

64. Milan, San Vincenzo in PrJto' eleventh ccnturv' in tradition of church of r llr4 33, liom the south-east

irii L-_

\

I I O E A R L I E R R O J \ T A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

the First Romanesque style, p5roin vaults were

freely used; apses were regular ly vaul ted, and

tunnel vaults were also common. In lvork which

can surelv be traced to Lombards, tunnel vault-

ing is little, and r,erv cautiouslv, used at high

levels. For crossing r ,aul ts the Lombards used

a derivative ol'the Roman domical or octagonal

c lo ister vaul t , rather than the Byzant ine dome.

The Lombardic crypts, groin-vaulted or,er a

quadrille ofcolumns, are characteristic, and are

widelv used wi th in the area of the sty le.

By the tenth centurv architectural member-

ing of ashlar was again in use. Second-hand

columnar capi ta ls and shaf ts were b1 th is t ime

almost unobtainable. The practice ofmaking big

blocks especiallv for their places brought about

a progressir e impro\ emcnt in t he masonrr ' .

65. Agliate, San Pietro, chevet, style ofr. 87s

Milan, the Lombard capital, has lost its Carqr

lingian and First Romanesque buildings. These

have, however, a good representative in the

simple columnar basilica of San Vincenzo in

Prato [64], a brick structure so conser\.ativel\

rebuilt in the eleventh century that it was ac-

cepted (except certain details) as the church of

r . 8r4 j3. i I ts only vaul t ing is in the thrct

parallel apses, henceforth characteristic of this

type ofbuilding. 1'his part ofSan Vincenzo has

the te l l - ta le Fi rst Romanesque pi laster srr ips

and arched corbel tables, with typical arched

recesses under the ea.r'es of the main apse.

San Pietro at Agl iate, near Mi lan, rhough

now assigned to the eleventh century, well rcp-

resents work of the date former l t 'a t t r ibuted ro

i t , , . 875 [6S' ] . I t has a basi l ican nave and ruo

, is les, carr ied on re-used columns' wi th a \aul t

^*r r t ta sancluar\ h lvs and apses a( thc head of

i le composir ion l 'he bui ldcrs d id nol rent t t re

i ' . I . . . r , o r . unde r t he t unne l r au l t i ng o l t he

lrn.r , ,ur , ba1 s ' but the apses were picrccd u i rh

n indo* t r s usua l ' l b r t he t h rus t o l a sem idomc

i, mu.tt less than that of tunnel or groin vault-

lg. fh. sanctuarv plattbrm is raised at San

pi-atro, ""a

there is a spacious groin-\'aulted

crypt *ith lirteral entrances under this plat(brm'

at the pavement level ol' the church as at

Sant'Apollinare in Classe' San Pietro at Agliate

is stone-built. ofcrude but attractive wall-work'

and a compar ison of the oldest parts wi th the

twelfth-centurY campanile will show how easil-v

theaccomplished mature Romanesque gre\l' oLlt

of the more pr imi t ive stv le ln passing' the

baptistery should be mentioned as a companlon

example of a building of the central n'pe

(about goo).

Santo Stefano in Verona. rebuilt about 99o,

has a cr1 'pt and an apse, each of 'which is sup-

plied with an ambulatorv, the upper one open-

ing on the main apse through an arched colon-

nade. Ivrea Cathcdral (be(bre rooz) has the

wreck o f a s im i l a r cons t ruc l i on . '

Before leal ing these ear lv bui ld ings. ment ion

should be made ol screral interest ing monu-

men ts wh i ch show con t i nu ing B rzan t i ne i n -

fluence in Lombardl'. San Satiro at \Iilan (ti76)

is, except for Renaissance additions, a perlect

Byzantine four-column church. Its tower, dated

about ro43, is one of the ear l iest of the charac-

ter is t ic Lombart l square toners. ' lhe

apse of

Sant'Ambrogio has mosaics dating from about

94o, when the present svstem of cr1.pt, choir

apse, and flanking sanctuaries was built'

Three monuments near the borders of Lom-

bardy show the First Romanesque stvle on the

threshold of maturity, lacking onh' the greater

finish of execution and perhaps the sculptural

embellishment which are lbund in the Sccond

Romanesque style. 'lhe

lirst of these buildings

is the bant is terv of Bie l la, near Norara, a cen-

t H n ' n l n s t R o M A N E S Q U F .

tralized edifice clated about to4o, with sophisti-

cated use of squinches and but t resses, though

rough in construction. Nlore conventional is the

stone-bui l t basi l ica of San Paregor io at Nol i , "

{est of Genoa in L igur ia. I ts exter ior is u 'e l l

composed lnd gracclulll ' dccorated lvith pilaster

strips and arched corbel tables. f'he apses' the

cr\pt , and the ais les are vaul ted. Substant i t l

p iers of ' logical ly ' grouped elements sustain thc

r,aulting and the high clerestorv wall' ' l 'his

was

a ler-v acccptablc tYPe of bui ld ing xt the t ime'

about rozo 4o. The th i rd monument, San

Pietro at Civate, near Como and Lecco, is dated

irbout ro4o. I t is a double-ender ' u i th the en-

trance passage flanked prettill.b-v two absidiolcs

{bcing east lvithin the mass of the western apse'

' l 'hese three elements open upon a wooden-

roof'ed nave through three arches beneath a

tvmpanum fiescoed rvith the Victorl o'r'er Elil '

' fhe al tar of San Pietro h ls a rcmarkable o ld

baldacchino resembl ing that of Sant 'Ambrogio

in NI i lan.

D A L M A T I A

The f urther spread of the Lombard st1--le' and

the round church tvpc, are both exemplificd in

San Donato N Zad^r (Zara), Yugoslavia, bui l t

dur ing thc Frankish occupat ion (8tz '76) - or

at latest befbre 9,19, when it was describccl i ')

This bui ld ing has an interest ing ant ic ipat ion of

the ambulatory with radiating chapels An an-

nular aisle surrounds the central space' irnd

opens on i t through arches, which are s ingle ex-

cept at the east, rvhere there are three arches

rust ing on columns. Opposire lhese t - rprnings

are the three apses. Cont inuing f rom the apses

(to each s ide) the enclosing wal l h: rs a ser ics of

n iche recesses.

C A T A L O N I A A N D A N D O R R A

Westwarcl expansion of the First Romanesque

stvle across thc south of Frirnce fiom Lombardv

^L--

T H E . F I R S T R O M A N I ] S Q U E r l 3

I I 2 E A R L I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

is certa in but not wel l marked by ear ly. monu-

ments, though work of Fi rst Romanesque char-

acter surv ives in the cathedral of Vence. Thc

stv le sureh camc to ( ,ata lonia bv land and by ' .

sea. I 'he Catalans, then as now l iv ing on both

slopes of' the Pr,renees in Rousillon and the

eastern part of the Sprnish N{arch of Charle-

magne, werc in a lbrtunate period, rvhen the

Countl' of'Barcelona was flourishing;. The new

modc at first coalesccd with and then sup-

planted a stronglv Nlozarabic architectural st\1e.

N{anv goocl examples xere bui l t , and st i l l sur-

v i r ,e a lmost unchanged in back-countrv p laces

lvhich have cscapcd thc der'.rstating effccts of'

la ter prosper i ty . The resul t is that the I r i rs t

Romanesque sty le is bet ter reprcsented in Cata-

lonia than anywhere elsc.r l

I t must be noted that the stv le, rv i th i ts

characteristic masonrv rvork and decorative sys-

66. \Iontserrat, Santa Cecilia, giT or latcr,fiom the east

tem, came into a region which bui l t successl i r l

tunnel vaults related to Roman, \Ioslern, ,r111

perhaps Provenqal e xamples. ' l 'he

resul t rnq

tunnel- \ . ru l ted work is more proper l t cal l rc l

Lombardo-Catalan I i i rs t Romanesque.- fhe

interest of the stv le residcs in i ts ex|111

vaul t ing at an ear l ) 'date, though wooden-rool id

churches were also bui l t . Senvor Puig i ( .at l r r -

l h l ch be l i eves t ha t r au l t ed cons t ruc t i on t an l r q

traccd back to the middle o l the tenth cenrur\ ,

He da t cs t hc chu rch o l ' L 'Ec l use (La C lu : r r 1 .

norv in French Catalonia (a is led, wi th th lee

paral le l tunnel vaul ts) , about 95o; so also Santa

\{ar i r at Amer, dedicated in 949; and Sanra

Ccci l ia de Montserrat [66] an interest inq

church, perhaps the one dedicated in 957. In

that 1'ear St Stephen at Baiiolas rvas rebuilt in

the same wav af te r being burned bv Norsemen.'I'hese

buildings had thcir slopinpt stone roots

61i direct ly ol . ' . t lbblt

f i l l ing abore the web

^iiif,. r.rut,. uhich is practical in southern but

lnt in not,h.tn cl imales Conserrartre oprnlonti iat

of Senor Gudiol.Ricart in part icular) dates

)iJ.nur.t t t t somewhat later ' Low and unas-

l"r;"t , the structures are ver] happily related

,] i l sett ing. with a look of natural obiects

rather than buildings''*"Tur,

"fr.t the year rooo a notable example of

this vaulted Lonbardo-Catalirn stvlc was built

sn 1 pi.tut..que spur of the hugc moun-

,ri" rn"* callecl the Canigou,r: above Prades

in Fr.n.h Catalonia' Long-continued neglect

trda "

,..,orrtion nccessar-v about sixt-v-five

,.rr, "go, but the work was well and lovingly

ion. ,o that the building stands irs a witness'

complete in its inspiring original setting' to the

architectrr. of that remotc agc [67-q]' ('harac-

teristically it is a monasterl- (dedicated to St

lrol[[li'i W,W,m

ilq\

I

i 5 n

6r rnd 68. Saint-\'lartin-du-(-anigou, roor z0

(rrstorccl), intcrior and anall tical perspcctir e

>--

69. Saint- . \4art in-du-Canigou. Ioor 2() ( rcstorcd).

view from the south

Martin) with the austere, solidly built church

and conventual quarters arranged about a small

cloister. The rooms command lovely views.

Awinding approach road leads to and through

a splendid big tower, strategically placed and

crowned with Moorish stepped battlements

which break its substantial mass against the skv

as happily as the characteristic pilaster strips

and arched corbel tables model its ample sur-

faces. This tower composes beautifully with

the rocky masses and with the building group;

it is contiguous to the church on the north-east.

The church is on two levels. Its crypt has

tunnel vaulting with transverse arches carried

on two frles ofgrouped piers, except at the head,

where there are two oblong piers and two

columns carrying a set of nine groin vaults iustin front ofthe three apses. Beyond the west end

ofthe church crypr there is another, which sup-ports a platform in front ofthe church proper.

The latter is as long as the two crypts together,ilnd consequently the three church apses extendbeyond the crypt rpr.r, to*r.ds the east.

For its period, the superstructure of thechurch is a remarkable achier,ement. The threelong tunnel vaults which cover the nave haveonly ten interior supports two sets of four

columnar shafts with simply-can'ed capitals,

separated bl two grouped piers support ing

arches which greatly strengthen the middle part

of the building, where a tunnel vault is most

likely to collapse. The tower, the lateral recesses

(including a chapel with a quadrant vault), and

the monastery buildings abut the high vault so

well that only a fraction of it collapsed during

a century's neglect of the rooling surface after

the secularization and abandonment of the site

i n r 785 .

The church interior is lighted only from the

ends, which might seem to be a defect in the

building - but, in f-act, many of the monastic

services take place at night. Also, it was usual

for the monks to know large parts of their liturgy

by-heart, and therefore natural light was not so

important.

Clearly, Saint-Martin-du-Canigou is an ex-

cellent piece of architecture: the more so be-

cause it is of earl-v date - roor to roog (for a

preliminary consecration) and Ioz6. The monk

Sclua, who superintended the building, became

the f i rs t abbot in roI4, apparent ly-af ter a pre-

liminary regime under Oliba, abbot of Ripoll

and Cuxa, later bishop of Vich (Ausona)' whom

we have al ready ment ioned.rr

I 1 6 E A R L I D R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

f'he architecture of the period came to a high

point at the monastery of Ripoll under Oliba.

A spacious cruciform church with double aisles,

transept, and seven apses was begun about rozo

(possiblv incorporating some older work), and

dedicated to the Virg in on r January ro3z) l

[7o-3]. Afier many vicissitudes the building

was restored (imperf'ectly, romantically, and

too radically), between r886 and r893. Its mag-

nificent plan was unmistakably inspired by Old

St Peter 's in Rome, and the vaul t ing as un-

mistakabll.by Roman imperial works. The nave

vault is modern, but parts ofthe transept vault

are old. Santa Maria de Ripoll was without

doubt one of the grandest works in the First

Romanesque sty.le. The rough stone, which is

usual in the stv le, and the heavy, obstruct i le

piers (which made the modern tunnel vault pos-

sible) give a sombre character, but it must be

remembered that the church had extensive fres-

coes, a iewelled altar, and a mosaic pavemenr

with animals and sea monsters. The chief strr_

viving embellishment of the building is a carlg6

doorway ofthe twelfth century, connected iconr

ographically wirh manuscripts created in thr

scriptorium which flourished from about g5o.

Ripoll was one of the lights of its age. ft had

a large library (246 volumes in ro46), and it5

school was illustrious for works of historr,,

poetry, astronomv, music, and mathematics.L;

The range of Ol iba 's own act iv i r ies is indicatcd

by his personal friendships with Pope Beneclict

VI I I , wi th Gaucel in, the great abbot of Fleurv,

and (it is said) with Hugh of Semur who became

abbot of Cluny shortly after Oliba's death.'I'he

stone sculpture at Saint-Martin-clu-

Canigou, Cuxa, and Vich is not remarkablc l

but at Ripoll there are still in existence a lcrv

interesting pieces which show the influence of

fine Moorish workmanshipr(, [7r]. With good

7o and 7r. Ripoll, Santa \'Iaria, r. rozo 3z (restolerlr886 g3), inter ior (nare vaul t modern), andcapital in N{crorish stvle. tenth or cler enrh centurr

rz and 73 -Ripoll. Santa \4aria' r ' ro2o-.12 (restored

ilan and ui"* lrom thc south-cast

L

T H F - ( F I R S T

R O M A N [ , S Q U E ' I I 9

I I t J E A R L I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y I - E S

stonc-carvers becoming available in Catalonia,

and because the milieu was intellectual, it may

be supposed that some members of Oliba's circle

suggested the serious, doctrinal use of figure

sculpture on church exteriors - a noveltJ' in

Western Christendom. In f'act, thc use of apoca-

lyptic themes carved in relief on church portals

was initiated in early eleventh-century Cata-

lonia, and with it one of the most brilliant

episodes in the historv of sculpture. Concur-

rently, the use of ligural decoration on the

arcades of cloisters inaugurated one of its most

poet ic cpisodes. tT

Such enlarged use ofrrpocah'ptic iconography

was the more natural in view of thc special

interest which northern Spain and southern

France had in the subject, resulting lrom imag-

inatively illustrated and widely circulated manu-

scripts of the Commentary on the Apocalypse

bv Beatus of Li6bana (78o). 'Ihe

church of.

Saint-Genis-des-Fontaines has the oldest pre-

served architectural example, a marble lintel

dated rozo-r , wi th Chr ist in g lo ly, two angels,

and s ix of ' the apost les. The f igure carv ing is

obviously archaic, and hardlt glyptic in style:

it looks like a cop-v of stucco-lvork or metal re-

pouss6 [74]. Saint-Andr6-de-Sordde (inspired

7-1. Saint-Genis-des-Fontaines, churclr, lintel, ro-:.o I

by half-Moslem San Pere de Roda, as Serior

Gudiol Ricart says) has a similar lintel, more 61

less contemporary, but showing details of Nlrs-

lem or ig in. On the fagade of the church of Ar lcs-

sur-Tech, Iater a Cluniac pr ior . r , is a cr , rsr .

datable to ro46, wi th Chr ist in g lory and the

s1 mbo l s o f t he l bu r evange l i s t s . r s

The marble employed is local. It has bccn

used since antiquity. Well-carved altars wcre

made of it and exported; late examples turn up

in Clun1, ( rog5) and Toulouse (ro96).r 'q ' l 'h is

same marble was also used for cloister capitals,

lbr example at Cuxa in French Catalonia and

at Toulouse.

The intellectual and art-loving Cluniac

monks, who used Resurrection iconographl in

their liturgical processions, had priories at

Saint-Beat, Saint-Pons-de-Thomidres (ro13o).

and Arles-sur-Tech; it is certain that thel- cr;l-

laborated in the spread and development of th is

sculpture for cloisters and portals. Of this more

will be said later. In the architectural construc-

tions of the earlier period there are man) scrl-

tered examples of sculptural ernbellishment.' l 'het 'occur

between 975 and ro8o in Burgunt l l ,

Saxon England, German.v, and Byzantium, btrt

the-y cannot (at an-v rate for the present) be con-

nected in so conr inc ing and purposeful a sysrem

tj l " ,uf i r t i . dcte lopment as can lhese doct l ina]

l l r i r " , French Catalonia ' Languedoc' and

lrter BurgundJ'-

R. turning for another momcnt to Catalonia '

*a try t"t that thc foreign influences lntro-

," .aa inro thc archi tccture about rhe \car looo

]u"ntut l t l brought the marurc Romanesquc to

, f r . i t .g i "n ' hut meanwhi le mant tardr ex-

,*0f . , of rn. Fi rst Romanesqtre were s l i l l pro-

i 'o 'JJ. rn. i , apse: and. tower: g i re much

""i.r".,.,

to the countrvsidc This is particu-

"r i , "u. in . \ndorra ' th ich is ( in a wa)) but

t le 'cont inuat ion of Catalonia Santa (o loma'

.nnaorrr, has a handsome round tower of

,*.tf,fr-i.ntu.1. style' Later Catalonia produced

many beautif'ully finished works in the maturer

,ryt., *fti.ft in its turn was much cherished'

f'frri ls tt . explanation of the contract signed in

l r 75 ( r ea l l y i n t he Go th i c pc r i od ) bc t r veen t he

Chapter of the Seo de Urgel and Raimundus

Lambardus, who engaged to work on the cathe-

dral with four compani on lanbudtts' The

church they built is an excellent example ofthc

mature Lombard Romanesquc st-vle [233']'

This old st-vle was not cntirely givcn up when

the Gothic eventuall,v reached Catalonia' Verv

often the sun-baked sober brown bulk of a

thirteenth-centur-y cathcdral or a fburtccnth-

centurv tower will be esscntiallv Romanesque'

The church paintings long retained a Roman-

esque imprint.io 'I'he

beautiful museum at

Barcelona includes rc-mounted ficscoes, balda-

cchinos, altar lrontals, and many other obiects

associaterl with the culr. 'I 'here

is no place rvhere

a better contact with ccrtain spiritu:rl aspects ol

Romanesque art ma]' be attained.

'l 'ournus and the regions around Clun.v and

Diion (whither the st-vle was brought about 9tl7

or roor by William o{'Volpiano), we follow it to

Romainm6tier,rr which becamc Cluniac in gz9'

For the existing church, the date 996 and later

is acceptable, because of the resemblance of the

olclest parts ofthe building to thc second church

a t C lunv (948 o r r . 955 8 I ) [ r o4 ' I o5 ; '

T H E K I N G D o M o t ' A R r . l r s

We have alreaclv sccn the expirnsion of the Lom-

ba rd F i r s t Romanrsque s l \ l c i n l o L i gu r i r : i t

moved up the Rh6nc Valle-v to Switzcrland and

Germanv in the tenth centurv. Leaving asidc

G E R N I A N Y

St M:rry, the circular chapel with radiating ab-

sidioleson the Feste Nlarienburg, at Wiirzburg'

has been claimed as a monument of 7o6, but tts

identification is not certain and its Lombardic

featurcs appear to be of later date'12 There was

a continuing penetration of Germany b-v Italian

in l lucncc f rom Char lemagne's t ime onrvards '

but eristing examples with'First Romanesque'

f'eatures look to the practiscd e1'e less like the

lrorks of Italian architectural missionarics than

likc the achicvements o('Germatrs trained in the

tradition of Carolingian building, vet rvilling to

improve their vaulting technique and to adopt

,u.h f-.",u.., as Lombarcl pilaster strips':rrched

corbel tables, and block capi ta ls ' Goocl German

r,r'all construction, f'accd with ercellent ashlar'

was super ior to Lombard First Romanesquc

ooork. and the grand t radi t ion of Carol ingian

monument l l i tv was more imposing than an] ' -

th ing thc l ta l ians could br ing to t l - re North land

at th(j tlme.

One ot the oldest conspicuous bui ld ings

sholv ing a German ters ion of the Lombardic

pilastcr strips and arcading appears to be St

Pantaleon in Colognc (begun under Otto the

Great. ;rlier q66, cledicated in 98o) [77l This

church hatl manv outside cont:rcts through its

vcr-r {hmous atel icr o|enamcl lers Lombardic

. l . to i l upp." . , car lv r lso in Wimpf 'en (szq q8) '

\ Iore doubtfu l is St Castor , Coblenz' as o i the

cnd of the tenth centur l A str ik ing example

of ten c i ted is the faqade torver of the church at

- \ l i t t c l z c l l on l he l s l e o f Rc i chenau ' h t r t t h i s

L-

I 2 O E A R L T E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

work, according to recent studies, must be as-

s igned to ro482r Izo] . The Lombardic themes,

once integrated into German architecture, were

spread far and wide, and easily reached neigh-

bouring Hungary and Moravia. Thev also much

later reached Russia in a modified form, pro-

bably from Germany, and contributed super-

ficially to the elegant beauty of the twelfth-

century churches in and about Vladimir. Rascia

(naissant Yugoslavia) borrowed Lombardic

motifs from early Dalmatian work, and perhaps

also from Norman-Apulian buildings across the

Adriatic. I'he imprint of Lombardv was strong

at f i rs t in Yugoslavia - at Studeni tsa (r . r r t1. ;y .

Zhicha (rzoz-zo), and Visoki Dechani (r.i:7

35); a reminiscence surlived the change ei

orientation which made Serbia a Bvzantinr

state, and counts for something in the beautl o1

churches l ike that of Manasi ja. contempor i r r \

with the Turkish conquest. Thus the rhythm of

the Late Roman pilaster strips and the ripplc ot

their connecting arches lived on to appear in

the architecture of the medieval empires, Ger-

man and Slavonic. : l

C f lAPTEn o

R O M A N E S q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N G E R N I A N Y

U N D E R T H E S A X O N A N D F R A N C O N I A N E N { P E R O R S ( 9 3 6 - 1 1 2 5 )

1 f l E O T T O N I A N S I

T H E O T T O N I A N R o N ' t A N E S Q U E

The First Romanesque st-'-'le which we have

followed from Ravenna to Old Russia came as

,n .pi.oa., bringing some technical improve-

*nL ".ra

an attractive decorative system to the

,rahit."tur. of Germany near the end of the

,.ign of Otto I, the Great (936 73)' The inde-

pendence and great power of German architec-

,ura ,ra themselves an external sign of the

grandeur of the second imperial Renaissance'

called Ottonian.

Since the Carolingian age the country had

suffered terribly from wars with the Slavs' the

Vikings, the Magyars, as well as from dynasttc

*.rkn... and internecine feuds' The Saxon

ilynasty was inaugurated by King Henrv I' the

Fowler, who reigned from 9rg to 936 He began

the long process of putting the government ln

order - assuring the frontier, and refusing to

buy off the barbarians. Characteristically he is

rememberecl in architectural historv for works

of fortification, especiallv at Merseburg, Werla

(near Goslar), and Quedlinburg. where impor-

tant urban centres subsequently developed't

While the Orlonian church designs are' in the

Carolingian tra<lition, agglomerative, th.ere ls a

tlew, commanding skill in the composltron oI

their varied elements, as Louis Grodecki's

monograph L"lrchiterrure otlttnicnne (Paris'

I958) admirabl) proves.

Saxony, because of the d.vnasty. became the

architectural centre of gravitf in Germany' and

Produced or influenced church designs which

are among the most impressive of those be-

queathed to us by the Early Romanesque flow-

ever, the renewal brought about notable con-

struction over a wide area' 'Ihere

was' tor

instance, a general derelopment of mi l i tar t

archi tecture; manl of the s i tes which are graced

by German castles (ultimately numbering near-

lv ro.ooo) were ibrtified at this time' Yet the

heart of the people was in the church architec-

ture, and where the churches are preserved'

theystill breathe the massive unity of the Chris-

tian Imperial communitl. Traditionally in Ger-

-any, u.r<'l in Byzantium (as in England still)'

the Church was cherished as the spiritual aspect

of the communitl- under the sheltering power

of an anointecl ruler. Conflict with the Popes'

who were developing an eftbctive international

ecclesiastical goYernment' greatly iniured the

Empire.

During the confusion which had all but des-

troyecl the Western Empire, the Papacy fell to

its nadir. It was monasticism which came to the

rescue of the Roman Church The great monks

uho reformed the Papacl uere accustomed to

the unqualified obedience which an abbot.re-

ceives in his monastery, and this conceptlon'

applied to the Papacv, resulted in schism with

ti. Ett.t.rn Church (ro54, rz45) and a fbtal loss

of authorit-v bv the gol'ernment of the Western

Empire at cr i t ical r imes (ro7fr ' r z5o) '

In medieval Germanf i t was st i l l unavoid-

able lbr the rulcrs to rely on churc.hmen ancl

church organization fbr many essentlal servlces

and for fiscal support' The ranking abbots re-

tained importance, but the principal bishops

could more becomingly act as court figures' anct

thel' came to have important go\iernmental

\-

,1

f,r \I 2 2 E A R L I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

a t t r i hu t i ons , a l ong l r i t h cop ious l . c s { )u r ces an ( lconsiderable polver. Under these c i rcumstancesthe construct ion of a number of ' r ,erv imposing;cathedral bui ld ings in Ottonian and I i ranconiant imes needs no f ur ther explanat ion. Grouns ofbu i l d i ngs l r e assoc ia re t l w i r h cc r t a i n h i shons .and re l l ec r r he i r ( as l e , i n a l l cases marked b rc l emcn ra l s t r enF lh r nd supe rb g r l n t l cu r .

Otto the Great (9 j6 Z3), who rcnewed rheImperial office in 96z, develope cl Magcleburg asGerm ln r ' s g rea t bas t i on aga ins r r he S la r s . Hcfbundecl a church herc, serr ,ed bv Benedict incsfrom

' l ' r ier (955), which in 967 became the

cathcdral . The bui ld ing rvas someuhat smal lerthan the cxist ing Gothic st ructure, which in_corporates columns of porphr,r.v, granite, anclmarble brought f iom I ta lv fbr the or ig inal bui ld_i ng . \ l an_v t l c t a i l s a r . t . unc lea r . - r e r i t i s c c . t a i nthat the layout resembled that o1' the carheclra lo l 'Parenzo, wi th an atr ium and bapr isrer l .at the

7.5 and 7(r . Gernrode. St Clr iakus, q6r and larcr .r icn l iom thc soulh-rrcs l , rnd inr t . r iur

we st ; thc na\ .e was a vast wooden_roof td bast l i -can structure vr , i th columnar supports ; i t is crr_ta i n a l so t ha t r he eas te rn ap \ c \ as f l ankc t l 6 ,two rowers, ancl that the cathcdral was tbr t i f ic , i- l ' h c

ch r r r ch i naugu ra ted a se r . i es o t , . 1 r , , . , ibui ld ings the cathedrals of N{ainz, AugsbLrrs. .en ( l \ o rms among rhem. bu r r . ebu i l d i ng 1 , , r ,depr ived us of these examples also.

Yet Otto thc Great's period is well repr.c-senlcd in middle Cernrrnr br rhe lbrnrcr . .1, , r ,_r ,en t church of St Cvr iakus at Gernrode h S, I r , l ,founded in 96r b1' l{arerave Gero. ,/c/i,,,,,,,,

7 r , r / r i , r r aga ins r r he S la r s . I r i s abou r ha l l r he r r z , .o l \ I agdebu rg ' s o l d ca rhec l r a l . Cc r r r r , r . l e i , , . , ,ue l l cons t ruc ted i n c r ce l l en t ush la r maso r r r . rExcept l i r r the at ldct l \ restcrn ,1,r . , , , .un. . , , , . ,1ga l l e r i es . and ex t c r i o r a r cad ing abo re t he r i r l . r .Ce ro ' s chu rch , r r ccn t l - r r es t ( ) r ed . s t i l l e x i s t , . r l -most unchangcd. I t is handsomclv austerc int h c inte r ior . whr:re r here is , r t ine rh r t hm ic a l r . r_

ladon ofcolumns undcr arches with substantial

mrsonry piers.2 The crossing is stronglv narked'

and the proportions, here, nt the east end, are

y94ical. The exterior is a graceful interpretation

of Saint-Riquier, though without the lanterns.

Jt is said that the Empress Theophano (d. qqt)

qrve funds to complete the work, which is a

f,ne exampl. of bold Ottonian agglomerative

comPosition'

St Pantaleon in Cologne, a l readl ment ioned,

should be recalled here as a work of the reigns

of Otto the Great and Otto II, built with a sLrb-

sidy from the bishop, Bruno, who was Otto the

Great's son. Of thc work bcglrn afier 966,

finished and dedicated in g8o, onlv the wcst-

work with three towers retains its original

character [771

77. Cologne, St Pantaleon, 966-8o; porch modcrn

O ' T T O N I A N R O M A N E S Q U E I 2 3

In the re ign of Otto I I (97j 8t) the major

church enterpr ise was the ncw and greatcr

crrthedral of \'Iainz, begun under Archbishop

\\ r i l l ig is in 97t l . r ( -arol ingian inf luence, and in-

f luence f rom Old St Peter 's in Romc, were

strong in the design, and thc grand scalc o l ' the

building is perceptible to-da]', fbr thc majcstic

l ines of the verr e l lborate exist ing cathcclra l

uere largel .v detcrmincd by Wi l l ig is 's bui ld ing.

I ts red sandstone bulk is sharplv c letached

against a long woodcd ridge, and it stands on a

lorv shel f above the Rhinc c lose to the con-

flucnce of' the N{:rin. 'Ihis

latter riler llows

directh ' toward the cathedral , which is thus

risible for many' miles down the vallel'. The

cx i s r i nq ca lhcd rx l hus r c re r se o r i cn l a t i on . i n -

her i ted perhaps l rom Wi l l ig is 's bui ld ing, and

corresponding to the reverse or ientat ion ol 'Old

St Peter 's . I t was fbrmer l l 'approachcd, l ike the

lat ter bui ld ing, through a propi , - laeum-chapel

of St N1arl' and an atrium. At \'lainz, each of

these featurcs would scem to have occupied a

square about r2o f'ect on a side, ancl the nar,e,

rv i th t rvo ais les, t lvo more. I t is supposed that

there rvas alreadv in Willigis's time a western

transept about 6o f'eet rvide and zoo I'eet long

rv i th a s ingle apsc, and that a church of the

centra l t ] 'pe. perhaps thc Constant in ian cathe-

dral , lav bevond. Herc there would be an ana-

logv lv i th St John f . : r tcran, thc crr thedral of

Rome.

\ \ i l l ig is 's cathedral rvas burnt on i ts dcdica-

t ion di rv in roor- ; , and was reconstructed in

simi lar fbrm ( though perhaps wi th a t rc lb i l west

sanctuary rvhich increased the composi te length

to about 6oo fcet) bv Archbishop Llardo. \ new

t ledicat ion took place in ro j6. ' I 'he

new east

fagadc of \ Ia inz Cathedral h i rd a ccntra l apse,

and the bui ld ing \ ras consequent lv a 'double-

ender ' l ike Fuldrr . The f lanking round sta i r

turrets of ' the cast lhgade, and some rval l - rvork,

are now ascribed to Bardo's roconstruction.' I 'hrough

th is and nroreo\ 'or through manl sub-

sequent bui ld ing episodes notablv in to6o

l-

r24

li; l3iff ,:iifi ff I ffi,:i: i:t,1iti1:il.t", ", o

o r T O N t A N R O N t 4 N L s Q r E

iitIE

G

in 994 on the scale of' the eristinp; large and

inportant building. It had a pair of' square

towers set flanking the aisles, at thc east or en_

$snce faQade, which, as in the other Ottonian

cethedrals ment ioned, has an apse on thc axis. j

The tower arrangement is handsome, and came

to be widell used. Italian and French eramDles

of the disposir ion are wel l knou.n 1 parma ( .a ihe-

dral [3o8, 3o9] and Roucn Cathedral) , but a

connexion cannot be traced; howeler, Augs_

burg Cathedral is probablr in thc l inerec of

such tower-pairs in near-bl Hungal , i rnd thus

it was an influential dcsig;n.

The successor ofOtto I I I s .as his cousin. thesainted Emperor Henry Il (rooz 24) of happ,vmemory. Characteristicallr. a great deal of.monumental church construction u,ent forwardduring his reign, and the remains which har,ecome down to us nobly exemplif'v the tempcrof the t ime. He created a neN ccntrc o l . imocr ie lpowera l Bamberg i n t he eas r , whc r t , a ca rhed ra land residence were built in the r.ears roo2 12.Henry II was interested in church relbrm: hcgrouped a congregation often abbeys about thc

79. Strassburg Cathedral , rcstornl ron rr r r t l ro l tagade, as in lor5 f l . (Kaurzschl

old monasterv of St X.,Iaximin in 1-rier, and rva.f i iendl l . to the Cluniac monks. Henrr , me:. { bbo r Od i l o o l C lun r a r Ron te i n r o r+ . r h ,co rona t i un . r e r r , p resen t cd h im n i r h t hc , im .perial crown and orb, and is said to have visitertllalUcf in companl, with Meinwerk, bishoyofPaderborn, in ror5.

Undc r Hen r r I I , abou r r o r5 , a s t a r t $ , a .made r_rn a great Earl\ Romanescluc cathedral a.Strassburg. Excaratccl fbundat ions seem to in_dicatc thar th is bui ld ing u,as planncd ro har,noble square rowers at thc tbgade, wi th a porc:he t$ccn . sc ( d i r . ec t l r . i n l i on t o l t hc a i s l c s an .na|e respecti\ ell IZq]. In \.ieu, of the f]ct tha.a s imi lar narthex faqade u,as ncwlv f in ishccl a:Clunr. in r o r 5. mav we suspect d i rect inf luence ,

Thc paircd \yestern tou.ers ofstrassburg. bcin ia t t ached t l i r c c t l r t o t he eh t r r ch p rnpa r . p . . f i e r r .the t1'pical carhedral frontispiece, lvhich er,er:_tuallv prer-ailed over rhc triparrite Saint_Riq uie:t hemc . S t r l s sbu rg i s imponan r t oo , s i r h Re i c l -( jnau, as thc t ra in ing ground of Benno ofOsn:-br i ick ( r . roz8 8-1) , rvho uas in charsc of t l .o f i i c c o l r r o r l s f b r Hen r r l l l a r r . l Henn I \ . : l : .bu i l t ca r r l es { o r t hc I a t t e r . ,

' fhc Strassburg tagacle scheme wls aclonte_

in a l a i r numhr . r . o f bu i l t l i ngs i n nca r_b r a re r .\ l l se r c bas i l i can i n t b rm . i r i t h c l e rus ro r i r . : a r : -

nooden roof ing, s imple in p lan : rnd austere r :their architectural lines. The list incluclcs th,ca thed ra l s o f Base l ( r o r9 ) , anc l ( . ons tanc .

( t o ( r 9 8 9 ) ; t h e a b b e l s o f E i n s i e d c l n ( r o r r o ,Sch : rH h l us t . n ( r o .5o r )+ ) . S r \ t r r c l i u s . H i r s , : .( lor t i 7r ) , anc ' I , \ ' larmor.r t ier ( , \ Iarrrsmirnstcr .the latrer faqade, c lat ing f iom the twel f th cer_tur t , has ()cta l lonal corner turrets. u. i th a t ; . .and generousl l proport ioned square axia l bel l - ,to lver behincl rhem..

Ncrv construct ion rvas in i t iatecl under Hen.I I at \ \ iorms ( ,athedral , t ,h ich has largcl r pr , -scrrccl i ts o lc l character throughout long_co:_t inuecl rebrr i ld ing. Hcnrv I I 's grcat ct . run.sel lc , .Burchard, bishop ol \\iornrs, rvas responsib:f or th is work.

nI l

[ f l

l t

I

il

.t i :2,. , t" Carol ingian cacher has been main_tarned [78,3j.31.

_,Charlemagne's age is recal led in the Ruhrcountr). b-t'the western choir and ,"*.;;;;

I ' I instcr at Essen, which

::-?l:" it r',, "ri"ii'.:il:'":A jl; ;''::

i::i]f ' otto III (e83 rooz).a A .u.tou. i"ri.n".r1go1 with galleries, resembling a {iactiono1

^the Palatine. Chapel. was built hcre as awestcrn choir. Abor.e i t sr

rower set between ,l.o ,rrtLtlt a square fagade

rowers was un u.iu--.iol'JatH".i'; i'..ffl;napnsr.. r-r. as is rhe case lr parenzo Crrr, . l . . i l "I ra11, .and, u j rh ra r . ia r ions . in the Or ron ian

Li;l:U..ts; of i,tagdeburs and .\{ainz. Such atria

)_.^.-: -:.. rhan merelv enrrance wa_r.s; it isknown rhat thel.had a spccial i_pu.iun.. inprocessional I i tureies.

Shared berween Otto II and Otto III is thcoriginal church of Wimpf.en i, Tri (9;9 9;;a hexagonai buildine baPa,a ti n"e d;;;i';; T#::1 ;I..|;:';;,X,[j,1"^t"_*u

b.r cxcararion), rhe laqade raarea tor..*(.s,_const ruct lon. programme and st i l l exist i n,- lrrs srmpler rhan that of Aachen. Th" d"o;*.;., ;;in a dcep rccess, thc bold arch ", ".n;: ;r ; , . ,a gal lcrr ; at rhe corners

gonal totyers-. rlse two simple oct;r-

'.,-t:...t:lr.jt ine brilliance of.rhe Emperor anctnrs ruror Gerbert of Auri l lac. frr. , l"p. ' i f-

.lllll.. It.(.igs-roo3), and their interest in an'ri-qurt]-at rhe opening of the new mil lennium, rhc

_l: isn:f Ort: I I I (983-rooz) i , not *, . i l , .p."_sented in architecture.

N{ention should be made, however, of. thcncw cathedral of 'Ar-rgsburg, which ras startct l

I' I 2 O E A R L I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

Henrv II and Bishop \4einrverk, togetherwith Odilo of Cluny, arranged the penetration

of-Cluniac monks into Germanv, fbr the bishoprefounded .{bdinghof'at paderborn as a Cluniacpriory in ror6.', f'he church, cledicatecl in ro36and part ly replaced in ro58 78 af tcr a f i re, isinterest ing as rhc f i rsr example in north Ger_man\ ' ro be bui l t on Cluniac l incs.

Beginning in roor; Bishop \ Ie inu,erk a lsobuilt a cathedral in Paclerborn with the westernchoir in a t remenclous square tower, \ .erv un_mistakablv Germanic in fcel ing, er ,cn wi thoutthc ta l l s teep spire, which is of larer date Igol .

8o. Paderborn Cathcdral, tirgade,r.tp to cornice of torvcr roog

8r. Padcrborn, Chapel of st Bartholomew, rorT

' l ' h i s impos ing l oue r and i l s accompxn1 ln , ,

s t a i r r u r re r s r eca l l , i n se r . e r c and po r , e r t u l t r r l i -n ian fbrm, the chapel of the Sar. iour. at Sr; , , t -Riquier .

'I'he cclectic spirit of' Meinwerk is fr,rrthe,

p ro r cd b r t hc cons t r r r c t i on . i n , o r7 , , , t 11 . , .chape I of'St Bartholomew near the cathedrrl t1i'Greek'

workmen.r0 ' I 'he ais led i r r t . r io. , nrr i .

rup of domed compartments carried on two ljlesof 'columns, has a Moslem cast to i t which malecus suspcct that the Greeks came l rom thc soul lof l ta lv. f 'he columns har.e qui te except ionalcarved capi ta ls, remarkable for their p lasr i l

v igour in an i tgc l rhen fhe sfone c: l [ \ er \ \Js \ er \ '

f r , Uaf , ina the b.ronzc caster ' the i rorr carrcr '

3pd the rePoussc worker I d I l '

Important too is the connerion with Italv of'

the bui lder-b ishop Bernward ol ' Hi ldesheim.

who went to the peninsula in C)t to I I I 's srr i tc

in roor '

This subject inevitablr calls up anothcr north-

German church Bishop Bcrnu-ard's cherishcd

St Michael at Hi ldcsheim" [82-+1. The bui ld-

ing, begun about IooI , had a det l icat ion of thc

crypt in IoI5, lvhich is a lso the date of i ts cele-

brated bronze doors, now installed in the cathed-

o T T 0 \ 1 . { N R O \ r { N L S ( ) t E r 2 7

stntct ion ol \ \ i i l l ig is 's hrrge cathedral there, and

he served as bishop of Hildeshcim lrom gg3 t<.r

rozu. Some German i r r t h istor ians are inc l ined

to bcl icve that Wi l l ig is 's church of 978 roog

under l ies St Nl ichael , though the lat ter church

showed considerable var iat ions on the theme.

I ts composi t ion is tvpical , bold, and ski l lu l .

St Nl ichael now shows everv indicat ion of i ts

original arrangemcnt, lvhich in some \r'al.s rvas

unusual. The westcrn part has a transept termi-

natetl at each end b1- galleries and a slc'nder ex-

t e r i o r s t a i r t o$e r I b r commun i ca l i on , com l )os -

ing handsomell. with a square lantern at the

ral ; by Io33 St N{ ichael was complete. Recon-struction ofthc church after screre war damapJehas given us back the original clesign, rvhich isqedibly

ascribed ro Bcrnrvarcl himself. IIc hacloeen at Mainz as subdeacon during the con-

crossir.rg. 'I 'herc

are irlso a spacious silnctuar\'

ba1'and an i rpse, beneath which l ies the cr1 'pt of

rorS. ' l 'he

cr lpt is reached by a semi-subter-

rancrn passage bui l t outs ic le thc sanctuan and

cnclosing i t . Thc eastcrn part of the bui ld ing

8z Hildesheim, St N{ichael, roor .1.1, r r6:, nave befirrc reconstruction

L

I 2 d E A R I , I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

has never had a crvpt , and i ts sanctuarr bav lvassho r te r , bu f o thc ru i sc t hc t l c s i cn r r . t s t he sun t cas thar of ' thc westcrn part_ Betwecn thcsc t \ \onearh' s\.mmetrical terminations strctches thebasi l ican nave * i th i ts : r is les.

' l 'hc south ais le

servcd as a sort of intcrior narthex, since thetwo maln entranccs are there. Vis i tors therelbrccnteret l thc church 'broadrvise ' ,

as Ihc monksdid.

' l 'h is cur ious contr ld ict ion of ' the basic

basi l icrrn p lan was logical in a monasr ic churchwhich f i r l lorvcd the themc of 'Saint_Riquicr andSt Gal l , ant l is rechnical l , r r en inte rest ing.

' I 'he ercr-memorablc bronzc doors in the

cathcdrrrl \,verc reirllv madc fbr the latcral maincn t rances o f S t \ l i chae l l l l q l . As a l r ca t l v r c_ported. ts ishop f ler .n,ward r is i tec l Romc in roorrv i th Otto I I I , and he l ived fbr a t inre in the

\oung cmperor 's palace on the Avent inc. ncl r.Santa Sabina.

'I'his latter church still posscsses I

pair of' fifth-ccnturt carr-cd rvooden (loors

rvhich perhaps sugisested the norks at I l i ldes-he im .

I t was a f lour ishing pcr iod lbr church ar t o l

th is sort . C)nc rccal ls the bronze Easter colu lnnmadc fbr Bishop Bernrvard bcfbre ro2z, no\ \ in

Hi ldesheim Cathedral , ancl . \bbot Gaucel in 's

bronze tnu/rt11llr at Saint-Benoit-sur-Loirc

(abou t r oz6 ) a l so t hc a l t a r o f ' t hc ] ) a l i r t i ne

Chapcl in - { : rchen, g i r cn bl Orto I I I (q8- i - r oo, : ) .

and the splcndid pulp i t there gi len bvI{enn | [ ,

h is successor, an admirablc achicr-ement inc le ct l .

d l ted be tu een r oo2 i rncl r o.z+.' I 'hc

g^orp;cous gtr lden al tar f iontal prescntccl

b r t he Empero r I l en r r l l r o t hc c r rhcd ra l , , 1

83 and 8.1. Hildesheim, St llichael, roor 33, r r(rz,

aisle befbre reconstructionand sketch restoration as in roor I i

Basel and nor. in thc Cluny N{useum in Par is,

poses problems r lso. I t is dated about rozo, ancl

obviouslv represents a cliflerent stream of'artis_

tic development as well as a difl 'ercnt method(repouss6) and a tlil l-ercnt material. The loss of'

monuments of rhis kind through fire, pillage,l ev i g5 , xn f l r cme l r i ng i s on l r t oo ue l l a t t c s ted h1documen l s . Bu t l i om the r i gou r o l r hc H i l des -heim doors ant l thc pcr t l i t ion ot ' rhe Basclrrontal a conviction emsrses that these cannotbe casual or sporadic *ork. . St ch unt lerstand-Ing and ski l l as thcse monumenrs show pre-suppose a tradition ofbasic cralismanship trans-mit ted f rom gencral ion ro gcner i r l io ; . l r is

Qul te possib le that the rogr. re of-precious al tartrontals

ancl other ecclesirstical Iurniture rvithngure sculpture clclavcd the rcnaissance of

o I t o N t A N R o M A N F . S Q U I r29

f igure sculpturc in stone hr ahsorbing nrost o l '

the 6ne ta lent avai lable f i r r g 'ork o l ' that scale

and charactcr .

Sculpture in stone rcceired an occasional

impulse, perhaps. f iom mcn *ho werc also ablc

to work in somc othcr mcdium. and werc cal lcd

upon to producc ligure sculpture for special

positions rvherc onlr stone rvor.rld be suitablc.

This s i tuat ion u 'ould account equal l l ' for the

carvings on the (destroved) sarcophagus of'

Abbot Hincmar of Reims (d 8zz)rr and the

f igurcs set or er thc outer doors of ' the great abbev

church of st Ilmmcram at Rcgensburg shortll-

after ro4g. NIetal-shcathed statuarl' and relicf'.s

had firrmcd cores of wood or mastic. 'I 'hc

bronze-uorkcr 's sensc of bulk and his wax

model. rhe reDoussd worker's hammer and drill,

\

t i .5 and 86. Hersfeld, abbel.church, ,. I037, un an older scheme

16e ivory worker 's chisel and f in i :h ing proccss'

and ( s i nce t he des igns we re pa in ted i n c l c ra t i on

on the blocks belbre being ctr t . and t inted

aft.rwttd) even the manuscript and fiesco

painters 'craf t wcre a preparat ion for the gcneral

renewal of f igure scul pt ure in stone.

T H E S A L I . { N O R F R A N C O N I A N E N I P E R O R S

Under Conrad I I , the Sal ian ( Ioz4 39) ' the

cathedral of Strassburg went forward, and a

related building, the magnificent abbe-v church

of L imburg an der Haardt ( roz5-45), was

begun.13 The reforming Abbot Poppo of Stablo,

under Cluniac influence, had it built near the

Stammburg of the Franconians' It inspired

many other such structures. Cluniac influence

is perhaps ultimatell'responsible fbr the western

tower pair and the tower at the crossing, but the

temper of the building is unmistakabll'German

87. Speyer Cathedral, cr)pt, ,. Io3o antl later

F R A N C O N I A N G E R M A N Y I . ] I

in i ts monumental , fast id ious auster i t l ' , and

grand dimensions, o ler a bold and s imple plan.-I'he

church is a ruin, like that of Hersf'eld (fiom

about ro j7, on an older scheme) [85, 86] ; both

reach into thereign ofHenr l - I I I ( ro39 56).1r

More important , howerer, is the cathedral of '

Speyer. It was the d,vnastic pantheon of the

Franconian house, and though l ike the othcr

Kaisardome - Mainz and Worms it has been

much rebui l t , i t has presened, bet ter than thel

have done, the simple and assured grandeur

which marks the finest buildings of the German

Ear l r Romanesque 187 q r l .

\ \ o r k uas s ta r t ed on t he e r i s t i ng s t r uc tu re

uncler Conrad II abor'rt ro-3o, and the remark-

able crypt [87] dates liom the initial period.'l 'he

whole area under the transept was marked

off by p iers into three spacious compartments '

each with four stout columns, to carrv conncct-

ing arches and nine bays ofheavy groin vaulting.

I F , . , ' , r r , . / . \ , . , , i , r r _ , j - , , . , . ( , - . . . .

' r o r . . ( i t l o ,

@ 7 1 i l d C a m ^ , t t , t t ,

Z 7 - l . t I , . . t t , r , . . , . . !

/ o . . 1| | N ! | J J J | ! ' J @ I , . . / / r { j r I u r . , , t t t I , t l l t d 2 t 1 - , I

The vaul t of the crypt forms, of 'course, the

nlat form of the t ranscpt and sanctuar\ of thc

ihur.h ptop. t [88[

' Ihese mcmbers are cn-

" losed by a massire precip ice of wal l . wi th ra l l

, t r i , to* . t t iust west of the apsc. Westward

from the crossing ertends the hr'rge nave, with

r spacious groin-vaulted aisle on each side. The

western wall is about zo f'eet thick; it includes a

deep double-splayed portal and two spiral stirir-

ways in this enormous thickness. The stairwal's

detach themselves as flanking towers at an upper

level, and to the west of them a large open porch

(with tribune and a great octagonal tower) was

laid out. This brought the total lcngth to about

435 feet, which is almost exactly that of Chartrcs

Cathedral. Comparison of thc two uill strik-

ingly show the overrvhelming stout simplicin'

ofthe German design [891.

The nave at Spever has a span ol about 45

feet, which is close to that of thc cathedral of

Beauvais, widest of the High Gothic churches.

Its height is approximateh' twics this dimen-

sion. The length of the nave proper, about 235

feet, is about fir'e times its width, and ranks with

the grandest and largest achicvements of both

Romanesque and Gothic. The walls o1'the nave

bear an obvious resemblance in design and scale

to a Roman aqueduct, though the model was

probably nearer the exterior elevation of the

Basilica at Trier. 'f

he nave piers at Speyer mea-

sure about 6 by 8 feet plus engaged shafis,

which, on the nave s ide, cont inue upward as the

supports ofa ta l l b lank arcade measur ing about

85 feet to the soffits. This arcade cncloses the

aisle and a series of large clerestorl' windorvs,

and it provided support originalll-, at a levelover n inety feet f rom the pa\emcnt, fbr a rastt imber roof [go] . Construct ion wcnt forward onthe nave from about ro4o, under I{enry' III( Io39-56), and there rvas a dedicat ion in ro(rr ,perhaps when the great church in its woodcn-roofed phase had been brought morc or less tocompletion.

I ' R A N C O N I A N G E R M A N Y I ' I 3

go. Spci''er Cathedral, rcstoration stud] of intertor

r s i n r o6 r (K . j .C . )

A new per iod of construct ion (ro l lz r ro6)

star t ing under Flcnr l I \ ' f inal ly sru the nave

r,aulted, as was probablv intendcd liom the

bcginning. ' l 'he

ul t imate resul t , achie vccl unt lcr

I -othair I I ( r r37). is ver l impressivc, but on

account of the olerwhelming scale i t must be

vis i ted to be apprcciated [9r1. . \ l ternatc p iers

of ' the or ig inal nare werc strengthened wi th

shaf ts and c losserets. so that the] ' now mcasure

nearly' tcn f'eet across, in order to sustain six

immensc double ba1's of 'domed-up, unr ibbed

groin vaul t ing scpar i r ted bv t ransverse archcs.' l 'he

crowns arc about ro7 f 'eet ( .3: '6r metres)

from thc pavcment, higher than an]' other

Romanesque navc laul t ; thc basic mcast l te-

t4aa%a%fs

%&%&*&s*

I

,,Iil .

#'' f

**{ffr*-t

88. Spever Cathedral,r. loqo-nincteenth centurr', plan

Nine s imi lar uni ts compose the r ,aul t of an areaunder the sanctuarv bav of the church, con-t inuing eastward into a ser ies ofs ix more, f i t tedinto the apsi t la l hemio c le; thus the cr1,pt underthe sanctuarv arm of the church is la id out wi thtwo f i les of lbur columns each. - \ l l the columnshar.e

'cubical ' (or b lock) capi ta ls of ' rvhich the

<)

or ig in is Byzant ine or Lombard, but a pecul i , r r

weight iness here makes them seem Germrnlindeed, the form was widely used, with intere :t_ine lar iat ions, in German Romanesque arc l r i -tccture.

'I 'he simplc and ample powcr ol rhe

mature German Romanesque is a l readv patcnt-

lv to be seen in th is crypt .

{ t q 8l '- . : i l r ' l - F

f : o

:i .tr i .ri t

;a d i t a l3 t : t 4

-:i * ,, t l

. : i . i

,...:.

a , jI r;l

l l9. Spever C.athedral, rcstoration stud,r ofnorth flank as in ro6r (K.I.C.)

-.

- qnever Cathcdrr l ' in lcr i r r r o l narc ' l r ro l ' ing wcst '

9i,' 'rljo-o' and ̂ rcltth eenturr

ment was prohahlr roo Carol ingi i ln t 'cet ( -14

.a t t a r oa a l i t t l e l c ss ) he tucen l $o undc le r -

, in.a poln, t . . 1 'he crossing has a raul t hal l 'as

i i * f , rgt in ' thc lo l i iest Romancsquc raul t in

, - ! r . r i o. , rgonal torrer carr ied on squinches'

, . , "a p i . t . .d w i th t u o st ages of arched windou s '

it is powert"t vertical elcment, though not tele-

scopic, recal ls Saint-Riquier ' as indecd does

thearrangcmenr of lso s lendcr sta i r towers near

eachofthe great octagonal towers'

Gothic Beauvais and Milan havc nave vaults

reaching to about I-58 feet lrom thc pavement'

and the highest taul t o l thc crussing tower at

Beauvais was about 44o fcet from the palement'

But these Gothic designs werc built in a st-vle

which was engineered specilicallv to permit

breath-taking eft'ects of'height. 'l 'he

lair com-

parisons for Spel'er are with Romanesque Clun,Y

I I I ( ro88-rr3o), whcre the nave was 98 f 'eet

high and the maior crossing about r19 or ,

better still, with the Basilica Nova of Nlaxentius

and Constant ine in Rome (e.o. 3ro f f . c lear

span83 feet, height rzo I'eet) fbr Spever is aftcr

a l l basical l r and sol id lv Roman in conceptron.

Speyer has something of that serene largencss

which is the common possession of all things

well inspired f rom Rome.

The late eler,enth- and tll 'elfih-centurl' altcr-

ations at SpeJrer werc carried out in a stvle which

ts very close to thc maturs Lombard Romanes-

9ue - the eaves gallerl', upper clcrestorl', decor-

ative arcading, pilastcr strips, corbel tablcs, arc

all close to Lombard originals. In fbct, Ger-

many and Lombardv, brought close bf impcrialpolitics, coalesced, logicalll. cnough, in their

architecture at this timc. Nlorev believcs that,

l in t . , .u lptorc o l rhe da1 uork ing in Lom-

ba rdy have s i gned Ce rman names . t hc a r t i s t i coevelopments

of Germanv in the eleventh cen-t u r y we re ac tua l l r t r ansm i t r ed t o I t a l r ando rough tabou ta

r ena i ssanceu l scu lp l u re rhe rc . I '

F R A N C O N I A N G E R M A N Y I 3 5

At Spe.ver afier the ruin of 1689 there was

much Baroque re building at the west end of the

cathedral ( r772 8) , t t 'but fur ther rebui ld ing in

the Romanesque revival period (r. r8zo and

later) gave it back its original scheme, though

the new work is dry. Speyer is not subtle, but

anyone who understands masonry will love the

tremendous clifl--like masses of its walls and the

heav-v over-arching testudo ofits vaulting.

Mainz 1333, 3341 andWorms [33r] theother

Kaiserdome were likewise the object of con-

siderable works during this period. So also was

the cathedral of 'lrier

[33o],tt a Roman monu-

ment translbrmed into a German cathedral af ter

rorq, in three stages; the years ro39 6b saw a

handsome west lront built, and an eastward ex-

tension was built still later. 'I 'he

f'amous church

of trefoil plan, St Mary in Capitol, Cologne, was

hui l r in i ts f i rs t form beginningabout ro4o [ .335'

3371. The abbel' church of Maria Laach, a per-

f'ect example of the mature Gcrman Roman-

esque, was, to be sure, founded in ro93, but

the building was built slowly, in a st1'le quite

unaltected by Gothic impulses, though the dedi-

cat ion took Place in I r56.

gz. \'Iaria Laach, abbcl'church,

lbunded Io93, dcdicated rI56, interior (bcfore

modern additions and embellishments)

L

r 3 0 E A R L T E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

x{aria Laach Isz' glr is beautifulry set in buirding among rhese earrier work,- of Gernr,rnverdure near the Laacher See, and Or.ran,r- , * r_rnarqu. .quite lovely picture of ther'e,-dc'elopcd Ger- It oughi ro be mentionecl at this point thrrtmanmedievarmonastery; for th"g.oup. . rp. . ,s the pfhlz at Goslar [g4, jzgl rs ber iercd to ^rrctraditional planning The aspect e'en of fhe been built in somewhat it, p....nt torm rr\late bui ld ings harmonizes wi th the order work, Henr l ' I I I , whose l ivour i te residence i r ' . r . .

:Jjrfi..fi:|;3;;:::,, dominates ,h;;;l on ̂ ,,, Resia was tui,"u,,, ro.5o which c,r_

i, u,ry .oo,,,,;;;;; ;;:ffi';"'l;";::.';] j11'":-::]."',i" 0"., i..'i,.i, *."un,,.u.,,,,,,,Lombard_influenced version of St Mi.t r"i .i

.-o exrenslons have givcn a rwelfih_ccnrrrrr

H'desheim. -{ small at,ium ries berow the .yrt"j::,:ff;:.il,';:::;r.T;.t;i:iiwesrern apse. Within, ,n. l,::,Oi*

is sturdily_ tru 9oi."a

II.b";, ,;;,.*U,n. (.apella RccirrfllHT",:i.l

",?:llti::11^i1r-'o.ba-v. oi uitte.rbot_ortr,.,i"r. ri",",',re cathedrar) u.rs

1,0.. un

"r,r*. s.;.q;;'#::t'J ;ifi':ij a*ork o| Hen'v tIi. 't:r,. whole group was ,rrr

sanctuary has a similar Luy a.,.t a semidome. ,,u.tll:"t expression of the power which rhe

'I'he architectu.ol tbrm, or the intcrior arc ,",.tuttt

and the Empire posscssed in Hen.'saustele,quitein.onr.n.,ro,h.., . , . . ," . .r"O".,

t t l i lo,n..

group, l i t t le known bccause so r.e-decorations and rurniture have somewhat dim- centll. excaiatJ,' ;r- ;;;;';; Alrerheirigen ,rrinished the serenity of this fine a..;gn. i'h;. i.innnrur.n in switzerrand, aated s[6111y lrr-serenitf is the essential reason fbr placing the tb.. ,oag.,, Bevond the apse ofthe church l ,r l .

93 (oppostte 1. t\laria Lairch, abbc1. church,

founded ro9-3, dcdicatcd r r 56, I iov fiom thc norrh_wesr

94. Goslar, the Pl'alz, rcstoration studl,as in r.. rollo; se.e also.1z7,3zg

a court in the fornr o1'an extendcd lozengc. $.itha t r iapsi t la l opr.n-na\ c chapel ar r he hca. l ot . i r Ia quatrefbil chapel occupied each of the lateralpotnts of the lozenge.

'I'his scheme was tn

tmagrnative autr;mentation of'the court bevondthe apse ot the Lareran Basi l icr ;n nn-" 1 _-U j Iand it is a pitv that it had ro bc demolishecl tot* : * r t for l , r rger nrcdieral consrrucr ions.

. t nema f u re rCc rman Romrne )qu (s l \ l e con_

: l " t :1 i " use. rhough nor exclusi reh. i . rs la(c as

tne t h i r r cen th ccn tu r \ . . I t i s ca r r t o l . o rg i r e t he\rermans thci r conscrrat isrn, r , rhen onc has ad_rnired and understood thcse splcndicl monu_rnentsofa

glor ious histor ical per iot l . lndcecl rhea t t t s t i c l empe r o f t he Ce rmans uas so wc l letpressed

in th is Romlnrsquc str . le rh i r r ; r l l larer' ( . v res o l a r ch i t ec ru re i n Cc rman_v ha re shounsome . i n f l uence o l i r s bo l t l ness , d i gn i r r . r ndauster i tv

"^ l lo*

one poinr ot v ieq i r woulc l bc logicnl rouont lnue our analrs is o l German Romanesuut.

archi tccrure ar oncc; l 'or the splendid c lusrer of .Romanesque monuments ot twel f ih_ and th i r -teenth-centurl' Germant. represents thc fullposer of ' the Enpire, and i t is rhe culminat ionof the great renewal of archi tecture wi th in thcrr ' ide lands of centra l Europe. l loweler , bui ld_ings of grear interest were bui l t , especia l lv inF rance . wh i l e t hc Rumanesq r r c o f Ge rman r*us bcing creatr . r l , r ) ( l dcr c loped.

- l hcrelore, to

avoid too great a departure f iom chronologicalsequence, our p lan of cxposi t ion now cal ls fbr astudr of the Frcnch works which, as the Roman_esque sty lc developed, aclumbratcd thc Gothicstr . le more and more, wi thout achicr . ing i t . Theni r u i 1 l bc l pp rop r i a r c t o r i s i r r he man l and\d r i ous reF ions o l r he Emp i r c , w i r h t hc i r t i r s c i _nat ing local stv les which remaincd Roman_esque, bcfbre considering the Romanesque ol'\ o rmandv l nd rhc i l . - . 1 . - 1 , . r n . . . r hc a r c l swhere the stvle was actrrallv transfbrnred intoGothic.

gs. Tours, ,St Nlartin, renth, eleventh, and thirreenth centuries. exca\ations of'chcr.ct

q-5e. chartres cathcdral, plan 01'crvpr (H. H. Hilberrl '). The apsc, amhulatorv, and rrtl iating chapclsof8-58 are encbsed trithin the cheiet ol the cathcdral lbundations ol rozo 1o, rvhich arc in turn encbsc,ibl the Gothic fbundations of r r94 l i. (not shown)

C H A P T E R 7

F R A N C E : 9 0 0 1 0 5 0

T H E A M B U L A T O R Y

We have iust passed in revicw the re lat ively

conservative Early Romanesque st)'les of Lom-

bardy and Germanv. In this architecturc we

see how an attractil 'e, fairly uniform stt'le re-

sulted when the builders turned to ancient

Roman monuments fbr inspiration, revived the

Roman manner of planning, and l-elt the fbrce

ofa living stream of influence from Antiquity as

the Lombardic First Romanesque spread. The

buildings are ordinarily cogent and practical;

often competent rather than inspired.

In France it was different. Delivered at last

f rom the'Norman fury ' in gr r , when the t reaty

of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte laid the foundations ol'

the great Norman duchy, France could rebuild.

Before long there were signs ofan intellectual,

spiritual, and architectural revival in the north-

west , in Aqui ta ine, and in Burgundy. That t rad-

itional inventive flair, that active skill in com-

position which had created the silhouette of

Saint-Riquier, turned for a centurv to the morc

difficult problems of plan and articulation in the

maior churches. 'I'hen

during half a centurl it

absorbed the lessons of the First Romancsquestyle into this more highly er.olved pattern ofchurch buildins. and ar the micldle of thceleventh century stood ready for its great age.

As already indicated in a prcvior.rs chaptcr, itwas actuallv durine the last effective Caro-l ingian re ign ( thar o i ( ,har les I I I . 89. ; 92.3) rhart l t n.* archi tectural epoch r . r 'as ushercd in hvthe reconsrruct ion ol s t Mart in at Tours lq5l .-t lte church was dedicated in 9 r 8 u ith a ner.r lybui l t annular a is le or corr idor cnclosins thcsanquar) ,

and so arranget l as to g i re Jcces\ fothe tomb of Sr Nlar t i r i ( 'Sr 1\ l : r l r in 's Rcsr ' ) ,

located at the head of thc apsc, ancl also to a

scries of round chapels attached to the peri-

pheral wal l o l ' the corr idor ' . This was the f i rs t

ambulatorl with radiating chapels irrranged in

what was basicallv the dcfinitive fbrm, and it

brought to fruition the dcvelopment already-

ref'erred to in our chapter on Carolingian archi-

tecture in France. Because <rf ' the chic and ski l l

96. Chartres f,athedral, apsc and ambulatorv ol'

crvpt, [i-5ll with superincumbent latcr construction

Ii

r 4 0 E A R L T E R R O M A N E . S Q U E S T Y L E S

of'this solution it may be considered the beein_ning ol speci f ical ly French derelonmenr; inRomanesque archi lecture. I

What existed (most probably by 9rg, admit_tedll' by ror4) was like the crypr and ambula_torv built at Charrrcs after g5g

[95.r, 96], plusradiat ing absid io les. But at Tours, as Dr Car lHersel-, a carelirl student of'the problem. hasobserred, rhe high le le l of the ground waterprevented this arrangement lrom beine a crypt:'St

Nlartin's Resr' was only slightly below thepavement level. The ambulatory and radiatinechapcls thereforc became pcrforce a bold lv ar t i_culated exter ior adjunct to the apse, and archeslike those of Chartres, pierced in the aose atS t \ l a r r i n , un i t ed bo rh rhe ambu la ro r v and t heabs id i o l es v i sua l l y w i t h r he sanc tua r l . 1hegenerous size of thc absidioles attache<l to theoutside of the ambulatory shows clearly that thecorr idor i tsel f uas not meanly propor. i ioned. l topened towards the sanctuary on the axis. at

97. Vignorl', priorl ghurgh, 4. 1s5e

'St Martin's Rest', and perhaps elsewherc x.

wel l . ' l here may have been windo*s in the an: .but possib l l i r was dark. resembl ing th. ,pr . , , tVignory (dated about ro5o) [97] . , T 'he ambu-latory and radiating chapels of St Martin nqrebui l r af ter the f i re of gg7, and dedicared inror4, were undoubtedly of mature form andproporrions, with the apse wall carried on ,l ight columnar arcade. This very b.rur i ru larchitectural disposition, so acceptable from thepoint of v iew both of symbol ism and ol .enui_neer ing s(ructure. was a capi ta l conlr ibut ion Lr ,the art of religious building I r r 3( r )].

Other t races ofan ear ly stage in the devclon_ment of the ambulatory and radiat ing chapt l ,exist in the excavations ofthe cathedral o1-C_lcr_mont-Ferrand, where masonrv of a buildingdedicated in 946 5u11- iyss, in the form ot avaulted rectangular crypt enclosed by a half._oval corridor with four angular radiating chapelsattached to its periphery.3 Each of the chapclswas arranged as a crypt-shrine or conftssio.While the form of the superstructure is notcertain, critics follow Louis Br6hier in suppos_ing that the ambulatory was on two levels, arrdthat each of the attached elements was in eflecta little oblong church two storeys high, pr.o_vided, like the main sanctuary, with an altlrabove i ts crypt . Thus i t was more elaborate th,rnthe apse of' St Martin of 9o3- r 8 ; perhaps it r asbetter integrated and more open. The work rirsgreatly praised for its beauty, and the name ol itsauthor is known Al6aume (Adelelmus). .r

cleric who was also skilled in the arts of soi(l-sm i t h i ng und scu lp ru re . He made a o rec i , , r , .re l iquarv s(atue of rhe Virg in ro be ;er , ,n r

column behind the high altar, and seen wirhwonderment fiom the ambulatorv. Obviousir't hc uppe r ambu la to r r . opened on l he sanc t r r , , t . , .

Worth nor ing is rhe fact that at St Nlarrrnonly the apses of Saint-Germain, Auxerre, wcr!reproduced; at Clermont-Ferrand, onlv the ob-long bars, omit t ing rhe rotunda. This exnla i rn(he cven number o f r ad ia t i ng chape l s , an u r r -

usual feature which passed to other Auvergnat

shurches'I t is characterist ic that the ambulatorl con-

tinued to be used, in increasingly'sophisticated

form, and in connexion with more and more

completely vaulted churches. At Clermont-

Ferrand a fully developed Romanesque ambu-

htory replaced Aliaume's design, and a bcauti-

ful Gothic chevet replaced that in turn.

B U R G U N D I A I . . D E V E L O P N 4 E N T . S

ProgTess was early made towards the Roman-

esque ideal in Burgundy because ofthe unique

coniunction there: easy contact by wav of the

Loire with the active school of western France;

early contacts by way of the Rh6ne with the

Lombard First Romanesque st)'le; strong con-

tact by way of the Sa6ne with the Empirc. In

addition there was a cult of rclics, and, more

important, there was an active monastic de-

F R . { \ C E : g o o r o - 5 o r + l

\ /e lopment.r Al l were under rvav when the Hun-

garians visited the region with fire and sword in

g37 and 955 and st i r red the Burgundians to

undertake fireproof' vaulted construction. Thc

resul t ing developments in p lan and structure

make the Burgundian churches of'the time r,erv

important fbr the historv of medier,al archi-

tecture.

At St Phi l iber t 's Abbcf in ' I 'ournus a der iva-

tive of Aldaume's ambulatorl' still exists [98

rozJ. In g4g th is abbel was at the end of the

long per ipatet ics of the monks of Noirmout ier ,

who, drir,en in 836 from that island to thcir

mainland priory of D6as or Saint-Philibert-de-

Grandlicu, as alreadl noted, were once more

dr iven out in 858 and ul t imately-c: tme wi th the

rc l ics of St Phi l iber t to Tournus in 875. The

monasterv sul lered f rom the Hungar ians in 937.

Dur ing a schism in the monasterv, the Phi l iber-

tine monks went (q45 g) to Saint-Pourgain-sur-

Sioule in Auvergnc, when the ambulator,v of

98. Tournus, Saint-Philibert, .. g5o r I 20 and latcr, air r icw f rom the south-wcst

I 4 2 E A R L I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

gg ( t,porite 1'I'ournus, Saint-Philibert' fiom the south-east

roo. Tournus' Saint-Philibert, narthex' r' rooo

\ m b L r l a t o r r ( ) ; ( r r o r { ) . l o \ \ ( r r l 2 0

&j;:$ i-i; 1 -

t

ror lnd ro2. Tournus, Saint-Phil ibert, analvtical pcrspectivc

and ( appositt ) cross section ancl longitudinal section, r. 9io I r 20

This plan, wirh irs fir'e radiating chapcls of'

oblong plan, was repeated at the levcl of'the

main church. 'I'he

crvot was cledicated in 979,and there is tenth-century work abo\e it, ex-tending past the transept to the massive three-bay narthex.'Ihe vaults, howevcr, arc latcr intht uppe. ambulatory, alier a fire of roo7 orIoo8 (dedicat ion rorg) ; in the sanctuary and atthe crossing, about r r 20; the high vault o1' the

F R A \ C E : 9 o o l o 5 o 1 . 1 . 5

nave, with intercsting parallel transverse tunnel

vaults on diaphragm arches, after ro66. Thc

Chapel of St Michael above the narthex, with

primitive sculptures, hirs interesting quadrant

vaults in the aisles, while the nave has a clerc-

story above with a tunnel vault with transverse

arches, and the tie-beams still in position (about

ro2o, or perhaps later). There is a strong im-

print of the west of Francc on the plan and

structure, except in the Chapel of St Michael,

where the Lombard characterlstlcs are strong'

Pilaster strips and arched corbel tables decoratc

thc exterior therel the original bclfrics (now

augmentcd br a twel f ih-cenlury to\1er i I t thc

north) are Lombard First Romanesque in st1'le

The quadrant vaults of the Chapel of St Michael

may be related to those of the trilbrium galler-v

of Saint-B6nigne' Diion, whcre Lombards were

at work l iom lool , as u 'eshal l sec prescnt ly '

the cathedral ol 'Clermont-Ferrand was st i l l a

lo-nrpi.uoutty new structure

' ' l 'he new church

l] ' ioutnu., begun about q5o' was raulted in

in..outt. of the elercnth centur) and l inished

"iour , tro. l( contains ir cr lpt under thc high

ii^, fr, the relics ol Sr Philibert and a plirce ol-

tonour in the cent ra l rad ia t ing chape l o f 'an

.n.foting ambulatory fbr the tomb of St

Val6rien, who was honoured in the monastery

atTournus before the Philibertines came Irozl'

fi.,'.r'iirii:i!i

J:,",',,ii:

I 4 O E A R L I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

The memory which goes deepest at Tournus

is that ofthe monks working tenaciously through

a century and a hal f to bui ld an adv:rnced type

of church while conditions were still primitive.

The sophist icat ion of ' la ter bui lders lost some-

thing of the simple nobility which is always

evident in sincere early works of architecture.

In passinpl, reference should be made to in-

teresting work in the ambient of Cluny. 'lhe

priorv church of Charlieu (fbunded 872) ap'

pears to have been rebuilt about seventy years

later as a vaulted building with an ambulatorY

arcade and eastern absidiole, perhaps at the

suggestion of Abbot Odo of Cluny, who came

(iom St Martin at Tours. 'I 'hc

tunnel vault of

the nave doubtless improved the acoustics fbr

chanting, which was Abbot Odo's special lbr'11,

An interest ing crypt ambulatorv wi th radiat i ln

chapels at Saint-Pierrc- le-Vi t , Sens. i l ;1s, .1

about g2o 4o, has also been connected with 5,

Nlartin thro ugh Odo's having'reformed' S',r i n1-

Pierre- le-Vi f in 938.b

At (,lunv; itself new problems of plan rrs1s

undertaken in a rebui ld ing which stretched orer

nearlv a centurv after 955, perhaps alter a lilse

start on a round ambulator-v corridor in 94S. lt

may be said briefly (fbr we shall return to the

Cluniacs) that the Frankish vilia wherc the

monks insta l led themselves in qro, and thei l

church (Cluny I, dedicated in gz7), provecl in-

sufficient within a generation. Construction {rf r

larger church was undertaken about 955 by

rr 'nv. the monaster \ as in Io5o (K J 'C )ro5'" ' * - '

C h a p e I

S O U T H . E A 5 T

Y A R D

F C H E F

i l

i ? o F

i Lilabfr

C O U R T

1 i i . - . . _ , , - , .

. ' . .&J,_ t . t

, fr:gt*& , *- 3

;*q;^- ...::

ro3. Cluny, second abbel church, longitudinal section

as in r . toro (K.J.C. ; part lv hvpothct ical )

ro,g. Clunl', rcstoration studl of the monastcr\ l iom the east, rs in ro43 (K J-C.)

L

F R A N C E : g O o r o 5 o r49

I 4 8 E A R L I E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

Mayeul, coadtutor (abbot 963 94) - and a sys-

tematic rebuilding of the monastery began when

the new church (Cluny II) had been dedicated

(98 r ), extended by a narthex, and finally tunnel-

vaul ted (about roro) [ to: 5] .

Typical Romanesque roofing, with vaults of

stone, remarkably enhances the beauty oImusi-

cal ellects in particular, the musical effects of

the linear Gregorian chant and the massive

organum. The Cluniacs pref'erred tunnel vault-

ing, which gives most felicitous acoustical re-

sults, and the fundamental irnportance ofchant-

ing in the services made it worth while to build

tunnel r auhing in spi te of the grar e engineer ing

problems which were encountered. Paul Henry

Ling writes: 'It

was this music which embodied

the Romanesque religious ideal, without which

the art of these centuries presents mere samples

of architecture, sculpture, or literature.'

The chevet ofCluny II was based on the apse

6chelon scheme; it had, however, a square sanc-

tuary with flanking corridors for processions.

Each ofthe corridors was flanked by a so-called' c r1p t ' ( r ea l l l a vau l ( ed sec re ta r i uma t pavemen l

level) . whi le at the head ol 'each corr idor there

rlas a horseshoe-shaped chapel, with thc half-

or,al main apse between, accessible from both

corridors, and provided with three altals side

bv side which were used in sequence for the

morrow mass. f'he narthex was arranged to

receive the Sunday procession, which passed

round the cloister;it paused fbr a Galilee station

before returning to the church. 'l 'here

were two

belfries above the fagade of the narthex, and

anothcr, ol tall proportions, over the crossing.

This rrrrangement, no$' so common, \las a

novelty in the tenth century.

1'he monastery layout was based on a square

3oo feet (of 34o millimctres) on a side. It differs

lrom the St Gall plan in having a chapter-house

(an important novelty) with a Lady Chapel

beyond, frequently visited in liturgical proces-

sion. 'I'his

probably resulted from Abbot Odo's

having vowed himself'to the Virgin and empha-

sized her cult.8 The Cluny plan also difleq,1

from St Gall in placing the novitiate soLr15 "

the refectorv. The bui ld ings were wel l bt ' i l r 11j

had a certain warm austerity of design. 'l '1.,..

were roofed in wood. Recurrence ofeven dins..

s ions makes i t c lear that the reconsfruct io l l 101.

lowed a consistent plan to accommodate a66u,

roo monks, finally achieved about ro45 lvhsn,

poetic cloister with marble columns was finished

by Abbot Odi lo (q94-ro48).

Abbot Odilo built extensively throughout the

Cluniac group of monasteries, and it is impor-

tant to know something about his accomplish-

ment. Attentive study of a dimensional descrip-

tion (ro43) of a monastery in the Consuetudi-

nary' of Far('a, near Rome, which folbwed

Cluniac customs, together with excavations at

Cluny by the Mediaeval Academy of America,

have made it possible to reconstitute the plan

of tenth- and eleventh-century Clunr' Iro5],'l 'his

is important because, in principlc. all

Cluniac monks were professed at Clunl-; thus

the architecture ofthe mother house was knoun.

and presumably admired, throughout thc u hole

group of associated houses.

At Clun-v some ranges of the buildings, z; f eet

in width, were laid out inside the basic aoo-Ibot

square, and some outs ide. so that j25- lbol Jnd

35o-(bot dimensions occur. The ancillarv build-

ings pror ided 3z places for s ick and r t t i red

monks. 3o or more for nor ices. r z lbr the ahhcr ' '

pauleri or poor pensioners, about roo for Jutllil lt

forming the devoted service corps of the ntrtn-

astery; 40 places were provided for men ancl 30

lbr women guests in the guest house; the ho*f icc

could take in about roo wayfarers, accolll-

modated perhaps as the delightful capital frttrn

San Gi l a l Luna (T,aragoza\ indicates l roo j : rhc

group shel tered about 4oo in a l l .

Small, but worthy of notice, is the elemcnr

indicated as a goldsmiths 'and enamel ler5 'shop "

I t is not certa in that a specia l room r . r 'as pror i , le J

fbr the scriptorium in early eleventh-centtrrJ.

Cluny. Space for it was availabie in or near the

ro6. Luna (Zarag'ozal' San Gil' carvcd capital

ii""i"g *.yr"*is' accomnrodat ions' tt tltth cen t urv

north walk of the cloister ' with the armarium

for the library close to the transept door' The

librrry at Cluny contained a relatively large

number of volumes - 57o in the twelith century'

at a time when Durham reported 546 and

Montecassino 7o.The most spectacular of the Burgundtan ac-

complishments in the Earll'Romanesque styte'

a very instruct ire example uhich summed up

the progress ofchurch architecture in the tenth

century, was Saint-B6nigne in Dijon lt was the

p..to*i achievement of Willian-r oi Volpiano

(near Ivrca and N or ara).rn He is a good e'tample

ofthe noble ecclesiastic; for his godmother was.

the Emoress Adelaide, rvife successively of

Lothair i l I and Otto thc Creat i he uas a relat ire

of various erandccs of the Empire, with in-

fluential coin."ion, in ltalv, Burgundy, Lor-

raine, and Normandl . Wil l iam uas a monk at

San Michele de Loceclia' near Vcrcelli' but

Abbot Mayeul, exercising Cluny's special privi-

lege, received him' ancl took him to Clunv in

q8;. After a term as pnor at Saint-Saturnin he

it"., .t or.r, to re{brm the historic monasterl' of

Saint-B6nigne, which he did eft-ectivell. with.a

group of chosen monks from Clunv' and rn

i..u..l"n.. with Cluniac customs Abbot Wil-

li"a ,pr.u,l thcse Cluniac customs still turther'

to ott *, monasterics held bl him in personal

union. He reformed monastic houses (pertraps

ioo ,.u...ty) over a wicle area, including Nor-

-rna,n. F.o- Nor-"n foundations this influ-

"r,.. ,,.."-.d into England' where Clunv itselt'

was represented di rcct l l (at Lewes) f rom to77

or,*ura. A thread of Cluniac influence ma-v be

ir"..A i" Abbot William's architectural work'

but he is much more important for his action tn

launching the Lombardic First Romanesque

,t1-1. in durg.,ndy' He had pcrsonal abilities as

. .I.rig.,.., and it seems to be certain that he

brought Italian masons, and perhaps also car-

r,ers. to Diion ; but some of the wolk' tcchnicalll

L

Burgundian' represcnts local masons Betwcen

]r . t , t .V produced an ent i rc lv r aul ted church

aoi f . . , long. . bcginning, in the f i rs t l ear o l . the

l l i , m;t l .nniu- 1r oor ) | r o7-o l Raoul Claber

* r r r t o " f t he re a t t he t ime . and t h i s bu i l d i ng

i r , r p r . t o f t he ' uh i t e man t l e o l chu rchcs '

" i t .n,

tn h is lamous phrase' the wor ld then

ou, on. f n. church had a notable p i lgr image to

l , tomb oi r h. uncient apost lc of Burgund r ' . but

*r, iapo.,"n, for much more than its size and

oi . rur . rqu.n. t t ' and the lact rhat twu k inds ol

masons bui l t i t . I t uas a rcal archi tectural epi-

tofite,^silmmi of what had thus fbr been created

ro7 to rog. Dijon, Saint-Bdnigne, roor tll,

. ivpt ( tebuih r85d) ' :kctch reslor i r l ion (K J ( ) '

"nt .estor.d plan ( \' S. \\ crhci ' K J C )

F R A N C E : 9 O O - r O 5 O r 5 t

in church architecture. We cannot be in error

if we attribute its design to the favoured, alert,

brilliant. and widely travelled abbot himself'

Raoul Glaber writes 'zl

diximus, et praesto est

cernere, totius Galliae basilicis mirabiliorem atque

propria. positione incomparabilem perfcere dis-

p r t ncha l ' . \ '

What elements appeared here? 'l 'he

main

church, dcdicated in Ior6 or IorT' was a highly

elaborated basilica; the eastward portion, dedi-

cated in ror8, was a highll' elaborated rotunda;

so that, in essence, the scheme was that of the

Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and consequent-

ly a bequest from Early Christian times' The

intermediate monument appears to have been

Saint-Pierre, Geneva, as built (a funerary basil-

ica) about the year 6oo. Saint-B6nigne was

o 5 z 5 \ !

Trans \erse scc tnn o l n r \ r

looking east

o 20 80 IrT

r s::t'lliH i'ifl:i,:l:: ;1,n K n o s n r h r , , u g l r t t u d i t s h t

LJ Dr \1 i . . SLrn , l . r lanJ \ \c rh t t . t9+6 '

rv i rh re r is i tns b1 K.J C ' 1965

( lb some ex ten t h !po the t ica l and

depcndent on ana lo8r )

s \ l , ,n r rn t bu i ld ing \ . n "$ r mu\ tunr

L l i l h b c H r l i n r r J . r o : n l t ' t

I _

r z t h c e n t u r J

i Romanesque add i t ions

Plan a t p r inc ip r l loe l

.fi,>r"ifJfi

L.

Longituclinrl sccri{)n

r 5 2 E A R L I [ , R R O j \ l A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

vaulted, which is Roman; it had nine towers and

turrets, which is Carolingian.

Work continued on the church and adjacent

monastic buildings, and there was a gencral

declication in r ro7. A Gothic reconstruction andRevolut ionarv vandal ism have destroved the

building almost complerely. 'l 'he

rorunda was

well studied by Dom Plancher and presented in

his Histoire glndrale et lalticuliire de la Bour-

gogne (r739); but we owe much ofour detailed

knowledge of the building to a more recenr in-

vestigation which makes it possible to describe

the bui ld ing as i f i t s t i l l ex isted.r2

The entrance wav at the west of the basi l ican

church was a porch with flanking stair towers, aGermanic motif . The nave was double-aisled,

like the greatesr Early Christian basilicas, but it

was built like a Roman stadium or circus; thenave arcades resembled aqueducts. On cach sidethe inner ofthe two vaulted aisles stepped up toa virulted gallery, and that to a clerestory wall

with a wall passage. Between the clerestorl, q 111.a tunnel vault was turned, reaching a height 0itbr ty-s ix feet . and wel l : rhut ted by rhe srat l i r r rx-

like construction stepping upward towards j1.

spr ing. Inspi teofrouncl p iers, er t rashaf ts in 16.gal lery, d i f ferent stonework, and wooden rxq11_

ing, the nave of Southwel l Minster [ r ro l r r -sembles that which existed at Dijon.

'Ihe rri_

lbrium piers at Southwell somewhat rccall thosr

at Saint-B6nigne, which were designed Moslem

f'ashion with columnar shafts at the corncr5,

tluadrangulatim stutute, joincd bv a ,kind

ofcrown'( the upper vaul t ing?). A tower rosc xpthe crossing. For access to the tomb of SrBdnigne there was a dcscending stairwav, nelrthe main west door, ancl a vast columnar crrptextended under the navc, thc transept, and lhesanctuary just beyond.

fhe transept was vaultcd, and the clcreslorr

passage continued round it into two remarkable.

well-buttressed quadrant-r'aulted chambers ltthe gal lery level , f lanking rhc sanctuarv brrr .

The ais les f lanking thc sanctuarv had gr . , r in

vaul ts, the apse at the cast had arcading, annularpassages, and a group of 'chapels be1.ond. In thrs

very intcresting part of the work we havc the

germ of thc great churches of the Pilgrinrrrgc

Roads, that wondcrful inter-regional group of

designs which is the f i rs t internat ional mani fcsr-

at ion of the mature Romanesque. Saint- B6nignc

thus makes the connexion between the Lonr-

bardo-Burgundian international Ifirst Romrn-

esque stylc and grcat later projccts which trrr

surpass i t .

The systcm of apses at Saint-Bdnigne wit5 ,

remarkable combination of the 6chelon, thc a nr-

bulatorv, and the rotunda, on thrce levels. ' l 'hc

ambulatorv was rcduccd to a curving arcacletl

corr idor o l ' gracelu l proport ions; the centr ; r l

absid io le was represcnted by the rotunda ( l l :0

on threc ler,els) and the rotunda itself'hacl rrn

apse echclon in the shape of a central square-

ended projecting chapel rvirh a small apsc ,rt

each s ide of ' the entrancc, ar the pr incipal lerc l .

The clerestory passage of thc nalc com-

nunicated wirh rhc rool b1 t$o sta i r turrc ls

n r t , f , . apsc. thus br inging the number ot-

,o '* . r , ot turrets on thc-basi l ica to 6re

' fhe

Jrsrrg. .ont inued into the rot t rnda' and raas

l . . . . r iUt . there l ionr thc two substant ia l rotrnd

lr i , ,o* . . . which tbrmed the communicat ion

svstem of that part o l thc design. A touer r ' ras

oiann.d iut r to thc (as1 ol thc rotunda' but

ol t im.t . ly bui l t as a l i t t lc church wi th a towcr

ofits own perched illogicalll 'on thc apse' Later

there were other changes in thc tower svstem)

so thxt it is diflrcult to makc out the original

scheme - but , i fone counts the prominent cen-

t ra l wel l of the rotunda, there were nlne towers

on the church. It had a remarkably strong and

bold silhouette, rather riotous; but all the same,

here was an entirelv vaulted building rising to

the challenge of mcdievrl fbrm in church archi-

tecture as conceived br the designcrs of Saint-

Riquier.

Of this strange and wonderlul ensemble onlv

the nethermost parts of the eastern half have

survived. The apse 6chelon of thc basilica, the

ruined tomb in the apsidal space, a lbrest of

stubby columns (some with extraordinarily

energetic Early Romanesquc capitals) and the

eastern chapel were cleirred and restored in the

nineteenth century. It is possible to obtain onll

a hint of how curious thc rotuncla was, with its

two stages ofdouble annular a is les suppol ted on

a forest of columns, and its dome arrangied

rbout a phenomenal arcaded cy'lindrical well

open to the sky through an oculus. Basicalll ', the

rotunda went back to the Pantheon in Rome;

Its stairways connectcd it with Saint-Riquicr;the architectural cle tail lvas mostl)- Lombardic,out the uppcr cornicc o l the rotunda had(though per i , .ps nol in rorS) \4oor ish lobcr lsoffit panels and chisel-curl brackets. The open-work arcaded well ocldly recalled thc telescopicoPen-work

spires of Saint-Riquicr. The smallvaulted

bavs on cvlindrical columns of the lowerstages

of ih. ,oiu.r.lo recallcd f'amiliar Lom-

F R A N C E : g O O r O S O I 5 - l

bardic crypts and Moslem vaulted construc-

tions. The quadrant or cove vaulting of the

upper stage came to bc most important in

Romanesque architecture ?rs its dcvelopment

cont inued.

Clear ly then Abbot Wi l l iam had his rv ish;

he made the church of Saint-B6nigne niru-

biliorent basilicis totius Galliae. But the building

was not a mature design, and, above al l , the

basilica was impossibly ponderous. There were

twentv-fbur piers about sir bv six feet or largcr

in thc basilican part of thc church, which thus

u:rs nr lde f i reprool br r , ru l t ing et the cost o l -

se r iousl-v b locking up a largc part of the intcr ior

area. 'lhe

thirty.-trvo sltpports ofnave and aisles

occupicd about one-tellth of the floor area west

of the crossing an intolerable proportion

llhich was apparentl]' not remedied b1. a Ro-

manesque reconstruction o1-the twelfth ccntury :

hter a Gothic church rcplaced Abbot Wi l l iam's

basi l ica.

Saint-B6nigne produced a f'erl architectural

echoes, though not of the first importance.

Wulf r ic 's C)ctagon of ro5o, io in ing two much

older Saxon buildings at the venerable abbev of

St Augustine in Canterbury, was inspired b1.

the rotunda at Di ion.r |Becket 's Crown' at

C-anterbury Cathedral is essentiallv a Gothic

rotunda, u l t imately inspired f rom Scns and

Di ion; the same mav be said of the rotunda o[ '

Trondheim Cathedral in Norway. Nearer home.

and in the Romanesque sty le, is the church of '

Charroux. more obviouslv de rived from Willianr

of Dijon's dcsign. However, only the structural

adr ance s ignal ized bl S,r int -Bdnignc was t ' fgen-

c ra l s i gn i f i cance i n R , rm l t t esque a r ch i l ec l t t r t .

, t . H [ , S P A C I O L I S W O O D E N - R O O F F - T )

B A S I L I C A S

'lhe high and ample nirve of Saint-Philibcrt at

Tournus was for a t imc (about Ior9-66) covered

by a wooden roof. 'l 'here

were other elaborate

French churchcs of the t ime which also had

l Io . Southwel l N I ins tc r , nave, r . r r to

il

r 5 + E A R L T E R R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

wooden roofing, but all ofthem have now been

destroyed; indeed it is diflicult to present a

clear idea of these important designs, which

were influential in their period.

For the north of France, the church of NIon-

tier-en-Derr{ (q6o gz) deserves mention fbr its

tall nave with a high clerestory, carried on a

handsome arcaded false triforium, ruined in the

Second World War, but norv restored. The

sanctuar) rvas replaced by'a finc Gothic chevet

in the Middle. l ,ges. ,Saint-Remi at Reims had as its titular the

ancient churchman who brrptized Clovis the

Frankish k ing. Through th is associat ion the

cafhedral of Reims became the French corona-

tion church. while St Remi was honoured in an

abbey near by. In roo5 thc monastery undcr-

r r r . Reims, Saint-Remi, I oo5 "+9; Gothic shaliing,

upper arcade, and i'ault (prc-19r7 photograph)

took what was intended to be the largest churclr

in Gaul a vast basilica originally planned 16

have double aisles, a transept, and an apss

6chclon. Collapse due to enlbrced neglect, u hile

the church was near the fiont line in the f"irst

World War, h ls cost us most of the or ig innl

navc, an interesting construction with bundltd

piers decorated in stucco, and a pretty gallcrl

enriched by arches paired under a serics <-rt'cn-

c losing arches, somewhat as in the Pi lgr imLrgc

churches. The tall clerestory wall above tire

gallery had semicircular exterior buttresses. 'l

he

transept had returned aisles. 'I 'hc

early Ronrirn-

esque building, somewhat curtailed from tl.re

scheme of roo5, was dedicated in ro4g by l )opc

Leo IX.r5 In later t imes a Gothic vaul t \ \as

bui l t over the navc [ r r r ] . A handsome [arh

Gothic apse, ambulatory. and radiating chaIels

which have surv ived, now terminate the bui ld-

ing on the east , and the nave has been ucl l

restored.'fhe

nert reallv conspicuous great woodcn-

roof'ed basilica was Bishop Fulbert's cathcdral

of Chartres, begun in r ozo [95e] . 1! The t radi t ion

at Chartres was basilican. The church of 7-1.i re-

placed an older bui ld ing which had a woo( len

lool ' ; a hre of '858 in the church of 74i ncccs-

sitated the Carolingian reconstruction ag.rin

l looden-rooled r , rh ich has been ment iorr .d

previously. The lat ter bui ld ing was burnt in

rozo, and was replaced b1' Fulbert 's church'

also a wooden-roofed structurc. but unusuallJ

imposing and spacious. It so happens that tte

know the archi tect 's name - B6ranger, whonr

the cathedral chapter ref'erre d to as arIda,r hurttrt

whcn he d i ed ( r o5o ) . I n t hc new ( [ x1111 . r r l

ro2o Bdranger took the theme of apse, an.rbu-

l a to r r . and rad ia r i ng chape l s neu l l exemp l i l r eJ

i t ' l ' ou r s

( gg7 r o r 41 , and app l i ed i t handson ru l l

on the church level , and also in the crypt , * het e

i t enveloped the old ambulatory o1' 858. ' l

he

th r cc c r yp l chape l s o f r ozo s t i l l e x i s t u i r h t l r e i r

ambulatory and a long corr idor of access {)n

each side [96], Ibr they were built into the strh'

structures of the present Gothic cathedral oi

rrg4- r 260 '' th. ,nrin church ol lo2o was not much

emaller than thc exist ing cathedral l t had a

*.. t*ort"nd probably a r idge belfr l l ts length

6f j45 teer on thc axis. and the clear nar e span

of i+ f . . t ' made ir notable for size' rnd i l was

nrty Uofafy constructed' 'Ihe

nave and aisles

toglthet had only eighteen interior supports

,U-out 7 t""t square in an area measuring about

,r"by "o5l 'eet.

The supports occupiedabout

one twenty-fifth of this area, whereas at Salnt-

B6nigne, as we havc seen' one-tenth of the area

wes given up to suppot'ts but Saint-B6nigne

in Diion was fireProol"

Chartres. with its wooden roof, continued to

be visited b1' the flames A lire of ro-1o dela.ved

F R A \ C L : 9 O o t O 5 o r 5 \

the dedication of Fulbert's cathedral until re-

pairs were completed in Io37;moreover, Ful-

bert's church sufi-ered again from iire in I r37,

and the whole ol ' the superstrucfure uas ru ined

in a memorable disaster' the 'wondcrful and

miserable fire' of r rg-1' !-r'en the stone-\'aulted

new Gothic cathedral lost i ts ouler uooden roof

in r836. Clearlv, in more than a thousand 1'ears

of successive fires, the wooden roof, fbr all its

advantages, has becn discredi ted at Chartres '

At many other sitcs - St Martin at'fours among

them - the wooden-rool'ed basilica has had an

equally sinister historv.

The issue ti'om the situation presented bv

Saint-B6nigne (fireproof' but impossibly cum-

bersome) ancl Chartres (seemly' but vulnerable

to lire) was fbund ab<lut ro5o in improved

ro3orrz. Auxerre Cathcdral . crrPt"

r 5 6 E A R L T E R R O N T A N E S Q U E S T Y L E S

masonrt ' tcchnique the increased use ofashlarstonc, better stcreotomi-, berter fbunclltions.

bct ter understanding o1'st resses, and bet terhandl ing of vaul t ing problems. f 'he f i rs t hal fof the eleventh centurv saw the level o1' technicalaccompl ishment r ise the crvpt o l ' the carhedralo1' Auxerre (aboLrt ro3o) [ r rz ] shows th is -

and bv the middlc of the centurv the Frenchbui lders wsre as fu l lv sophist icated and com_pctent as their colleagues of the K(iserdoilte onthe Rhine. Increasing prosper i tv and bet tercir,il order made greater resources ar.ailable, forcathedrals and monaster ies a l ike . The der.e lon_ing pi lgr image ro.sant i rgo prrr r ic led rhr oc( . ; -slon and the resources fbr the construction of

man1, f ine churches and conventual establ is f i -ments on the Pi lgr image Road. In ro4g onc n{the great bui lders of a l l t ime, Abbot Hugn i iClunv, took over the dest in ies of the great I lu"-gundian monasterv at a t ime when i t was gy_panding activelv and needed to rene\\ itsbui ld ings everywhere.

'l 'he ertraordinarv result achieved uithin

th ree gene ra t i ons i s ou r bes t w i t ness t r , 16 ,excel lence o1' the preparatory labours of t f tgEarly Romanesque. Paul Henry Ldng expr.e sscsit verv well: 'Wherever

we look we behold thrtgraL^i tds, a legacv f rom Rome's most g lor ious

r imes, which lends th is per iod a t ru l r . ar isro_cratic majcsty . . . equalled bl an inner forcc . . .,

P A R T T H R E E

THE MATURE, ROMANESqUE

AND INTERNATIONAL ARCH

C H A P T E R 8

T H E G R E A T C H U R C H E S O F

AS INTER-REGIONAL

I TE CTURE

. I ' H E P I I - G R I X , I A G E R O { D S

G E N E R A L C O N S I D E R A T I O N S

Than longen Jblh to gott oil pilerinurs

And Tulnars.fitr Io sttkrn straunli strotld(s

Piety and the open road wrought well lbr archi-

tecture in the second half of the eleventh ccn-

tury. There were many collections of relics in

western Europe by that time, and manl' \.cne-

rated burial places in the length and breadth ofthose lands. But Jerusalem, Rome, and Santiagode Compostela drew tides of devotecl pilgrimstrom far and wide, so much so rhat pror,isioncame to be made in hosoices and monastcriesalong the road most particularlv along theroad to Santiago, wherc the palmers were sonumerous that a sense ol fellowship der eloped.The pilgrimages indeed appear ro us as anat t ract i \e socia l phenomenon ol the t ime.

\m.ty Picaud. Fidel Fi ta. Joscph Bcdier .r ' reorgiana

Goddard King, \ r rhur Kingsler 'tor ter '

Luis \ azqucz de Parga. Jose Mar ia

Lacarra, Jrran Uria Riu, Jesfs Calro Garcia

hale u ' r i t tcn about i ts poetrv. i ts cnchant ing

legend, i ts abounding l i fe, and i ts beaut i lu l

architecture.r -I'he

thought makes one envy

Chaucer 's squire, en route, of ' course, to

Canterbur l

Srng--rngc he wrs, oL f lo l t )nge. a l rhc thr

I Ic wirs rs f iesshe i rs is thc moneth o1 \ l r r .

' I l re heart lcaps responsively ' to what Kingsler '

Porter cal led ' those long, but t lc l ic ious k i lo-

metres' in f'ellowship with 'the m)riad human

beings who t rudgcd unending leagues to la1 '

thci r grat i tude and thc ' i t ' rcmorsc, their weal th

and their s ins at the f 'eet of the -{post lc ' . With

real ins ight hc recognized and expressed ' the

inncr v i ta l i tv , whether post ic or spir i tual I know

nor, but st i l l lbrceful l l l iv ing at Sant iago, and

unquenchably bcaut i f u l there ' . r

The ancicnt monument which was recog-

nized in 8 r -j (on what basis, we do not know) as

thc tomb of 'St Jame s tht ' son of Zebedec soon

attracted ir local pilgrimage, rvhich is heard of :ts

I 5 8 I N T E R - R E G I o N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I o N A L A R c H I T E c T U R E

earlv as 8++. Bf'' that time a Benedictine monas-

ter]' alread]'existed at Compostela. 81' 86o the

fest ival of Sant iago, z5 Julv, was l is ted in themartvrologv of the cathedral of Mctz.3 This is a

most rmportant f'act, because ecclesiastics came

fiom all over the Empire and from England toMetz in order to studv at the great school of'Roman chant which had been established there.'I'hus

an intcrnational pilgrimage to Santiago

soon beg;an to develop. As earlv as 8g3 provision

lbr a hospice is reported. In g5r Godescalc,

bishop o1'Le Puy', made thc pilgrimage fromFrance, accompanied by nearlv zoo monks.

At this time the little Kingdom of Le6n as_pired to empire, and the bishop of Santiago, asear ly 'as g79, was stv led'Bishop of the Apostol ic

See', though not in actual competition with

Rome. In 9g7 Sanriago was the object of anlmportant and damaging raid by the great

Moorish warrior Almanzor. -fhe

pilgrimage per-

sisted and grew in spite of such dangers lrom

the south; despite local war in the Christianlands, and piratical raids on the coast bv Mos-

lems and Northmen alike.

I'hcre is a thrill in seeing and handling

the classic manuscript of thc pilgrimage, thetwelfih-centur1. pseudo-Callistine codex. con-

taining Avmerv Picaud's Pilgrim's Guide (Book

V) fbllowing a scries of books on the Offices ofthe church at Compostela, the Miracles of 'St

James (attributed to Pope Calixtus II), theChronicle of the Lif'e and Translation of St

James, and the Chronicle of the Expedition ofCharlemagne to Spain (attributed to Arch_b i shop ' f u rp i n ) .

The attributions are f'alse, of course, as is thestatement that it was first ,received'

in Rome;but i t mav, as the colophon says, have been'written

in various places Rome, Jerusalem,Gaul, Italv, Germany', Frisia, and especiallv atC lun r ' . l t con ta i ns f i audu len r l e r r e r so l Ca l i x t usI I and one of Innocent I I which dates i t r r rg.' l

he au rho r . uho sa rs h imse l f l book r , ch . x r r r ;

that 'all

kinds of iniquitl,' and fraud abound in

T H E G R E A T C H U R C H E S O F T H E P I L G R I M A G E R O A D S r 5 9

the road of the saints', borrowed great names

to gir,e a show of authenticity to his work.

Unfortunatelv the colophon has led to rhsquite general supposition that the pilgrimass

was dereloped b1 rhe abbel of Clunr. tbr i i ,own profit, and lovers of the old Burgundral

monasterv will be glad to learn that it is nori,relier.ed ofthis onus.

'lhere is a phrase in Chap_

ter xrrr of Book rv to the effect that in xcomparison between regular clergy, ,black,

monks and abbots and 'whi te ' canons regular .

the last-named meliorem snnctlrum sectem tcil(,nl- that is, imputing superiority to the canons

over Cluniac and other Benedictine monks. 'l 'he

phrase cannot have been written at Cluny. 'fhe

Cluniacs were touch)' at this time; Ibr it ras

not manv vears since St Bernard,s disobliging

Apologia to William of Saint-Thierry had stig_matized the monks of Clunv ( r r z4) ; moreor cr,in r r 3z Abbot Perer the Venerable had rectifiecl

Cluniac obserr ,ances. l

The roads of pilgrimage were necessarilv thcgrand routes of communication, and would in

any case have had monasteries and hosoices on

them. A1mer1 P i caud i nd i ca res o rhe r es rab l i sh -

ments in a number of p laces where Clunv hadpriories; Cluny itself was not located on an1-

one of the Roads, and the houses described as

Cluniac in Spain were for the most part mercll

associated with the Burgundian abbey through

foundation, refbrm, customs, or ecclesiasticelpersonages. Yet Clunv unquestionably favoured

the Pi lgr image, and even more the Spanish

crusade for the reconquest of the peninsuh.

Cluny had influential fiiends in Spain chicf'

among them King Al fonso VI , one of whosequeens (Constance) was a niece ofAbbot Hugh.

Clunv supplied great churchmen for the refornr

and cxpansion of the Church in Spain, as the

Christian states oriented themselves towards rhe

Latin centrcs ofcivilization while pushing their

boundar ies southward. Much Burgundian chir -

alry took part in this reconquest in Spain anrl

Portugal both.

, r? . Compara l i \e p lans o t thc f i rc g rca t ehurchcs

ii"1he Pilgrtmas' tt Rc

- fours, St Martin (HerseY)

l' t,lrog.t. Sainr-Martial (Roussirc)

i. conqu"t' S:intc-l ot

] Toulouse, salnt-5ernrn

l. S.nritgo de ComPostela (K J C )

With the Cluniac role in the Pilgrimage

beffer understood, it remains to be said that the

researches of M' Elie Lambert't have shown

very well that Orders other than the Cluniac

haj considerable numbers of priories on the

Pilgrimage Roads. 'l 'he

whole ensemble of estab-

lishments ofering hospitalit.v was rationall--v

set along the routes, at intervals of some twenty

miles apart a comfbrtable day's iourneying'

One supposes an instinctivc or tacit under-

standing regarding this matter, such as there is

to-day among the principal suppliers of the

roadside commodities of our own times. There

was sufficient place fbr evervone - Cluniacs,

Augustinians, Hospitallers, conf raternities, and

individual doers of good.

In that devoted age, each of the Pilgrimage

Roads would naturally have developed a shrine

of some importance. The international and

inter-regional character of the Pilgrimage is em-

phasized by the f'act that the most notable

shrines one on each road - had vert similar

architectural form. These churches transcend

the local ism of their per iod I r r3, showing al l

fivel.

St Martin at Tours on the Paris-Bordeauxroad, Saint-Martial at Limoges on the V6zela-v

P6rigueux road, Sainte-Foi at Conques on the

Le Puy - Moissac road. and Saint-Sernin at Tou-louse on the Arles Jaca road, each r.ras a great

church of the peculiar Pilgrimage t1''pc, with thettnest ofthe group at the goal ofthe pilgrimage,rn Santiago itself. The buildings embody anaccomplished

formula fbr ample, spaciouschurches

of firenroof construction suitable forsouthern

l ighr ing and c l imare. ' fhe1 al l showaski l l in a. . ign uia an assurance in composi t ion

+ r . . tf . . . ' + r

14aara + o r.al...I r o o r e + t . , . . . t a a

; " . . . . + . . , . : ' . ; '

+ t t l + t t r r t r r

fFt:::::::f l r r . | . . . . I

r*:::::::::Er+++++++

T

o 3o\l

o roofT

f+?

' ' ' ' ' ' r t ' ' | ' t " r

**tt: iI r o r

l+*

T ' | .l['I . -+' l r ' i /{ r o \

: l i l r t . ,r i a . o ' . . . . r \

. < ) + . . . " ' { '

. + + f 1 r \ "t r . \+ r + (+ . . . \! l r t J. i l r r

l

a a

f r r * {+ f'=aa +iq t * t!

Hlo* *..* ".ii : : -;1r

"..' | a | . r . ' " ? . ' - t . . " . . } + f

l : ; * . r . . f + + " " i . r d

_l jgsrrrrrrrg1 . I f3J'. '- - a a . . l .r

t ' l * l

{ + + r -1r

+n i i+

I O O I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C I I I T E C T U R E

which rvould have becn impossible previous to

ro5o for structurcs of this classification. 'l 'he

stat ical problcms were wel l understood, and

the embel l ishment, part icular ly wi th re l ie f

sculpture, was increasingly Iine in quality and

charactcr.

'l '1picall1' the

'Pilgrimage church' is g'ran,1

in scale. I t has a long nare rv i th a is les an1 ,gal lerv, a widc t ransept, and a spacious sanl-

tuarv arm, all covcred b!.tunnel vaulting carris6

to a uni fbrm height in the case of 'Sant iago.

s ixty-eight f 'eet I r r4] . ' I 'hcsc

vaul ts harc r r1n.r

verse archcs '19 1t t

sustained' 1\p ical ly ' on

]"urr . p i . r t rv i th lour i t tached shaf ts ' onc of

J inn t t t . t up the la(c o l lhe nar e wal l to currr

L l , . rnru. . t t arch on the ground f loor two ol -

A.o, t t . t t carr) lhei r sharc of thc archcs which

frr r . , t t . r rd io in ing ais le bals ' and rhe lburth

.r r r i . r r t t . arch betuqcn thc groin raul ts o l the

" i r f . f t t t . The corresponding shal i in thc gal-

l.ry.rrri.. a diaphragm arch which separates

,*o Uryr of quadrant vaulting so placed as to

absorb th" thrust of'the high vault' In principle

the aisles and galleries surround the entire

building. This means an ambulatory about the

aose, and a small gallerv above it, beneath the

.l.r..,ory windows ofthe apse Elsewhcre therc

is no clerestory. To enrich the design, the open-

ings between the piers of the gallery were

typically divided by pairccl archcs resting. in the

middle, on slender columns, and at the sides on

the lateral shafts of the piers, under an en-

closing arch which corresponds to the aisle arch

- a very prett!'arrangement. Light reaches the

nave, transept, and apsc directly lrom windows

in the end wal ls and r lantern lower o\er lhe

crossing; i t a lso f i l tcrs in t iom thc windows ol '

the aisles and galleries. Since the churches were

for canons or fbr monastic purposes' the naves

were blocked at the head by the choir fbr thc

clergy. By the eleventh or twelfth century it was

customary to enclose thesc choirs with walls

which obstructed the view liom the lower part

ofthe nave to the altar. The wide transepts were

designed to compensare for this, in view of thepilgrim thrones. For rhe chant the acoustics of'

these churches are unexceDtionable.The generous l ines and considerable height

of these buildings, emphasized b1' their boldtowers and turrets, gave them a finc silhouetteand a handsome presence.

'l 'hose which remain

are, after eight hundred years, still among thcnoblest churches o[ l ; r , rnce and Spain, and theqestruct ion

of rhe others (Sainr- \4arr ia l atL lhoges

and Sr Mart in ar Tours) is grcat tyregretted.

T H E G R E A T C H U R C H E S O F T H [ ' P I L G R I M A G E R O A D S I O I

St Martin at 'fours,

forward-looking as

usual . bui l t the leading or 'p i lot ' design, though

through later rebuilding it departcd from the

type which it had helped to crcate. Saint-

Martial nt Limoges had not so spaclous a tran-

sept as thc others. Beautifullv sct' Sainte-Foi at

Conques is the smal lest and most rust ic I r r [ l ] '

Saint-Sernin at Toulouse is exceptional among

the group in being partly brick-built. Saint-

Scrnin was nevcr quitc linishecl, and it has

sufiercd both fionr mcdieval additions and mo-

dern restorations; moreover, it has lost its sub-

urban sctting and its group of conventual

structures. Santiago has lost its canons' choir,

and thr or ig inal Romanesquc exter ior was

masked between 1658 and r75o by Baroquc

construction (though without spoiling the

bui ld ing).

Santilgo has the most commanding situation ;

Sa in te - l r o i has t he mos t p i c t u resquc su r round -

ings. Sant iago and Saint-Mart ia l were bui l t of

grani te: S:rnt iago and Saint-Sernin werc lbr t i -

fied; Santiago, Saint-Sernin, and Sainte-Foi

have notable ligure sculpture. Santiago alone

has a fu l ly developed c i rcui t o( 'a is les and gal-

leries about the building. Santiago alone rvas

planned tbr the full complement o('nine towers,

rcalizing the Carolingian ideal (three wcre large,

two werc of mcdium size, and four were corncr

turrets). St Nlartin was planned with five towers'

a l l large; Saint-Nlar t ia l was planned wi th two

Iarge touers and two or more turrets i Sain lc-

Iroi was planned with a large crossing towcr and

a snraller stair tower, on the transept.

On the practical side, for comparison with thc

church of Saint-B6nigne at Diion, we should

note that the nave proper of the cathedral of

Santiago and its aisles, fulll-' vaulted, measure

about 64 feet in rvidth and r43 feet in length,

with zo interior supports in the lbrm of piers,

each melsur ing about l5 squxrc feet in r rea'

This re lat ionship would hold, roughly, for a l l

of thc typical bui ld ings. The nave of Saint-

86nigne, though dift'erently shaped, had almostr r-1. Santiirgo de Compostcla, .. r o7-5 r 2 r r ,anaht ic l l i somct r ic pcrspcc t i rc (Braunwald)

r62 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

"Lai!:5'*3 0 F T

the same area as that of Santiago ; 3z piers aggrc_gating 8ro square feet were needed to sustainthe r.ault. Two gcnerations of'technical progressaccount fbr the difference: thc piers ofthe naveof Santiago occupy onlr. 3oo square fect, littlcmore than one-third of the area which was re_quired at Saint-B6nigne.

S T M A R T I N A T T O U R 5 6

The ear ly tenth-century church of St Mart inwhich we have discussed was consumed bv firein gg7.

' fhe new construct ion afrerwart ls hacl

thc ideal Pilgrimage plan a long nave, a capa_cious rransept. and ths f i rs t typical ly arrangcdapse, ambularorl,, and radiating chapels butit was wooden-roofed. About ro5o, when thetransept was rebui l t , groin vaul t ing was used inthe aislcs and quadrant vaulting in the gallcries,as had becn done, a little differentlv. at Saint_Ben igne . D i j on . i n r oo t r 7 . A r t he h i ghcs r l eve lthere was a ribbed tunnel vault. This tvoical

T H E G R E A T C H U R C H E S O F T H E P I L G R I M A G E R O A D S r63

Il

I

Ilil

Pilgrimage vaulting system might havc bcenextended to the nave, but p lans werc changet laf'ter a Iire of rtz3.1

The reconstructcd transept of St Martin rr:rsbui l t according to the Pi lgr imagc formula, bur

wi thout the inncr paired arches o1' the gal lcr i

bays I r r5 l . Heavy tower porches were bui l r at

the transept ends (in the trrrdition of'the Lrgrrlctower of ' 466 7o at St Mart in) ; a lantern * ls

bui l t at the crossing, and eventual ly A monu-mental pair of towers at the lvest encl.

'Ihe ,rnr-

bulatory of 'g97 ror4, which we would so ghdl l

sce, was replaced by an Ear ly Gothicambulrr rorJafter a fire ol' rzoz, but that tbllowcd thc orhcrsin the ru in and demol i t ion *hi .h nr"r ,onk ,h.

bui ld ing late in the eighteenth cenrurv.N

S - 4 I N ? ' - A , { A R T I A L A T L I N T O G E S ' )

{ t S : r i n t -Ma r r i a l i n L imoges , i r was t h t . r r r . r , , 1

music rvhich rvas most e l lect i r ch, cul t i r r r red

Onc ma1 f a i r l _v su rn r i se t ha r r he mus ie r l J c -

velopment at Saint- \ lar t ia l was enr iched f iom

ct Gal l and by the impulse which came from-Gerben

of Aur i l lac ' la ter Pope Sl lvester I I ,

shorn we have seen at Ripoll in near-by Cata-

lonia - also in one way or another by the mul-

fple contacts of the Pilgrimage Road. Io

Saint-Mart ia l had become Cluniac at the

close of Abbot Odo's career (between 936 and

g4z) but had seceded from the Congregation.

After the abbey had suffered from a disastrous

firein ro53, it was sold (in ro6z) bv the Count of

Limoges, who did not own it, to Cluny, and it

thus became Cluniac again under Abbot Hugh.

When the new monks came, the old communitv

resisted, and the Cluniacs were obliged to resort

to force before they could establish themselves

(ro63).tt In happier years which lbllowed,

Cluny gave the monks of Saint-Martial a new

church of the Pilgrimage type; for Cluny was

not arbitrary or conformist in architecture. The

newchurch was nearing completion when it was

dedicated in rog5, though the nave, evidently

still covered at least in part by wood, suffered

from fire in 1167 and evenrually had a Gothicvault.

S A I N T E - F o l A T c o N e u E s r l

Thechant t ransports us spir i r ual l r to the MiddleAges. At Cnnquer, in and abour Sainre-Foi , weare taken back visually Ir r6 r8]. Sainte-Foi isvery happily situated on a rugged slope in a re-mote val ley wi th a pr*ry r . i l lage near. . whichtooks much as i r d id in o lden t imes. The presenrchurch, smal l , e legant in I inc, and beaut i fu l lvproport ioned,

*u, bui t , s louly and progres-

) :Y ," replace older construct ion, according

to-r beaut i fu l p lan pur into erecut ion bv Abbot--*urrrc about lo5o. The nave. which appears touc-the

oldest par l . has bold proport ions ( r :z j )'orresponding to those in the rransept ( r . ro5o)

( " ' * r a rhn a r Tou rs l r r j ( 3 )1 . . \ bbo t B6gon

*" i - j I07) buih rhe c lo isrer , and his romb iswt against

certain older portions of the church,

but opin ion is unanimous that the church must

have been f in ished about r r jo. The ta l l pro-

portions do not indicate tardy date, but the

bellry'over the crossing is clearly ofthe twellih

century, and the boldness ofcomposi t ion of the

apse - both internal and external - belongs to a

design of the period about ro8o. The unfortu-

nate western towers date from the nineteenth

century. Before that time a plain front termi-

nating in a double slope (like a Lombardic

fagade) served as a backgJround for the entrance

po r ta l I r r 6 ] .

This west portal at Conques, dated about

r rz4,rr is a most remarliable carr,ing, which still

(owing to the characteristic arched hood) retains

traces of its medieval polychromy, a circum-

stance which gives us the rare privilege ofseeing

this composition of the Last Judgement as the

rr6. Conques, Sainte-Foi , r . ro5o(?) r . r r3o,facade befbrc rcstoration

r r5. 'I 'ours,

St \,Iartin, rcstoration studv oftransept as rebuilr .. ro-5o Il. (Hcrsev)

T H E G R E A T C I I U R C H E S O F T H E P I I , G R I M A G [ , R O A D S r 6 5

I ITand I r t l (oppr ts i te ) ( ionques,sa in tc - l io i , r . ro -5o(?) r . r r jo , in rc r io r look ingcas tanc lv iewf romrhre l l l

Middle Ages saw it, alive and warm with vivaci-ous movement. The influence of'the pilgrimagethrongs may be felt in the choice and trcatmentof the subject more picturesque, and muchmore popular in appeal rhun rhe apocal lpt icvtston which was evoked f 'or the morr inte l -lectual devotion of the monks of Clunv. Sainte-Foi at Conq ues ner er had c losc conner ions wi thCluny.

s A t N T - s E R N r N A T T o u L o r r s r .

A N D P I L c R I M A c E s c L r L p r u R E

Saint-Sernin at Toulouser+ is by filr the most

ta&iliar and the most ofien visited of the Pil-

grimage group of churches. It rightll ' ' stands fbr

a great moment in thc c iv i l izat ion ol 'Langue-

doc, rvhich had its capital in Toulouse. Except

fbr a short intcrludc, it was an Augustinian

house l rhen the church was being bui l t . At the

t ime i t la1 'on the outski r ts o l thc c i t l ' , and hacl a

considerable group of conventual structures,

arranged about a cloister, on thc northern

(shaded) s idc. Befbre the date of the rebui ld ing

of Conques was suspectcd, the beginnings of

Saint-Sernin wcre ascr ibed to the ro6os. Con-

servat i re opin ion now pref t rs ro77, whcn the

chapter of canons regular was institutcd, or

ro8z-3, when Bishop Isarne of Toulouse tn-

sta l led Cluniac monks at Saint-Sernin, because

1 6 6 I N T E R - R E G I o N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I o N A L A R c H I T E c T U R E

the canons, claiming exemption, refused himobedience.

The chevet of Saint-sernin [ r rg zr ] , oftvpical fbrm, was complete when the later archi_tect of the building, Raymond Gayrard, tookover about rog8. Meanwhile the high altar hadbeen consecrated on z4 N4ay r og6 by the Cluniacpope Urban II in the presence offifteen French

and Spanish bishops. A gift fbr rhe nave is re-ported in ro95, which means that the transeDtuas we l l ad ranced b r r hen , and i n r r r 8 whenRaymond Gayrard died, the splendid double-aisled western arm of the church had beencarried up to include the height ofthe windows

ofthe gal lery, but not vaul ted. pope Cal ix tus I I ,putative aurhor of the famous pilgrim codex,

dedicated an alrar (or perhaps the uncompleted

bui ld ing) on rg July r r rg. The west f ront has

been finished off simph., and remains an awk-

ward bulk, bringing the exterior length of'the

church to a total of 359 feet. In order to support

the staged belfry (largely of Gothic date) abor,e

the lantern, the four crossing piers have been

much enlarged, with resulting strangulation of

the interior perspectives, but the exciting ex-

terior silhouette, as seen lrom the east, is a par-

tial compensation. The picturesque medielal

fortifications and the old patina ol'the building

were lost in a restoration, otherrvise unfbrtunate

also, dat ing f rom r855 and the lb l lowing r .eers.

While Saint-Sernin is most importanr as an

accomplished example of Pilgrimage archirec-

ture, its carvings figure prominently in the his-

tory of Romanesque sculpture. ls A ser ies 0f

marble p laques in a heavy sty le have been bui l t

in to the ambulatory wal l of Saint-Sernin. ' I 'hel '

are datable to ro96 or ear l ier [ rzr ] . At the

crossing there is a marble altar slab bordercd b!'

-,tto r2r. Toulousc, Saint-Sernin, cheret (restored in the nineteenth centttr-v),

*i.,u*f (with later additions)' and ambulatorv (looking west)' c' Iofio

exquisite small ligures which is believed to be

the high altar slab dedicated by Pope Urban II

in ro96. The plaques and the al tar , which are inPyrenean marble, make it easy ro trace thesculptural development from French Catalonia(Saint-Genis-des-Fontaines, rozo r ; Ar les-sur-Tech, ro46) bv wa1 of the ambulatoryfigures and altar ( r oo6) to the Ascension on rhcPorte de Midgevi l le at Saint-Sernin (c. r r r o) andso to Cluny (c. trrz) and to the wonderfulPorta l of Moissac (r . r r r s) . rn

. Conservxt ive French ivr i ters c la im a pr imacy

lor Toulouse in lhe re-creat ion ol monumenralsculptute

in stone. \'et the precious wreckage ofol t ler sculptures sho* s that monumenf a l sculp-ture in stone did nor real lv cease wirh Ant iqui tv.r^he Angl ian ancl I r ish . .orr . r , lare Saxon re-rrc ls in England, f igure sculprure dated abourroo5

at St Emmiram, Regensburg; ar sr

Martin, Tours; and at the Pante6n de los Reyes

ofSan Isidoro, Le6n, still exist ; other important

ensembles ( the tomb of St Front , P6r igueux,

ro77, a,nd the carvings of San Facundo, Saha-

grin, ro8o 96) have been lost. A re-study ofthe

material will show that Cluniac spirituality and

love ofthe arts did a great deal to give increasing

cogency to the sculptural themes in the late

eleventh century.

S A N T I A G O D E C O M P O S T E L A ,

G O A L O F T H E P I L G R I M A G E

'-lhe modern pilgrim may come up the Via

Francigena ('Frenchmen's WaJ'') to Santiago de

Compostela as his predecessors have done for a

thousand years and more. He will find a charn-

ing city of rain-washed granite which has

changed very little since the eighteenth century'

T H E G R E A T C H U R C H E S O F T H E P I L G R I M A G T R O A D S r 6 9

r23. SantiaFo dc ('omqoltel,a' ,

r!storaaion stud-\ u1 ol lil lnll s(ncmc'

, t O j 5 . t . I I o o ' e t c l l ! . J - L - )

Small flYing buttrcsscs ut rPsc

4rd bat t lemcnts r ( l ( l (d : l l lcr I I | 7

because the provincial government was long

ago installed at busv La Coruia, and indifl'erent

communications have tliscouraged modern de-velopments at Santiago. L t

The splendid o ld cathedralr* f r r3( .5) , r r .1,tzz-61 still dominates the whole ofthe city, as ithas f rom the ver l beeinnine. I t was not ent i re lvfinished rrntil rhe cnj ot the eighteenr h ..n, rr.,1.by which r ime i ts met l ieral lbrms h. . rd beendisguised on the exterior and partlv on rhe in-ter ior . for harmonv wirh rhe grrn, l i l r . :p i r i r ot 'that gorgeous

"g".

'fh. western faqacle (of the'obradoiro,)

f l rnt .d u1. the prr l r rce of the l rch_bishop on the north nn. l ,h. c lo is ler cdihce ont l t .outh, is a magni fcent design in Chur-r igueresque.

\ { ' i th tvpical Spanish rr r , rheuanking

strucrures nr . k .p, rc lat i re l r s imple inorder to give full tulue to the extraordinarilv

elaborate f ront ispicce of the church. The lvhole

great f'agade, 524 feet in width, gains greatl.v

f rom the fact that the supposed tomb of ' St

James, the nucleus of a l l Sant iago, is located

within the building about twentv-five feet above

thc levcl of the plaza, so that a h igh basement

storcv was necessarv bencath the western raneie

of bui ld ings. The unf in ished to$ers o l - the

fbqade were carried up in masterly. Churri-

gueresquc one for the bells, the other lbr the

car laca or Easter rat t le to a height ofz jz feet ;

also. a hcar'-v tower of defence adioining the

transept $ 'as augmented in a s imi lar wav, and

provided with a clock.

A Renaissance stairwav and platform give

acccss to the church from the western plaza.

Once past the door, the r,isitor is surrounded by

Romanesque w'ork, and engulfbd in an atnro-rzz. Santiago de Conrpostela, pucrta tle las platcrias, rozg and later

r 7 0 t N T l - R - R E ( ; l O N A t , A N D I N T E R N A I l O N A L A R C l t l r E c T r - i R E

sphere fu l l of 'warmth and digni t r ' . The west end

has an interest ing crypt , which sustains the

main vestibule ancl uith it the triple P6rtico de

la Glor ia, r ichl l 'embel l ished by 'carv ings. I t is a

late and beautilul florvcring of I']ilgrimage sculp-

ture, in arrangement, though not in subject,

lieely inspired fiom the Eircat Cluniac poltal at

V6zelay I r24, r631. I t was carved and insta l lcd

(rr68 t lS) b1,a master namcd Xlat thcw, shown

in prayer on the base of thc medi ln iamb.

Formerll' the outer archrvay-s rvcre open, and

the thrce great cloorwavs, erch with iamb figures,

the sculptured great tympanum, and archivolts

all touched with colour, were seen trom the

plazain the cavernous shadow ofthe vestibule.

The vaul t ing of thc rest ibr . r le supports a t r ibune

which is carried up as thc central motif of the

laqrde. Thercfbre at Santiago we have essen-

tially the old Carolingian rvestwork augmcnted

b1 the portal sculpfures, and bJ the monu-

mental tower pair.'I 'he

original scheme for the front called lbr

thesc same elements. but the carvings of the

portal were on the exterior wall, and there were

two archcs corresponding to the nave. 1'he

spandrels of these arches had a ' l - ransl igurat ion

showing St James of 'course carved in re l ief .

This old scheme has been presclved at the tran-

sept portals, and that ilt thc south now contains

carvings from the west portal and the north

portal, as we know from the Pilgrim's Guide by

Aymery Picaud, where they are appreciatively

descr ibed. The north lagade of ' the t ransept wrs

entirel]' rebuilt between ry57 and r77o, but (as

remarkeci) i t s t i l l has i ts paired entrance door-

wa1's and prcserves its medieval name, the

Puerta Francigena; the adfoining Plaza de la

Azabacheria still recalls the pilgrim souvenirs

of jet (a:ahacha) which used to be sold there.

The south fiagade is still largely mediev:rl, and it

is named after the silversmiths' sltops (platerias)

which are even now in the old location near bv.

Bctween these I-agades.stretches the magnificent

z4o-(bot transept, lengthened b-v the clock tower

to 2qg f'eet, with a clear interior length of' u r.i

I'eet one of the finest of all Romanesque in-

teriors. Its altars (in chapels at the east), to-

gethcr with thosc of the ambulatory, were dedi-

cated in r ro5; o ld work was c leared out o l ' i t 11

r r rz. and i t was f in ished soon af ter . Al l of th is

work, and thc sanctuary too, is marked b1

cusped and mitrcd archcs which savour of'

Moorish influence.

The scheme for the new cathedral was workcrl

out short lv af tcr roTr by Diego Pcl iez, b ishop

of Sant iago; prel iminary work had bccn donc

by rc77, when the propcrtv lines involved at tirc

cast end of the church were sct t led. On the

Puerta de las Platerias the ceremonial beginning

or the juridical fbundation of the church is lc-

callcd bv a bold inscription of unusual form,

giv ing thc date V Ides ofJuly, Era r r r6 ( r r J t r l r

ro78), but a good deal of the cxisting rvork on

the porta l is later . Many carv ings have the

general character ofsculptures of r ogo- 5. -I'here

is a beaut i lu l s tatue o1'St Jame s which was gi r cn

by Al fbnso VI (d. r rog) toeiether wi th at lerst

one fine relief liom the 'I'ransfiguration

Port;rl.

The fricze and jamb reliefs are somewhat dis-

ordcred, and it is certain that the portal has bccn

rebui l t once probably af ter a ser ious tonn

insurrection and cathedral fire of rr17, alrtl

latcr, when the west ancl north portals $crc

remade.

Bishop Diego Pelfez was deposed in ro8S.

accused of complicity in a plot to invite Williant

o l \ o rmand l ' s i n t e r ven l i on ' n

l he d i s t u r l r c J

pol i t ics o l ' the Kingdom. Diego Gelmirez t t , , ,L

o\rer as administrator ( rog3), b ishop (r too'

r ror) , and archbishop (r rzo) . Repair ing, vaul t -

ing, and fortifying the existing parts of thc

cathedral involved a considerable eflbrt for hinr

af ter t r r7. Ncvertheless, in r tz4 or r tz8, thc'greater part ' of the church having then becn

built, Archbishop Gelmircz recommcnded thc

cons(rucl ion of , r c lo ister . I t was douht lcss ' r l

thc usual Romanesque tvpe, rather smal l i r t

scale, and so i t was rcplaced tn ,n. t t * , . .nt"

Iz4. Santiago de ComPostela,

resiorationitudy ol lagade as rernodelled r r6ll rzI t ;

north tower finished later (K.J C )

century. Works were st i l l in progress at the

west end of the church when Aymery Picaud

vis i ted i t in r r3r (or r rzo?); i t promised to bc

very handsome, as he says.

The visitor entering the nave lrom Master

Matthew's \est ibule through the P6rt ico dc la

Gloria sees the entire length ofthe nave' cross-

ing, and sanctuary without interruption - an

open axial vista of 25o feet, the total extcrior

length of the cathedral, including the present

approach stairway, being 365 feet.

It is a ereat moment for the lover of the

Middle Ag;s, when he finds himself within thc

sof t l ight and shadou of that harmonious nare,

gazing towards the high altar which has been

the focus of pilgrim devotion for so long' -l'he

altar and its surroundings have been enriched

1 7 r

by Baroque httings, and the vista is liamed b1'

two splendid Baroque organs at the head ofthe

nave, all bright with gilding, silver, and colour;

nevertheless the interior is dominated by the

old Romanesque work in brown grani tc - the

even rhythm of the nave bays, the elegant pro-

portions of the aisle arches, the sophistication

of the gallery arches with thcir rounded tym-

pana and slencler paired shafis' A flood oflight

marks the crossing tower. An enormous censcr'

the Botafumeiro, is swung t iom a support ins idc

this at testival time, emitting great clouds of

xromaric smokc as i t descr ibes a lso- fool arc

above the hea<ls of the multitude' This is but

one feature ofthe extraordinarily rich liturgical

tradition of Santiago, which dates in its present

fbrm from Baroque times. -I'he

popular aspects

l l

I

ril;L -^.Jl

T H E G R E A T C } J U R C H E S O F T H E P I L G R T M A G L R O A D S 1 7 3

of the festival also possess great interest - the

fiesta, the fireworks, the proccssion with gigan-

t,fles, two of which do a darice in the cathedral

sanctuary after the great high mass of St James's

day, and the general outpouring of devotion

rnd spirits all are sweet with time and

memories.

From the early twelfth century'until quitc

recently there was a walled-in 'coro'

at the east

end of the nave IIz5]. This monastic feature

was introduced by Diego Gelmirez, who orga-

nized the canons, to the number ofsercntv-two

(including seven with the privileged title of

cardinals) as a community under the Augus-

tinian regime. Santiago was apparently the first

cathedral to have such a coro, and set the fashion

in Spain. The opening up of the nave at San-

tiago has permitted excavations which are re-

vealing the old church of 879 96 built by

Alfonso III in the Asturian style, of which the

church of Lourosa in Portugal is perhaps the

best existing representative [54c].tt' The raised

area in the sanctuary rests in part on the

foundations of the tomb which the hermit

Pelayo brought to notice in 8ri.

1'he Romanesque ambulatorl, and radiating

chapels took over the s i te of the ninth-century

Benedictine church, as agreed in the negotia-

t ions of ro77.

The charming and verv exceptional central

chapel has the inscription Regnante Adelimso

tempore Didaci in the time of Bishop Diego

Peldez (who undertook the building) and Alfbn-

so VI the King (who was gcnerous to Santiago

but even more so towards Clunv, to whose

prayers he believed he owed his life during the

preceding murderous dynastic struggle).

It was he who, under Cluniac influence

(ro7z), out lawed the N{ozarabic l i turgv in

Spain; under h im, as the Kingdom advanced

southward, man-v Burgundian knights and Clu-

niac ecclesiastics aided in settling and organiz-

ing new territories. As a thank-olfering for the

capture of the old Vis igothic capi ta l o1 ' the

peninsula, 'foledo

(25 iv'lay ro85), he gave im-

mense subsidies which paid fbr about one-hall'

of the abbel'' church of Clun)', as- $'c shall later

see. "I'his conjuncture, however, was unfortu-

nate fbr Santiago. Archbishop Diego Gelmirez

in the heroic agle wished to make the see pri-

t25 Qert).Santiago de Compostela,nave f rom the ucsr, . . lo75 | r5o. shouing rhctraditional monastic .o.o, io* tlesrror cd

rz-5, t . Saintes, Saint-Eutropc, ro8r 96. Raiscdchoir fbr monastic scrvices lr38l. Pilgrim

crypt Irjgl opened rvide on nale stepped forvisibiliti ' (destrol cd r8oz)

ul

I 7 4 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R ET H E G R E A T C H U R C H E S O F T } I E P I L G R I M A G E R O A D S t 7 5

matial; he was a personal friend of Calixtus II.and i r looked as i f he might be successful , hutthe Cluniac Bernardo, archbishop of Toledorr l ier the recapture, kepr the ancient pr imar ia lc l i gn i r l l b r t he o l d cap i t a l c i r y .

Within the present extensive residence of thearchbishop of Santiago, north of rhe cathedral.there are remains of the palace which DieEoGelmirez bui l t . /u I rs p lan is in rhc shape of a iwith the cross-bar a west rangie continuing thel ine ot the carhedral lagade. The guard hal l andschool were towards the plaza de la Azaba_cheria. An interesting old liitchen and stairsconnect with two handsome halls in the u,estrange. The lower one has two lines of groin

vaulting supported by a median range ofslenql.,and eleglnt p iers; the upper room i ,

" spl .n, i ;

open fest i ra l hal l , i ts late medier .a l urut t .pr ;no_ing from corbels ornamented by r.ulptrr.s i;the musicians and the instruments which r,s[to be heard there I rz6] . T.he uppermost panlof the palace have been rebuilt, Uut

".. trn,,no

to hat'e been fortified, and connected by a bridg;wi th the upper works of the cathedrr l , nhi i ialso bristled with crenellations, added in .,,n-sequence of the dramatic town uprising in r r r 7.

When the magnificent old battler of a bishopdied, in r r3g or r r4o, af ter fbr ty_odd y.un o ' fcommand at Compostela, his palace ancl thecloister were probablv complete, and the carhe_

dral was complete enough bv Ir5z for thc sur-

rclder of certain contingent revenucs; bllt at

that time the P6rtico de la Gloria, the upper

o6f i .s o l the wcstern fowet 's . and two gr im but

hand.o*. tbr t i f ied towers on thc east s idc ol '

the transept remained to be constructed.

Through all these and subsequent changes, thc

beauty of the original building, the vitality of

the spirit which created it, and thc enchantmenr

of the Pilgrimage continue to be felt.

Before leaving the Pilgrimage, it ought to be

remarked that the great churches which we have

seen served as sources for the design of many

churches on a smaller scale. No other buildings

presented the full Pilgrimage formula, bur ex-

cerpts from that formula. r'arying from region

to region and from building to building, are

seen in much interesting twellth-century work.

Several conspicuous Aulergnat Romanesque

churches so much resemble the Pilgrimage ty-pe

that older historians, not aware ofthe significantrole of Saint-Bdnigne at Diion and St \Iartin

at 'l 'ours,

supposed that the Pilgrimagc rype

originated in Auvergne. Actualll, the Pilgrimage

Roads ran through the area of six or sevenregional schools of architecture to which we

shall ref'cr in much more detail.

Nlention should also be made of the accom-

modations rvhich were provided lbr pilgrims.rr

Abbeys and pr ior ies on thc road normal lv re-

ceived pilgrims in their hospices or their guesr

houscs according ro the t ravel lers ' condi t ion;

there were also, f rom an ear ly per iod, hospices

which were built with the pilgrims especially in

mind. The earliest hospice certainlv mentioned

is that ofOrense, near Sant iago, 886; others are

ment ioned in go5 (Tufron), roro (Antoiana),

r o5z (Nijera), and afie r this the1. become

numerous. In general large opcn halls wcreprovidecl for s leeping I ro6] , specia l chapels had

divine serlice, and special charities took care

of the needs o1'sickness, destitution, and death

rvhen the pilgrims encountered those misfbr-

tunes in their pious journcvrng.

rz6' Santiago de compostera. .{rchbishop's paracc Festi'ar Ha,, rargell.lburteenrh cenrurr

C H A P T E R 9

R E F L E X F R o \ { T H F ' , P I L G R I X { A G E

The archi tecture ot the f i re grcat churchcs ol -

,h. Pi lg. i tug. Roads uas intcr-regional ' in ter-

nation"l in st1'le, and concerned with a great

rou"a.n, towards Spain' Nlention has alreadl-'

been macle in thc preceding chapter of archi-

tectural designs along the wa1' which arc de-

penden t on t hc P i l g r imagc t \ pc o f chu rch ' and

of ,h. f r . t that French master masons and

sculptors worked on man.\ Spanish buildings'

But it most not bc fbrgotten that most of the

pilgrims and artisans rcturned home; if there

was a genuine florl' of'Pilgrimage architccture

and sculpture, a counterflow should also be

discoverable.'

Emile Mile was discerning in the matter. He

sensed that a veritable tide of influence fiom

Moslem Spain from thc mosque of C6rdoba

in particular flowed along the Pilgrimage

Roads into Francc, and added spice to number-

less Romanesque designs on or near these

routes.2

Le Puy presents a special case. It was con-

tinuously an important citv, and it has a long

record ofsignificant contacts with more southcr-

ly regions, including Nloslem Spain. Coins of

Moslem tenor minted at Le Pu1' and lbund in

the peninsula are proof.s of a livell' and con-

tinuing exchange. Le Puv was earlv awarc of

Santiago de Compostela; Bishop Godescalc o1'

Le Puy brought rhc first large rccordccl group

of p i lgr ims there, near ly 'zoo monks, in 95r, aswe have seen. One of the two southern Pilgrim-aBe Roads ran through Le Puy and N{oissac.Moslem influen..,.o.rf'..r.d by' striking cuspedt|ttt in arches and doorwavs, appears in both

Places.

The catheclra l of Lc Puy' [ r27, rz8l is thcrnost notable French monumcnt in which

rz8. Le l )u i ( -athcdral , fagadc,

twelf th ccntur\' (rcstored)

Moorish influence is strong. It is the noblest

bui ld ing in the Auvergnat d ist r ic t of Velay,

which being r o lcanic has pror idcd a spectacular

situation lbr the cathedral, and a fine but rathcr

gr im grani te, b lack and red, ofwhich to bui ld i t '' l 'he

church, begun in the eleventh centurv, has

a ra the r s imp l c c ruc i t b rm p lan . \ t t he head o f

the axis stands a handsome staged tower of therz7. Lc Puv Clathcdral, cloister and tower, l iom above; largch twelfih ccnturl

I 7 U I N T E R - R E G I O N A I - A N D I \ T E R N A T I O N A I , A R C I I I T E C T U R E

Limousin type, with arches, setbacks, and

gables like those at Saint-Nlartial in Limoges

and other churches ofthe region. The sanctuarv

and t ransepts ofLe Puv are comparat ivelv p la in,

though the crossing has a lantern with octagonal

vaulting. The old part of the nar,e consists of

two plain bays, with octagonal domical r,aults

on squinches. It is reached bv stairs from the

ascending s lope below the church. In the

twelfth century the nave was extended out over

the slope, forming an imposing opcn porch a

sort of crypt which presents three cavernous

porta ls beneath the end wal l of ' thc nave and

ais les of ' the church. This is a verv handsome

design, whether seen from a distance or at the

head of the stcep slope as one approachcs from

the west. The crvpt porch, gable, and wall

belfries recall Santiago, but the detail has manv

Moorish features, like zebra stripings in the

coursed ashlar and the voussoirs, pattern-work

masonrv panels, pointed arches, decorative

cusped archcs, and flatlv-carved wooden doors

with Cufic inscriptions. 'l 'his

lagade is clearlv a

twelfth-century conception likc the wesr parts

of the nave. - I 'he

nave bays are stubbv oblongs

in plan, and divided from one another bt dia-

phragm arches. There are corbel tables on the

flank at the ler,el of these arches; abor,e, an

intermediate stage has columns, arches, and

nichc-head squinches which graccful ly make

the transition to an octagon, on which an octa-

gonal domical vault is set. There are unmis-

takable N{oslem rcminiscences hcre. This is

also t rue of thc south porch of the church, and

to a lesser degree of the cloister, whcre parti-

coloured masonrv appears also. In a l l there are

near l l - a hundred carved capi ta ls of 'Nloslem

type at Le Puv. ' I 'he

grani t ic hardness o1' the

material has gaincd suavity lrom its Roman-

csque and or icntal ambient wi thout los ing the

r,igour of'fbrm appropriate to a carhcdral design

on such a picturesque sitc.'l 'hc

decorative cusped arches and zebra work

are represcnted in Le Puv itself at thc portal of

the chapel of 'Saint- \ , I ichel de I 'A igui lhc. 1n,1doubt less i ts successlu l use at Lc Puv encl1-

ragcd imi tat ion elscwheie. C. luniac dcsigncr.s l rg_

came intcrestcd in these motif'.s also; the cus1.r.d

arches o1' the t r i fbr ium of the great chLr1.111

(to88 l t . ) and of ' the main porta l ( r ro(r r^ : r x1C,lunt' are wcll knorvn. The portal hacl tlli _ s,bordercd spandrel panels l ike a N,Ioor ish mih116

or c i t1. gate. A surpr is ing number of chur.ches

in the vicinitv of'Le Puy-, the Pilgrimage Ro;rtls.

and Cluny, have cusped arches at the port r l :

La Souterra ine, N, Io issac, Montbron, and ( i rnz-

gobic being important Cluniac examplcs. r [ )o l r . -

fo i l windows and t r i lbr ium arches had rhr i r

r,ogue also Saint-Etienne at Nevcrs, (.lLru.

I t S+, r551, and Sainte-Croix at La Char i td-sur-

Loirc being Cluniac examples. The zebra-sork

appears in the transr,erse arches o1' \'-dzelav

Ir4o] . Lobed sol l i t panels l ike miniature _\ l ror-

ish lobed domes appear, togerhcr wi th chi :c l -

curl eaves brackets, at Notre-Damc-du-l)ort in

Clermont-l'errand, and were seen formcrlr in

Saint-B6nigne at Di jon. In general such f 'eatures

gave warmth and spice to thc stv le whererrr

thel, rvere used. By contrast thc rather rough

basilicas of the north seem \:crv Germanic. .rr.rd

the t r ,p ical churches ofBurgundr-and Pror encc

vcrv Romln.

Thc transfbrmation of' Saint-Philibcrt ;rt

Tournus I ror , rozl into a f i reproof buiJt l ing

broug;ht about the construct ion of t ransrrrsc

tunnel vaults which ma1' ha'r,e a \Ioslcnr or

Astur ian connexion, and an eleplant domc orer

niche-head squinches rescmbl ing those ot [ .c

I t u r , e a r l r i n t h e t u e l l i h c e n t u r \ . l s o . t r . h

domes were built at about the samc timc ncrtr

the entrance ofSaint-Front at Pdr igucur l : : i l

\ co r respond ing p roccss u l t r l n s l o r r r r r t l i l l )

procluced an cvcn more remarkable conslr l lc-

t ion at Saint-Hi la i re, Poi t iersr I rzg, r ro l . ' l

he

tomb of ' St Hi la i re, teacher of St \ {ar t in. l t t t . tc-

tecl a p i lgr image, and about roz5 a vast chLrfch.

was undertaken, in which Queen Emnrrr .o l

England, Waltcr Coor land the Norman l lc i . r r -I29. Poitiers, Sainr-Hilaire, nave .. ro2-5 ;lg, r 'aulted later (twelfih and nineteenth centurics)

r 60

r3o. Poiticrs, Saint-I Iilaire, aisle,

. . IO25 49 ,vaulted later (twclfih and nincteenth ccnturics)

tect, and perhaps Bishop Fulbert of Chartrrr

were concerned. Al though the new nave ancl

aisles in their first state had only recently brcn

bcgun on an enlar.qed scheme which incr,r-

porated the fine old free-standing tower, rhe

building. wooden-roof'ed, was dedicated in thq

)ear ro+9. I ts colossal open inter ior spacc, r \ ' f -

minating in a hemicvcle about the altar, lrrs

quite Roman in its ample grandeur.

About r r3o 68 the church was rebui l t ant l

vaul ted in a strange way; two f i les ofp iers uerc

contr ived to d iv ide the nave longi tudinal l l inro

three parts, of 'equal height , leaving the midt l l t

bays square in plan, and the lateral bays icn

narrow. The nave piers, strengthened by charni-

ing intcrior buttresses in the fbrm of littlc

arched bridges, were kept very slender ancl un-

obstructive, yet strong enough to sustain a series

ofoctagonal domical r aults on diaphragm archcs

and squinches which covered the centra l par l of

the nave.

Hele, as at Le Puv, the scheme has or iental

undertones even afier a nineteenth-centurr

rebuilding necessitated b-v a partial demolition

in the Revolut ionary era. Or iental undertoncs

are f'elt in the aisles also, lor these are ofdoublc

width, and vaul ted, bay by bay, wi th a pecr. r l i r r

compound groin vault supported, some$'lut

l ike the vaul t of San Baudel io de Ber langa in

Spain [57|, by a tree-like central column and

trumpet^ The efl'ect, thor.rgh achieved $ith

Romanesque detail, has a strange Moorislt

clchct, and reminds onc oi the groping soltt-

tir-rns of the Mozarabic architects two centurits

ear l ier .

. { t t hc head o l t he na rc i us t desc r i bcd t hc r t r .

a spacious transept, also vaulted after it t'r,ts

f i r s t bu i l t . and be lond t ha l a handsome d , r r l '

apse wi th ambulatory and radiat ing chapels, r t l l

o l - t u e l f t h - cen tu r ) cons t ruc t i on . i

' l hc l \ los lem t lpe of raul t which appear '> i r r

perfectcd fbrm at the mihrab of the mosqrtc o i

C6rdoba (96r) [ r3r ] , has exerc ised much 1, t ' -

c i n l t i on . I t uas im i t a red i n Snan i sh G , r rh i cI3I. Mihrab of the mosque of C6rdoba' Moslem rihbed and lobed rirult ' c16t

L

, r O *' , - - . i

,'i*j '#.,

R E F I - E x F R o M T H E p t L G n t r u r a c r r g l

vaults, and it comes into the reflex architecture

of the Pilgrimrge. The odd destroved church

of Saint-Pi-de-Bigorre" had such a vault in a

tall staged torver decorated rvith cusped arches;

the church of L'H6pital-Saint-Blaise near bv

a l so has such a r au l t uh i ch s r i l l e x i s r s , an t l a

6ore perfecf erample is to be found in Nar.arre,

in the conventional but handsome octaRonal

church ol ' thc Hol . r Sepulchre in Torrc* . l " l

RioT [r32, tY].

I t is an open quest ion also whether the square

domical vaul ts ot towers l ike the Romanesuue

bel f ry o[ the cathedral of Or iedo (abour r roo).the t ranscptal lower o l sr Marr in at Tours

[r r5J, and one of ' the lagadc rowers ofBaveux(about roTo) do nor represent a r , j t lcx of \ los lenrengineering; fbr the ribs support the middle ofthe vaulting panels in the \,Ioorish f'ashion, notthe angles, as in Roman arrd r r .p ical Roman_

esque work. N{oorish_looking interlaccd ribsand lobed vaul t ing ser.er ies cont inue to appearcvcn in Earh. Gothic t imes, but not in monu_ments of importance.

Or iental connexions thror . rgh Spain by wayol ' thc Pi lgr image are, howevcr. onlv a Dart ofthc stor\.. North -{lrica and Sicily had theire l lect on Romanesquc archi tecturc a lso; thepo in red a r ch and t hc app rox in ra te ca ten r r \shap r f o r t unnc l r au l t i ng c lmc l i om rhc \ . a rF,ast. Being structLrral - rathcr than decorative,like almost all the refler architecture of. thePi lgr inrrrgc rhesc Ncar Eastern mor i f , por, rcr_fullr transfbrmed Romanesque architecture, aswe shal l see in Burgundv, Normandy, nn, t ih.Ile-de-France. T'he tide of structural influcnce

IrT lh. Ncar Easr is a part ol'the prehistory of

Gothic archi tecture, ancl as such wi l l be ana_lysed in a later chapter.

r ,3z(upf t^ i t ( ) and r3.3. Iorrcsdel Rio,

: l l l l _ . h , , f r h . H r , l _ r Scp r r l ch r c . nc l l i h ccn ru r r ,

\ tut t and c\ tcr lor

\:

e

C F A P T E R I O

T H E R O L E O F C L U N Y

I N T H E H r s 1 ' o R \ - o l i R o \ I A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C - r ' U R E

T H E E A R L Y A B B O T S ;

T H E ( 6 c o L E C L U N I S I [ . N N E '

Clunyl lies in southern Burgundv, nearlv due

west f rom Genera and about s ixn nr i les north

of Lyon, in a region which was relativeh less

disturbed during the invasions and local wars

than most of France. Fronr the time of Cloris

onward it tendcd to graritate to$'ards lirancc,

but for a long time it was on the borders ol'the

Empire, and maintained c lose le lat ionships

there. It had eas1. communications in both

directions.

Clzniacun, said to be a Rom:tn station, was

a villa under the Franks, and a possession of the

family of Charlemagne. ,\t the beginning of the

tenth century i t was thc l l rour i tc hunt ing lodgc

of Wi l l iam Duke of Aqui ta ine and \ ' Iarquis of

Gothia, lying near the north-eastcrn extrcmit\.'

o f h i s dom in ions . . { r r hc r nd o l a , i go r r , , r . un -quiet life, he gave the domain to the nobleBerno, abbot of Baume ancl Gienr. in theFranche-Comte de Bourgogne, in or ic , rhar aretormed monasterv misht be established.

When the -onk, .u-" to Clunv thev fbunda rural v i l la of the Romrrn t rpe u.hich hacl pcr-sisted in the region, and can be recognizecl er.ento-day. In the tenth cenrur\, the countrr.siclewas dot ted, rhough spi t rsch. u. i th such cstab-r lshments, t radir ional l l posscssing a court u i tha master !s dwel l ing, i ts immediate depen-dencies, and a chapei. This part of the r.illa uastemporarily

used as the monastcrv, and soon19r5-27?) the f i rs t monast ic church. Clunv I .was bu i l t j u s t r o t h r no r rh o l i r . ' l h c re wc rc r r l so ,ot course, the various barns, shops, ancl living

quarters rcquired br , the agr icul tural explo i ta-

t ion, which cont inuet l under thc new iuspices

uith servants, peasants, anct serf-s, irs befbrc.

L i t t lc changc rvas made in thci r existencc, ex-

ccp l l ha l t he i r l r t un ( l ( r a mon i l s l i c r eg in re was

probablv morc fbrtunate than under lar control-

A rcmarkable fbundation charter had been

issued in solemn concla le at Bourgies, the ec-

c lcs iast ical metropol is of Aqui ta ine, on r r Sept-

ember gro) rvhich in lav ing the groundrvork lbr

the new inst i tut ion placed i t under t l i t rute to

the Holv Sce. The Pope might intcrrene i f ' the

housc becamc p;rarelv d isordered, br , r t other-

rv isc i t uas 'erempt '

l i 'om anr ecclcs iast ical or

lar interf'erence. The chartcr was conlirmed

with th is provis ion most important fbr the

f uture br , Pope -John X (q r -+ z8). ' l 'he

monas-

tcrv acquired the r ight of 'sanctuary in 994, and

its prir,ileges were further supplemented bv

Gregor l \ ' (997 or ggi i ) and bv John XI \ ( ro.z4):

I t so happened that Clun1. 's f i rs t abbot, Berno

(gro z7), was at the same t imc abbot of-scveral

other monaster ics, each one indepcndent. But

his successor Odo (gzZ ,+2), b] 'v i r tue o1'a papal

pr iv i lege issued bl John XI in g3I , began to

br ing monaster ics under thc ru le of the abbot

ol Clun1.a.r .vrri. This was a noveltv among the

Benedict incs, s ince the Rulc envisagcd separate

and independent houses. Because of i t , how-

ocr, Clunv was enabled to become b1' ' f i r the

most important of the car l ier excmpt monas-

ter ics. ' l 'he

disadvlntages of thc Cluniac svstem

lav in understandable local jealousy of, and

resistance to, the evcr- increasing exempt inst i -

tut ion, and in the perennial faul ts o1' large-scalc

centra l ized administrat ion.

I 8 6 I N T E R _ R E G I O N A L A I ' D I N l ' E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R F

Odo's abbacy was decisive in this matter. Hc

was a saintly man, open-hearted, and of great

warmth and personal charm. He left his position

as prccentor for the canons of St lVlartin at

Tours to scek a morc austere l i lc at Baume. and

came wi th a group of 'ser ious monks to Clunv,

whcrc he became novice master. As a poet,

musician, and prcceptor in music he was a lovcr

of the arts. Under him the abiding spiritual li1-e

of (,luny was so greirtlv cnriched that it became

possib le to send colonies of Cluniac monks to

reform other monasteries, some of' which be-

came depcndent on Clunv, and the group was

lirrther extendcd b1' the fbundation of new

Cluniac priories. 'I-he

wonderful Cluniac chant

went wi th them evcrvwhere. In pr incip le, a l l

monks were prof'essed at (,luny.itself .

This process continuod, and so produced aspreading nctwork of monasterics which is

propcrly called the Congregation of Clunv,

under the rule of Aymard (942 c. 96j), Mayeul

( t . gb| 94, and Odi lo (994 ro.18). rThere was

an increasinp; group-consciousncss. resembling

that of an'Order ' in the modern sensc. St Hugh(ro49 rrog) had a strong centra l iz ing pol icv

which preparcd the way' for strictll.-organized

inst i tut ions l ike the Cisterc ian and later Orders.

At i ts zeni th Cluny contro l lec l about r45o

houses, of which about 2oo had some impor-

tance.

There can be no doubt that the Congregation

and Order of Clunv const i tuted a cul tural uni t

wi th in thc bount lar ics of Wcstern churchman-

ship. I t would be easicr to recognizc th is i f i tsart had not not becn scattered, fbrgottcn, lost.The dist inguished career of thc Cluniacs asbui lders has been obscured by the length of t ime(rnore than two centuries) or.er which theirmedieval bui lc t ing campaigns cxtencled, and by.the f-act that their achievements camc into archi-tectural history without being recognized asCluniac.

\iiollet-le-Duc, rvriting more than a centurv

ago, at a t ime when man, l .exact re lat ionships in

elchi tectural h isrorr . wcrc not \ .cr und(. t . \ t ( , r r { l

s t r r cd h i s be l i c l t ha r t he C lun iac mon l , l i l , r l , .Cistercians wcre sent out with pazrrl.i .,,pi.,that is , of master p lans which could not 6, imod i f i c t l . C lun iac p rac l i c c *as o f cuu r . . , , , , , . inrorc l iberal . especia l l r wi th reg:rr .J to chrrr t . l r t r

I r appea rs r ha r t hc re uas an a r ch i r r o l p l . r , r , n jC lun1 , usc l u l . espec ia l h . l b r t he l a rou r , r t py , -or ies. Vio l let - le-Duc was accused of inrcnr inE

an eittle clunisienne.l 'l 'he

phrase was ill_1irrcl.

bccause latcr French ar t h istor ians hare corngto use the term ltole fbr such groups as tarhC i s te r c i an monas t i c a r ch i r ec tu re . wh i ch h , r . l aremarkable inter-regional unity during the lirstcentury of that Order 's existence. Bv their con_stant repet i t ion of the statement that thcr t , js notltole clunisienne, these writers have obscuretl thclact that unified groups do exist among,^ rhebuildings which were constructed bv the (.lu-

n i aes du r i ng t he two Romanesque cen t u r i es

The situation has been clarified b1' thc dc-voted labours of 'DrJoan Evans. Over thc reers

she h r s ca re l u l l l i den r i f i ed , i n r . . , . . un , , . , . ,

v is i ted, Cluniac works ofarchi tecture, ant l has

publ ished them as such.5 I t was a matter o l sur-pr ise even to her that af icr a l l that has happcncd

in 8oo r-ears s ince thc fu l l f lower ing of ( . luni ,

thcre are st i l l rernains (grcater or less in crrcnt)

o l . 1 , 25 C lun iac es tab l i shmen ts . r ep resen r i r r e

nearlv a quarter of the whole number, ancl all

the areas where the Order did its work.'l 'o

avoid confusion, we lbllow rhe Frcnch

alrthors, and rel'e r to these builclings as .grotrps',

l ivc in number.

First of all rhere was a widclv diliused group

based on the church cal led Clunv I I ( r . .q;5

. . rooo) and the adjo in ing monaster .v ( r . 995Io4.5) [ ro3-5] , which har.e becn re l i r rcd to in

ou r chap t c r o r r Bu rgund ran De rc l opmcn r . i n

l - rancc betwcen 9oo and ro5o. Thesc constrLrc-

t ions, wi th the great cxpansion of thc Clunirc

monaster ics (subjcct and associated). becanrc,

so to speak, paradignrs somerimes c losel) ,

son rc l i n res l oose l v l i r l l oned . ' l ' he . l imc , r r i , , ' , . J

descr ipt ion ol rhe monastery at Cluny preserred

,'.i rir'f "tft

Con suetudinarr of r o43 wit nesses

l" t f t i r f . . , , as does the actual form ol ' the mon-

, i t . tyof SS' Peter and Paular Hirsau'

'-

iho.tly tft.t ro3o t second'grotrp' of Cluniac

church"t began to appear churches o1'sub-

i rnr i r t .ontrruct ion- $ i th.a generous use ol '

ashlar . They were planncd wi th a is led nares '

iid., to*.t.d transepts' ambulatories with

radiating chapels (or apse 6chelonsl in less am-

bitious examples' three apses), substantial

grouped piers, capitals carved rvith leafage ancl

Lo,arquat, stout tunnel vaults with transverse

irch", at the highest level, groin vaults over the

ais les, usual ly a low c lerestor \ ' somet imes a

gallery; often portal carvings of some interest,

and decorative arcading. The examples witll

apse 6chelon include Char l ieu I I ( r . to3o 94)

l t $ , t +4 . 164 , r 651 , Pa le rne ( r ' r o4o r r oo )

Ir35], and various parish churches near Clun,v,

af ter ro4o; the examples wi th apse, ambulatorv,

and radiating chapels come later. 'l 'here

u'ere

various reductions of this general t.vpe also

some without clerestor-v in the naYe, some with

quadrant vaults over the aisles.

In addi t ion to the two 'groups' just men-

t ioned, there are, dur ing the abbacv ofHugh of

Semur and later, three other groups which ma1'

be distinguished.. The third group is relatcd to

Sainte-Madeleine, V6zelay, the Jb ur t h to thc new

chapel of St Ntary near the Infirmarv at Clun].,

and thell/l to rhe great church there.

The Cluniacs were more zealous fbr uni-

formity in customs, discipline , and liturgy than

tn architecture. 'I 'hereforc in addition to the

'series designs' noted above thcre are other

special groups representati\re of'the local archi-

tecture, which varied from region to region. In

the conventual structures which the monks builtfor their own habitation. local variation was lcsslikely to occur. Such structures among the Clu-niacs of the Romanesque period were wooden-roofed and almost uniformlr- simple and un-assuming, though wel l -bui l t . T 'he1'had a natural

C L U N \ ' I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U E A R C I I I T E C T U R E I d 7

tendenc]. to unitv bccausc of thc unifbrmitl' ot'

the Customs; and wherever the) 'are preserved,

thel.breathe the same warm but austere spirit.

In thc churches, bui l t fbr d iv ine worship, the

predisposi t ion ol ' the Cluniacs was, b1' contrast ,

fbr magni l icence. Thel 'had a common idcal of

handsome phnning, sol id, endur ing fabr ic, and

of masonry vaulting. 'l 'his

unitl'transcends to a

large degree the variations in gcneral form, sil-

houette, l ight ing, colour, and decorat ion. I t

necds to be reiteratcd that the f.luniac psalmodl',

admired and imi tated throughout westcrn

Europe, was most beautiful whcn sung in

r ,aul ted. especia l lv tunnel- \ 'aul ted churches.

Thence, a generrl stimulus fbr vaulting

A B B O ' T H U G H O F S E N l U R

Abbot Hugh was onc of the great bui ldcrs ofa l l

time. He had an earlv and deep location to the

monast ic l i fe, rvhich led him to Cluny in ro4r,

rged serenteen. or pelhaps in ro.13. In ro-18, at

the death ot Abbot Odilo, he was alread.v grand

prior of the mother housc; early in ro49 hc

was elected abbot, at the age of twentl.-fir'e. He

ruled a constantlv expanding Congregation and

Orde ro fC lun r l b r s i x t l 1ea t . . un i i l h i s dea th i n

r rog. His triendll' dignitl' gained the affection

of the people, ecclesiastics, ancl princes alike.

Monas t i c ch ron i c l e r s , w i t h r he i r accoun l s o l '

puerile miracles, hardl-v help us to judge Hugh's

true abi l i t ies and accompl ishment ' What he did

rvas to bui ld a real monast ic empire which f i t ted

admirablf into the f'eudal p:rttern of-the age a

consolidated, centralized intelnationalmonastic

organism, ideal ly made up of 'exempt ' houscs

like Cluny itst:lf-. Houses of the Ordcr multiplied

l i th in i ts o ld areas in the region of the Sa6ne,

Loire, Garonne, and their t r ibutar ies; cxpan-

sion took place in the regions of the Seine, the

Somme. and in thc Germanic lands, and to a

lesser extent in England, Itall', and Spain.

Hugh's famc' as a builder echocs in the Clu-

niac antiphon lbr z9 April, his annirersary and

I I I T I I N T E R - R E G I o N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I o N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

f'estilal dav Quomodo umplifitt'tttus illum, qui in

diehus sttis uedifitai:it domum e/ t.r'altu,-it teilti)lunl

sdt t i lunt D"nin, t , uhich was srrng in m:rnrmaiest ic nar.es which hc himsel f had bui l t .During three-score vears ofiourneving on r,isit_

at ions, he must ha\ ,e seen near lv a l l the lamousstructures some of them Roman t l ren exist_ing in wesrern Europc. Abbor l lugh himscl f

nust ha\e approt ,cd (personal lv or bv di rec_t i r es) the plans lbr some rhousancls ot ' inc l iv ic lual

bui ld ings. 1 'heir h igh qual in 'can lear c no doubrttrat -{bbot Hugh had an intclligent inrerest inbuilding, and lar.oured good building. This lactrn turn had a fivourable ef1'ect on the buildineindrrstr r in general orer a large area of r .csternEurope, where monastic architecture still ranked

highest in ordcr of importancc. Even wherc the(,luniac monks rcformcd a monrsterr. rvhich

r. i .1. C.hapaize, church (not C. luniac) ,. . ro-5oirnd tucj l ih ccntur t , f rom fheclst

C L U N Y I \ ] T H E I I I S T O R Y O F R O N , I A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R I r t tg

rete ined or regaincd i ts indepenclenc, . . n^, .bu i l d i ngs we re l i ke l r . r o be bu i l t a r r h . b " - i , n ; " 1o l - t he ncw reg imc , when C lun iac i n l l , , . n , , , , , , ls t rongest i in addi t ion largc numbers

" t . . .1.u-

tst ical works (some ol ' them par ish c l r r r r . .hn.owned br thc Order) would be af fecte. l r , , , , ,1" , .extenr bv norable Cluniac designs bui l t in theirvicinitv.

Church dcsigns based on Cluny I I conr inucdto mulr ip l l 'uncler - {bbot Hugh. Of 'smrr l l qIxr-

ches around Clunr-a st ] ' le re lated to (_ lunr. l l

appears modest l r . at the former pr ior l . of ' l l lanot(r . ro5o) or more important ly at Chapaizc, ( r .Io5o and later) [ r34] .

Among the re latcd bui ld ings of consequencc

at a d istance f iom Cluny are Gignv ( latc c lcr e nthcenturv) and Baume (probably twel f th ccntLrn.)

f rom which monasrer ies Berno and his fb l lowers

r-j-5. l)avcrne, priorr. church.. . l O - l O / . I I O O . n a \ C

rod qone fbr th to colonize Cl t rnr in q lo ' Cign\

1.".1 "*ittti" the Order when the handsome new

ir ,urr t t * t t

9" i1t ' l " l ,Tt came in latcr ' { t La

Ii-rrire-tut-l-oire''eld est da u ght cr ol' Cl u n 1

"i . i u r . r t o f s im i l a rp l an ,nas

bu i l t ' ' r o5q t r o7 '

l i -chrrpuou*. near La Char i t6 ' thc choel ,

i r r ra.Uor, r o6o' c losel l , recal ls Clun-r I I '

At Payerne in Switzer land; I r15] Ot l i lo st r r r -

ted to rebuild, but the church as wc nos' have it

(very wel t restored' and surelv thc f incst Ronr i tn-

esque church in Switzer l lnd) t lates t iom ahout

ro+o to r loo, that is . a lmost cnl i re l \ f rom thc

t ime of Abbot Hugh. I t is tunnel-raul tcd, as

Cluny II came to be Romainmirtier near bv, a

good example of the First Rom:lnesque str.lc

on a plan resembling that of Clrtnl' II, was

carried forward with tunnel vaulting r. ro8o.t

This period saw considerable influence in

Switzerland of the sister Congregation of Hir-

sau, where the life and the liturgv rvere closely

model led on that of Cluny; and th is lact mav

be traced to a certain extent in architecture.

Abbot Wiltiam of Hirsau is cloubtless respon-

sible for certain resemblances bcnveen Cluny I I

and Allerheiligen (ro78 I{.) [r-i6] at Schaff-

hausen, for example, and Ulrich of Zcll for

those at Rueggisberg and elseuhere. Ulrich,

formerly Abbot Hugh's secretarv, had trans-

mitted the customs to Hirsau.

Buildings of the Hirsau Congregation have a

certain unity ofcharacter, and rightlv or rvrong-

ly they go by the name of 'Hirsar.rer

Schulc'."

There is a lways a marked German cachet even

at Hirsau itsell. where the olan is closer to thatof Cluny II than orr. ,nould expect from the

mere fact of similar Customs. Substantial mas-onry' heavy mouldings, and (ordinarill) simploornament characterize their buildings. Colum-nar shafts of slightly conical rather than cylind-rlcal form and block capitals are use d. The rool-.s,as or ig inal ty in the nar c of Cl un1 I I . are wooden ithe corr idors f lanking thc sanctuurr , thoughopening inward through arcades, rs i r l ( . lun\I l ' arc l requent lv t . r - i i r r . . l br a l la t wal l at t he

cast , l ike the 'cr ! 'p ts '

at Cluny I I . ' I 'he

atr ium,

the paired towers, and the basilican narthex

appear also, in somcwhat Cluniac form. Ap-

parently, fbr examplc, thc old church of St

Aurcl ius at Hirsau (ro5g 7r) was made over

about r r zo. somcwhir t increasing i ts rcsem-

blancc in p lan to Clunv I I .

Bv that t ime the important abbev church of

SS. Peter and Paul at Hirsau had been bui l t by '

Abbot Wi l l iam. I t was c loscr to the pat tern of

Clunl I I , though much later in date (ro8z gr) ,

more finished in its t'abric, and larger in scale,

the axia l length being 3zo feet over a l l . Excava-

tions indicate three recesses in the cast wall o1-

the sanctuar-v fbr the thrce matutinal altars of

the Cluniac use which stood s ide by s ide, as in

the round apse of Cluny I I . Unl ike Clun1, ' , the

church had two such recesses in cach of the

r36. Schaflhusen \'linster (.{llcrhciligen),

roTl l and l l tcr

I

I O O I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

lateral conrpartments; the latter opened on the

sanctuary through three arches and this was

as at Cluny. The atr ium was bui l t and rebui l t

betrveen rog-5 and rrzo, by-which t ime i t had

been covercd or,er to form a narthex fronted bJ'

two western towers with doorways between,

l ikc that ofClunv I l . The church and monastery

were ru ined in r69z, leaving l i t t le beyond one

of the western torvcrs ( the Eulcnturm) and l ines

of old wall-work to represent the Romanesque

cra.

A suggest ion of 'Cluny-I I is a lso found at San

Juan cle l:r Peia, thc national pantheon of

Aragon, where the monastcry was relbrmed by

Clunv as exr ly as ror4 (or ro.z.z) , the church

being dedicated in rog.1.r" Celtain other mon-

aste r ies fb l lowed the Cluniac ru le. but the Span-

iards were then, as nolv, jealous of their inde-

penclence, and most of such monasteries were

r37. Levre, San Sallador, dedicatcd ro57;

the nare vaul t Gothic. not ( - lurrrac

associated with, rather than submitte d ,nClun-r-. It is impossible now to study the crpni

sion of Cluniac architecture in Spain bccaq5o

the major abbev churches hare been derrr , , , ,1 j- Ofra ( ro33), Ndjera (ro56), Sahagirn ( r . . rogo_

qq ) . anc l Ca r r i on de l os Condes ( r o7b . r s , , - 1 .

I lou er er . San Salr ador at Lcyre remain. . a;dit is a Spanish version of the Lady Chape I ngn,.

the inf i rmar l ' , f in ished in ro85, at Clunl I r371.

San Pons de Corbeira also remains, a hanclsomg

building in the Lombardo-Catalan Firsr Ro-

manesque stv le ( though dated about ro8o). ' fhe

prettv niches in the interior ofits apse mar have

been suggested f rom Souvignv, n!xr Clunr. r r

Wc must suppose that the Cluniac arc l i i rec-

ture of Lombardy was local in type. l r Sixty-

three possessions in north Italy were confirmed

to Clunv by Pope Ulban I I in rog5, at thc r ime

when the Lombard rib-vaulting was being rlcle-

loped. Obviouslv the Cluniac order musl have

had something to do with the spread ol rib-

vrrulting westrvard from Italy, for deriirttive

lbrms appear in the remarkable crypt at Saint-

Gi l les (af ter r r lo) [1891, and perhaps in the

e\en more remarkable west tower, with upper

chamber, of Moissac, dated about r r3o I r6 l l ] .

But, most unlbrtunately, reconstructions he\e

all but obliterated the Cluniac buildings in

Lombardv . Th i s i s t r ue e \en a t t he p r i ne ipa l

house, San Benedetto Po, where we would be

happy to see the bui ld ings ra ised by i ts iamous

patroness the Countess Matilda friend t() l)ope

Grego r r \ ' l l . t o Abbo r Hugh and t o t he ah l r o t ' s

godson, Emperor Henry IV. She was hostess

to them all when thev met, as historv recorrls.lt

Canossa in ro77.

In France, as in Spain and I ta ly, the phcno-

menon ol locai ism appears in Cluniac archi-

t ec tu re Sa in t -Eu r rope a t Sa in tes ( r o8 r , 16 )

l r . z . ; t . r - ; l { . r 39 l and I l on t i e rneu f , nea r Po i l i ( r ' :

( ro76 96), being redolent of the Pi lgr image and

of the west of France, Chitel-N{ontagne (,

rroo) of the Auvergne, Layr'ac (ro7z.8-5) ;rrrc1

Nloirar (i. rogo) of the south of France.

r38 and r39. S',rintes, Saint-L'utrope' upper part ofchoir' <leclicatcd ro96' and cr1'pt' rotlr q6

C L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y

Norable fbr its local Burgundian character is

the famous pilgrimage church of'the N{adeleinc

*ytzelay f r4o, r4r , r58, r6z, r6rJ, Iocated at

the head of the Limoges pdrigueux road to

Compostela. It was builr during an cphemeral(luniac regime ( I o96- r r j7). An altar was con-

secrated in a new east end (r ro_1). ,{bout r r I q a.Western extension \ i ls star tcd: then thc ol t lCarolingian church burned out, betwccn (r r zo),rnd was replaced before thc dedication (t,32;., i

The church wirs the lirst one built on u g.n.rou,scale in France where the nar.e and aisles arccovered by groin r.aults dir.ided ba-v b_v bal.with transverse archcs. The design ma-v ilerirefrom the o.lder portions, clatctl near the end of.

r4o and r4r. tr,izcla1, Sainte_\Iadeleine, intcriorofnave, r . t ro l 32, and ai t . r ie l r

^ u n r r L L t L l K t r I 9 3

l l l . :1. ' . : ,1: ccnrur\ . or ' rhe Cluniac pr iorv

cnurctr ol Charl ieu or lronr that ol . l ,nz1 Je_Duc, dependenr on Saint_lIartin, Autun. For._

:::::. "t ll:.1":rl Burgundian .half-_Gorhic,,

tne.na\.e of V6zelar. is r,er.1, handsome, .mural;rn character. There is no triforium ; the generousclerestorl. windows corne under ramping lateralnenet ra l . ions in the gro in . rau l t o { . the nare . ,r_ne archrtectur.al I ine ol. t lcscenl lrom \.t :zclat

u l t imare l r lea<Js t . r he in rc rnar iona l G; h ; ; r ; ; l ;o f rhe ( . i s re rc ians . uh ich

" ; f f U . .on , i i . rJ ' in

a later chapter.

_ -{s hisrorical stuclies accumulate, the role of

Cluny' in the creation of the mature ,,rlf. "iRomanesque archire*urc becumes .1.; ; ; ; . ;

O F R O N T A N E S Q U E A R C H I l ' E C T L I R E

r.+2. Clunl', the monasterv plan

in r r57 (K .J .C. )"=-+-++-_ verious proiects which Abbot Hugh undoub-

iedly held dear. I .argeness of conception and

nobility of scale characterize these works'

The dif ference between early Romanesque

and mature Romanesque scale is at once ap-

Darent in Abbot Hugh's enlargement of the

monkr'quttt".s at Clunv. and later on in Clunv

III, the definitive church ofthe monastery all

according to an impressive general plan Ir4z]'

ln ro4z there were about seventy professed

monks at Cluny, a fairlv usual number, but

under Abbot Hugh the number had increased

to 2oo by ro85, and there was a further increase

to about 3oo in rrog, at the death of Abbot

Hugh. Vast new constructions were therefore

needed, not only in the monks'own part ofthe

convent, but in accessory buildings fbr agri-

cultural exploitation, for storage, for menial

services, and especially in those for visitors.ls

A part of the hospice built by Abbot Hugh,

in the great forecourt of the monastery' still

survives. The upper storey ofit is large enough

to serve as the municipal theatre of modern

Cluny. Originally it was 49 feet wide and rygfeet long, substantially but plainly built, in

ro77-g; it had a stable at least roo feet long; the

dormitory above it had an impressive unob-

structed interior space 3r feet high from the

floor to the eaves, or 48 feet to the ridge. Another

indication of grand scale at Cluny comes about

the year ro8o, when the refector]'ofthe monks

was trebled in size and decorated with an im-rnense fresco painting of the Last Judgement;furthermore, under Abbot Hugh the monks'dormitory was extended by one-third in area.It remained a plain room. When further aug-mented by Abbot Peter the Venerable in thetwelfth century, it measured 34by zzo f'eet, andz6 feet in height to the eaves. The capacious

l t * L tdy Chape l o f ro8 i 5 - r jo fee t longnas been mentioned; the inf irmarl was alsoconsiderablv enlarqed. (Dimensions here are inEnglish 6easure. t

C L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E I 9 5

Church designs for the priories of Saint-

Fortunat at Charlieu, Saint-Pierre at Souvigny,

and Saint-Etienne at Nevers also show the in-

creasing scale of Cluniac architecture.

At Charlieu.l6 the little tenth-century church

was replaced after ro3o more or less on the lines

of Cluny- II. Hower,er, it surpassed its proto-

type, being substantially built with generous

use ofashlar stone, and planned from the begin-

ning for heavy tunnel vaulting over a clerestory.

The faqade, under way bv the time of the dedica-

t ion (rog4), was embel l ished by a f ine porta l .

To iudge by its handsome lines, elegant pro-

portions, and other similarities, the fagade at

Charlieu was designed by one of the architects

who worked on the new abbey church begun

in ro88 at Clunyl ; I t+1, t4+l .

r43. Charlieu, Saint-Fortunat, dcdicated ro94, inner

portal ofnarthex (main door ofnave), r. Iotl8 9o

,-${h." '[::,;,;, ',{:

h ; ;d \ , , , , " : i ;,fi.i,",,.?ry-[{-Y{ : : t,i""Dt}'};li,;ilri

. o o ? o ' - a t f f f i v - P

i' I

- l J f a " - ' ? e i (. o . . ? n l i

. o o o I . = . F . s l ] t c L o r s r E R

a o o o

a a o oP o r r a

o o a Q

o o o a

o o o o

o o a o

o o 9 0

o o 4 oG r e a t

q..,po o # t

N A R T H E X I I Io o ( t l

! " ; ' "J {$ i. ?H'i,.$ ismA P P R O A C H C O U R T

E l

I q 6 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A ' I ' I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R EC L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T F - C T L I R E r9'7

r44. Charlieu, Saint-Fortunat, dedicated ro94,

section o{-nar e and

elevation of original f 'agadc (Sunderland)

tq5 (bclon,, rgil7. Nelers, Saint-Etienne,

la rge l1 . , . Io l l -1 97 , nare

| + 6 t , , p p , , s i t t l . \ o e r s , S a i n t - F . t i c n n c .

la rge l1 r . ro f i .3 97 , cas l r i cw, w i th the

towers rcstorcd according to an old drawing

( ' 5 r o i l

ffi---T1..

'l 'he same incrcasing scale is exemplificcl in

the succcssile churches at the important prior]'

o f Souvignv. The old church of '92o, rebui l t

about ro34, was I20 feet long and zo f 'eet rv ide.

Thc new one, dcdicated complete in lo6- i , was

27o f'eet long j and f rom I oqo onu ard this was in-

crcased to about 3 ro f-ect; the imposing definitivc

church possessed a double-aisled nave 8o tegl

rv ide overal l , double t ransepts, and o{ 'corr15.

apse, ambulatory, and radiat ing chapels.r8

The works at the Cluniac priory o1' Sli11-

Et ienne, Neversl" [ r45, 146] , are a c lear s iqn

that Romanesque architecture had indeed achie-

ved maturitv. The beautifullv articulated plal

of Saint-Etienne, with apse, ambulatorl' ' and

radiating chapels, transept, and nave gracclullv

disposed, was carried up in a superstructurt of

fine ashlar masonry, which made it possible to

diminish the bulk of the interior supports and

carr]' the naYe to a considerable height, with rr rc-

markable r ibbed semici rcular tunnel vaul t t r rcr

a clerestory. Elegant arcaded screens strengthen

the transept near the crossinpJ tower. In plan,

the church is a reduct ion of ' the Pi lgr image t r pc,

ancl resembles works cr f near-b] ' Aurergnc. tn

sect ion also the nave is l ike that ofa Pi lgr i r r rge

thu rch i n t h i r t t hc ga l l e r i es h i r r c qua t l r l n t i r t L t l t -

ing, but the gal ler . r arches do not hat , t l ' '

p re t l ] pa i r cd co lumns wh i ch g race t hc l ' i l r : r r -

m lge chu rc l r ga l l c r i es . On rhe o the r han . l t " '

P i lgr image-t1 'pe naves, imposing as thev \ rer t '

'J

i 'd.t l

iq

did not venture a clerestory' under the high

vault. At the Revolution the three handsome

towers ofsaint-Etienne, disposed after the pat-

tern of Cluny II, were demolished, lnd thus the

church lost the airy silhouette which it had had

for 7oo years. Saint-Etienne became Cluniac in

ro68. After the monastic oflices had bcen re-

built, the cl^urch was taken in hand about ro63

under the stimulus of large gifis, and it is re-

po r t ed as comp le te u i t h i t s l owe rs a l t hc t ime

o f i t s ded i ca t i on ( r 5 December I oqT ) '

A Roman Imperial architect and an Earll'

Christian architect would both respect this buil-

dine. Ibr it has all the advantages which either

a

r 9 8 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

Roman or Earlv Christian architecture could

give to church construct ion. At the same t ime

the designer showed perfect command of what

the Carolingian age had created. He brought all

these elements to a new and self-consistent

canon of expression and proportion which islull of energv, confidence, and serenity - amature new sty'le worthy to take its place on apar with the older styles. There is no trace of

archaism here, and no problem posed by the

designer remains unsolved.

Though Saint-Etiennc at Nevers provided a

complete 'statement' of mature Romanesque

architecture, more was required at Cluny itself,

because the church building there had a rraDs-

cendent role to play. To the monks whose devo-

tion centred there, it was an earthly represent-

at ive of the celest ia l Jerusalem .a p lace rr [s1u

the dwel lers on high would t read, i f i t coul t l b"bel iered that human abiding-places ot rh is . , r r rare pleasing to rhem'. When rhe grear ncwchurch and its monastery were fully shaped 11dwalled, after rr8o, the group with its cluster offifteen towers on and about the church aouallv

looked l ike medieral symbol ic drawings ot rheHoly City. One thinks of Bernard de Morlaas,

of Cluny, who gained here his vision of Jcru_salem the Golden -

L'rhs Sion il.ureu, pat/ia laclea, ciae decrtra . . .

The Ecclesia N1afor, Cluny I I I ,20 was thehearth of the whole spiritual household ol the

Cluniac Order. It made a great sensation when

it was built; ' indeed they celebrate as if at

Easter every day, because they have merited togo into that Galilee' savs Abbot Hugh's bio-

aeoh61r,of the monks. Even at a late period one

i . . i l r t i r "d. i t " t ion,

for .Mabi l lon r+ r i tes ( I 682):

i16you see i ts majestv a hundred t imes' you are

overwhelmed on each occasion' the c lassic

Romanesquc l t +7 52 , r _ )+ l r 55 ' r 57 ' r 67 l '

Cluny l l l represented the monast ic achieve-

ment in building better than any other edifice.

Actually it could have held the entire member-

ship, standing, of the Cluniac Order. had thc

Order ever been assemblcd. ' r The great church

must be understood in these terms, as a focus

for the devotion of the whole Order, and logical-

ly a more splendid building than any which

Abbot Hugh had seen in fbrty years ofiourney-

ing throughout western Europe. It was planned

as early as ro85, and its 6rst great patron was

Alfonso VI of Spain, whom Abbot Hugh saw

in Burgos at Eastertide ro9o. Even before rogo

Alfonso had sent Abbot Hugh ten thousand

^,:';r

C L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E r99

'talents' as a thank-ofl'ering for the capture of

' l 'o ledo on z5 Ntay ro85.22

Preparat ions for the bui ld ing of Cluny I I I

probably 'began in that year or in ro86. As the

monastery had been building almost continu-

ously fbr decades, no new crew had to be

fbrmed, nor any new arrangements improvised

for rnaterials and transport. One suspects a new

direction in the works from about ro75 onward,

because the 34o-millimetre foot of Abbot Odilo s

time was then given up in favour of the zg5-

millimetre Roman fbot.

Influence from Desiderius's N'{ontecassino

(ro66-75) is pract ical ly certa in. The 295-mi l l i -

metre fbot is basic there, along with unusual

pointed arches and vaults, a strict mathematical

layout, and exceptionally exact setting-out, all

of which reappear in Cluny III (see below,

pp . 302 3 ) .

; r " ̂ i ^

t i ' ,, 'r47. (ilunr'. rcstoration ofthe abbel church as in r798, drawn in on a contemporarV air'iew

t18 (o|?ositc). (,lunl Abbel', restoration studr: bird's-eve view from rhe sourh-east as in rr57 (K.J.C.)

1

2 O O I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

Careful study of the existing remains above

and below the surface has revealed a rather strict

mathematical layout and a modular system in

the design of Cluny III. Relationships of this

kind are well known in medieval churches, and

Viollet-le-Duc has a good deal to say about

them,rr but the inlbrmation which we have in

respect to Cluny III is unusually clear and con-

vincing because ofcopious exact measurements

taken in the excavations.

The architect was a monk of Cluny - Gunzo,

a retired abbot of Baume and a musician Qpsal-

nista ptaecipuus). [Ie probably settled the gen-

eral scheme. His gifted collaborator H6zelon

(d. r rz3) is reported as a mathematician, and as'labouring

long'to achieve the work. The great

design exemplilies both the prll)ortio and the

symmetria of Vitruvius, whose De Architectura

was in the Abbey library. Proportio plstulates a

principal dimensiou in orderly relotionship nith its

components. At Cluny III the fundamental stem

of the church, 53 r feet long, was portioned offin'perfect

numbers', 6 (centre to chord of the

apse), r, plus z8 (the sanctuar-v bay), and 496(the choral and processional part ofthe church,

extending to the western foundation bench).

Simple fractions of 496 determined the pro-

jection of all salient elements in the plan (248,

tz4, 62, 3r , r5 j feet) . In the superstructure the

6oo-foot length was so divided that the various

parts made up 4oo, 3oo, 25o, 2oo, r50, roo, 50,

and zq-foot sections. Again, the high vault of

the nave. roo feet to the point , was s lstemat ic-

ally related to the interior impost levels (at 8o,

66' i , -1o, and z5 feet) . Vi t ruvian symmerr ia pus-

tulates a minor unit, repeated in building up the

design. Chny IIl, in this sense, had modules

o f 5 ,7 ( symbo l i c ) , 8J ,25 , and 3 t f ee t . 2a To le r -

ances never exceed lbur inches.

The plan of Cluny III was the first to have

full-scale double transepts in the chevet. This

arrangement made it possible to transfer the

choir (iom Clun-r'' II as early as Io98, and to

accommodate, near the high altar, the great

assembl iesof the Chapters General ( rzrz monlo

in r r3z). Through Lewes Priory after rotyo t[.

double transept passed to England, and thr:re-

after, with Canterbury (c. rogT ff.), to English

Gothic.

Construction ofthe church, once begun, n c11

forward wi th unusual speed, on 'an

admirable

plan', as Peter the Venerable savs, 'which

dis-

tinguishes the church {rom all others on rhe

globe'. H6zelon probably managed the building

enterprise. The official Jim.datio of the church

dates f rom 3o September ro88. Five al tars in

the chevet were dedicated on zq October rog5,

when the Cluniac Pope Urban II, a refugee f rom

the act iv i t ies of the ant ipope Clement I I I in

Rome, was on his way to Le Puy and Clermont-

Ferrand to preach the First Crusade. Thc trvo

transepts had been finished by 14 March r roo,

when Pedro de Roda, bishop ofPamplona and

one ol' the active French reforming clergr in

Spain, consecrated the chapel of St Gabriel in

the existing stair tower attached to thc great

transept. The west front of the main nave f r 57]

was bui l t ( r r 07- r 5) befbre the adjo in ing inte r ior

bays, but these were complete and vaulted b1

r r zr, according to the original scheme of Abbot

Hugh's architects.

N{eanwhile Pope Gelasius II. driven ftom

Rome by partisans of the Emperor Henrr' \',

hrd taken refuge in Cluny ( r r rg). He died there'

and the six cardinals of his suite, still at Clunt,

had met and chosen Guy de Bourgogne, arch-

bishop ofVienne, to be Gelasius I I 's successor,

He took the name of ( .a l ix tus I I . \ [ 'e hate her l t l

of him before: the Pilgrimage Codex of C:rlirtus

was ascribed to him. After an interval he rc-

turned ro Cluny, where he canonized Abbot

Hugh in r rzo. In the great church a part ia l f i r l l

o f vaul t ing in the nave, r I25, was quicklv rc-

paired. The gencral dedicat ion ot the churcl r

and the vast new monast ic group w;rs perfornre , l

by Pope Innocent I I on z5 October r r3o.- '' l 'he

bold massing of Cluny III ."as ..tt

expressive Ir49]. Chapels rnd stepped fornrsI49 Cluny, third abbcy church, cast view ofnrodel

C L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U T A R C H I T E C T U R E 203

: . . . ' r : r .

i . . t , . . '

r."rr :,. :, ,.:: :).:'

. .- - - l, . ]. '

*'

IJ.

bui l t up, l ike an enor_mousl l augmented Ger-

6igny-des-Pres' in the minor t ransept: lour

c lapatr tna four lowers ga\ t \ er t ical mo\ ement

,orh. gt . t , , t .nsept I | 50l These aspir ing forms

were c lustered in the part of the bui ld ing which

q,as devoted do praler . ' l 'he

nare ' wi th thc

narthex beyond. usetl lbr processions' gate a

remendous contrasting horizontal to thc com-

position, which brought up at the massive

r5o(uppls i tc) . Clunr ' th i rd abhcr church'

e i ter ior ofer tant south arm ol greal l r rns(Pl '

, . rog5-r Ioo

r5r. Cluny, th i rd abbel 'church, rofS{ l r ' I Izr ,

restoration stud-v of transverse section ol'

nave (K.J.C.). Thc three-arched ba.v at the right

st i l l ex ists, and appears in i l lustrat ion r 5o

western towers. 'I 'he

scheme was thus a combi-

nation of the central t-ype, the double-transept

typc, and the basi l ican tvpe ofchurch. In design

the building brought together the grandeur of

Roman work, thc abounding vigour of Caro-

lingian work, and a dynamic quality which

makes it an authentic fbrerunner of Gothic

architecture in certain particulars.

The masonry walls at Cluny have substantial

dimcnsions. Curved and screen walls in various

parts of the design wcrc ncarly lbur f'eet in

thickness; the outer wall of thc nave aislcs was

six f'eet, and the nave clerestory wall (pierced

by many windows) e ight feet I r5r ] . The piers,

of which there were sixt1. in the main church,

measured about eight f'eet on the axis. 'l 'he

vaulting, however, was very light - the cells

20+

r52. Cllun\, third abbel church, capitals and shafis

li 'orl the sanctuar\

(as placed in the fbrmer abbel granarr), r. Iotl-5

being from thirteen to eighteen inclres in thick-

ness, and slightl,-v pinched or pointed in shape,

l ike or iental vaul ts, as a means of d iminishing

thcir thrust I r5r ] . This funct ional appl icat ion

is a step to$ir rds Gothic vaul t ing, as is the

ingenious inward corbel l ing of the wal ls undcr

the high vaul t (ment ioned below), which c lever-

lv increased the rval l 's resistance to vaul t ing

thrusts. Thus it was possible lbr the architect

to \enture a nave vaul t wi th i ts crown l iom roo

to ncarly' r03 Roman feet above the pavement

o\er a span of th i r t r - f i r c ; the proport ion is ver. r

c losc to the pcrfect Gothic proport ion ol the

cathedral of Reims, with dimensions about one-

sixth less. 'l 'he

tunnel vault rvas inclecd a ven-

ture, at this great height, and above a many'-

windowed c lerestory, but i t is known to harq

produced the rvonderful acoustical effects which

were dcsired.

The s i rnctuar l ' of Clun-v I I I head, centrq.

focus of a l l was the boldest , most intcrest inq,

and most beaut i lu l part of the church I r5r , rq2,

r 538, r 54]. The apse was tall, and slender in pro-

portion, not quite as high as the main vault. Fir q

elcgant r:rdiating chap!ls looked in upon thc

ambulatory, which had c lerestory windows on

the outer side to correspond with the tall gracr-

fu l arches opening into the sanctuarv. Intercsl -

ing smal l sculptures of the Vices and Psrcho-

machia on the outer wall contrasted with large r

motifi on the column capitals, where an allegolr

o1'the monastic lif 'e, virtues, and divine prarse

lbrmed a beaut i fu l semici rc le about thc t l r r

chief altars. This enclosing arcade had eight

tiee-standing columns.zn

The ends of the apse arcade rested on tuo

capitals which were placed to the left and right,

respectivel!', of the two altars in the sanctuilr\.

These altars themselves were included lvith thc

capitals in another allegory. The Fall was repre-

sented to thc leli. and the Sacrifice of Abrahanr

(prefiguring the eucharistic sacrilice) at thc

right. Incense rose, s-vmbolicalll, fiom the alt',rrs

past the allegorical carvings o[ the arcade to a

rast l iesco of Chr ist in g lor l wi th the cclest i , rL

choirs on the apse vaul t . This paint ing, l ikc the

mosaic f igures at Celal i r and \ lonreale l . : ; ; .

dominated the rvhole nave of the church. rtn

open length of 425 Roman or 4I I '3 Engl ish

I 'eet . The subiect invested the nave wi th a grr te

digni t l 'which we may sense in the contemporr l r \

fresco of the monks' chapel at Berz6-la-\'il le

I r 53e], where Abbot Hugh loved to go for reposc

at the end of h is l i fe. r ;

The apsc which has just been descr ibed st ts

remarkably light and ingenious in constructtorr.

,td miraculum su.fulta, as Mabillon says. 'I'hc

dcs ign o f t he t vp i ca l i n t e r i o r ba rs oecu r t eJ

singlv in the adjo in ing sanctuar\ ' , paired rn t l te

153( 'c ) Bcrzd- la - \ ' i l l c . aps ic la l f iesco . r . r roo : ( t r ) ( ' l unr I I I ' ana l r t i c l l sec tx )n .o l

shor ing a l ta rs o t thc sanc tuar r rnd a l l th r t l c rcu rbs id io lus o f the ehere t (K . l (

n 1 t n 0 l

)t r tnsc l ) t .

r \ l l.11", r .I.

* \ {*

d-$

,r11i\, ,L-; f,\r

I

! . i , n

I ' i 1F t ,

l r I ' l

t i lj l l

\r, ,,1

\ 1

C L L ' N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S e U E A R C H I T E C T U R E 2 o 7

l-,

1 - '

choir between the two transepts' and in a noblc

nnge of e leven bays in the great nave I r541.

The capi ta ls. to iudge by the scventy- f i r 'e ex-

amples which st i l l ex ist . were almosl a l l Cor in-

th ianesque, wi th hardly any f igure sculpture

rnd very few grotesques. Figure sculpture was

obviously confined, by programme, almost en-

tirely to the allegorical ensembles in the apse

and at the west Portals.

Throughout the church the picrs were group-

ed piers, reduced in the upper storey ofthe nave

(through ingenious wall corbelling) to a single

engaged shaft under the vaulting arch. The

aisle bays had pointed arches, here used, it is

believed, under oriental influence transmitted

through Montecassino, and presenting the

pointed arch for the first time in large numbers

in a Western church design [ r54, r55, 167] .

The pointed arch facilitated vault construction

in the aisles. Another indication of oriental in-

fluence was the decorative use of horseshoe

lobes on the arches ofthe triforium Ir55]. The

pilasters of the trifbrium and the arcade of the

clerestory (resting on pretty paired colonnettes)

aided in inching the wall outward to receive the

thrusts ofthe vaults. The beautiful efi'ect ofthis

interior design led to its being reproduced withgreater or less fidelity at Parar'-le-Nlonial Ir561(a 'pocket

edition' of Clunv, dated roughly

about r r ro) , Autun Cathedral ( r lzo and later)

I I6r ] , La Char i t6-sur-Loire (about r rz5) [ r66] ,and Beaune (about r r5o). Al l these inrer iorsare strictly Romanesquc in its classic phase, butthey are alreadv of Gothic proportions, andaPProach the Gothic aestheric.:"

The conditions which caused Gothic archi-tecture lo dcrc lop were al ready present a1 thcclose of Abbor HuEh's career. Rcstr ic t ion ol 'local war, increasing competence in the acl-ministrative cadres of the great f'eudal oflicers,the remedying of precarious economic concli-tlons' the improvement of communications,were beneficent to all, including the monas-

r55. Clun1, th i rd abbel church,

in lcr iur o l ' ( \ l rn l suulh arm ul grcat l rJnscpt .

a. ro(,)-5 r roo

teries. However, the gencral development of

trade, with profitable f'airs, syndicates, and ex-

changes, togcthcr with the growth in urban

population and civic consciousness everywhere,

the granting o1' civic charters which I'avoured

organizt:d urban progrcss, and the transf-er of

eflictir,e intellectual activity to the urban centres

to cathedral schools and incipient universities

tended to leave the abbeys in a backwater

where thcy 'could prosper quiet ly to be sure, but

where henccfbrth thcv had only a minor or

conservativc role to olav in the creation of the

;.jL , i

l l t

r-54. Clunl', third abbei' church, strictlv archaeological rcstoration ol'navc interior, r. ro$tl i r3o

2 O 8 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

later medieval Europe. I 'he Europc which de-

pe ndcd on the monasteries, and had a monastic

ideal , passed awav wi th in a gcncrat ion ofAbbot

Hugh.

A B B O T P O N S , O R P O N T I U S I D E M L L G U E I L

The succcssor of Abbot Hugh in r rog was a

flashing young Provengal, Pons de N,Iclgucil, a

near rc lat ive ofPope Paschal I I wi th other l ine

connexions, who had attractcd the abbot. and

was required to pass only a single day in thc

novitiate when hc cntered Cluny monastery.'l 'hough

hc was a postulant at rhe old Cluniac

house of' Saint-Pons-de-Thomidrcs. and was

prior at Saint-I,Iartial, Linoges, he does not

209

$6 (upplsite). Paray-le-Monial, priorv church, r' r roo, lrom the south-west

... Cluny, third abbey chdrch, restoration study of the f'agade of the main nave, latcr masked, r. r r07 r 5.

? i l " . . i " po . , r t ( ( . I r 06 -08 ro ) i nsp i r ed theg rea two rksa tVdze lay ,Mo i ssac ,andAu tun

belong to the spir i tual l ine of Odo, \ lar e u l ,

Odi lo, and Hugh; he was forced out b) ' re lorm

sent iment in the monastery. Yet the cumul. t t i le

achievcment of the older men ga\ .e ( , lunl a

g l i t t e r i ng momen l be lb re t he ahd i c : r t i o r r . r nJ

disgrace (r rzz) , int rusive return to h is l i tnc-

t ions, def iance, and dcath ( l rom Roman lctcr .

excommunicate and in pr ison, r rz6) of - \b l tot

Pons.

He ca r r i cd t he magn i f i cen t po r l a l s a t ( l t r n r

to complet ion about r r r3 [ r57] . ' l 'her

st , r t t i t

t h ree i n l i ne . bu t t hc cen t ra l one . l b r t r I c c l $ r ( l r

and sixty-two fcet high, was much larger' .r:.tn

more imposing than the o,h. . r . Thou*h , , l l t

so r k comcs on l l t en rea rs a l t e r t he a l l t g , , r r e i t t

capi ta ls o1' the sanctuary, and though rr t lerst

one ofthe sculptors worked in both places, the

carving was more mature in character much

bolder in composition, with very slen<ler figuresnearly free-standing in relief. Thc portal, deeplyembrasured, had nook shafts, and a Moorishalfizborder about the recessed arches. The ttetitmatbre, a soft mortled limestone used in theeastern parts of the building, the flat, almoststucco-like calligraphic modelling of'the figuralsculpture there, and the accompanying classicalacanthus gave way, as the building advancedwestward, to harder stone, stronger relief, andhore medieval leaf'aEe.:,,

^ Th. G..r, Portal at Cluny is a capital loss,

tor i ts indicared date makes i r rhc f i rsr ot theal legor ical

porrals on a real l t grand scale.

Between them, the portals of V6zelay 1158,

r631, Perrecy-les-Forges, and Bellenaves sug-

gest what the great composition was like.

In the thickness of the wall at the top of the

Great Portal there was lodged a charming little

chapel of St Michael, warder of doors, most

cleverly constructed (like the main apse), and

its tiny round sanctuary proiected like an oriel

into the main nave I r671. I t was the reduct ion,

almost to the dimensions of a delightful archi-

tectural tor, of the Chapel of thc Saviour at

Saint-Riquier; indccd the deep embrasuring

made the portal itself project outward from the

f'aqadc like a flat oblong chapcl. Above the chapel

were big windows which lighted the nave until

the narthex was built, and beyond the lateral

t . , , t l t : r r l l t f , , ! t

2 I O I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

portals wcre buttresses built in rat-tail so that

the narthex walls might later be firmly joined.

The flowering o1'sculpture was general within

the Order ofCluny-under Abbot Pons. I t br ings

us again to one ofthe most beloved and beautiful

of the medieval sites V6zelav, set on its hill

above a wonderful panorama of opulent Bur-

gundian countrvside. In design, the church

Ir4o, r4r , r58, r62, r63] represents Burgundian

localism in the time of Abbot Hugh. As already'

reported, the church received its nave largely

after Pontius's abbacy, being carried forward

after a fire of r rzo to completion and dedication

in r i3z. The ponderous Romanesque groin

r,aults over the new naye were not well built or

well abutted, and gar.e much trouble. In con-

Cluny- to V6zelal- when the two major sculpr urnlensembles at Clun\ ,had been f in ished. Ar th ist ime ( r r r 5 zo ) t he

' o rdo ' o f Vdze la r . u l s 1n

cha rge o l 'P i e r re dc \ l on rbo i ss i c r , x g rea l l r r r q l

of'the arts, latcr (rrzz) abbot ofClunv.

The manv picturesque capitals in the nar c atV6zelal- have a popular appeal which is fitting ina church of pilgrimage. The west portals aremore rheological. T'hey are to be dated a litrle

befbre the fire of r rzo, and consequenth, cume

near the end of Pontius's abbacy. Thrce door_

wavs give entrance lrom the narthex to thc nar eand ais les. The centra l porta l I r58] is adorncd

with one of the greatest masterpieces of mcdi-

eval relief' sculpture a singularly arresrins

conception of the role of the Sar,iour in trans-

t rast wi th Clunv the capi ta ls in the nave of ' the

church are enriched br. ligure sculptures.'I'hese

are in the stvle of Clunv, and it is consiclered

certain that designers and carr,ers wcnt from

mitting his redeeming grace and the er.ang;cl ttr

all the world. St John the Baptist on the mechinjamb and the Apost les set above the l r tcr ; r l

columns, though perf-ectly Romanesque, girc .t I58 ,q and u . \ ' cze la r , Sa in te - \ la t l c le inc . ma in por ta l , , . r t tR

C L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I ' I ' T , C T U R F z r 3

,u ?- : r.tt I

hint of the role which jamb figures will assume

in Gothic times, beginning at Chartres and

Saint-Denis within half a gencration.

We have alreadv seen, in the P6rtico de la

Gloria of Santiago de Compostela (rr68-88)

frz4f, a derivtive of this portal which was in-

tended (as Cluny and V6zelay were not) to

participate in the external articulation of the

building. The change is adumbrated in the

fagade designed for La Charit6-sur-Loire about

rr3o-5 [166], and i t comes in the st i l l half :

Romanesque portals of Saint-Denis built lor

Abbot Suger { rom about r r35 to r r4o [ r59 ] .Meanwhile a whole series of the twelve Apostles

(an 'apostolado') had been created as pier

sculptures lbr the chapter-house ofthe cathed-

ral ofSaint-Etienne at Toulouse (about r r r7).

More important still, the memorable portal

at the priorv of Moissac Ir6o] had been bui l t .

16o- Moissac, priorl'church, flank, wirh portal,, . rrr5 30 and later

At f i rs t (about r r r5 zo?) the inrent ion was,perhaps, to place it at the front of the olcl nirve

built b1' Abbot Hugh (ro63) - a Provensal affiir

with three parallel tunnel vaults, now replaced.

Almost immediatelv (about r rzo 3o) an in-

teresting rib-\'aulted porch with an upper ch:rpel

was built in front of the church an interpre-

tat ion of the Saint-Riquier mot i f . At that t ime

the great carvings were located on the flank of

the porch with some lateral arcading and minor

reliefs added. The work was completed during

the abbacy of'Peter the \renerable of Clunr,,

before the death of Abbot Roeer of Moissac.

A B B O T P E T E R T H E V E N E R A B L E

Pierre de Nlontboissier, the gentle-spirited and

beloved successor of the r.rnfortunate Pontius,

ru led f rom rr22 to r156. and he was the last

. . ' . " , ' . , ;t i l : i

; . - .o l l ' '

4t:i ;l

i i " * g

i -

d';" &i

- : n

{r{

,;&,*r ' ii l j

..' !. i

,#t'ii , ; ;

,,T:rt.,-;$.'t.,.;".+:ii

{,i:... . .-i4.re{F,,-ap*-a;:,,*ri4!d*e6ffie,**:r*lt:*i*',yryo{irlli**tiiili..,"

t 5 9 S a i n t - l ) e n i s , a b b e l c h u r c h , r c s t o r a t i o n s t u d ' o f f a g a d e , w i t h i n t e n d e d n o r t r r t o w e r , r . r r 1 - 5 . 1 q ( ( . . 1 . (

, reat abbot of Cluny \ \ i th d i l icul t l he main-

l r in.a , t t . Order against intcrnal d isaf fcct ion.

Cistercian competition' and the general shift of

the times which diminished the rolc of monas-

ticism. But under him the Order vet served

architecture and sculPture well'

Works of great beaut.v wcrc carried out in his

time in middle and southern France portals at

Beaul ieu ( in the Corrdze, about I rz5 jo) , at

Qrennac (about r r 3o ; also a cloister), and (liom

about r r4o onward), at the lagade of the im-

portant church of Saint-Gilles, thc imposing

triple portal hnished about rrTo one of the

noblest works which the late Romanesque has

bequeathed to us [r87, r88]. Other notable

works in the Ntidi are series of'capitals at La

Daurade in Toulouse, Saint-Pons, and Mozac,

and at Ganagobie where there are a portal and

considerable conventual remains (r. rrro 5o).

C L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E 2 1 5

'l'he ruin which fell in later times on Cluniac

architecture may be secn equally at La Daurade,

at Saint-Gilles, and at Ganagobie.rn

Rich and beautiful work was done in Bur-

gundl ' a lso. l 'he cathedral of Autun3' [16I ] ,

c0niun. tLt of 'Clunv, was rcbui l t bcginning about

r r 20 on a simple plan, but with an interior ele-

vat ion der ived f iom Cluny I I I . The f i rs t dedi-

cat ion occurred in I r 3o. ' I 'he bui ld ing has sculp-

tures of' quite exceptional importance and

beautf in the capitals of the nave and the west

porta l . The lat ter is by Gis lebertus, who can be

traced from Clunl' r,ia V6zelav to Autun, and it

dates l rom about r r35. The strange exaggera-

t ions and popular appeal of th is work, as wel l as

its dramatic placing above a flight of steps in an

open narthex (of r I78 and later) , make i t a not-

able example of' Baroque tendencies in the

Romanesque pcr iod.

fiz.Y6.zelay, Sainte-N{adclcine, C,hapel of-St Xlichael (narthex), r. rr35(?)

r6r. Autun Cathedral, with apse windows redrawn in hi'pothetical original fbrm(details subject to rc-studr, and rcvision), r. r r20 3o

2 I t } I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I o N A L A R c H I T E C T U R E

Turning once more to the monasteries, wefind that the main church at Vdzelav wasf in ished, and a narrhex added I r 6z ] I r hcre was adedicat ion in r r3z. i2 ' Ihe narthex had an ex_terior portal (replaced by a modern one) [r63],

and two towers were planned, so that , wi th i tsbay ofrib-r,aulting, it is an interesting Burgun-

dian contemporary of Saint-Denis, on the verge

o f Co th i c a r - ch i r ec tu re . . \ t t he n . i o r v n fChar l ieu" a lso a narrhex was buih in f r , ,nr o lAbbot Hugh's church f'aq:rde and adorned with aremarkable lateral portal dated about r r35 whichis unsurpassed as an example of the Baroque

spir i t in Romanesque art I r64, r65] . At Saint_Lazare, Aval lon,r l the porta l of ' about r r .5o(partly rebuilt) even afier much damage to thefigure sculpture, still shows the same resrlcss

spirit. The highly elaboratc tletail and involved

composition here and in other late portals indi_cate very clearlv that the Burgundian Roman_

csque arr had run througSh :r complete stl.listiccycle from primitive at Saint-B6nigne, Dilon, to

t63 ( uhou, leli ). \tzelay , Sainte-Nladeleinc,extcrlor portal (u.ith modern carvings) and intcriorportal (r. I r r8) of'narthex

t6q (ahtz 'e ) and r6-5. ( lhar l ieu, Sainr-Forrunrr .outer portal of narthcrand narthcx from thc wesa, r. I r.l5

classic at Cluny, and then, b1. r r40 or r r50, ro astyle which depended on exaggeration andmovement for its effectiveness. The main archi-tectural lines of the narthex at Charlieu showBaroque tendencies in their rathcr wilful asym-metries, and the search fbr piquant patterns oflight, half light, and shadow,

The great priory of La Charitd-sur-Loire,called the eldest daughter ol'Cluny', had a largef i l ia t ion of pr ior ies of" i rs own, anl ic ipat ing someof the features of'the Cistcrcian filiations. Thelmportance

ot the pr iory let l ro a grandiose pro-, ec t o f r ebu i l d i ng begun abou t r r z5 . r . w i t h r helntent ion

of t t r* tbr l . ing the oldcr church (anenr iched

vers ion of Clu iv I I . as has been re-rnarked)

into a mot l iFed re.s i , ,n of Clunv I t llncorporat ing

the monumental nc* fa, ; , r , le

schcme ofpaired towers and r ich exter ior sculp-

tured portirls. In consequence the older chevet

of 6chelon-type was rebuilt with a handsome

ambulatory and f ive radiat ing chapels; the n:rve

was lengthened, a f ine big antcchurch was un-

dertaken. rnd a great f'agade was begun. If it had

been completed it would have had two breath-

taking towers, each with a spire, each with two

sculptured portals, flanking a largcr portal on

the axis of the church. This f 'aqade scheme wi th

I ive sculpturcd porta ls in l ine I r66] beneath

paired torvcrs was the fbrerunner of the huge

Gothic f rontispiece of Bourges.r{'

However, the Order o l ' ( , luny was norv l i l tcr-

ing. Onl l ' one of the f 'agade torvers at La Char i td

was bui l t ; most of the i r rea of the antechurch

remained open, as a sort of atr ium, and the

C L L ] N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O N { A N E S Q U E A R C H I T E C T U R E 2 r7

2r8 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T [ , C T U R E

north a is le of the antechurch, the only onc t , bubuilt, servcd as narthex and parish chtryci'Partial ruin in thc re ligious wars and long n"gie ,rihave been the lot of this splendid Ur.,ifa;n,t- irVdzelay it was the same rhe west lront of thechurch was never finished. At Cluny ,rr,, lr.r,ofthc narthex were built, beginning abour r r 22-bu t t he res td raggedon fo racen tu r y ( t o r 220 5 ) ,and anorher century passed before toth, , t t i , .western towers were completed (between r.i:l+and r34z); even then one was rcbui l t anJ xpainted wooden porch was placecl betwccn tlrcqa century later st i l l (between r ,124 and r4;7) .

Abbot Peter the Venerable's work on thegreat church is interest ing as shou. ing car lypremoni t ionsof the Gothicsty. leI r49, r5r . r f r7] .After the f'all of a part of the navc vault in r ruj.massive picrced buttresses, like very hear r fli.i nghu t t r esses . r r e readc leda t t h . . l . r c r t o r , 1 . , . 1 .

r66 ( lLli ) . I-a (lhariri-sur-Loirc, projectctl frar,.rclefbr priorv nirrrhcx, c. r r-to-5 (Flilberrl.)

t67 ( fulon ) . Cllunv, third abbe1. church,re.storltion studv of longitudinal section o1 ucst cntlol nave, and of narther,e locnth and m.r l f th ccnrur ics (K.J.( , . )

I-r

This may have occurred as early as r r3o. It is

interest ing to note that f l1 ing but t resses were

qui te general ly used in a specia l manner. or when

trouble developed in the vaul t ing. unt i l about

rhe time when the vault of Sens Cathedral was

bui l t , f rom t . I I55 on. By that t ime the new

Gothic vaul t ing had shown that i t needed but-

Eessing even more than the older and heavier

Romanesque vaults. Peter the Venerable, pos-

s ib ly as ear ly as r I jz , bui l t vaul ts orer two

eastern bays ofthe narthex, without flying but-

tresses. The type ofthese vaults - rib vaults with

high, ramping, scoop-shaped lateral penetra-

tions - was much used in Early Gothic archi-

tecture. These ribs made it easier to build neat,

well-shaped cells or individual vaulting arcas;

they made it possible easily to build a thinner,

lighter vault; and they warped the vaulting

stresses down to the wall and spur buttresses

between the windows of successive bays. At

Cluny the narthex was completed with such

vaults about r22o; the thirteenth-century win-

dows were larger and fly'ing buttresses were

added, but the effect was still rather Romanes-que. Details of the west fiont show rhar rhearchitect was aware of the gorgeous new HighGothic which was being created in rhe i le_de_France - at the cathedrais ol Chartres, Soissons.Reims, and Amiens but that he pref-erred theless evolved local Burgundian version ofGothic.

The expansion of Clunv inro the i le-de-France, where the admirably organic and ar t icu-lated Gothic sty le arose. r r ras rhe work ol Abbotnugh. but the interest ing bui ld ings datc t rom

lf t t im. of Peter the \ enerable. Whar ro le prc-

ctsely Cluny played in the crcrr ion ol the newstYle is d imculr ro decide.

_- Th. most famous Cluniac rrb-rauhed con-

srruct ions are in the south. Al tcr rhc oddl l

1,r^eyonitorv crypt of Sainr-Eurrope. Sainres

: : " : j 96) [ r3el . rherc lb l low thc ro$er porch

l , j l lo t r . . . . I r6o, 168] and the cr lpr ot saint-sr t tes-du-Gard l r8gl . Wni te as raulrs rhc\ are

2r9

r6li. NIoissac, priorv church,scction of wcstern towcr, .. r t-lo

relatively early in date, the1. are not progressiye

in conception.rT

Moissac had possessions in Spain and was

well placed lbr conracts with I-ombardy; in the

porch we find a somcwhat Lombardic-looking

r ib vaul t carr ied out about r r2o 5 in i ine Clu-

nrac stone masonryt whi lc in the chapel above

there is a rather Moorish-looking radiate vault

bui l t about r r25,3o wi th t rvelve heavy r ibs,

cqual lv F ' rench in i ts f !br ic . The crvpt o l 'Saint-

Gi l les-du-Gard (r r r6 7o) has a logical succes-

s ion o1'heavv groin vaul ts on substant ia l r ibs

which mav be re lated to contemporar l ' r ib-

vaul t ing in Lombarcl -v. The conclusion is in-

escapable that the r ibs at N{oissac and Saint-

!r'-i!:ii it4affi : r-qr::n j::.*--T=-!

2 2 O I N T E R - R E ( ; I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

Gilles were Romanesque in conception - intro-

duced fbr cxtra bulk and strcngth - not, like the

convincingly Gothic vaults of the north at the

t ime (r rzo 4o), to lac i l i tate a l ight , ar t iculated

constructlon.

The vaults at the east end of the narthex at

Cluny probablv owe something to a knowledge

of Moslem ribbcd and lobed vaulting, but it is

not certain that this was transmitted by Cluniac

contacts. It is usual in the earlv Gothic works

of the i le-dc-France. Among therc rhere are

numbered the churches of several Cluniac

pr ior ies : Ai ra ines (Somme), about r r zo 35 ;N{arol les-en-Br ie, r rz5 or a l i t t le later ; Saint-

Martin-des-Champs, Paris, r r3z 4o (nave later)

lr69J; No6l-Saint-\,Iartin (a prior.v attached to

Saint-Martin-des-Champs), where there was a

ser ies ofconstruct ions between r roo and r r5o;

Saint-Leu-d 'Esserent , dated about r r5o to

r69. Paris, Saint-NIartin-des-Champs,interior, r. r r-12 4o

r r7o.38 On th is Ear lv Gothic ser ies of ( . luniac

buildings the Norman chevron ornamenr otien

appears a clear sign of influence lront thereg;ion which prepared the rib vault lbr thc ile_

de-France.

The test probably comes in Saint-N{artin_

des-Champs, Paris, given by Philip I of lir.ance

to Cluny in ro7g. I ts loval t l ' to Clunr. is shor.n

in a curious wa1' b1- the architecture: thc church

plan (r r3z) is an ingenious reduct ion basct l on

various elements of the church and chapcls atClunv, which seems to show that the designer'5

heart was at the mother house, and not in the

progressive buildings of hrs contemporarics in

the Ile-de-France.

The axial absidiole at Saint-N,lartin-des-

Champs is a trelbil, of which the lateral apscs

sug!iest a minor transept. Its vault is a scries of

ramping scoop-shaped cells on ribs, rathcr like

those of the eastern bays of the narthex at C. lunr,

An ambulatorl' ' with radiating chapels leatls ro a

projection resembling a second transept, in ob-

r i ous rem in i scence o l ' t he ma io r t r ans ( t , t x t

Clunv. In th is part of the bui ld ing therc arc

peaked groin vaults without ribs, like thosc in

the ais les at Cluny. Tne r ibbed apsc vaul t at

Saint-I,Iartin is normal for the region about thc

middle of the centur l ' , but the nave is opcn,

single, and wooden-roofed, like that of \b-

bot Hugh's Lad.v Chapel, Notre-Dame-tle-

I ' Inf i rmer ie, at Cluny (ro8-5) [ r4z] . Sr int-

Martin-des-Champs was under construction

at the ver\ same t ime as Suger 's new lvork at

Sa in t -Den i s , wh i ch was conce i r ed as a Cu t i r i e

building, and intended to have novcl lirrlts

(about r r35 to r r44).3e

On the t hce o f t h i s shon ing ( t o speak n , , u i n

general terms) it would appear that the Clun i;rcs

ha t l r ea l l r so l ved t hc i r own a r ch i t ec tu ra l p r ' , , 1 ' -

lem b1' the earlv trvellth centur]' '. This inr olr cd

pushing their developed pattern 01' a q' cttt

Romanesque church far towards the gcncrll

form which the great Gothic churches \1cre

to takc, and consequently' the structural cr-

pedients whic.h made Cothic possib le u crc

i r . i .or . in Cluniac archi tecture ' ln their use

of lhe r ib- taul t at Nlo issac. Saint-Gi l les ' and in

i i . i t . -d. -Ft"nce. the forms conless the regions

i .om *hi .h the idca came into thc archi tcct ure

of ,h. Otd. t . and also. into Gothic archi tecture

Bu t t he C lun iac mon l s d i d no r dcs i r e t o hu rc

.hur.h.t of novel Gothic form, and as fir as we

know they never did an1. Gothic vaulting of-

crucial importance. 'f

he-v never built a building,

except perhaps Saint-Leu-d'Esscrent, which

would really show that thev cared lbr thc new

idea. In Cluniac e]'es the Gothic was for some

time merely a local and regional st1''lc like an1'

other. If the architect of' Saint-\{artin-des-

Champs had been reall.r' inte rested in rib-

vaulting, his building instead o1' Saint-Denis

might have been the hrst o1'all recognizablv

Gothic churches.

Burgundians, partl]' from temperament, had

a rooted preference for their grand old monastic

Romanesque. The'half'-Gothic' which we have

seen in several ofthe Cluniac buildings was also

used elsewhere. It gained bv the aesthetic el{'ccts

which were worked out in the i le-dc-Francc

without giving up the substantial mural values

C L U N Y I N T H E H I S T O R Y O F R O M A N E S Q U [ , A R C H I T E C T U F . E 2 2 1

pleasing to the Burgundians, as to their Rhenish

cousins.

The Burgundian half--Gothic attrlcted the

at tcnt ion of Bernard o1' Cla i rvaux (h imsel l ' a

Burgundian, born wi th in s ight of Di ion) be-

cause of i ts austere and pract ical character . He

made a sober version of it the standard archi-

tecturc lbr Cisterc ian monaster ies a l l over Eu-

rope. Ci tcaux l rTr l and Clai rvaux themsclves,

the lost major (,istercian churches in Burgundl'

vast and noble construct ions which began to

take delinitir c lbrm near the end of'the period

dominated b1-. Bernard ol ( . la i rvaux (d. t t5r)

and Peter the Venerablc o l Clunl ' (d. t r56)

cry' aloud lbr such a studv as hirs bcen possiblc

fbr the N{ediaeval Academv o1' America at

Clunl ' . I t wi l l be impossib le to do iust ice t<r

Burgundian archi tecture unt i l Ci teaur and

Clairvaux arc lullv known. Yet the lover o1'

Burgund-v f'eels suddenly. warm and at home

in places as I'ar fiom Burgundl. and from ttnc

another as Beirut, Bellapais, AlcobaEa, Poblet,

Fountains, Linkirping, Nlaulbronn, and liossa-

nova, whcre the suave Burgundian archi tecture

brought b1' the C-istercians stands, beautifulll '

cxemplilied.

C H A P T E R I I

T H E C I S ' I ' E R C , I A N S A N D T H E I R A R C H I T E C T U R E

The years which sarv the growth of the Pilgrim-

age to Santiago and the development of the

Order of Clun.v witnessed a general spiritual

revival in the monastic world. Scvcral other

orders of importance werc fbunded at the time

Grandmont b.v Etienne de Muret in ro7.1;

Molesme by its first abbot, Robert, in ro7-5 I

both founders were canonized. 'I'he

Carthusiln

Order was founded bv St Bruno in Io84, Fonte-

vrault by Robert d'-\rbrissel in ro96, and

Citeaux by Robert of- Molcsme in ro98. 'I'he

Premonstratensians followed in rrzo, founded

by St Norbert, and linketl with the Cistercians.

Molesme, though indepenclent, lbllowed the

rule ofCluny. I t had manl , outs ide contacts and

became the centre of a group of about sixtl-

priories, and so lost the other-worldly atmo-

sphere which its founder abbot desired. There-

fore, in rog8, at the age of sevent1., he fared

forth with twenty-onc devoted companions.

They established themselr es about filteen miles

south of Di jon at Ci teaux, a rvooded swamp!

solitude given by' Renaud, r'iscounr of Beaune.

In rogg Abbot Robert , though the papal legate

had given him permission to leave Molesme,was requested, in terms which he could hardllrefuse, to return to Ntolesme. Therc, after re-forming the monastery, hc clie<l in r r r r.

. From rogg to r rog the'New Monasterv ' was

led by Albdr ic, the f i rs t c i rnonical abbot, whotormed its spiritual temper. Afier Albdric itwas led for a quarrcr of a centurl. (r rog 34) b1a saint ly Engl ishman ot great spir i rual poucr,Abbot Stephen Hardine.-Both men wcre in thcor ig inal group which uent ro Ci teaux. Thcoeginnings

were \ery t l i t f icu l r , but rhe protec-t ton of the Holy See ( l roo) and generosi ty on

the part of the Burgundian ducal house enrrbled

the monks to continue.

In r r rz or r r r3 Bernard, a ver-v religiouslv in-

clined youth of twentv-two, offered himsell'and

thi r ty companions, inc luding several o l ' h is

re lat ives. In r r r 5 he became fbunder and abbot

ofClai rvaux, a Cisterc ian daug;hter house about

fiftl '-five miles northcrly from Dijon. Nlcan-

while other Cisterciirn houses had been tbunded

at La Fert6 ( r r r r ) and Pont igny- ( r r r4) ; Nlor i -

mond (rr r5) completed the or ig inal group of

daughter houses. Pope Cal ix tus I I conf i rmed

the constitution ol' Chnrtu Caritatis Monustcrii

C i ster ciensi s rn t t t 11.

Evcn whi le Abbot Stephen Harding ru led

Citeaux. the fclrccful character ot Bernard of'

Clairvaux projected thc latter into ecclesiastical

and internat ional pol i t ics, and great ly a ided the

growth of the Cistercian Order, which, while it

was not founded 'against'

Cluny, drew the rnore

austerely dcvoted spir i ts , and thus accelerated

the decl ine of the el t ler Order. There were - lo

Cisterc ian monaster ies at the death ol { .bbot

Stephen ( t t34), l+.1 at the death ot Bernard of

Clai rvaux (r r53), and 694 by the year r2ool

inc luding many monaster ies which associated

themselves by accepting utter submission in the

new Order. The tota l reached 742 at one t ime. l

Undcr Bernard 's inf luence the Cisterc ian

Orcler became uni lormitar ian. wi th a l l detai ls

of cx istcncc r ig idh prescr ibed in so far as was

possib le; wi th a t ight organizat ion and t requent

inspcctorial visits. Each Cistercian house was

dependent on thc onc which founded i t , and

there wcre fbur chicf 'fil iations'. This schcme of

contro l proved super ior to the Cluniac system

of centring all rcsponsibilitv for the wholo Order'

2 2 1 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C I I I T E C T U R E

in the one abbot o1' Clunl itself'. The strong

confbrmism of the Cistercian houses made it

easv to allow them considerable autonomy, with

the Chapter Gcneral at Citeaux legislating for

the entire Ordcr. Cistercian policl'(again in con-

trast to Cluniac) called for harmony. with the

local episcopate, and much gootl camc of the

cordial relations between the two.' fhe

Cisterc ian monaster ies were s i tuated in

rernote places. They sufl'ered theretbre less than

t 7o. l ronrcnrr \hbo. r r . i9 .17

out arbi t rar i lv , but according to the characrrr

of ' the terra in. I 'hese overr id ing pr incip les r \_plain irregular orientation in the churches antl

the lrequent occurrence of' cloistcrs in 111"

north. ' I 'he

basic pat tern of the plan was thar of

St Gal l and Cluny, but certa in detai ls d i f ierrd

[ry, ryo]. 'l 'he

Cistcrcian churchcs (afier r r.1-1

uniformly dedicated to thc Virgin) had no crr ptr

or towers, and were rather angular in p lan, u r th

t he n i gh t s t a i r r o r hc t l o rn r i r o r v s ra r t i ng i n t l r (

, i t

{

which led to the church, rvhere thev occupied

the west end of the nave. No pror ision was made

for the public in Cistercian church plans. The

fact thrt women and children were never ad-

mitted to the monasterv enclosures led to the

orovision of a chapel and accommodations fbr

,h.11 and for other guests at thc gate. The

Cistercians did not relish intrusions in the carlv

oer iod, though v is i tors of 'mark lverc c l recl fbr . r

The Cisterc ian monast ic groups were ot ien

long under construct ion ' At l l rs t the monks

would l i re in st ructures of temporarv chiracter ,

perhaps intended lbr menial use later on. Out-

s ide bui lders were emploved, but the monks

became independent (or nearll'so) of'the outside

world at the earliest possible moment. NIuch of'

the actual designing and bui ld ing rvas done in

the communitics themselves. The aim rvas to

have the communit ) 'able b1'craf tsmanship and

husbandry to suppll' all its or.n nee<ls. Thc

choir hours, much lengthencd s ince Char le-

magneJs t ime, $ere s l tor tcned or rc-schcduled

for this purpose . Numerous lav brethren (up to

3oo in large monasteries) were rccruited for larm

and shop work. Close contact with the soil madc

the Cistercians cxcellent farmers; improved

methods were widely'propagatcd through the

Order, and thereby accrued to the advantag^e

of all western E,uropc. 'I'hey

devcloped an

organized s].stem lbr the sale of f)rm produce

and animals which aided in the commercial

development o1' the age, but a lso pf t r e N{ammon

his opportunitl., so that lr'hen the \lendicant

Orders began to dr i r rv manl of ' the most devo-

t ional vocat ions in the th i r tccnth centur ! , thc

Cistercian monastcries came to be verl- much

like all the rest.

Conformity.wi th the cstabl ished norms was

required in the Cistercian buildings of'the great

epoch. A monk f rom anywhere in the C,istercianworld would f'eel himself entirelv at homc withinha l l an hou r a t a C i s te r c i an ho t - t r .

" n , *h . r .e lse. There were several excel lent r rchi tects inthe Order during its fbrmative pcriod Gcoflroi

T H E C T S T E R C T A N S A N D T H E T R A R C H I T E C T U R E 2 2 5

d'Ainai l Achardl Gdrard. brother of St Ber-

nard. ' l 'hc i r

order l l p lanning and their austere

interpretation ol' the Burgundian half'-Gothic,

unadorned, became, through Bernard's pref'er-

ence. the archi tecture of the Order. In con-

sequence thc st l lc spread radia l lv , wi th the

Order, in erer l c l i rcct ion as f 'ar as French in-

lluence reached to the British Isles, Scan-

dinavia, Poland, ccntr i l l Europe, Ibcr ia ' I ta l1,

ancl Palest ine but in a somelvhat immobi l izcd

fbrm which pcrs istod unt i l the High Gothic of '

thc i le-dc- I rance was adopted in i ts stead. In

manv regions the international Cistercian half--

Gothic prepared the wa1' lbr Gothic architec-

ture somewhat as the pervading Lombardic

Irirst Romanesque had done in fbrmer times

fbr the Second or Great Romanesque st1.le.- I 'he

ear ly. pcr iot l of 'Cisterc ian bui ld ing was

indeed scvere. Sculptur i r l embel l ishments werc

lbrbidden in r Iz-1, in rvhich l .ear a lso i t was

decided to omit i l luminl t ions f rom the manu-

scr ipts. Indument i r r ia, sculptures, and l i turgical

objects came under verv austere regulat ions '

Bold or an-rbitious proportions and architectural

bravura o1'anv k ind were not to lcratcd in the

buildings. Stone towers rvere forbiddcn in r r 57

on the churchcs, $hich at most had smal l func-

t ional bel f iy-p innacles. In I I8z i t was di rected

that an! ' ex ist ing uindows o1'coloured glass in

Cistcrc ian churchcs should be removed wi th in

three y'cars. Ornanrental pavements were fiown-

ed on, and in manl ctses removed by order. But

al l the monaster ies lvere crcel lent ly bui l t , and

though the cll'ects are rather hea\']., quite gene-

ral ly thel ' have a l i ly- l ike atmosphere o1' s im-

pl ic i t l .which has verv grcat charms. The smal l

original churches were perl-ectly forthright; the

later ones (befbre thc High Gothic) , even when

they. lrcrc of great size, showed their derivation

fiom the simple prototypes and did not use an1

dcvices conceivcd fbr picturesque or dramatic

appeal .

The ea r l i c s t ch t t r c l t c s \ \ c re \ e r \ p l l i n . { t

Citeaux a small wooden church was succeedcd

f*r+f*{F

r* +\ + . , , .*r

t *""' *"* ' . " ' *

f * *f i+ *fi* '*f i * ' +'f + *

fr**'EE VN A E:J

r::I r f

o I

other monastic architecture from Revolutionarv

demol i t ions, and i t is st i l l possib le to gr in a

f i i r lv completc idea of what a Cisterc ian mon-

astcr \ ' $as l ike.r The st . rndardizet l and repct i -

t ious character ofear ly Cisterc i i rn l rchi tecture is

immediately evident evervuhere. Almost a l l

works datcd befbre rzoo may be understood

liom trvo or thrce ofthc early French cxamples.

Cistercian sitcs werc invariablv secluded,

well watercd, and so set that the waters could

bc impounded above the area chosen lbr the

convcntual bui ld ings. 1 'hc church uas placed

on the highest ground. ' I 'he

other srructures,

though uni form in their workings, wcre not la id

2 : ; 2 t z - t L W r : f t , a . r 1 r R . . ( , J , - \ r , r i , j , . , ,

ad iacent t ranscpt . ' l 'he

ground storey 's of thc

conventual bui ld ings wcrc reg;ular ly vaul tct l .

Pavi l ion- l ikc fbuntain houses covered thc larrr -

bos in the c lo isters. and the refector ies l rcrc \ r ' l

wi th the axis perpendicular to that of the chr-r lc i r

instead oi ' paral le l . Novices werc regulat l r

lodged at the end ol the east rangc ofthc cloistcr'.

Professed monks were not allowed to entcr thcrt'

quarters, which occupied the traditional pl'rc.'

of the camera. 'l 'he

traditional public court ir(l-

jo in ing the west rangc of ' the c lo ister bui ld i r r3s

was reduccd to a p.rssirge-wa1. (open to thc sk\ )

lbr the la l brcthren ( 'conversi ' ) . ' l 'hei r

bui ldtn9

had i ts t radi t ional p lace lvcst of the passrtgc.

2 2 6 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N , { T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

in rro6 by a rectangular tunnel-vaul ted stone

church lbout sixteen feet wide and fift1 f'eet

long. ' fh is

s imple tvpe of p lan rvas soon au! i -

menled b1' angular lateral chapels making a

dwarf transept, or b\, a transcpt with such

chapels. Cla i rvaux, just af ter r r r 5, had a square

church with stone walls divided into nar,e and

ais les br , wooden posts support ing a u 'ooden

roof. I-ater the churches rvere regularly r.aulted,

and rvooden roofing lvas conlined to the con-

ventual st ructures. Both rhe ais lc less and rhe

ais led plans pers isted. The Ourscamp of ' r r3,1

(aisleless) had transepts and a round apse. An-

gular chapels collected about both of'these lattcr

e lements in later p lans, wi th the necessarv am-

bulator ies. ' l 'here

are numerous cases rv l rcre

r7r . ( , i teaur, monastcr \ ,l iom a drauing mrdc bcfore d(strucl ion

local tradition has affected manv cletails of'[q16

plan and elcr . i r t ion wi thout destroy ' ing the ( . i \ -

terc ian ai r o l the bui ld ings, because rhe masony,

( f i nc ash i ; r r ) h : r s an unm is t i t Lab l c C i s r t . r ' t i . 1n

character. 'Ihc

fact that the Cistercians Ibrb111

their masters to work outside the Ordcr tcntlg4

to accentuate this special character.

A t C i t eaux I r 7 r l and C la i r r aux ' t he con rL ,1 l -

tual churchcs rverc : r barometer of rhe grol t l -1

of the Ortle r. The great church irt Citeaux .n rr5 xpart of the gencral rebui ld ing rhere, carr ie{

through betwecn rrz5 and rr5o. The church

underwent a consecration of somc sort about

r r48 and anorher in r rg3, by which time it ri rrs

completed wi th I much enlarged s lncruarr . I r

was crucilbrm with an aisle' carried all round.

except at the south-west corner of the transept

.nd also at the west front and at th! north end

6fthe Eansept, where the aisle was replaced by

porches. The sanctuary was angular . and i ls

angular ambulatory was surrounded by angular

chapels. The church was destroyed at the

Revolution.

At Clairvaux the original monasterv was en-

tirely insufficient by Ir33,, and new buildings

of immense extent were undertaken near by.

The church plan provided a rather shallow an-

gular sanctuary with three shallow rectangular

chapels at each s ide, a l l opening into a t ransept.

Five more rectangular chapels and thc bay'de-

voted to the night stair occupied the other side

ofthe transept, with a tunnel-r'aulted nave and

r7z. Fontenay Abbel-,

founded in r t rg, from the air

T H E C I S T E R C I A N S A N D T H E I R A R C H I T E C ' I ' U R E 2 2 7

gave the church a clerestory, a Gothic ribbed

high vault, and a range of flfing buttresses, as

wel l as a polygonal apse and ambulatorv sur-

rounded by angular radiat ing chapels ins ide a

polygonal periphery wall. The sanctuary at Pon-

tigny was rebuilt in somewhat similar form

about r r85-rzro. Thus Pont igny has a specia l

claim to be esteemed as the best existing repre-

sentirtive of the great church at Clairvaux, des-

t ro) 'ed at the Revolut ion.s

FIowever, the'Bernardian' plan, which stands

for St Bernard's own preference, is that which

was built at Fontenay6 [r7o] in rr3g 47.1 The

church at Fontenay, wi th the adjo in ing (and

somervhat later) cloister and monastic buildings,

is thc o ldest Cisterc ian ensemble in existence

I t lz 5] . The s i te is g i rd led b1'wooded hi l ls in a

lor e l1 ' set t ing, and the var ious edi l ices are room-

i l r sct wi th in an cnclosure wal l . A bcaut i lu l l l

proportioned I'agade presents the church, with

ashlar stone and an austere porta l ; e lscwhelc in

the church and conventual bui ld ings ashlar spur

aisles axially placed. This plan, augmented bv

chapels along the ends ofthe transept, rvas uscd

at Pont ign) 1ry6, t77l in r r -1o f f . , but the lat ter

church was finished with a rib-r'aulted nave

about r r7o. Rebui ld ing at Cla i rvaux bctwccn

t t 53 and t he de f i n i t i r e consec ra t i on o f t t 71

l,!l I Jri f;

.l-

2 2 8 I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

r7j and l7+. I ronreni l , abber.church,rrcrr l rorrr thc north-rc: t rnt l i l t tcr ior , r r . i r1 -17

r7 S ( |pf asir e.). Fontcnal, Abbe1,r iov l iom thc chaptcr-housc into the c lo ist t r , r . r r47

buttresses, with rougher srone wall_work be_tween, are the rule. Bishop Everard of Norwichwas the patron of'Irontenay.

Thc chur-ch gains most ol'its lighr liom thefaEade rvindows and the corresponding ones atthc crossing and in the sanctuary, since thcre isno c lcrestor ] ' ; but lbr-rhe windows at thc ends,thc nave would be l ike a carern. An admirablepointed tunnel vault with transvcrse archescovers it, irreproachably abuttecl bv pointedtransverse tunnel Iaul ts ( ) \ .er the ais lcs.

. I .he

transept is lower and narrower than the nave,and coversd by a pointed tunncl r ,aul t in the

same way. The nal'e continues into the squarc-

ended principal sanctuary. Acousticall.v the

church is remarkable, like a Cluniac church, on

account of i ts tunnel vaul t , and in th is connec-

tion we note that St Bernard lor,ed music.

The stone night stair leads as usual from the

south t ransept of the church to the adjo in ing

monks' dormitory, now blocked up but or i -

ginally open, under a fine open arched truss

roof. The refectory was placed in the customarl

Cistercian position opposite a fountain house on

the south side of the cloister, with its axis per-

pendicular to that ofthe church. Other parts of'

the monastic ensemble are arranged in tracli-

tional ways; this is true of the forge building at

Fontenay a handsome affair by the rivulet

placed to the south-east of the cloister, as it

mighr hare been in ear l ier t imes.

In contrast to the dark and heavv church, the

noble round-arched, tunnel-r 'aul ted c lo ister . the

T H E C I S T E R C I A N S A N D T t T E I R A R C H I T I _ C T U R F . 2 2 o

chapter-house, and the camcra (a *'ork room

beneath the dormitory) seem r,ery light and

open, though the latter are substantially vaulted

b1' squrre bays o{ r ib-vaul t ing wi th columnar

supports I r75] . The repeat ing square bay's of

this construction are as ty'pically Cistcrcian as

the angular i ty o( ' the church plans. These ba1's,

markcd by 'uni fbrm spur but t resses on wal l af ter

wall throughout the scheme, have a curious look

of being mass-produced.

Repet i t ive bays had of course been used bc-

fore in architecture, but it was a new thing to

use repeated bavs ofr ib-r 'aul t ing wi th the logical

ins istence which was later to character ize Gothic

design. But austere ideals and conserr,atism pre-

vented the Cistercian architects from develop-

ing thc l-ull potentialitics of thc new n'pe of

vaul t . Their designs are cal led 'hal f -Gothic '

because th is tvpe of vaul t could be so much

morc ef fect ivel r appl icd (as int lect l i t was wi th

\

2 3 O I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C T U R E

bravura in the full Gothic ofthe ile_de_France)to highly evolved types of plan and elevation.Individual bays were 1reely made square, ob_long, triangular, or trapezoiclal in shape, tall orshort in elevation, as the most elaborate com_positions required. For example, the Cister_cians, requiring clear glass in their churchwindows, d id not have reason to make themlarge.

'I'he Gothic stained_glass win<lows, lrom

Suger's time (lr4o) for more than a centurv.were so dark that er .en openings of maximumsrze !iave a barell'suflrcient light for the churchinteriors. f'hus the Gothic walls became sheetsof glass stretching between and supported byslender p icrs, just as rhe cel ls of ' the vaul t be_

r76. Pontignv, abbtv chrrrch lhrrn.t-j ;- - - - .

came thin membranes, bowed up slightly lorease in building and extra strength, bet*.ccn

:].."d..1 over-arching ri bs. Full rrptoitrtiurr t,r

light rib systems, the developmen, of .fr.lf_,f_,i"raul t ing cel ls of ashlar , and th. . . . r t ion otI t1 ' rng but t resses to sustain r .aul ts set h igh unslender piers, pur rhe builders of tn. ii._j.-France ahead ol ' the Cisterc ian bui lders br .r r 75, i f not before.

The. church of pontigny [176 gl is a good

example of the Cistercian use of Gothic betorc,the overwhelming achievements of the HiehGothic made the Cistercian style seem ol,l_tashioned and provincial. Begun about r r40 ona variant of the usual plan, the church rrrs

built with a dwarf transept and an angular east

end, and continucd into a verl handsome nave,

sirnple, generous rn proportion, and lightcd by'

, clerestory ol er lower and narrolver aisles with

concealed flying buttresses. Delicate and f'asti-

dious proportioning, deft handling of the

grouped piers and simple rib-r,aulting makc the

church at once impressive, alive, and serene.

The typically Cistercian nave is happilv com-

bined with an austere chevct which rcplaced

the or ig inal one about r r85 rzro. ' l 'here

is an

ambulatorv with trapezoidal radiating chapels,

so s imply la id out that onlv rhc moulding pro-

files betray its late date.

At Pont igny the windows, though moclern.

r77. Pontignv, abbcl' church, f'ar;ade. r. r r qo

T H E C I S T E R C I A N S A N D T H E I R A R C H I T E C T U R E 23t

exemplify' the Cisrercian taste. There are tvoicalr nd beau t i l u l pa r r c rns i n r he l ead ing . * i i h t h .usual plain glass that is, exccpr tbr a sprinkling

of small jewels of colour, which was permissible.'lhe

whole ell-ect of the interior is of extraordin_ary calm and religious serenity, virginal in sweet_ness and pur i ty .8

I'he fagade, sparingly adorned with Gothicarcading, is pleasant to look upon. yet no onecan fu l ly understand Pont ignv and the Cister_cians wi thout seeing the bui ld ing l iom theopulenr surrounding f ie lds a handsome warm_hued bulk which real ly seems ro belong to thesoi l ; no towered or cathedral shape could har.esuch union u'ith the earth [176, r j /-1.

Pontignv, abbey church, lbunded in r r t4

ls..

I N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N ' T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I T E C ' I ' U R F

d;INE

r7l l . Pont ignr, abhet.church, inter ior , r . r r10 r2ro

For a l l i ts uni t t , Cisterc ian archi tecture issubtlv difl 'erentiatcd region br, region. In rhcsouth, the heritage ol' Roman largeness com_

bines beaut i lu l lv wi th the Cisterc ian theme ols impl ic i t l , fbr thr ightncss, and good construc-

t lon.

At Si lvacane," fbunded in t t47, we I 'cel thesouth of 'France. The abbey bui ld ings surv i r .e asan extraordinar i l l . complete and impressir egroup. The south-French lor c for coursed blockmasonr l is mani fest here, lvherc, in a design ofqui te Roman ampl i tude, the ashlar is unusual l l .f i ne t h roughou t . and g i r es cha rac fe r t o c re r r .r i s t a o t t he i n t e r i o r . Thc chu rch , begun abou rr r7o, has rhe ver) .same digni ty which one f ie lsin the Pont du Gard. It is extraorclinarily fine inacoust ics, as is usual where the nave is tunnel_vaul ted.

Las Huelgas, near Burgos in Cast i le, is an_

othcr good examplc of Cistercian stonework.

though of ' rarher mediocre design.r , , poblet r111Santas Crcus in Catalonia har.e erccl lent ( , is tg.-

c ian qual i t ics. . \ t Poblet ( fbuncled r r .5 r ) , mrrchthe larger ant l morc prospcrous, these qual i t jc5

continued to influence the gencral design of sur_cessive lvorks unt i l the end of the \ l iddle {sc,' I 'he

ear lv archi tects o1'Poblet had given the er_amplc fbr th is in the main church, uhich urrsbu i l t abou t r r 8o 96 .

' I ' he re i s a pe r f cc r l r

R o m r n e s q u e l ) o i n t e d l u n n e l r : r u l t u i t h l r r r r r . _versc archcs or er the nar.e, despi tc i ts bcing corr-temporarr wirh the nare of ' Notre_Damc inPar is. Nlanv parts of ' the monast ic hui ld ings i r rcin a verv much s im pl i f icd and sunburne t l Gothrc.but thc Romanesque spir i t l i res on in a lnrosr r t l lthc work.

' l 'here is excel lent r .aul t ing in r l rc

chapter-housc. the ref 'ector1, I r791, the l ibnrr ,

and the ccl lar ; and rhe grsat dormitor ies r i i rhpointed diaphrag;m arches supporring lvooclcnroof ing are cxtraordinar i ly ' impressive I rgoi .The cstabl ishment was long desolate a l ier thcsoc ia l up r i s i ngso f ' r 8zz j 5 . I t i s ve r l imp ress i r c

as now resrored and re-peopled. r'et it satisficdthe requirement set lbrth in the epig.ram, name lr

that it takcs a rcally' good building to make a finer u i n . r l

Alcobaga in Portugal has one ol ' thc best . asrvel l as one ol the most remote. Cisterc i i rnchurches. T'hc building was bey,^r.rn on a grantl

scale in r r58 and f in ished in rz: - i . I ts inter ior .spacious and beaut i lu l lv proport ioned, has a re-

markable combination of classic serenitv, Ciste r-

cian simplicit\', Romanesque lbrthrightncss.

and budding Gothic r .erve. Compared rv i th tht

contemporarl rrork in Paris fbr it is roughlr

contemporar l wi th Notre-Dame Alcobaga rc-

presents an archaic scheme, the , threc-narct l '

church, of ien cal led the hal l church. I

This church type resul ts f iom the use of ' therepet i t ivc r ib- \ 'aul ted bay, in such a \ \ ,a] . rhat thc

nave r .aul t is abut ted bl a is le vaul ts onlv l l i t r lc

narrower ancl lower than i tsel f . The ais le vaul t t

in thcir turn lre abutted bv spur buttresses. 'l

l.rc

engineer ing problems arc s imple, and the n pe

r79 and r8o. Poblet, monasterr., ref'cctorrand dormitorv, thirtecnth ccnturr'

T H F . C I S T I . R C I A N S A N D T T I F . I R A R C T U t . E C T U R E 2 . . t 1

is stablc. Large windows placed high in the wal ls

light these churches. 'I'he

piels are grouped, and

with the r ibs branching out : rbove them, look

l i ke l i nes u l l r ees . Th i s a r rangemcn t g i r es g rea t

prominence to the windolvs in thc apse, lvhich

are the onh windows v is ib lc in: rn eastward y ie rv.

San ( ia lgano,r i near Siena, ma1,be c i ted. The

church there is the ru in ofa construct ion begun

in rzrS st i l l in the Burgr. rndian hal f -Gothic

stvle at a time when the cathedral design ol'

Amiens ( the boldest High Gothic church which

proved to be stable as or ig inal l l bui l t ) was onh

two vcars in the future.

Fosslnova, another of the Cisterc ian s i tes in

Itall'(it is prettill ' set near Romc), also suft'ered

lrom abanclonment ( I8r2) , but i t rvas reposscs-

sed bl monks in rgr5, and is norv happi l f in usc

i l g r i n as an abbe r . I l i i \ c f \ Bu lg t t n t l i : r n i n

Ieel ing and detai l . At thc crossing thcre is an ocl t l

staged towcr, partl]' of Renaissancc datc, rvhicl.r

rl

l-.1

j'l

234

r8r. Chiaravallc N{ilancsc, abbey church, dedicatcd in

would seem to represent, in morc permanent

fbrm, the lost wooden belfiy turrets which

Cisterc ian churches usual l l . possessed. The

church at Fossanoya dates fiom the vears r r79

to r zo8 . r J

In Lombardr, , where br ick has been a basic

matsr ia l s incc Anr iqui t l . , thc Cistcrc ians o1'

Chiaravalle Milanese used brick, like thcir

neighbours. Shortly after thc fbundation of' r r q(r

a church was started, ofwhich the transepts re-

main, though in altered fbrm. Ultimatelv a huge

and unattractivc octagonal lantern and belliy

was ra ised at the crossing, perhaps even af ter the

r r gb

dedicat ion which was cclebrated in r r96 [ r8r I .In the nar,e b ig domed-up r ib-r .aul ts of Lonr-

bard type were bui l t , beginning perhaps as car l l

a s r r 6o .

Bv this timc Lombard brick architecturc ha(1

reached northern Gcrmanv,l + in Prcmonstraten-

sian work (Jerichow, dated perhaps after r r-5o.

being thc car l iest example) [ r82, r83] , perhaps

under Cistercian influcncc. The rcgion lacks

stone, but the clays burn to cxcellent brick of r

decp red or wine colour. The ser.er i ty of l inc and

the exccllent workmanship continued as rhc

brick style spread (B a c k st eing oli&), and acquired

more and more affrrmative local f'eeling. 'l 'he

abbey church ofChorin (about rzoo) is a Cister-

cian example.

The church buildings of the earliest Cistcr-

cian monasterics in German1.15 almost all of

them of the filiation of Morimond were often

local in t1.pe, although the first (Kamp, ncar

Kref 'e ld, r rz j ) appears to hare had the ear lv

s imple plan used b1' the Order, but N' Iar ienthal

( r r38-a6) has a columnar basi l ica. Hei lsbronn,

foundedin r r32, Cisterc ianin r r4r ,hasachurch

belonging to the School of Hirsau; Georgen-

thal , dated about r r5o, has an apse 6chelon;

. J J

r8z and rll3. Jerichow, abbel church,

.. r r50, restorcd

Walderbach ( r r 43 7o and later) has a hal l

church; and al l these schemes are represented

b1' scrr : ra l othcr examplas.

T'he important abbey' of Nlaulbronnl ' ' I I8.11

markcd a new dcparture in the buildings crccted

betwecn r146 and I178, and carr ied fbrward

later on. ' l 'he

whole group is rerv wcl l con-

structcd in stone, and has giYen a good account

of itself . With the I'ears and progressive rccon-

struct ions the monast ic bui ld ings har c acquired

a pt-rndcrous Ccrman looL, but the ol t lcst l ror l

( r r46 78) is st rongly Burgundian in f 'ec l ing. A

Gothic east window and Gothic vaul t ing some-

$

2 3 o r N T E R - R E G I O N A L A N D I N T E R N A T I O N A L A R C H I ' I E C T U R E

t84. \Iaulbronn -{bbc1, lbrecourt, r r46 78 rnd later

what d i lute the Romanesque of ' the church, but

i t reta ins i ts o ld p lan wi th an al tar-of the Cross

in the nar,e. an arched stone choir enclosure,

sta l ls , and an angular sancuarr . The faqade has

a marked Burgundian l lar our, and l ras preserved

a low exter ior porch across the f iont , th is e le-

ment being fa i r lv common in Cisterc ian bui ld-ings.17 There are two typical bel f rv p innacles.

Cistcrc ian lbrms wi th a German weight iness

in mass and detail are we ll represented bv manv

examples. Among them Eberbach (bv except ion

fount led l iom ( i i teaux) is part icular l r .wel l pre-

served and imposing. I t is dated r . r r .5o 8o.In lear,ing German Cistercian work, it is

worth whi le to repeat what has bcen said regard-

ing the impr int which the Burgundian hal f_

Gothic left in the minds of local architects. f'he

brarura of 'French designers, wi th wonderf l l

f la i r , explo i ted the Gothic svstem to the ul t i -

mate, but fbr a long time few German designcrs

or clients really cared fbr the novel effects. 'l

hc

Gcrmans, in their lor ,e of substant ia l masonrr ,

which warms the massive lval ls o l 'speyer Cathe-

dral and the rosy clilt 's of the Backstein1ottl,

clung to the tradition of the half-Gothic. 'lraccs

of th is lcel ing are easv to f ind in their inrc:-

pretat ion of the more mature French Gothie.

which comcs f i rs t at the new cathedral , r r '

-Nlagdeburg in rzog.

Engl ish connexions wi th the Cisterc ian Order

go back to the beginning. l8 Abbot Stephen

Harding of Citeaux and Bishop Everard ol

Norrv ich, who bui l t Fontenay, har 'e been mcn-

t ioned. The Cisterc ian sty le appealed to the

Engl ish, as i t d id to the Germans; rhe Engl i :h

had a f iner f la i r lbr th is archi tecl ure. bui l l beaut j -

fully in it, and transmitted some of-its artracti\,e

qual i t ies to the succeeding Ear lv Engl ish Gothic

style. Details about it belong to another volume

in this series.le It must sufficc here to mention

Waver ley Abbev, fbunded in r rz8, i rs an cx-

ample of the s implest form of Cisterc ian plan

an aisleless nave and square-ended sanctuary) a

short t ransept, and a s imple square-ended

chapel opening upon the rransept to eithcr sideof the sanctuarv ; Tintern, (bunded in r r j r, asan example of the same plan with trvo chapels toei ther s ide, and consequent lv a longer r ransepr iand Fountains as the ru in ofa larsc abbev oart l r 'Norman and partly Burgundianiaff-Cu*lc lnstyle. -I-he

church was built about r r ii ,5o. Itsoriginal sanctuarv was replaced bl the lbmousChapel of the Nine Altars, rzo.1 47, a pnmeexample of the Early English Gothic style.

T H E C I S T E R C I A N S A N D T } I F , I R A R C I T I T } - C T U R E

' l 'herc arc ver l extensive remains, adjo in ing the

church, of the nronks' quarters, bcaut i lu l l r '

maintr ined I r8.s l . F inal l l r $ord must be said

about Bucklast Abbe v as rebui l t in tgoT zz, t 'or

th is rebui ld ing has l . ie lded much infbrmat ion

rcgarding medie val condi t ions. : \ t Buckt i rst one

o r l so men u i t h s imp le t r a i n i ng i n cons l r uc l i on

lbrmed a cre w and ultimatcll'erected an elabor-

a te chu rch on t he su r l i r i ng n )ed i c \ a l f bunda -

t ions. In l ike manncr a group of mcdier a l monks

intending to bLr i ld an abbcl-might br ing to the

si te a p lan lbr the rvholc f uture establ ishment; a

lew monks *'ith experiencc could trlin a crerv

of monks and brethren dur ing the ercct ion of

thc s imple bui ld ings required in the be -c inning,

and then proceed to the more di f l icu l t works,

wi th occasional help f iom sistcr nonasterrcs

and t rar e l l ins ar t isans.

,,'f,I

sI

r85. Fountains Abber', church, r. r r35 50 irncl latcr

.L-

il

P A R T F O L I R

THE MATURE ROMANESQUE

OF M IDDLI , AND SOUTI ]ERN t rR . \NCE

C H A P T E R I 2

G E N E R A L C O N S I D E R A l ' I O N S

I N R E G A R D ' I ' O , I H F ,

R E G I O N A T - S C H O O I , S

The Romanesque is a snle of l .ascinat ing bt-

ways and local schools. ' I 'h is

has bccn i ts charm

for many lor,ers o1'the arts, and, in conscquence,

the histor ians havc generalh anal lsed i t as a

ser ies of ' quasi- independcnt rcgional phcno-

mena. Yet thc great mo\,emcnts and the chief

inst i tut ions o1' Romanesque t imcs wi th their

architecture nere intcr-rcgional, as u,e have

seen; our exposi t ion has indccd bcen plannecl to

emphasize this fhct. In monuments of' morc

than regional s igni f icance we hale a l rcadl 'en-

countered all, or ncarll all, rhe alchitecturll

motifs which we shall find, Iarioush combinctl,

in the architectural b1'-wa1's which we now

undertake to explorc.' . fhe

lar ious local 'schools ' t l iRer

l iom onc

another in the basic bui ld ing rnater ia ls, in thc

choices which the practical men and decorators

made in handl ing thosc mater i r r ls . and in the

emphasis g i rcn to rhc rar ious aspects of ' thc t le-

sign. 'I'hese

variablcs introduce more difl 'erenccs

than might, ar hrsr sight, be supposed.

For examnle. Roman elements occur in a l lthe regional schc,ol , but thc Roman elements

may be struct l r ra l , tunct ional , composi t ionl l ,

decorat ive. C)r iental e lements, Bvzant ine ele-

mcnts, Northern elements a lmost inrar i i rb lv

appear, in the same i aried tva\.s, and with dilier-

ing emphasis.

I t i s r r su r l t o f i n r l i r r ca th r t g i on somc p r i nc i -

pal monumcnt r .h ich has been imi tatedthrough-

out thc arca, thus creat ing a sort o l archi tectural

lamih and a cert r i r r regional uni t t . Horverer.

ccr t l in areas hl \ .e more thrrn one such source

monunlcnt) and the resul t is a compound locr l

school .

A s\stem of c lassi f icat ion fbr the schools of

mature Ronranesque alchi fecturc ntust rest oD

uni t ics of rar ious sorts. I t is genelal ly t rue that

in thc northern rcgion, where thc population

lvas prcr lominant l r Germanic, the bui ld ings

churches and al l cont inuccl ro be erecfed ui th

re lat i r c l r s imple pl lns and dccorat ion, u i th bold

massing ancl ar t iculat ion of rc lat i rc l r s imple

shapes; i rc t i \e s i lhouct te brokcn b\ to\ \e l ' i ln( l

p innacle l i rms; steep loof ing (natural t r> rhe

North) , hcar ' \ s tc lnc rval l -uork, and, lvhcrc i t

occurs, hcavv vaul t ing. In thc Romance area

the prefi'rencc rvas lbr more sophisticated build-

ings, rv i th a u, ider backg'round in ar t is t ic h istorr .

In thc Scruth therc rvere manl derelopments

along funct ional l incs rvhich are intcrcst i l . lg , rnd

.l-

l

IiIii

2 ; I O M I D D L E A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C T ,

thcre rvas I marked rc ld incss to absorb \ los lcnr

or Bvzirnt ine elenrcnts. This is nrarkedl l t rue in

the l , ' renclr and Norman dominions.' fhere

is l lso a ra l id d i r . is ion berween con_senat i r c (or passir e) , and act i \ .c schools: Romeand Provence, st i l l Lat in in the Romanesquepcr iod, acccptecl l i t t le that was nc\r . t iom out_s i de , bu t bu i l t handsomc l r i n a consc r \ a r i ve

manner, uhi lc Burqundv crc i r ted and cxportcdseVeral inrcr .csr ing t \ 'pes; thc neighbour ineBerrr , a l though i t containecl Bourges, the cc_clcsiast ical capi ta l of Aqui ta ine, procluced l i t t le

in fact , thc ccntre of 'France has bcen cal lcd a'dumping ground' because so much was rc_

cc i r ed , w i t hou r s i n rhes i s , f r om i r d j o i n i nereE;ion s.

' fhe mater- ia ls lbr bui ld ing also point out a

signilicant classificarion. J'he Nctherlancls andthc northern parts of 'Germanr, , France, I t i r l1 , ,and Spain al l hai e axcel lent br ick_clar .s of whichthe cngineers antl .rrchitects took irclvantagc.Onl l I ta l l ancl Prorence hacl easi l r arai lablenrarble as a Iuxurt nrater ia l . Even in thc br ick_bui ld ing recions stonc is obtainablc, thoughotten wi th d i f i lcu l f i ' lnc l cxpense, and usual lv i ti s l imcs tone . S i l n ( l s l ( , nc . l t . s s l l t r r c l i r u en . l . l u r_able, less rewlrd ing to rhe sculptor and thearchi tcct , abouncls in England (a long u i th f l in ts,chalkl' limestone, and brick-clavs which rvcrecrplo i tecl latcr) . Southcr.n Germrnr. and Rhine_land l i rance hale la i r lv good sendstonc. 1.heAulergne ant l rhe I - imousin (excc;r t ional l l )have grani te arrd volcanic stone. Elsewherc inFrance there is exccl lcnt l imestonc (c.g. theCaen stone o1'Normandl' lvhich rvas exportecl tcrEngland eren in Romancsque t imes). be:rut i_t i r l lv texturcd : rncl a c le l ight to the car r cr .s chi sel :cr isp mor.r id ings ancl r iccorat i re uork hare beenthe rcsul t .

' fhcsc French l imestones \ \ .c i ther to

f inc bul} , pale brown, and grer . t in ts. Simi larstones in l ta l r ' (north and sourh) tend to rvcarherto decper brouns_' I 'h is is t ruc also of . the east_{dr iat ic and S panish l ime stones. North_ rr .esrcrnSpain and Portug:r l har c 6;ranrre.

- l hc l i r regoing gct , logi t . ; r l c la\ \ i f i ( . i l t i , , r ) :

l o r ' t h b c a r i n g i n m i n d : l b r r h e . . . t t , , . . ' )

eng ince rs and r r t h i t ec t , o l " r . . , a t . , t . . ; , , * uu r rh a p ropa r r ega rd l b r t h " i r . ma re r i , r l , i * ' 'ho l dc r d l f l i ' r ence \ ca l l cd l o r t h bv t r r ; . r l f , , f i , ller ing nuter ia ls, and the nuanccs rvhich . , r ,1fwhere rhc mater ia ls arc morc s imi lar . aclA sr . , , r i ,to the intcrcst o l ' thc Rornirn"rqu" , ,1 i . . , . 0u ho le .

Gcorraphical , pol i t ical , dnd chronolor l j r . l lc lassi f icat ions are gcncral l l ,easicr to g. . r f , fnthc histor l o l Romanesqu. . . .h i t . . tur . : , ,n lma] sa,\' that Italr- lr,as importirnt first, be c,rusethe basi l ic i r and thc First Romlnc.qu" , , ,1.sp r ( . Jd l i { nn rhe rc .

' l h t . o l d \ cus r r . i . r . , , r r l

- {ustr -asia rvere important ncr t Ncustr ia lor . i tsorig;inalitr' ('Iours, Germignr,_des_pr6s, Grrrn il_l ieu, Saint-Riquicr , Ciorbic, l le ims, ant l .Srnsarc a l l thcrc) and Austrasia fbr i ts crcat ion ot rhcRhenish stv le (Aachcn and \ {a inz, Fulc la r rdLorsch l rc there; a concurrcnt st l le existcc l lstar east .rs Hung-arv in later tinres).

Fol lorv ing the achievcntents o l the Carol in_sran ccntur ies, Burgundv canc fo l i rs t inrporr_ancc in archi tecture. ' l 'he

rcasons werc, rs \ \chare seen, thc dr .namic spread, f iom BurgLrn_dian centres, of f'ederativc monasticism (chicfl\in thc c lercnth and twel l th centur ics) and r i rcBurgundian designers ' greatabi l i t t . tosvnthesizcarchi tectural ic leas. T 'hese idcas came i rom thcneighbour ing regJions of ' Neustr ia, , {ustrasi , r .Aqui tania, Pror-ence, and I ta l l - , and certd i lor iental inf luences were wclcomed too. Vaul t ing.m a d t ' p r o q r e s s : s o a l s o i n L l n g u e d o c , u h i , l .f lorvercd af te r thc middle of the elcr .enth ccn-tun, and is rcsponsib lc fbr i rn i rnpressir edaughtcr- school in Spain. I ta l r mcanwhi le be_came an archi tcctural l ia le idoscope. In the

. I .s o

Sic i l ies an eclect ic school sholved how r .ar ier iRomanesque archi tecture could be undcr st ronsBrzan t i ne r r n t l Vos lem i n f l uence ; i n f uscan ,and \ ene r i : r hou r i ch i r cou ld he ; cc r t a i n { q_velopments of vaul t ing in Lombarcl_r n.erc, i r rcombinat ion wi th othe r e lcments. instrumental

in star t ing thc {nelo- \orman school on l ) ruf o-

' ior i i . a. t . tonnrcnts belbre tht end ol the

eleventh centurr'

. ,' - I n , h . f i r s r t h i r d o l t hc t ue l l i h ccn tu r \ ' men

rnd ideas ucre draun l iom al l qt lar lers - .csJtc-

. i r i t1, Notrntnal ant l Btrrgundr to thc I lc-de-

i - rana. , ,h. .a to br i r rq ahout thc creet ion ol

bothic in a rcgion where thc Rolnatresquc had

for a long t ime been uninspired and unintercst-

inq. Other regions with more accomplishetl local

stfles continued to emplov them cll'ectivell.

until the Gothic from the Ile-dc-Ifrance ap-

oeared in the twelfih or thirteenth centur\ '

From that time onu'ard. it bccame the firnc-

t ion of the Romanesque local st1 ' les to inf lucnce

and to modulate the incoming Gothic to do-

mesticate it, so to speak, in respect of' mason

work, lighting, rooling, and decoration. Whilc

the Burgundian half -Gothic of the (-istercians

was, l ike ancient Roman bui ld ing, appl icable

everywhere with little change, the fullr chtr-

acter ized Gothic of thc I le-de-Flance achicvcd

better resul ts abrold when i t acccpted some-

thing from the heritage of the local st-vlcs.

Div id ing Romancsque archi tccture summar-

ily on national lines ficlds the lbllorving classi-

fication:

The I ta l ian st l lcs, in spi te of 'cer ta in norel

developments, are backuard- looking: in Lom-

bardy, to the First Romirnesquc stv le l in the

Veneto to the B]'zirntine ; in central Itall to Earlv

Chr istendom: and in the Two Sic i l ies cclect ic- to the Ear l l ' Chr ist ian, \ ' Ios lem, Bvzant inc,

Lombard, and Germrn st,ylcs.

T I I [ , R E ( ; I O N A L S C H O O I , S : G E N E R A L C O N S I D E R A T I O N S 2 : I I

The Gernran and re lated mlt r . r le Romanesque

stv les are conservat ive, and al l bcar thc obl ious

impr int of thc great ear l ier developments (a l -

readv considered) in the Rhineland.

Though not indcpcndent, thc Spanish-

Portuguese ancl thc English stvles are sufTicienth

cha rac t c r i z cd , c l ch i n i l s o r l n wa \ . 1o n l e r i t

nat ional standing.

But in the actual development of ' Roman-

esque, France is most f-ecund. B-v lieDeral conscnt

thsrc were seven individual regional schools in

medieval l i rance.

The I i rance of the eleventh centur l d id not

proper l r inc l r rde Bl i t tanr oranl impol t i r r t r terr i -

tor ics be1'ond the Sommc, the \ leuse, the

Saone , ; r n t l t he Rhonc . ' l ' hes t r i r c r s \ \ ' e r c ap -

proximatelv i r t the boundar ies ol ' the Empirc.

Carolingian .'\ustrasia remaincd Imperial, and

what is somet imes (because of later l r rench cul-

tural and pol i t ical expansion) cal lec l the eighth

French school that of the Rhineland, or of ' thc

East dcvcloped therc in a German ambicnt .

Iior our purposes it will be most convenient

to undertake first the studl- of middle and

southern l'rirnce. with its schools of- (e) Bur-

gundy; (u) Provence; (c) the Loire region and

western Francc, under the headings: ( r ) the

Loire Rircr area; (z) Poi tou, wi th Anjou, Sain-

tongc, and thc South-West: ( r ) Pdr igorc l and

the donret l churches of Aqui ta inc ; ( l ) Aur ergnc;

(n) Languedoc. ' I 'he

school of thc East (n) wi l l be

taken up wi th thc archi tecture ol - the Empire,

Normandl ' (c ; ) and thc school o1'Prr is and the

North (n) , when we approach the Gothic st1- le.

.\-

6 H A P T E R I 3

T H E K I N G D O N { O F A R L E S , A N D B U R G U N D Y

In the area ofthe old Carolingian Provencr: and

Burgundy, technicallv only ducal Burgrndr'

was French; the remainder had becorne a

loosely-held part of the medier,al Empire bv the

historical accident of bequest in ro3z.1 'I'he

Kingdom had an underlving Latinity. I'radi-

tional and easv communications ofl'ered bv the

great valleys of the Rhirne and the Sadne p'ile a

un i t y t o t h i s a rea l sh i ch shows i n man l 'wa rs i n

its architecture. The renaissance of Roman

forms was particularlv appropriate and lelici-

tous here. However, there is a strong tincture of

Carolingian and Rhenish influence in the north:

hence the area produced two great schools of

Romanesque archi tecture: ( r ) in ducal Bur-

gund)', where the fusion ofnorthern and srruth-

ern elements is remarkable, and (z) in Prolence.

where the Roman tradition is especialll ' strong.

D U C A L B U R G U N D Y

In an earlier chapter rue have obsen'ed Bur-gundy as a crossroads unusually open to ourside

inf luences, and unusual l l g i f ted wi th imagin-

ation for profiting bl them and sy-nthesizingthem. Immense resources were available in menand money from outside the region fbr buildingin Romanesque t imcs, and the impcrtantchurches represent not one, but ser.eral, greattypes.

Roman influence cane r.rn the Rh6ne laller.f r om P ro renccand Sep t im rn i r . Onc I ce l s l l omesubtly still as far north as Micon, which rvrts tbra long t ime just south of the boundarv of ducalBurgundl but wi th in the bort lers ot Rom,rn-esque France. Ducal Burgundl' fbrmed a partot the historic metropolitan archbishopric of'Lyon, which was div idecl between Romanesque

France and the Empire, but belonged archi-

tectural ly to ducal Burgund,v. This was t rue also

of the archbishopr ic of Vienne, which was in the

Empire but bordered on the Rh6ne. The eastern

parts of ' th is archbishopr ic bordered on I ta lv

and served as a natural avenue ofLombardic in-

f luence, wi th \ , { i lan onlv a hrrndred-odd mi les

awal . Besangon. the northcrn archbishopr ic of

the Kingdom of , { r les, was open to Burguncl ian

influence, especiallf in thc Franche-Comt6, but

the eastern parts, actualll- bordeling on the

Rhine, were understandablv German in their

archi tecture.

Since the building t1'pes in Burgundv are so

var ious, and their components so widelv used

in Romanesque archi tectule, i t is rvorth whi le to

undertake an anah's is of the elements. Burgun-

dian practice is well up to thc best general lcr.el

in the Romanesque period, and manv o1' the

observations which will be made hcrc on struc-

tural matters arc appl icable c lsewhere.

7 'ypts of Plun

'l'he hasilican ltlun a.nd general arrangemcnr fbr

churches har-e cont inued in use in Burgunt l r '

ever s ince Ear lv Chr ist ian t imes wi thout inter-

ruption, although stronglr modified b1' medie r.al

p lan features and r ,aul t ing.' l 'he

pr imi t ive medieral nave-and-chancel or'barn '

t rpe of 'church, rescmbl ing St Benedict 's

Chapel at Saint-Riquier [5] , is represented b-v a

number o l sm:r l ler churchcs in Burgunclr .

Saint-Laurent , ' I 'ournus

(bui l t belbre thc lerrrrooo), being the most intercst ing preservecl

example.

The rotunda is not unusual in Burgundl . . I ts

major representat ives (at Auxerre, Sens, Char-

.l--

214 . MTDDLF . AND SOUTHERN FRANCt .

lieu, and especialll ' Dijon Iro7 9l) har.e alreadl.

bcen anal l .sed; thcv are regular lv connccted

with cr1-pts and ambulator ies, and thus are satel -

l i te rathcr than indcpendcnt construct ion. Bur-

gundian Romanesque and Gothic churches tend

to hare a specia l accent on the axia l absid io le,

which probabh. reprcsents a reduct ion o1' the

rotunda.

The Greek crzss plun and its approximations

are rare in Burgundy'. The cemetery chapel at

Cluny'(ro6.1; destroy'ed) provided a rather soli-

tarv example of i ts indcpendenr use. Cluny' I I I

was an exceptional building. 'lhe

chevet, includ-

ing the minor transept, was, in efi'ect, a church of

the central t)'pe, so disposed as to gi'r'e extra

capaci tv lbr large assemblagcs. Each arm of ' the

grcat t ransept was l ike the ' tower

nave' of a

Saxon church. 'I'he 'double

transept' at Clur,l.

is bel iered to have been the l i rs t ; the scheme

lvas communicated to England through Lewcs

Priorv, and thence ro Engl ish Gothic.' I -he 'douhle-endar '

p lan, which was used bv

the Earh-Chr ist ians of North Al i ica, and af ier-

lvards in Germany, is re presented in the cathc-

dral of Ner,ers on thc Burgundian border. 'l 'hc

eastern apse has becn replaced in the Gothic

stvlc, but the westcrn onc, togerhcr with hand-

some arcadcd transeptal screens, has been pre-

served. The date of rozg is g i len fbr th is work.

Saint-Vorles at Chitillon-sur-Scine (dated

about gt io rooo, wi th a later vaul t ) is t r iapsidal ,

t ransepted, provided wi th nave and ais les, and

has the wreck of a sort o1'westwork which recalls

Carol ingian and German work. ' fhe

impact of

the Empire on Burgundian rvork secms in fict

surprisinglv small, but it mar. perhaps be f-elt

in the double t ransept and the octagonal rorvers

o1'St Hugh's Clun1. .

I'aotures in Plun

Al l Romanesque features of church planning

occur in some fbrm in Burgundian cdifices,

typically as enrichments of'the basilican scheme.

Apse s are regularly semicircular, lighted bi

three windolvs, and covered bv semi-domes,

round-arched or pointed. Thev are as a ru lc i tlittle lower than rhe adfoining, typical, r'aultcrl

sanctuary bavs. Ordinar i lv the churchcs arr

t r iapsidal , wi th lateral apses at tached to thc

transcpt. 'I 'his

simple arrangement was suffi-

c ient even for so notable a bui ld ing as the

twel f th-centur ] . cathedral of ' Autun I r6r ] , be-

cause, like other early twelfth-centurv cathc-

drals, it had not yet become the fbcus of guiltl

acti\,ities and various popular religious deio-

tions. Gothic lateral chapels were added here.

as at Notre-Dame in Paris, fbr such purposes.

Cr.1,1tts are important, as we have seen, in thc

Ear ly Romanesque of Burgundy (Di jon I ro7] :' I 'ournus

I roz] ; Saint-Savinen, Sens; Saint-

Germain, Auxerre z6nl) . Ment ion should br

made of the handsome and well-built cry'pt of

t hc ca thed ra l o1 'Auxe r re ( r . r oz5 -3o ) [ r r z lwhich is precocious in its architectural forms.

perhaps because of influence from the Loire.

The crvpt has beautifullv composed groupccl

piers and fine r,aulting, with moulded ashlar

ribs. Ner,ers Cathcdral has a similar crypt dated

about rozg. Bur ia l crJ.pts are unusual in Bur-

gundr', which did not have manv Earlv Christian

saints besides Germanus (Auxerre), Benignus

(Di ion), Valer ianus (Tournus), Fortunarus

(Char l ieu), and Savin ianus (Sens). The much

quoted'cryptae'ofCluny I I were secretar ia or

lateral sacristy chambers, not subterraneani'crypta'

may mean a vaulted chamber abor,c

ground.2

The ambulator.y with radiating chapels came

early to Burgundy, and was long confined to thc

most notable monastic buildings with crypts. It

was, however, not much used in Burgundy, evcn

in Gothic times, outside the monasteries. One

exccptional church, Bois-Sainte-Marie, perhaps

under the influence of early Charlieu, has an

ambulatory without radiating chapels.

The apse dchelon occrrs in Burgundy, and

Cluny I I , wi th the ear l iest !chelon in the resion,

was doubtless influential in its widespread use.

,{nzy-le-Duc has an excellent example, still pre-

served, with a small apse, reminiscent of a

rotunda, opening from the central absidiole.

Sanctuary bays wete placed singly in lront of

the apses of Burgundian churches of anv pre-

tension at all.

Stalls were regularly placed at the head of'thc

naves, in monastic churches, within a low-

walled enclosure. Ordinarily two or three ba-YS

sumced for this choir.

Transepts are usual in Burgundian church

plans. Sometimes they are 'dwarf'

transepts

(not as high as the nave), and they are often

'included' (not extended beyond the flank lines

of the plan), in which case they may have pitch

roofs like the aisles, as at Chapaize Ir34]. How-

ever, the transepts also often proiect and have

striking fagades (Paray-le-Monial Ir 561 ; Autun

Cathedral). The longer transepts were built to

provide additional absidioles.r

The' archiepiscopal cross plan' (with two tran-

septs east of the nave) apparently originated at

Cluny Ir4z], to permit large assemblies in choir.

It spread to England (Lewes Prior.v, Canter-

bury, York, and Salisbury Cathedrals).'fhe

crossinginBurgundy, often oblong rather

than square, regularly has an octagonal domical

(or'cloister') vault on squinches, and the vault

is sometimes pierced with small windows.

Naoes are aisleless in modest churches.

Though sometimes roofed in wood, they are

typically vaulted in Burgundy - the result of

Roman heritage and probably also for reasons of

acoustics. Small tunnel-vaulted churches of

Romanesque proportions respond amazingly to

the liturgical chant; even a few voices will hll

such a building with rich resonances which are

hardly obtainable in a wooden-roofed room.

It is obvious that certain of the Burgundian

naves were built cheaply for capacity. Saint-

Marcel and the later Infirmary Chapel at Cluny

(like the near-by church of Beaujeu and many

others belonging to the school of the Loire and

T H E K I N G D O M O F A R L E S , A N D B U R ( ; U N D y 2 , 1 (

the region of'Bourges, where thc scheme was an

established type) have triapsidal chevets and

transcpts with towers, to which wide wooden-

trussed naves were added naves twice as wide,

more or less, as the chancel. The efI'ect, though

spacious, is rather barn-like.'fhe

proportioning of Burgundian naves

varies greatly. There is a continuous tradition

for Roman sturdiness and amplitude, which

runs from the basilicas through Saint-B6nigne

and V6zelay to the Cistercians, with a placid

rhythm in the division ofbroadly proportioned,

individual bays. 1'here is a tendency, noted

especially' in the parish churches, but also at

Ylzelay, and in Cistercian work, to use a two-

storey interior elevation.

The Cluniac group of Burgundian churches

often has emphasis on the verticals. At Cluny

III the height ofthe transverse arches was three

times their width and the individual bays were

about four times as high as they were wide.

In the Burgundian nar,es, lighting bv clere-

story windows is usual, but in many instanccs of

vaulted churches they have been omitted or

blocked up for safety's sake. In such buildings,

if they are short, the west windows of the nave

give a sufficient light. The naves of ordinary

parish churches tend, in f'act, to be short, but in

monastic buildings the processional liturgies

(much developed in Burgundy) caused the con-

struction of very long naves which influenced

those of other regions.

Aisles arethe rule in buildings of any import-

ance, unless the naves have uncommon width.

Exceptionally Saint-Bdnigne at Dijon, Cluny

I I I , and Souvigny had two ais les at each s ide of

the nave. Aisles are almost inr,ariably covered

b1' bays ofgroin vaulting (occasionalll ' quadrant

vaults) separated by transverse arches which

are buttressed b1-- pilaster strips or spur but-

trcsses. Ordinarily each aisle bay has a window.

Torpers and pinnacles are normal on Burgun-

dian churches, and are invariably an attractrve

feature of the design. The number of towers

^\-

246 MTDDLE AND SOUTHERN FRANCF-

varies !ireatly, and with it the silhouette (always

interest ing) of the bui ld ings. The tower shapes

are sober and dignified, and the openings,

usually with attractive ornament, are always

well disposed. Authentic Romanesque tower

roofs had pvramids of low pitch (as a rule less

than forty-five degrees, except on pinnacles),

until the twelfth century was well advanced.

Towers in the tradition of the heavy Roman

turr is ,bnl l t up f rom the ground, are square in

plan. Pignacula, olten somewhat too large to be

called 'pinnacles'

in the modern sense, may

start from the roof level, and are frequently

octagonal .'l 'all

and graceful crossing towers, quad-

rangular or octagonal in plan, are a constant

feature ofthe churches. A belfry in several stages

is often set over a lantern with tiny windows at

the crossing. Bell cages, where they occur, rest

on the crossing vault. The belfry stages were

always roofed in wood, sometimes covered in

the Middle Ages rvith tile, sometimes with' laves' ( laminae of stone).

In Burgundy, paired western towers occur

much less l iequent[1 ' than crossing towers; we

mav sa!' that generally paired rvestern towers

were associated with galilee porches of monastic

inspiration. Single western towers are unusual.

Stair turrets of varving size enliven the sil-

houettes of manl.' churches ; thev ma!' be square

or round. Saint-B6nigne at Diion was excep-

tional in having three pairs ofstair turrets, svm-

metrically placed. Cluny III had two great

square bel(iy towers at the fagade, two square

stair turrets, of which one was carried onlv to

the clerestory level, together with four pignacula

ofgreat size one oblong, and three ofoctagonal

shape.

Porchas and nart heces are features of the more

ambit ious churches, as a ru le; more modest

buildings rarelv possess them.

Prr tu ls o l 'embrasured lbrm, in one. t \ . \o. or

several orders, with nook shafis, are a common

and attractive f'eature even ofmodest churches.

Thel-' have characteristic carved lintels, tym-

pana, and moulded enclosing arches. Onl l

modest examples, or those under Cistercian in-

fluence, were left plain. The proportions are in

almost all cases excellent.

De t a i ls of S uper st r uc t ur e

The pall-porh of early Romanesque Burgundr'.

to be understood, requires a knowledge ot

mason work in the Loire region. At first, thc

execution, both of walls and of vaulting, was

rather rough. Ashlar stone was used, rather ex-

ceptionally, in the crypt of Saint-Philibcrt.

Tournus, before q79, and ashlar spur buttresses

occur in the same work. The rough vault, ne.r'er

stuccoed, still shows the marks of the small

boards used as centering. Division of vaulting

bays by arches of ashlar stone may have lirst

come in systematically with the Lombards,

about g8o rooo. Ashlar was used more and

more from that time onward. Late in the twelfih

century' walls and vaults both were increasinglv

laced with ashlar, which in Gothic work was

indispensable. Where ashlar was used, the slrrra

which regularlv surl'aced the rougher old con-

struction would not adhere properly, and was

omitted.

The wal ls , even ear ly wal ls , in Burgundr

show a high level of craitsmanship. The region

is blessed with an abundance of excellent lime-

stone ranging from white to pale buffin colour.

which weathers to beautiful toasted browns ancl

sof t greys. An except ion is the pink stone ol

Pr6tr', used at Saint-Philibert, Tournus.l

At Cluny III the typical ashlar blocks arc

about three feet high, with verl'narrow mortar

io ints ( * of an inch). However, these dimen-

sions are exceptional; the ordinary joints are

thicker and the ordinary cours ing is narrouer.

Common walls are faced with moellon, relativell

small stones trimmed roughly to shape. A l'elr

earll' walls show the use of rough stones with

occasional herringbone work; a few show hori-

zontal bands of ashlar work, introduced for

,tr.ngth. Insufficient credit is given to the skill

of the Burgundian masons in linding the proper

materials and making exceptionally good mortar'

Piers of oblong plan occur early in the Bur-

sundian churches' as do crucifbrm piers. which

iers ist . Square nucle i hare three-quar ler col-

umns adossed to thcm in maturc work. Cruci-

form nuclei have three-quarter columns and/or

fluted pilasters flttached to them in Cluny III

and related buildings. Ashlar is early used'

Cylindrical piers of moellln occur early (Saint-

Philibert at Tournus, ChaPaize).

Colunnar sfia/is were used lrom earlv times

for support; examples occur at Saint-B6nig;ne,

Diion, and in the Charlieu chapter-house, as

wel l as in Cluny I I I and bui ld ings re lated to i t '

Monol i th ic l imestone shat is t rp to twentv lcet

in length are easily quarried in Burgundy', but

difficulties of transport prevented their wide

use: the columns. as in classic times, were

ordinaril-v built up ol drums' 1'he capitals are

sometimes surprisingll' close to the antique

Corinthian, but simplified, and Corinthian-

esque forms are more usual. Structural columns

are not fluted, but decoratir-e columns irnd

pilasters often are in the twelfih century rvith

quite unconventional detail in the fom ofbevels,

zigztgs, cher,rons, reeding, cymas, and beading.

Such details show the influence of imaginative

manuscript painters and metal workers.

The mouldings in ordinary buildings are

simple and far lrom subtle, but the best work

has classicizing mouldings of great beaut-r.s The

string courses show beak mouldings derived

from the classic cyma; column bases are some-

times close to the Roman fbrm of the Attic base.

The graduai transition to the Gothic derivatives

of these profiles can easily be traced in Bur-

gundy.

The Burgundians had a great ragt: for decor-

a;tive arcadinS which was unquestionablv of

classical origin. Simple at lirst, the arcading be-

came very elaborate and multiplied with the

I H E K I N G D O I \ 1 O F A R L L S , A N D B U R G U N D y 2 1 . 7

passage of t ime. In the second hal fof the twel f th

centur-y i t was verv luxur iant indeed, being

carried out with decorative pilastcrs and com-

plicated mouldings. Moslem influence, coming

perhaps by way of the Auvergne, brought in

cusping. Verv spic-v decorativc effects rvcre

achieved by' its use. The Lombard corbcl table

survived throughout the various phases of Bur-

gundian Romanesque, and was used effectivell.

in the almost Baroque designs of the middle of

the twelfth century.'Ihe

sculptural decttration of Burgundian

Romanesque buildings was not rich in the early

per iod. The Lombardic work employs s imple

capitals trimmed down in concave f'ashion at the

angles, so that triangles result on the faces ofthe

capitals instead of semicircles as so much more

frequent l f in Lombardy. In unpretent ious work

these capitals are built up ol'courses. Few gro-

tesques occur. though there are some interest ing

examples; leaf'age predominates so generally

and rather unskilful leafage in fact that one

must suppose the importation of highly trained

carvers (almost certainly from the marble-

cutting regions of France, and most probably of

Italv), when the sophisticated Clutiac atelier

was created. Some of the capitals show the in-

fluence of medieval manuscript decoration. The

fine earlier acanthus leafage at Cluny III (so

l ike ancient aconthus mol l is \ , as wel l as the ex-

ceptional delicacy and classical character of the

earlier moulding profiles at Cluny III, would

be accounted fbr, if we might suppose that fine

craftsmen came from Montecassino, Pisa,

Venice, or possibly Moslem Spain, which has

yielded beautiful carvings in an almost Roman-

esque style. These men surelJ' worked under

French di rect ion, however; fbr the sarour of the

designs is unmistakably French.

Cistercian architectural asceticism made itself

le l t instr rnt ly in Burgundy. Simple column capi-

tals and austere portals with blank t-Ympana

appear on many churches not belonging to the

Orcler. Their reserved charicter accords well

L.

2 . + u M I D D L E A N D S O t r l t l E R N F R A N C E

with the sober out l incs which the Burgundian

Romanesque churches general ly cxhib i t .

I/uulting in Burgundl fbllowed Roman

models unt i l wel l in to the Gorhic per iod, though'hall--Gothic'

rib-vaults began to appear spora-

dical ly in Burgundy as soon, or a lmosr as soon!

as in the ile-d.-It.un..- The Romanesque

vaul ts are in laminated stone. rough, wi th th ickjoints, thick cclls. and stuccoecl solits.

Center ing was used in bui ld ing the Burgun-

dian vaul ts. ' lh is

was supported on hear. ier

timbcring, as mav be seen at Lirbro in Gotland

[S5o, :Sr] , where a fburteenth-century vaul t of

Romancsque ty-pe in the church towcr still re-

tains its centering rz .sr/ll.

Wooden tie-pieces set irt thc springing, bar. bv

bal , were a common means of maintain ing the

vault saf'ely in position, while the masonry

solidified. l'hey were intended to bc remor,ed.

The tie-pieces wcre doubtless uselul in support-

ing a workmen's platfbrm durinp; construction.'I' imbers

lvere apparenrll' embcclded in certain

wal ls to g ive longi tudinal st renBth at h igh l r : \ e ls.

This occurs in the dormitorr, of the Cluniac

pr iorv o l ' Lewes in E ngland. I t is not good prac-

tice, lbr the buried timbers suffer from dry rot

and lose their s t rength; then rhe wal l is weakcr

than i t rvoulc l be i f i t uere consrructed ent i reh.

ol s tone.

Thc tunnel vaul t and i ts der ivat i r .es were al -

most exclusively used in Burgundl-, except lbr

the apses, which of course ha.r,e round or pointed

semi-domes. Since both round and pointed

arches arc used in the arcading, wc find round-

arched and pointed tunnel vaulr ing (commonl l

used in the naves and transcpts) together with

round and pointed groin vaul t ing (regular lv in

the aisles, occasionallv in the naves). The trum-

pet squinches and the octagonal domical vaul ts

which occur normal ly at thc crossings are, l ike

groin vaul t ing, der i red f iom the tunnel r .aul t .

Except ional are the niche-head squinches and

dome ol 'Saint Phi l iber t , ' l 'ournus,

bui l t some-

what belbre r rzo.

The groin vaul ts have on the whole stood t rn

b e t t c r t h a n t h e r u n n c l r a u l t s . S r l o n g m u r . r . 1 1

kcpt both tvpes secure fbr somc t ime, but thr

tunnel \aul t was the morc di f f rcul t to abr i r

successful l l , and wi th t ime almosr a l l thc r r -

amples have bccome deformcd or hare actual l i

l h i l cd . \ ux i l i a r l bu r r r esscs , no t o r i c i na l l . v p l i r r r -

ned, have helpecl to kcep several of t he importanr

raul ts in p lace.

The tunnel laul ts of ien have thc rool inp; o l

lutcs la i rJ d i lect lv on the vaul t cc l ls , loading thc

haunches. Horvcr,er , roof ing of ' laves or t i le on

timber supports o\.er an air-spacc often covcrs

tunnel vaul t ing, as i t invar iabh'does vaul ts o l

groined or domical fbrm.' I 'he

high vaul ts o l Romanesque Burgundr

lbrm an interest ing studv in themselres. l \ Icn-

t ion has al readr.bcen made of Cluny' I I ( r 'aul tcd

about rooo) r rnd Saint-B6nigne (roor r71.'I'he

sober and powerlul r.aults of thc narthcr trr

Tournus (about q6o) precede thcm hoth. ' I 'hc

upper stage o( the narthex, datecl pcrhaps abour

rorg, has quadrant-r 'aul ted ais lcs wi th d i l -

phragms between the bavs, and a tunnel vaulr

with transr,crse arches over a clercstory between.

Pilaster strips stiflin the wall on thc cxterior. in

thc Lombard manner.( ,

With Clunl l I I thc pointed arch rvas broughr

in. This permit ted a c ler .erer and th inner groin

r ,aul t , more easi ly bui l t , and i t sare a morr

scicntific profile to the high vault. 'l 'he

optimunr

profile is a catenar]-, which avoids all deform-

at ion stress in the vaul t cel ls .T But rvhcrc, as at

Clunv, the clcrestorv rvalls were wronglv locatetl

over the piers, the vaul t had to bc propped up

with f ly ing but t rcsses.'I'his

is perhaps the placc to introducc a brief

consideration of cidl arckitetzzra,s slight as the

remains are. In Burgundy thc Roman ci t ics

shrank wi th in their wal ls and decrcasecl in popu-

l l t ion, so that lbr I long t ime nt 'u consrruct ion

lor secular purposcs was not on a high level .

Stone was doubt less much more r . rsed in Bur-

gundy than f-arther north, where, as in earlJ

med ie ra l Eng land . r he r i l l agc chu rch m igh t bc

,h. only bui l t l ing ol br icL or stonc in ' t sct t lc-

ment. Nlanv of the communit r lunct ions ol

to-day had been takcn over b) ecclesiastical or

manor ia l establ ishments, and most o l ' the towns

were so small, until the twelfth centur].' that

their functions did not require highlf indivi-

dual ized bui ld ings. With the twcl f th-centur1.

revival th is was changed.

Cluny, which was car lv chartered (about

rroo), possesses a charming old bui ld ing of the

late Romanesque period which is said mis-

takenly to havc served a civic purpose as the

abbey mint. It has a big-arched grottnd floor,

where there wxs 2t fbrlic of some sortl simple

apartments occupiod an intermediatc f loor; a

loft above them provided storapie

A serious conflagration in rI-59 destroyed

many houses at Cluny. Surviving still arc several

of the more or lcss standardized dwellings

which were bui l t to replace them [186] ' The

lots are relatively narrow, and the houses, built

with party rvalls, werc placed at the sidewalk

line. Cellars were provided with interior access.

Space was allotted fbr a garden plot at the rear.

The characteristic stone lbqades are handsomel-v

proportioned and rvell built, but the intcrior

construction wls of rvood,

At the ground lloor a generous pointcd arch

opens upon a shop, a work room, or a stable,

and beside it a narrow square-headed openinpl

gives upon the stairwal' which lcads to the

apartments on the floor abor,e. The shop occu-

pies about half the ground-floor arc:r, ertending

beyond the stairway to give access to a corridor

leading to the k i tchen (at the back ol the house,

with a big open lireplace at one end). 'I 'he

intervening space betwcen the shop, the cor-

ridor, and the kitchen is an open court with a

wel l in i t essent ia l l ! .an outdnor room.

In these houscs at Clunl ' a charming range

of two-light winclows divided bv columns and

set offby small piers givcs light across the whole

tront ofthe upper storey. This storef is divided

T T I L , K I N ( ; D O M O F A R I , F , S . A N D t s U R G U N D )

br the court into tuo or thrce rooms; i t woulc l

be provided with onc or two hooded fir'eplaces,

and would har,e a storagc loft abovc, under a

roof 'wi th a dormer opening and broadly over-

hanging eaves. It is a very attractivc medieval

housc tvpe, and alwals appears in gencral ac-

cour. t ts of ' French mcdieral c lomest ic archi tec-

tr.ll 'c.

(,lun1-', built on two sides of the abbev en-

closure, had a very simple street system. Ulti-

mately an outer wall, with three gates, was

built each gate leading to a small plaza. As

far as rve know, the old Romanesquc towns

wcre, s imi lar ly , qui te s imple. Somet imcs they

se re l a i d ou l i n r i ngs . l r ound a chu rch o r cas t l e '

but on flat ground they were often rectilincar,

and the'bast ides' later inher i ted th is mode'

219

r 86. Clunv. charactcristic house, after r I 59

.l--

2 5 O M I D D L E A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C E

When a more official architecture developed,

it was naturally dependent on monastic archi-

tecture to a considerable extent. The abbel's had

been building walls, gates, gatehouses, halls of

various sorts, garners, and mills. We must infer

that municipal constructions of the sort were

simple at first, like those of the monks, and that

when they came to be embellished, the orna-

ment was what we have seen on the churches.

This observation is borne out by the 'Man6-

canterie' at Lyon, a twelfth-century work which

served as a choir-school annexe to the cathedral,

but it rnight equally have been built as a muni-

cipal hall of some sort.

The countryside architecture of Roman-

esque Burgundy must be divined from later

buildings which have obviously kept something

of their earlier lbrm. The village of Blanot, near

Mricon, looking down on its enchanting little

valley, must be more than a little like a Roman-

esque village. The manors and granges of the

region are not Romanesque, but their orienta-

tion, their simple arrangement about courtyards

oflow barn-like structures is clearly traditional.

At Berz!-la-Ville the grange of the Cluniac

monks has been rebuilt, but the old court has

its original location and the remarkable chapel

built in the days of St Hugh still dominates it.

At Berzd-le-Chitel near by, the castle has been

rebuilt, but gives a hint of older fbrms, as does

the Chiteau des Moines at Lourdon, in spite of

partial rebuilding and advancing ruin. Rural

Burgundy is still largely Romanesque in its

visual eff'ect.

The Romanesque style which we have thus

described was cherished by the Burgundians.

N'Iuch of its character was bequeathed to the'hall--Gothic',

as one may see at a glance when

visiting the maiestic thirteenth-century interior

of the cathedral o[ Langres, so splendid and so

strong. Even the bener examples ofBurgundian

Renaissance and Baroque church architecture

have about them a certain warmth and simple,

recollected quality which is akin to the Roman-

esque. The medieval revivals of the nineteenth

century produced little of interest in Burgunilr.,

but the country chr,rrches werc often carried out

in a sort ol'Romanesque or half'-Gothic stvle

which blends well, in the smiling opulent lancl-

scape, with the churches which remain to us

liom the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries.

P R O V E N C } -

'Ihe essential Latinity ofProvence is well shorr n

in its Romanesque architecture. The region lvas

temporarilv a possession of the Visigoths

(a8o tr), Ostrogoths (5ro ff.), Franks (-537 and

later), Arabs (before 739), and the Empire, with

interludes of local independence; it was evcn

under Spanish ru le, wi thout los ing i ts basical l r

Roman character. Arles was a natural choice as

capital of the medieval kingdom; for it was thc

capital of Roman Gaul in the fifth centurv, and

its bishopric was then the primatial see.

Important examples of 61th-centurv ecclesi-

astical architecture still exist in the region; lirr

instance, the church ofSaint-Pierre, at Vienne,

now a museum, was in f'act a vastly spacior"rs

fifth- or sixth-centurv wooden-roofed church.

the oidest extant in France. It is erroneoush

supposed to have had tlibunes. Interior roof

supports had to be built in gz4 6, providing^

two lines of tall, slender arches on plain oblong

piers, with a Carolingian pierced screen wrll

above, providing support for a pitch roof of'

ordinary form. 'I'he

church was, as we belier,e,

an example with the unobstructed interior spacc

which was usual in the Roman Imperial thronc

hal ls , l ike the'Basi l ica ' ( ' royal house') in Tr ier

These ver l 'spacious naves appear as a Roman-

esque church type. Since the reconstruction of'

gz4 6 (probably caused bv weakened trusses),

Saint-Pierre has had aisles nearly as high as the

nave, which has no c lerestory. I t is thus r t

primitive sort of 'hall

church'.

Saint-Laurent, Grenoble, has a well-pre-

served crypt dating lrom thc eighth centur)

which is one of the most interesting of its type,

ouatrefoi l in plan. I t was bui l t into a late anl ique

cemeterial complex. and a church was con-

structed over it about rorz'

Again, the cathedral ofVaison has three apses

of horseshoe plan, ascribed to the Merovingian

period; but between lolo and to3o, and once

more in the thirteenth century. the church was

rebuilt, so that it has the general character of

later Romanesque buildings'e

The early abbeys are unexpectedly disap-

pointing. At Saint-Victor at Marseille, which

has an august history going back to its founder

John Cassian (4r4), there is now a stour' well-

built, two-towered, crenellated exterior a good

example of tardy Romanesque, restored in mo-

dern times. The upper church is of the thir-

teenth century, incorporating parts of an older

building dedicated in ro4o. Beneath it there are

fifth-century remains of unarchitectural char-

acter, but one can trace a stubby three-aisled

basilica with a large square atrium in front of it

a layout which recalls the church of Santa Maria

Antiqua in Rome.

L6rins, near Antibes and Cannes, though

charming, is also disappointing; for nothing re-

mains of the Early Christian period, when the

monastery was one of the most important in

r87. Saint-Gilles-du-Gard, priory church,plan of the church before destructton

T H E K I N ( ; D O M O F A R L E , S . A N D B U R C L I N D Y 2 5 I

western Europe. On the Ile-Saint-Honorat

there is a trefoil chapel dedicated to the Tri-

nity, an eleventh-centur,v work, and there arc

eleventh- or twelfih-century sections in tlre

picturesque but much rebuilt lbrtihcations 01'

the island.

Records have come down to us regarding

tenth- and eleventh-century building at other

abbeys and cathedrals, but the remains are

slight.-I'he

really flourishing period for Provengal

architecture came in the twelfth century, when

the c i t ies were acquir ing local independence

Many older buildings of importance were re-

placed with maturer works in consequence'

The classicizing tendency is unmistakable, in-

creasing rather than diminishing as the twelfth

century advanced; it was full and strong at the

beginning of the thirteenth century, but lost

strength during the ensuing disasters, and be-

cause of the general expansion of Gothic art.

Some traces of influence fiom neighbouring

Burgundy are to be observed, it is believed, in

the cathedral of Valence. near \'tienne, where

Urban II performed a dedication in rog5.10 The

fbrmer cathedral of Saint-Paul-Trois-Chi-

teaux,ir a mid twellth-centur)' work, has a cer-

tain relationship to Paray-le-Monial and Clunl

r88. Saint-Gil lcs-du-Gard, priorl 'church, fhgade, r. r r7o; gablc much later

III, though the aisles are co\rered with quad-

rant vaults, and the apse has pretty radiating

decorative ribs in the ProvenEal manncr.

The plan of Saint-Gilles-du-Gard,1r a grcat

f,luniac priorl' ' and pilgrimage centrc, had aisles,

a transept, and an apse with radiating chapels

all features which are exceptional in Provence

[fi]-S].It is conjectured that the vast crypt, at

the cloister level, and exceptionally placed under

the nave, may represent a Cluniac church begun

{ter rc77 . In this Urban I I consecrated an altar

in ro96. A new star t was made c. r r16. Before

rr42, ^pp{ently, it was decided to transfbrm

the western part ofthis church (then cithcr un-

finished, or in ruins) into the existing cr1,'pt,

and build an ambitious church at the higher

level; an arrangement which occurs at the great

pilgrimage churches of Le Puv and Santiago de

Compostela. The east end of Saint-Gilles, now

ruinous, was probably wel l a long by rr j5, and

the west front with its splendid threc west

portals, under way by- rr42, was completed a

generation or more later, perhaps as latc as

rtg5. The rib r,aults of the crypt har-c already-

been mentioned; they now sustain the pave-

ment ofa rather piteous church a seventeenth-

centurJ reconstruct ion corcr ing onlr a part of

the area of the Cluniac church.

In passing we should note the f'aqade of a

spacious three-storey house ofthe twelfth cen-

tury, not far f rom the abbey'at Saint-Gi l lcsrr

I r9o] . I t is wel l bui l t ofashlar , and picturesquely '

sheltered by a broad overhanging roof. It re-

sembles, on a grander scale, those houses which

we have obserr.ed at Cluny, and it is hardly

more elaborate in its arrangements. There are

three large square-headed openings on the

Eround floor. The lintels, and two lines ofpaircd

window openings above, are composed within

strong horizontal mouldings, like great fiiezes

ing across the design. Plain segmental re-

ving archcs take the load offthe lintels ofthe

Etound storevi decorative arches arc cut into

' I ' I I E K I N G D O M O F A R L F , S , A N D B U R G U N D Y 2 5 3

rgo. Saint-Gil lcs-du-Gard, f 'aqade of housc,

tlvell ih centurt '

r 89. Saint-Gillcs-du-Gard, priorl' church, r. r r r6 7o, crvpt

lintcls of the paired windows above, and

effectively enrich the composition. This fagade

is one of the finest of its kind'

Because of similarity in the sculptures' men-

tion of Saint-Gilles inevitably calls to mind the

former cathedral of Saint-Trophime at Arlesra

frSr-31. Here, as in the old monaster les, one

Lorc n vain lbr evidence of the earl-v ecclesi-

astical importance of the site. Tenth-centur.v

constructions (c. 95o 7z) at the head o1'the nave

were largelv replaced b-Y a new sanctuary in the

fifteenth centur]', the old nave having mean-

rthile been rebuilt, and embellished (about

r r7o-8o) by the remarkable wcst portal. This is

set against a plain basilican fagade. The portal

seems half Roman because of its gablc, its classic

columnar forms, and the rather stumpy classic-

looking statuary. It contrasts strangcly with the

tall, austere interior of the church, though the

latter is carried out in the excellent ashlar of

T H E K T N G D O M O F A R L E S , A N D B U R G U N D y 2 ( (

Provence. Its division into nave and aisles is not

typical of the region, nor are the very tall pro-

portions and rather obstructive piers. The tran-

sept (partl-v of the tenth centurv) is of simple

design and relatively slight projection. J'he

arches at the crossing are relatively low, as is

usual, and the old apses were no higher.

Over the crossing at Arles rises one of the

frnest of the Provenqal Romanesque towers

Irgz] . Former ly the main apse of the church

stood below it, immediately to the east. 'fhe

tower has three principal stages, almost cubical

in shape, and has strong set-backs which give it

a r igorous prof i le. l ts decorat ion is unassuming

pilaster strips and arched corbel tables on the

two lower stages, Corinthian pilasters above,

with an ingenious pierced frieze and a corbelled

cornice. Good proportion gives it a grace which

is surprising in such a heavy design'

ry t ( leJ i )andrgz . - { . r les ,Sa in t -Troph ime, fagadc , r . r rTo l lo ,andc lo is tc rgar thandtowcr , la rgc l l ' twe l f thcentur l

$,d*

s

2 5 6 M T D D L E A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C E

Beside the church there is one of the finest

cloisters in France, though of late date (about

rr83, f in ished, perhaps, about r38g, in the

Gothic style) [r93]. The piers ancl spur but-

tresses ale very heavv, for the cloister walks are

covered by substantial stone-ribbed quadrant

vaulting. The designer beautifully lightened

the effect by giving the Romanesque spur but-

tresses the form of fluted Corinthian souare

r9.y. Arles, .Saint-Trophimc,Romanesque cloister walk, r. r l8j

columns, by adorning the piers with bold figureson the interior corners, and by placing reliefpanels on the adiacent wall surfaces. The Ro-manesque bays of the cloister open upon thegarth through deep and richly moulded roundarches. The supporting columns are in pairs,set on a plinth and carrying an elegant impost.Some of the shafts are round, others octagonal.

with bold, lively, and varied Corinthianes(lue

citpitals of great beauty.

Among other 6ne churches which descr,.,,

ment ion is rhe monastery church of I \1, ,111_

maiour. l5 I ts af f i l ia t ion wi th Cluny and i rs lo l r rtion on a Pilgrimage route account for rhespacious crypt with a central rotunda, an 11,_bulatory, and radiating chapels. Above the crr p1leve l i r i s an impos ing and beau t i l u l l _ v b r r i l r

appearance, bui l t ; rbout I 'zoo lSainte-Croix) .

ths group gains much f iom i ts lorelv and

remote situatlon'

Much better known is the cathedral o1'Avi-

gnon,16 also aisleless Itq+' tg5l It stands on an

lminenc" beside the heavy irregular mass of the

|ruge fourteenth-century Papal Palace. A hand-

some Renaissance stairway contributes to the

T H E K I N G D O ] \ T O F A R L F . S , A N D B U R G U N D Y

dignity of the church, which is, however. in_fringed by an unlbrtunate nineteenth-century

votive statue set like a pinnacle on the tower.17

The entrance porch of the cathedral is of

surprisingly Roman form and surprisingly late

date (about r2oo). The tower behind it is in

part rebuilt, but wirhout iniury to its essentially

Roman dignity. A date of r069 is given for the

r94. Avignon Cathedral, t. rr4o 6o and later (porch c. rzoo).

The pedestal and the statue on thc tower are a distressing modcrn addition

aisleless church of very pure and austere 1brm.

gracious, ample, and satisfyinglv classical. Ap-

parently the construction of this great church

was star ted as ear ly as r l17, but consecrat ion

did not take place unt i l r r53. A very s imple but

substantial and well-proportioned cloister ad,

ioins the church, and at a little distance there is

a f:rmous crucifbrm charrel of almost classicrl

\

258

"*==1:=--jt -

O l O 5 r I T

rg.5. Ar ig;non (iathedral,

r . r r4o 6o and later

church proper, but universally set aside because

of the mature character of the masonrl' and

sculpture. The nave is of ample proportions'

and handsomely covered by a pointed tunnel

vault rvith transverse arches. The lateral mould-

ings, arcading, and nook shafts which support

this vault and the ribs are particularly rich and

beautiful, being consonant with a date from

about rr4o to r16o. Lovely marble capitals,

carved with rare delicacy and beauty, still sur-

vive from a cloister of this period' An odd

feature of the building is an octagonal lantern

sustained on lonpJi tudinal 'encorbel led arches'

sprung between the vault arches at the head of

rty6. Asignor.t, Pont-Saint-B6n6zet, rt'7i 85 and latcr

the nave. 'Ihus

this cathedral is a tardv example

of the type with tlvo axial towcrs which wc

fbund in the filth century at the church of St

Martin ol"fours.

In passing, ref'erence should be made to thc

famous bridge, now broken, of Saint-Bcn6zct

I rq6] . This is the 'dancing'br idge named in the

delightful old song, and it has a picturesque

chapel which is largely contcmporary. The

arches ancl piers ofthe bridge are fine examplcs

of heavy block masonry construction' The date

is r r77 85 and later .

Orange Cathedralr8 is another o{'the caver-

nous, rather dark aisleless Provengal churches

I97. Saint-Pons-de-'lhomiires, priorl' church,interior. r r6a and later

Here, too, we find a pointed vault. Saint-Gabriel

has a smaller church which is similar.

Aix, le an ancient c i ty a lso, has lost i ts o ld

cathedral of roTo-rro3 (except an ais le, the

baptistery, and a cloister), in favour of a florid

Gothic edifice. The cloister is of the twelfth

century, and more ordinary in form than that

of Arles - being small, un,r'aulted, and provided

with piers only at the four corners; but it is gav

with paired columns, and richly carved.

Largely because of the sculptural relation-ships, Septimania or Gothia (the ancient Gallia

Narbonensis) is assigned to the Romanesqueschool ofLanguedoc. However, part ofit, Rous-

I H E K I h - C D O N I O F . 4 R L E S . A N D B U R G T J N D Y 2-59

sillon, is actually French Catalonia, which has a

character ofits own, though Provengai influence

extends into this region. Alet Cathedral, lor

example, has an apse which is polygonal ex-

teriorly, and decorated with Corinthianesque

corner columns in Provengal style.

Saint-Pons-de--lhomibres,r" important in the

history of sculpturc, has a fine church with a

typical Provengal interior of rr64 and later

aisleless, ample in proportion, and covered by

a monumental pointed tunnel vault with trans-

verse arches I r97] . Fort i f icat ions ofGothic date

but Romanesque character have le l i the church

with an interesting interior gallerv, and a machi-

a

2 6 0 M I D D L E A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C E

colated exterior gallery carried on a handsome

applied arcade. f'he building was probably

crenellated also.

The precipitous austerity ofthe cathedral of

Agde and the huge solidity of that of Mague-

lone:1 - both carried out in monumental ashlar

seem to have something Provengal about them.

Agde, a construction of the middle of the twelfth

century, was fortified in consequence of royal

permission granted in r r73.

Saint-Gui lhem-le-D6sert22 (e leventh and

twelfth centuries) is picturesquely set in a

mountain valley above Aniane. The church,

well known, is Lombardic, rather than Pro-

venEal or Languedocian. It is stoutly built and

completely r,aulted over a satisf'actory clere-

storl'. The sanctuary wider, later, and more

finished than the nar,e represents an intended

reconstruction which was planned to sweep

awa]' the earlier work completelv. Saint-Guil-

hem had a verv fine cloister, with carvings of

ProvenEal character. 'l 'his

cloister has been part-

ly re-erected at The Cloisters in New York,

where multitudes har,e learned lrom it the

charms of thesc old monastrc courts.

We mav now proceed to examine the char-

actcristics of typical Provenqal churches, noting

f i rst o l - a l l the scarc i r_r o l inrerest ing monasr ic

churches, and the abundancc of interesting

cathedral buildings - thc result of historical

processes in the region. The towns were achiev-

ing strong civic consciousncss and were making

important progress in self-government during

the twclfih centurv) when most of the mature

Provengal Romanesque buildings were built.

T1,les oJ'Plan

The southern French cathcdral of the twellth

century was not a highly evolvcd building, part-

ly becausc the southern dioceses are small. Con-

sequentl.v thc church plans are simple; ccrtain

ambitious buildings, such as the cathedral at

Arles, are aisled and triapsidal, likc the basilicas,

but these are unusual. Trefoil plans occur, bur

arc also unusuali the aisleless church with onc

apse at the head of it is preponderant. Apsc

exteriors are regularly polygonal, with columns

or pilasters decorating the angles; they are semi-

circular and arcaded on the interior. Nave walls

are strongly articulated by interior arcading and

exterior spur buttresses of substantial construc-

tion. There is sometimes a transept, with a towcr

over the crossing or, failing a transept, over

the bay immediately preceding the apse. This

bay and the apse are often lower than the rest 01

the nave. Porches are rare. but do occur (as in

the cathedral of Avignon, and the Lombardic

lateral portal of the cathedral of Embrun). 'I 'he

portals sometimes take classical forrn (Car-

pentras, Saint-Gabriel, Saint-Quinin at Vaison.

Saint-Restitutr3), but important examples are

embrasured and enriched by tympanum sculp-

ture and other reliefs, as well as by columns and

statuar),' set on plinths which project in front

of the faqades (Arles, Saint-Gilles; Sainte-

Marthe at Tarascon has a similar portal with

architectural embellishment onlv).

D e t ai ls of S uper str uc I ur e

If one remembers that the buildings which we

have been considcring are contemporar.v with

the Earlv Gothic constructions at Chartres

Cathedral ( r r35-8o) and Par is Cathedral ( the

sanctuary arm in i ts or ig inal form, 1163 77)the]-appear conservat ive. But they show high

competence on the part of the architects, buil-

ders, and decorators, whose designs, strongh

impregnated with the provincial Roman tradi-

tions of the region, have a convincing soliditt',

generous proportions, and (as a rule) a finc

sense of 'ample inter ior space.

Fine block masonrv in limestone, resembling

Roman work, was used in the better construc-

tions, and it gives them great dignitv. N{arblc

was used lbr manl- decorative carvings. Sculp-

tured figures and accessory elements strongll'

recall Roman provincial works, though the com-

oosi t ions are medie\al . Thc cart ing can be

h.ruy rnd dul l . but in the f inest cxamples the

design is lively and the chiselling admirable'

'fhe naaes of Provengal churches are covered

by substantial, usually pointed, tunnel vaults

with ffansverse arches. The aisles are divided

by arches and covered with quadrant vaulting

(as at Arles) or ramping parallel tunnel vaulting

(as at the cathedral of Vaison). The aisles were

kept narrow, and the nave vaulting relatively

low, supported on interior arcading and pro-

vided with stout spur buttresses. Since large

windows were not needed' clerestories could be

r98. Les Saintes-\'Iaries-de-la-Iler, lbrtilied church,

twelfth centur.v

. I ' I I T , K I N G D O M O T A R I , F , S , A N D B U R G U N D Y z6r

bui l t under the nave r ,aul t ing wi thout danger.

Because of the mild climate of the rcgion, it is

possible to pave the extrados of masonry vault-

ing, forming a roofterrace, and thus to dispense

with an exterior roof. But ordinarily thcre is a

sheltering roof covered with round tile in the

Roman manner. Bells are very often hung not

in towers, but in gabled walls pierced with

arches (wall belfries, belfry walls, or bell-cotes).

C//11.f occur in churches which attractcd a

pilgrimage.

At Les-Saintes-Mar ies-de- la-Merr+ [ Ig8l

there is a two-store-v church of pilgrimage, pro-

vided with a cr].pt, which makes a third level.

-L-

262 N I IDDLE AND SOUTHERN FRANCE

A fourth was created by paving the upper vault;

surrounded by battlements, this terrace made

the building a citadel and fortress, which is not

really unusual in Provence. The turret over the

sanctuary is surmounted by a bellry wall ofbold

outline. More unusual are the Italianate tlvers

of Puissalicon (lree-standing), Uzis (round, and

pierced by openings with paired arches under

an enclosing arch) and Cruas2s (about ro98; an

amusing round lantern on a rounded crossing

tower) .

Returning to the interiors, we find that cruci-

form piers are the usual supports or wall

arcading in aisleless buildings. Deep interior

reresse.s with transverse vaults occur in the aisle-

less churches (Cavaillon); pier forms (Le Thor),

and columnar shafts are also used in this situ-

ation. The piers usually have dosserets' and

often a smal l column replaces rhe angular do.-seret ar the top of the pier (Digne. Ar ignonr, . .

Some examples are very e leganr indecd, x l ,1sophist icated, the warm classical teel ing hein"

made piquant bv a touch of medieia l inrrg inr"_

tion. The same is true of the mouldings.

A Roman architect visiting Provence in Ro_manesque times would have seen much which

would have pleased his lancy by its rngagine

novelty in exploiting Late Classic lbrmsl he

would have seen little or nothing which he could

not have understood or admired. Even the

towers have a Roman matter-of-f'actness about

them; the roofs maintain the flat slope of'inli-

quity and are covered with tile; lorcll i.ine-

-vards, orchards, and pines embowcr thc mrrnu-

ments, and enchanting atmospheric cflects

caress them as in ancient t imes.

p T E R r 4

U I T A N I A , W I ' T F I B O R D E R I N G A R E A S O N T H E L O I R E

D T H E M E D I ' I ' E R R A N E A N

thcVisigoths, who could not hold it with Spain'

lcft it open to Frankish conquest While the

Frrnks were able to drive out the Moors, they

were unable to protect the area from the Vikings,

who inflicted terrible damage Assimilated to

Frrnce, its western part passed to the English

by the historical accident of a marriage, and

hrd to be reconqueredl a promising derelop-

oent of independencc in thc south was suffo-

cated by French conquest in the Albigensian

Wu.The great rivers have kept it accessible to

iders, and to trade. even from the Orient. The

Pyrenees have not prevented continuing con-

trcts with Spain. There harc bccn ccntres of

mtcl lectual, spir i tual, and art ist ic l i le ar Tours,Poitiers, Fleurv (or Sainr-Benoit-sur-Loire),Limoges, Clermont, and Toulouse, but therenever vtas one commanding centre lor all Aqui-tania. The related territory is made up of areaswhich are r ichly varied iniopographl, cl imate,oui lding

*",.r i . Ir . and ethnic r lpes - al l ol 'th;m full of characrer and intere.sr' On accountot easy communication. the archirectural areas

interpenetrate one another' with the result that

the grouping of their monuments in lo con-

venient regional schools has caused art histo-

ri:rns much Puzzlement.-I'he

clearest of the suggested classifications

sets oll Languedoc, the Limousin, and Velay

as one architectural school, Auvcrg;ne as an-

other, and subdivides into'groups' the archi-

teclure ol the rasl and var ied dist r ic t remaining

in the West of France, stretching from the

south-west to southern Brittany'r

Three archi tectural 'groups' are recognized

in the school ot'the West of France, in the fol-

lowing regions: ( r ) The Loire area, to which

the river itselfgives a certain unity; it consists

of south Br i t tany. Touraine. Sologne' Or l6anais '

Berry, and Bourbonnais; (z) Poitou, which with

Anjou. Saintonge' and the south-west {brms a

more compact architectural group; (3) P6rigord

and the - \ngoumois Thc argumenr for con-

sidering the three groups as onc !lreater school

is interesting. It rests on the fact that there is a

quite unusually high proportion of aisleless

.hur"he, - large and small, important and mo-

desr, ear l r ancl late in the area: some 65o to

7oo aisleless to about r oo with aisles ; moreover'

aisled churches olten have a special t1'pc of rvide

nave, and the others can most often, though

not alwa1.s, be ascribecl to outside influcnce''

In the inclusive greater school of the Loire

and the \ \ 'est of France (here was a search fbr

monumental and fireproof solutions through

the development of this aisleless type' as re-

sources and requirements both increased durtng

the later c leventh century rnd in the coursc ol

the trvellth.

2 6 4 ' M I D D L E A N D S O U T H E R N F ' R A N C F ,

These works may fairly be considered as'variations on an architectural theme'. The ori-

gin ofthe theme is perhaps to be sought in large

Roman wooden-roofed open halls like the

Temple of Augustus in Rome and the Basilica

in -I'rier,

which had r,ery impressir,e unob-

structed interior space.

The theme of the region is thus to be recog-

nized in those edifices which have a very wide

wooden-roofed barn-like nave without aisles,

as often in Berry; or with aisles, as at Saint-

Hilaire, Poitiers, St Fulbert's Chartres, and the

old cathedral of Bourges. It is to be recognized

in those churches which have a wide tunnel-

vaulted nave, plain or with transverse arches;

and in those which by the use of parallel tunnel

vaults cover an ample nave with only slender

and unobstructive supports, as in Poitou. The

theme is equally ro be recognized in the build-

ings which cover an open nave with a succession

of domes, in P6rigord and near bv, and those

with domed-up rib vaults, which were intro-

duced about r r45 in Aniou to replace domed

construction.

In order to make the development clear, we

refer here to certain works in the region which

underlie the mature Romanesque of the area.

T T I E W E S ' I ' O F F R A N C E

The Loire Group

This area was really'the heir ofthe active archi-

tectural school of Carolingian Neustria. f'he

Norman raids, however, devastated northern

Neustria. During the period of recovery after

the Norman settlement (grr), Burgundian and

Lombard ecclesiastics greatly influenced Nor-

man churchmanship and architecture. This,

and the conquest ofEngland, gave a strong and

distinct orientation to the Norman school ofRomanesque architecture, which might other-wise have been more like that of the southernpart of Carolingian Neustrra.

The Loire area, carrying on old Neustrjnl

traditions, was active in architecture; it .on-t inued to be a source ofarchi tcctural id" , r , rnagood mason no rk ; i r t r ansm i t t cd man r 1n111 ,1ences to the Norman region. and i t borr . r ,$e.r

espec ia l l l i n t he wes t . Lack ing un ; t ' , , . i r ; . , , , i _sidered a weak sc hool dtringthe mature Rorlan_

esque period paradoxically; because thc y,^reatbuildings, though heterogeneous, e\cmplifv

such important architectural elements.

Odo of'Clunv seems to rei'er to the rvitie_nare'theme

church' of the region in a dilicult tcrt. asermon del ivered about go8 in the church of 'g1Martin at 1'ours, referring to the building as itwas befbre go3 (and, probably, befbre ,!;r):'The

previous builders wished it to be arranged

with arcaded passages, because the strucrure.

though very wide, with the crowds pressing is

habi tual lv so constr ic ted that thev o\ .cr turn the

choir benches and the little gates, in spitc of'

themselves.'3 This text, sometimes quotctl as

proof of an earlv ambulatorJ. at St \larrin,

merely indicates that aisles were requirccl ro

augment this wide-naved church becausc of

exceptional crowds.a'Ihe

beautiful stone-work ofthe earlv pcriod

of building in the Loire country conrinued t0

be used and improved. Walls are ordinarilr of

fine white or buff limestone, with ashlar blocks

neatlv cut to a rather stubbv shape and rvcll l;rid

up with excellent mortar; thel-' are articuleted

bv shal low but t resses, and occasionalh 'shorv

panels of ' rougher stones ( l ike those of thc 6l l inF

or hearting of the wall) which, with rheir un-

even contours and wide joints, enliven thc sur-

f'ace. Also, wall areas ofcarefullv shaped ficing-

stones in a pattern, and clecorative panel mould-

ings occur frequently.5' l he

impo r tan t l i t t l e t hu rch o l sa i n t - ( r e r r t -

roux, probably bui l t af ier g-5o l r ( lq l , sh() \1s

excellent though restored examples ofplain rntr

pa t t e rned wa l l -wo rk . I t i s mo re impo r tan t . h { r $ -

e re r , f b r i t s p l an . o r i g i na l l y a no rab l c e ramp l . " rthe wide-naved theme (subsequenth ' d i r ided

t99. Saint-G6n6roux, church, r. 95o

2oo. Autrdche, church. tenth centurt.

2 6 6 M I D D L , E A N D S O U T I I E R N F R A N C E

into three). A Carolingian fl-v-ing screen still

divides the nave from the transept, which for-

merly had dwarf arms extendinp; beyond the

nave wall line. The sanctuaries are in 6chelon.

The small parish church at Autreche [2oo] is

a good example ofthe wooden-ro<lfed nave-and-

chancel type of structure which must have been

verl- widely built on a modest scale in the tenth

century'. The wall is stayed on the exterior by

semi-cylindrical buttresses ofa type which later

becomes lamiliar on the tall Norman interiors.

At Crrvant the church (perhaps dating fiom

the tenth century) has unusuallv good pat-

terned wall-work.

Almost as imposing as St X'Iartin of Tours,

the cathedral ( rorz f f . ) and the church ofSaint-

Aignan (r . ror8 f1.) at Or l6ans represented the

grandeur of the early school on the rniddle

course of the river. Both buildings were large

in scale, basilican in arrangement, and provided

with apse, ambulatory, and radiating chapels.

zor. Saint-Bcnoit-sur-Loire, ahbev church,r. r o.3o twclfth ccntury.

Notc f lv ing but t resses ofapse (p.49r. Notc 47)

A Q U I T A N I A . W I T H I } O R D E R I N G A R F , A S 26i

The clypt of Saint-Aignan, with this layout, is

still in existence. According to an eleventh-

centurl' text6 it was copied from that o[ Clcr-

mont-Ferrand (9,16), but its fbrms are more

maturc.

The old abbey of Fleury, or Saint-Benoir-

sur-Loire (also on the middle course of the

river, near Germigny-des-Pres), erected a re-

markable church of the mature style in the

course ofa century fo l lowing the ro6os [zor-4] .

It exemplifies the ideas ofthe school better than

any other building, and embodies an augusr

historv. In 673, dur ing the desolat ion of Montc-

cassino (58r 7r4) , the bonesof 'St Benedict wel t

brouglrt to Fleury, where the1, are still venerated.

(It seems that in 749, at the request of Popc

Zachar.v and Pepin the Short on behalf ot

Montecassino, a small parcel was returned.) \

p i lgr image to 'Saint-Benoi t -sur-Loire ' derel -

oped. Gaucelin (illegitimate son of Hugh Capet)

became abbot in roo4. He and :r notrble abber

school gave lustre to the house; its influencr

extended to E,ngland and Spain. The mcdioal

abbel' buildings have long since becn replacecl.

but, except for the mutilation of its westcrn

tower, thc church still exists in a very perfcct

state. Its composition begins with the mutilated

tower-porch iust mentioncd, n'hich lost its

upper stage as punishment to the monks for rc-

sisting their first commendatorv abbot ( r 525 7 ).

The nr iddle stage surv ives as a disused Chapel

of St NI ichael , and the open gr t )und stage servcs,

as it always has, to sheltcr the main entrancc

door of the church. This, ofcourse, is a develop-

ment of the fortificd entrance-$av-and-chapel

tower which we have followcd all the way lrorrr

the church of 'St Mart in at Tours, bui l t near thc

samc r i rer in $6 -12. The example at Saint-

Benoi t -sur-Loire is admirablv substant ia l , vaul-

ted in nine compartments over lbur interior sup-

ports on each level, with elaborate sculpturecl

capi ta ls.

The nave beyond is of Romanesque con-

struct ion wi th a pair of groin-vaul ted ais les. I t

zoz and zo3 ( below ) . Sint-Benoit-sur-Loire'

abbey church, c Io8o-trvelfth centurv

Plan shows Renaissance choir platftrrm, nou remored

was perhaps wooden-roofed before being cover-

ed by the existing Gothic vault. Following the

nave is a Romanesque transept with a tall cross-

ing tower (which makes it, like St Martin, a

church with two axial towers); following this

there is a handsome long sanctuary ba1' flanked

,,$..,,{p:-5:,{-r.

i

by a pair of aisles, all tunnel-vaulted above two

files of columns. Then. with its chord on the east

line ofa dwarftransept marked by two engaging

dwarf towers, comes a spacious apse with am-

bulatory and two radiat ingchapels ( thc number

being even, as i t $ 'ould be in Auvcrgne). The

N .eart1

I r r rH

Io f / l cdnf ur l i ffi

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$,

w1A

apse pavement is raised above a spacirlus crvpt

which has three rv indows (reopened) looking

91 the sanctuarv bar'.

The building has a clerestory throughout.

Deformations show that this has put a strain on

the walls of the apse end. The tower-porch mav

represent the tamous tower which Abbot

Gaucel in began to erect about rozo. I l 'so, i t has

surely been rebui l t ; the r ichcr carv inpls of- thc

ground storel'seem to belong to a ltter date

the late eleventh centurv, perhaps. Figured

capitals in the upper stage indicate a date of'

about roTo 8o. Doubtless the tower resembled

fine examples at Ebreuil [zo5], Germignl'-

I'Exempt, and in the Poitevin arca Lesterps,

before i t was mut i lated. ; The sanctuan' ( i ts

pavement now lowered to thc old lerel) rc-

zo5. Ebreuil, church, tower and porch,

twelfth centurr'

A Q t l T \ N l A , W I T H B O R D L R I N G { R } . q S 2 0 9

sembles the chevet of ' the church of Saint-

Genou, rvhich is a lso long, tunnel- l ike, wel l

l ighted, and columnar. Both hare engaging

blind arcading, with balustcr columns, as a

dccorative frieze abovc thc main arcadc.t

Saint-Bcnoit-sur-Loire as we know it bcgan

to comc into being about ro7r. I t suf fered l rom

f i re in rogi . but there was a dedicat ion in r ro8

rvhic i r must have seen rhc csscnt ia l parts of the

building complete, though construction con-

t inucd unt i l about r r1o.

On the borders of Burgundv, and showing

clear Burgundian influencc in thc beautiful

sculptured portal, Saint-Benoit's priorl. ol'

Pcrrecr'-les-Forgcs has a fine tlvelfih-centurv

tower-porch in the st1 ' le of the Loirc rcgion.

giv ing cntrance to a ty 'p ical church of 'archaic

form, c lated in the eleventh.century. This

church is as good an example of the interpene-

tration ofLigerine and Cluniac influences as the

more famous examples, La (,haritd-sur-I-oirei

and Sa in t -E t i cnne , Ne te r s . The c r r r ed po r t a l

is a berrutiful example, cl:rted about r r o-5.

Among the (,luniac priories, the church of

Bourbon-Lancv p;ives a good idea of Cluny II

as interpreted in thc Loirc region.

At La (-har i t6-sur-Loire ' ' thc or ig inal bui ld-

ing, begr.rn in ro5g or short l ! a l ier , had an apse

cchclon. ' l 'he

chevet rv ls enlarplcd when the

bui ld ing was reconstructed ( fb l lowing thc dcdi-

cat ion of r roT) to rcsemble Clunl ' ' I I I . The

sanctuary is dcep, with several ba-vs, bcyoncl

which it has a fine apsc and an ambulatorv with

f ivc radiat ing chapels, somewhir t more logical ly

planned th i rn thosc at ( . lunv. There is much

grcater emphasis than rr t C, lunv on the columns

(rathcr stout) which sustain thc apse wal l , and

the apse i tsel f reaches the hcight of the sanctuar l

vaul t . In these dcviat ions l rom Clunv, the archi-

tect of La Char i t6, doubt less t ra incd in the

Loire region, fb l lowed local custom.'I'hc

great north-$'est ton'cr at La (,harir[

I r 661 u as perhaps bcgun about r r jo and f in ishcd

late in thc centurv. Whi lc the design does not

po . , ' v

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iqr M J ' ia ; :w'::t,:.

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zo4. Saint-Benoit-sur-Loire, abbey church, r. rol.io twclfth centurr

M I D D I , E A N D S O U T H I R N F R A N C E

<lepart greatlv from Burgundian models, it has

a type of arcading which was used with great

effectivencss in the Loire country' and never

with nobler, richer, or more imposing effect than

here. The tower is seen from great distances in

sweeping views over thc river, lvhich makes a

wondcrful big bow ncar La Charit6.

Chi tcaumei l lantr" has a Bencdict ine church

with r arious f-eatures which parallel those of La

Charit!. It is a fine example on a smaller scale,

and has not undergone the disasters which have

injured the greatcr building.

We easily recognizc the same activity and

energetic character in the designs for Saint-

Et icnne, Neversl l ( ro68 97) [ r45, I46] . As

noted, th is was an important Cluniac pr iory;

its architectural influence spread to smaller

houses which it possessed in the region. The

architect drew upon Burgundian and Pilgrim-

age themes, and in his nave. where he intro-

duced a clerestory under the tunnel vault' he

surpassed his models. The smal ler churches

which abound in the region, Cluniac or not ,

have the same crisp air. Here the aisleless chur-

ches *'ith projecting transepts and f'airlv tall

crossing toivcrs often make similar Burgundian

buildings seem rather placid by' comparison.li' I 'he

open-naved, rvooden-roofed' theme

church' of western France, earlv suggestecl at

Saint-G6n6rour Irgq], was magnificentl]' re'

presented on a g;rand scale about Ioo5 .1o in

the important church of Beaul ieu- les-Loches

(near the Loire Rivcr ; later remade as a Vaul ted

hal l church, now part ly rebui l t , part lv ru ined).

A later and t -vpical example, extant near

Bourges, is the church of Les Aix d 'Angi l lonl r

(tweltih century'). A contemporarv example

betwecn Clunv ancl Lyon, almost at the south-

eastern extrcmity' of the school of'the Loire, is

the church of Beaujeu. I I

A noteworthv aislelcss church is Slint-Ours

at Lochesls [206] , interest ing fbr i ts two Roman-

esque axial towers, but er,en more so lbr the two

hollow octagonal spires in ashlar masonry,

zo6 ( hLlon ). Lochcs, Saint-Ours, before t I6ll

2o7 ( ot'posit( ). Ncuvl-Saint-S6pulcre, church

lbundcd ro4z

dated before r I68, which cover its nave. There

is an obvious connexion here with the wide nar cs

of Pdrigord and near by, unobstructed, aud

covered with domes, which we shall consiclcr

presently. Meanwhile we take up other erccp-

t ional bui ld ings.

{ r 'crr e legant a is led rwcl t ih-cenlur} chtrr ' ( h

wi th the ais les pract ical l l 'as h igh as the nate

ex i s t s a t Sa in t -Rd r e r i en . r " Th i s was a C lun i r r c

pr iorr ' . and the church has pointed arch : l rJ

vaul l construct ion r . rh ich looks Cluniac, but t l rc

basic inspirat ion comes l iom the 5qhs6l r '1 '

Poi tou, where tunnel-r 'aul ted hal l churcht '

abound. Saint-Rdv6r ien hassome groin taul t i r r ' :

a r t he eas t end (and necessa r i l y i n t hc ambu l ' t -

tory) along with semi-domes oYer the apse lntl

radiat ing chapels as is usual everywhere. 1 'hc

church is beautifully lighted and elegantly opcn

1 'he g race tu l co l umns o l ' t he apse a re echoeJ i "

the median columns of a double ba-v'' in the nave,

which otherwise has slender piers as supports

of pointed tunnel vaulting lvith transversc

arches.

The rotunda derelops in the Loirc region

with Carolingian precedent; for example, at

Ferridres-en-Gitinais there are in the parish

church traces ol an octagon (inspired fiom that

of Aachen) which was built fbr Alcuin's old

monastery.

Saint-B6nigne at Di ion [ ro8, roql and the

Dome of the Rock in -lerusalem inspired thc

boldest of the rotundas in the Loirc region

that built in the early-twelfth centurv fol the

Power l u l abbe r o l ( . ha r rou r . r and nou a r u i n

The centra l * . l l of ,h. rotunda surv ives as an

openwork tower. u i th a cr \pt at i ts base' lbrm-

ing a platform on which, as in a 'femplars'

Church, the principal altar wrrs set. In addition

A Q U I T A N I A , w l T H B o R D E R t N G A R L A S 2 7 I

there was an aisled sanctuar]' with ambulatory

and radiat ing chapels; there was also a long

navc nith I Gothic faqade' and rccent excava-

t ions have uncovered remains of a t ransept '

'l 'he lbur arms of thr; church were pushed out'

so to speak, l rom the centra l wel l bv the two

annular aislcs. 'l 'his

ensemble must have pro-

t iucecl an inte lcst ing btr t rather r iotous archi-

tectur'rl ellect.

f 'he church of Neuvv-Saint-Sipulcrel 3

[zo7]

possesses a s impler rotunda, intcnded to bc ar l

instur in the l ikencss of ' thc Holv Scpulchre '

\cur1-Saint-Sdpulcrc or ig inated in a fbund-

ation of ro.1z. ruhen the Holv Sepulchre was tn

ru i ns . Houc rc r , t hc bu i l d i ng was known

through manuscr ipts and pi lgr ims' Construc-

t ion was begun in Io45 or r0:+6 when Constan-

t inc Nlonomachos was rebui ld ing the or ig inat

rotuncla (1o45-8). ' fhe

cxist ing navo at \eu\ 'y '

2 7 2 | ' / I I D D L E A N D S O t T l H L R N F R A \ t ' E

is of the eleventh century, and the rotunda may

be in large part. It was fbrmerll encircled b-v

residences, stout lbrtifications, and a moaf.r"

Nlention ofthesc rotundas offers the occrrsion

lbr rn excursion to Brittanv; for the only notable

Romanesque building in that region is Sainte-

Croir at Quimper ld,r" dated r t87 but restored

af ter a col lapsc in 1862. I t is re lated to both

Charroux and Neurv-Saint-56pulcre. Thc nu-

c leus of the bui ld ing is a r aul tcd square bay oi '

heavv construction. surrounded bv a ponderous

round ais le, and made cruci(brm b1' fbur vaul ted

extensions. It is rather rough and provincial in

exccut ion.

That Brcton Romanesque churches should

have connexions with the p;roup of the Loire is

understanclable when wc remembcr that Tours

was the Breton ccclesiastical mefropolis, and

tha t commcrce and o thc r commun i c r t i ons ue re

easier bv the waters south of thc peninsula than

lrom NormandJ'or over land. Onh'Rennes and

its rcgion had closc connexions with Normand-v.

Limestone was actual lv imported l rom the

Charente fbr bui ld ing; cngineers ancl archi tects

lb l loued the same route. - I 'he

church ol 'Saint-

Sauveur at Dinan has Poi tevin character , and

wc 6nd the ambul l torv usual lv a wi tness to

inflr.rencc fiom '-l'ouraine

at Loctudl , at

Lant l6renncc, and at Saint-Gi ldrrs-dc-Rhuis,

where Pierre Abelard was abbot, and had an

insurrection among,^. thc monks on his hands in

r r . 38 .' l

he o l d ca t hed ra l s i n t he g r ca t c r c i t i e s u e re

in many cases Romrnesquc, but thev have been

replaced; no f i rs t - ratc Romanesquc monuments

rem:r in in the region.

Before lear ing thc group of thc Loire Ibr Poi tou,

it \\' i l l be wcll to look at sc\ eral fine monuments

of mi l i tarv archi tccture which have conncxions

with both regions. ' I 'hc nerv-bui l t for t i f icat ions

of the ear lv medicval per iod in western Europe

were tvpical lv in rvood. F-ulk Ncrra 's masonrv

donjon at Langeais (r. r ooo) inaugurates a grear

series in stone irnd a long period ofhieh achier t-

ment by the French engineers.

Ch inon on rheV ienneha ras t rongs i t ua t i o r r ,

and i t was important even in Cel t ic t imes.

Largelv because ofits strength as a fortress, thc

historv of Chinon is studded with grert namcs

Clor,is; Geoffroy' \{artcl of Aniou; Henrl ll

Plantagenct and Richard Caur de Lion of'E,ng-

land; Char les VI I of 'France and Joan of Alc;

Rabelais; Richel ieu. In the 'Chi teau

du Mi l icLr '

is the s i te of the Roman castrum and the wart l

(unusual ly long for i ts width) of the ear ly medi-

cval fortress. 'l 'he

tweltth-century Grand Logis

or ro1, l l dwel l ing where Henry ' I I Plantagenet

died in r r89 i rnd wherc in r4z9 Char les VI I

reccived Joan of Arc, is rebui l t , and a ru in.

Other old towcrs and walls have also been much

rebui l t and augmentcd; wi th htcr addi t ions thc

chiteau is a most imposing arral' of militalr

works.

A much bet ter idea of mi l i tarv archi tecturr

in the Romanesque period is given by the splen-

did torver at Beaugency, and the two to\ lcr \

in the donjon at Lochcsrr fzo8l . Beaugencr r .

roughlv square; the larger tower at Lochcs

measures about eightv by forty-{ivc feet, tuie.

the dimensions of the smal ler . When f i rs t bui l t

a l l of ' them meirsured about r3o lce t in heighr.' l 'hei r

sheer prccip i tous wal ls are in excel lcnt

ash la r w i t h s l i gh r l r p ro i ec t i ng bu t t r esses n i l '

aster st r ips at Beaugenc-\ , and semi-cvl int let '

at Loches. In both cases the cxter iors arc str ic t l \

busincss- l iLe, rv i th no scrrch tb l the gr : rce r l h i . l r

one usual ly ' perceivcs in a nronument of ' the

Loire region.- I 'he

plan of the towcrs t t , t t . utu, , t . ,na , , " '

the ags: i t merely cal led lbr s imple open roonl

one above another, wi th f loors of t imbcr, sntr t l l

windorvs, and f i replaces. The example at Be rrLr-

g e n c r . d a t c d i n t h e c l e r c n t h c e n l u n , i ' t l t '

mos t adm i r c r l o l i t s t r pc i n l i r ancc . . l t I . oe l r e '

t he Romancsquc cons l r ue t i on o f t he e l c re t l t l r

and t ue l t t h cen t t t r i es i s nou e i r d l ( ' d b r r r t l r ' t

zo8. Loches, donjon, r. rroo

works which, though verl' simple, conf-ess their

late date by significant dctails such as the

almond-shlped pl i rn of thc proiect ing towers.

The severer character of earlier medieval work

is clearly shown b1' comparing the rounded

towers of Loches with the lrowning semi-

circular towers of the chiteau at Angers, built

after r r8o, and indecd largcly in the thirteenth

century by Philippe-Auguste and Louis IX.

The upper parts of the torvers ancl certain out-

lying works har,e been destroyed, so that the

effect is rather ofa Rornancsque than a Gothic

chiteau. It should be noted, holrever, that there

is no such thing as a school of the Loire in

military architecture; that was inter-regionallike the wars which brought it into being, and

It was lor the most part the work of engineers.

From the rcport wc havc made, i t is obviousthat the architcctural group of the I-oire is noteasily summarized.

'l 'here was no grcat unl-

A Q U I T A N I A , W I T H B O R D E R I N G A R D A S 2 7 3

fying institution, such as the Burgundian school

had, to bring it to a focus. Instead, old motit's

flowed up and down the river, and outside

motifs flowed into the valley from the water-

shed. Another simile might be that of a tree

with grafted branches of various sorts. One sap

makes them all live ; the sap, in the group of the

Loire, is the lively inheritance of Carolingian

ideas and Neustrian tradition.

The Arc hitect ur nl Grou p oJ' Poit ou,

nith ,4njou, Saintonga, and the South-West

The greatest historical, spiritual, and intellec-

tual centre of this region the western part ol'

Carolingian Aquitania was Poitiers. It was an

important citv under the Romans. Resounding

military victories were won near by in early

medieval times, none more important than that

of Charles Nlartel over the Saracens in 732.'I'here

was a brilliant court at Poitiers in the

Romanesque period. The eminence of the

church of Poitiers goes back to its Early Chris-

tian bishop, Hilary, whose shrine has been a

place ol'pilgrimage throughout succeeding cen-

turies. The baptistery of Poitiers is one of the

oldest bui ld ings o{ ' i ts k ind.

One of the main routes of the Way ol 'StJames

(Paris Orl6ans Bordeaux) passed through Poi-

tiers, and unquestionably contributed to the

spread of Poitevin architectural motif's to the

south-west of France and to northern Spain.

Onlv at Santiago de Compostela were the Span-

iards able to build in the grandest French Ro-

manesque st.vle; elsewhere they olten built in

simpler forms which can be traced back to

Poi tou and i ts region.

Excellent limestonc is available in the area

of thc Poi tevin school ; i t is whi te, weather ing

pleasantly to bufI.s and warm greys. The stone-

cutting and mason-work are excellent, but the

dcsigners kept to earlv solutions of vaulting and

compositional problems in the twelfth century'

Poitevin dcsigners werc seeking and xchisvrng

A e U t T A N I A ' w l T H B O R D E R I N G A R E A S 2 7 5

2 ' 1 1 ' M T D D L t A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C E

magnificent Romanesque decorative effects at

thc time when thc practical ground-work of

Gothic architecture was being laid in Burgundy

and the i1.-d.-F.attc".

Poitou was early concerned rvith effects o1'

clear interior space, as the old nar,e of Saint-

Hi la i re in Poi t iers indicates. By the middle of

the eleventh centurv forward-looking designers

began to take an interest in vaul t ing problems.

The lbrmer abbey' church of Lesterps2r pre-

sents an ear ly example of the solut ion of the

problem ofthe vaulted church of basilican plan

which rvas widelv adoptcd in Poitou. If the

clerestorv be given up and it mav be in this

region the nave supports miry be more slender,

and consequentll' less obstructive. With the

aisles approaching the nare in height, the gen-

eral efl'ect of such a building is that of an ample

hall with generous sp:rce in it, fustity'ing the

usual name'hal l church' . Such inter iors are less

dramatic and less brilliantly lighted than the

typical basilica, but have a space-beauty oftheir

own. At Lesterps [zo9] the present nave just

east of the tower porch already mentioned rep-

resents a church of ' ro3z which w:rs damaged b-v

fire about r o4o and continued very handsomely,

in line austere forms with noble and simple

geometry, as a hall church, covered by semi-

circular tunnel vaulting with transverse archcs.' l 'h is

work was dedicated in Io7o.'I'he

wide wooden-roofed nave of Ileaulieu-

les-Loches was divided by' two files ol'piers and

corered by three paral le l tunnel vaul ts about

ro8o, and the church thus becamc a hal l

church. l

Thus before the twelfih century began, there

was a satistactorl' t1''pe of Poitevin church with

the western arm covered b-v three parallel tunnel

vaul ts. Of these the middle one is regular ly

somewhat h igher and wider than the others.'I'his

nave is (except for end windows) depen-

dent on openings placed high in the aisles for

its light. The scheme is an old one which rvas

used by the Romans; it was earll' adopted for

zorl. Lcstcrps, abbel church, dcdicated IoTo

crr ,pts, and appears abore ground in Catalan

churches befbre the ]'ear rooo. In Poitou supcr-

structures ol ' th is tvpe achieved a qui te ner

sense of ample scale and openness, rv i th r ich

dccoration on the faqades, but their plans rc-

mained re lat ivel l ' s imple in most cases.

. \ s t hc t \ 4e l f t h cen tu r \ ad ranccd , po in te t l

archcs and 't':rults took the placc of scmicircular

ones, u i th goo. l c l lect . i t \ \ e mx\ ree in the t . r l l

tunnel vault with transverse arches at Chau-

vignv (begun af ier r too). :5 To be sure the

pointed nave has i ts most dramat ic and brerr th-

taking expression when the vault is seen floating

abo re a poo l o l l i gh t f r om a c l e r cs ton , bu t i t i '

t rue that a shadorved nave Vaul t , such as uc

see in th is Poi tevin type of church, impar ls t t t

a re l ig ious bui ld ing a sense of gent le shel ter ing

mvsterv. Statical problems are ver\r much sim-

olified by the hall church arrangement' Slend(r

Ivf indr ical p iers ' or grouped piers wi th appl i tJ

.otu1nnt. l ike st i l ts can carrs the 'crushin- '

weight ofthe high vault, since the lateral laul:s

are perfectly placed to absorb thrust' InlvarJ

thrust from the aisle vaults partly neutraliz's

the thrust ofthe high vaults' Transverse arch(s

in the vaul ts st rengthen them; responds in t lc

aisle walls and stout spur buttresses easily car:r

the thrusts to the ground. Sometimes there:s

arcading between the open buttresses on tre

flanks of a building. Such arcading makes for 't

stiffer wall over the window openings, and sul'-

Dorts the crenellations ifthe building is fortifieJ'

The roofing is carried over nave and aisles t'-

gether in a vast two-sloped turtle-back - a sin-

ple form which obviates much trouble in mair-

tenance.

This type of church spread lar and rvide cn

its own merits.

A much admired example of the Poitei:n

style stands handsomelv at Saint-Savin-su:-

Gartempe [zrol. The church, though norv par'-

chia l , was bui l t by a powerfu l abbev; i t is v is i t 'e

f rom considerabl e d istances because a r er l s lc : -

der and beautiful Gothic spire carries the we't

f r on t t oa g rea the igh t 3 r z fee t . The lo r l e rpa : t

of th is construct ion is a Romancsque axia l er-

trance tower which goes back, at least, to rob:.

Beyond are the nate. l ransept wi th crossirS

tower, apse, ambulatory, and radiating chapeir.

According to the most recent studies. t ie

oldest parrs of the church proper (apse, amb--

latory, radiating chapels and transept, at tle

east) are to be dated about ro6o 75. Perhals

there was originalll- an open wooden-roolid

nave, extended about Io75 85 by the constru.-

tion ofthe western bays ofthe existing nave, brt

demolished about ro95 to make wal'' fbr the s:r

existing eastern bays' rvhich were hnished fr

r I r5. This nave, more generous in d imensicn

than the chevet , has wide, h igh, groin-raul t rJ

aisles; the central nave is tunnel-raulted' wi:ir

the three western bays, only, carried by group.J

216. S1in1-Slvin-sur-Gartempe, abbel church'

( . 1060 I I t 5 ' na \ c

piers ancl separated bv transversc arches' 'l 'hc

rit ofri", latcr ba.vs, supported on reall'l splen-

t l id 'ercar cy l indr ical col r tmns' wcre btr i l r con-

i . . i o r r n tou t l v w i t h C lun l l l l and Du rham

Cathedral . This part of the nave ls qurte com-

n"Jt in artistic qualitl ' to Clun-v III and

;;;;"-: it was most beautifulll ' ' dcsigned fbr

.1".-n-r", b1' the ever-memorable series of

i ; r . ; . . cal led thc Bib le of 'St Savin, which is

one ol'thc linest works of its kind. Thc palntrngis,

tawnr.and reddish-brown in tonal i ty , are sup-

J.-"n, .a bv others in the crypt and the

;r;;;.r, and bv a striking'ma'bling' ofthe piers'

:i[.r, ,11an. up an ensemble which is still

sineularl)' complete and perfect':"" '

F; ; ; . ; : ' hn ' io ' t an ear l l cxample ut the h ' r l l

o r t h ree -na \e chu rch t h rough l he rewo rk tng o r

th. Nlont i . . . teuf ' " ( ro75) [z5r l , but r t retatns

^-

2 7 6 I / ' I D D L E A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C E

(though in a disappointing setting which em-

phasizes unfortunate additions, and with dis-

tasteful restored interior polvchromy) the fine

church of Notre-Dame-la-Grande28 [z r r, z r z],

datable perhaps to r r30 45, or at anv rate to the

first half of the twellth century.

Notre-Dame-la-Grande, in spite of its name,

is not a ver l . large church. I t has an apse carr ied

columns on each side) and the arches abo...

show a lavish use of decorated roussoir , 1. -s igned indiv idual ly wi th radiat ing mot i fs . l .n1_

eral decorative arcading of similar charaqcr

but pointed, encloses paired arches with bl,rnk

tympana, and above all three enclosing arches

runs a system of spandrels embellished \\ith

figure sculpture and crowned by an claborate

zIz. Poitiers, Notre-Dame-la-Grande, r. r r jo .15

A Q U I T A N I A , W I T H B O R D E R I N G A R E A S 277

turn supported by an arcaded square stage

which houses the crossing vault. Tower, turrets,

and imbrications are repeated, with variations,

elsewhere and are, in fact, characteristic ofthe

Poitevin architectural group. The-v spread to

the medieval domed churchcs of P6rigord, and

thence in modern times to the Sacr6-Coeur in

Par is.'I'he

bundle of shafts with a pinnacle which

we have seen as the motif of the corner turrcts

of Notre-Damc-la-Grande has an interesting

history. Used independently, it is the theme of

the charming'Lantern of the Dead' in Fenioux.

It appears, restored (with variations), in the

Abbey kitchen at Fontevrault [zz4]. More im-

portant, it comes in prettily as a corner orna-

ment in the church towers and lantcrns r ' r i th

diminishing stages which begrn to appcar about

I roo in Poi tou and elsewhere"Ihere is a ru ined

on cvlindrical columns and an ambulatorl. of

polvgonal erterior plan, with three radiating

chapels. 'l 'his

construction is attachcd to an

intermediatc bav wi th a crossing tower, and a

tvpical round-archcd dark nave. 'I'he

aisles arc

covercd wi th groin vaul t ing throughout. Spur

buttresses and applied arcading gir.e a tl.pical

Poitevin lateral elevation, and the old part of'

thc bui ld ing is cor.cred wi th the usual s lab-s ided

roof in two s lopes.

Thc f'agadc is r.crv rr,pical o1'the latcr Poitevin

f iqades; i t is general l l accepted as a sort of

paradigm, though i t is perhaps the r ichest and

finest of'them all. 'I 'he

profile, basilican, does

not correspond to thc rool 'behind i t , but g ives

cmphasis to the three axia l mot ives of the com-

posi t ion. ' I 'hc

doorwav is t1, 'p ical of the region;

i t has no l inte l or t ) .mpanum, and is enclosed in

lbur orders of 's tumpv columns ( two bundles of '

arched corbel table. The axial motivc of' thc

middle register is a vast window, with two zoncs

of 'arcading to each s ide. The arcading herc en-

closes statuary, and is richlv bordered. Once

morc an elaborate corbel table marks a stagc in

the composi t ion, but i t is broken by the r ichl l

bordered window arch, and thus prepares tl.rc

ey-e for the pcdimental string course, which cn-

gages a huge, r ichl r carved and bordered r . t re, t

on the axis of the upper stage or pediment. l hc

en t i r e ped imen ta l s t age i s l ' a ced w i t h i n l e r t . t i n {

p:r t terncd masonr\ and capped by a ponrnr. l '' l

h i s who le compos i t i on has an o r i en t l l r i t h -

ness about i t - perhaps the r ichness of 'a Br zan-

t i ne i r o r l caske t r a the r t han t ha t o f \ l r r . l t r n

architecture, but the oriental suggcstion is Ltn-

mistakable. The taste fbr it probabll'owes sonte'

th ing to actual or iental t rade, the Crusadcs. l t ro

the rcfler from the Pilgrimage to Santiago.

On Notre-Dame-la-Grande the corner tur-

rets are of typical form also. Bundles of three

engaged columns set iust back from the corners

support a stubby drum engaged with the f'agade

on each side, and with the flanks ofthe building

at the eaves level. Above each drum there is an

open cylindrical arcaded stage capped with aconoidal roof and pommel. The roofs are asusual built of radiating srones with slantingtronts. Each slanting lront has an integral imbri-cation or scallop proiecting from it. The facesofthe imbrications are vertical, so that a iollylnverted f ish-scale patrern resul ts. Such roofs<lra in easi ly between the imbr icar ions, but thevertical

ioints in the troughs often give trouble.The crossine tower of Nltre_Dame_la_Grandehas a simila-r roof above a cvlindrical arcadedalrd columnar upper stage. *h iah .a. , . on ,narcaded square intermediate belfry stage, in

zr r. Poitiers, Notre-Dame-la-Grande, ,. r rlo +5

276 i . {TDDLE AND SOUTHERN FRANCE

example at the Montierneuf, Poitiers, which is

bel ieved to be one of the ear l iest [z5r ] . Four

bundles, each with its pinnacle, stood gracefully

above the corners ofa square tower stage, and

beside the diagonal sides ofan octagonal stage,

making a felicitous transition to the pyramidal

roof of the latter. This pattern was used, on a

larger scale, in Spain at the crossing ,cimborio,

ofthe cathedralofZamora [z5o] and derivative

monuments ; at the Martorana in Palermo Iz7z],and derivative monuments also in Norman

Sicily. Some of the derivatives are as late in

date as the thirteenth century.

At this point we should consider briefly how

the architectural group of Poitou interpene-

trates with that of Anjou and that of Pdrigord,

all within the greater school of the West ofFrance. An example is Sainte-Radegonde, poi-

tiers, a church of pilgrimage built from about

rogo onward.2e Its plan includes apse, ambu_

latory, radiating chapels, and a very charac-

teristic tower-porch which is accepted as amodel of thc Poitevin version of that historic

element. At Sainte-Radegonde the nave is spa-

cious, of considerable width - a Gothic recon-

struction covered with octopartite domed-un

r ibbed vaulrs ofrhe type thar was developed inAnjou. As if in compensation for this, we fincl

Cunault, near Angers, built in the poitevin

style, and we shall find that the domed-up

Angevin octopartite ribbed vaults are related

to the Aquitanian domed churches. It is because

of such interpenetration of these western archi-

tectural groups that French critics prefer toconsider the school ofthe west of France as aninclusive unit.

Pursuing this matter in Anjou brings us to its

capital, Angers, the seat ofa dynasty important

in French, English, and Levantine history.

For Saint-Martin at Angers, an old founda-

tion, a remarkable church (now lacking its nave)

was created by reconstruction shortly after

rorz.30 The bui ld ing was la id out , as were manv

in the west country, on a very simple plan: four

aisleless arms of a great cross. The northern,

southern, and eastern arms of the church ter-

minated in apses. Over the crossing a somewhat

warped pendentive dome was built, by ro7.5,

if not earlier; and this structure, still in place,

is considered to be the oldest large French

ftomanesque dome in existence [zl3]. It is re-

porred 10 be in rubblc and 'pot tery ' . which

*ould suggesr a Lalc Roman der ivat ion. This

dome still serves as the support ofa rather heavy

block of masonrv doubtless intended to carry

s,belfty or turritus dpe'r. The ability to construct

such a dome, almost free-standing at a con-

siderable height (where it has given a good

account ofitselffor nearly 9oo years), makes the

achievement of the splendid twelfth-century

domes ofthe abbcy church ofFontevrault, near

Angers, and thc P6rigordinc domes, seem less

strange; and i t helps also to expla in the Angevin

domed-up rib vaults to which a preliminarl.

reference has been made.

Best known of all the buildings which ex-

emplify the great aislcless cross in plan, and at

the same timc the Angevin rib vault, is the

cathedral of Angers i tsel f3r [2r4, 2r 5] . I ts scale

is much larger than that of Saint-Martin in the

same citl ' ', but the plan is even simpler. Thc

or ig inal cathedral was begun short lv af tcr IoIo

A Q U I T A N I A , W I l ' i l B O R D [ , R I N G A R E A S 2 ? O

and dedicated in roz5, when the dramat ic cam-

paign of expansion of the County of Aniou was

beginning. The church had a wooden-roof-ed

wide nave, t ransept, apse, ambulatorv, and shal-

low oblong radiat ing chapels. In the twel t ih

centur!' it was progressively rebuilt, prcserving

some of the old nave wal ls . The new work was

star ted about I r50, cont inued by the Planta-

genets (who held Anjou l rom r r54 to rzoo), and

finished, except for details, under the Irrench

about r 2,1o.

The twelfih-centurr na\,e, which exists al-

most unchanged, consists of three tremendous

domed-up square groined bays wi th the usual

diagonal ribs of the Early Gothic style. The-v

are in ashlar wi th re lat ivel l ' th in cel ls and span

about 52 feet, the hrst in lirance to have so

generous a dimension. Their h istor ical impor-

tance as evidence ofPoitcr,in and Angevin engi-

neering ingenuitl. is verl' considerable. The

laults combined the advantages of the rib-r'ault

ofthc ile-de-France with thc advantagcs ofthin

ashlar domed construction. This type of vault

was much bui l t in thc Angevin region and in

zt4. Anglers (lathcdral,

e leventh th i r teenth centur ies , la \e r025!vaulted r. r r 5o, cxtcndcd later

-il-

Spain. Later Gothic developments includc tcch-

nically interesting rib systems.

The t ranscpt of Angers Cathedral ( inc luding

the crossing) consists of three ba.vs with an

aggreg te interior length of about r48 feet;

similrrly r,aulted the technique, however, is

maturer, and the vaults havc the characteristic

Angevin octopartite division, with ridge ribs.

(The octopartitc division looks, in plan, like the

Union Jack.) A s imi lar square bay and thc semi-

circular apse, with eight triangular cells, bring

the interior length of the church on the main

axis close to zg5 feet. 'I 'he

height to the soflit of

the transverse arches is about 6q fect. which is

equal to that of the Romanesque nave of Sant-

iago, where, however, thc width is only about

zg feet. The crowns of the cells at Angers reach

a height of about 86 f'eet. Thc stout spur but-

tresses havc alwal's maintained these magnifi-

cent vaults saf'ely in position.

The great interior space ofAngers Cathedral

has a simplicitl 'which is almost Roman, though

the dimensions fall short of the greatest Roman

works (the nar,e of the Basilica Nova of N{axen-

tius and Constantine measured 83 feet in the

clear, rzo feet in height, z4o feet in length; the

lateral tunnel r,aults are 63 f'eet high). In spite

of the Gothic tincture given b.v thc pointcd

arches, the linear qualitl ' ' of the details, and the

odd feeling that thc church is like a small build-

ing magnified, here is a monument which an

Imperial architect would have understood and

enioyed.

Not so the laqade ofAngers Cathedral, which

makes a definitc compromise with Gothic forms.

The blocky' front has a central portal in the stylc

of Chartres, above which is a triplet with a fine

big Early Gothic window in the ccntre. At each

side, a tower with stage upon stage ofdecorative

arcading rises to a tall Gothic fldche, as ifAngers

were a pinched and narrow cathedral of basili-

can plan in the ile-de-France. The space be-

tween the towers and above thc sreat windowis occuoied br Rcnaissance mot i fs arranged to

A Q U I T A N I A , W I T H B O R D E R T N C ; A n l _ , t S z 8 r

produce a medieval s i lhouct te. 1 'hc axia l square

tower gives an ellect somcwhat like a screcn,

such as was planned lbr Novon Cathcdral in the

unexecuted arcade between the bel f i ies o1' thc

western towers. 'I 'he

whole mass of thc three

western towers at Angers resembles a westwork

appropriatclv cnough in a cathcdral whcre the

plan is almost simple enough to be Carolingian.

Returning lrom Angers and the north to

Poitou, we lind a radiation ofthe Poitevin tvpes

to thc wcst, the east, the south-east, ancl the

south-west also. The buildings were almost all

built in the twelfth centurv, when the countrv

was well organized and prospcrous. -I'he

various

fcatures of the Poiteyin stvle as we have found

them in the capital occur, engagingly counter-

changed, in a mul t i tude of smal ler bui ld ings

which have a r,erv direct appeal.12 It is olten

possible to savour these churches in an un-

disturbed old sctting. One comes to accept a

certain awkwardncss which often results from

the simple naive plans, and to enjoy', er,en in

rustic examples, the luxuriant carving, the

rather riotous arcading, and the hierarchies of

plump columns which catch a soft ripple of

light fbr the fagades.

Round and pointed arches were often used

together, but there was a constant relative in-

crease in the latter as the twcllth centurv ad-

vanced. Where tunnel vaulting has been used,

the naves have often become deformed or have

lost their r,aults, due to inexpert workmanship

or faulty'mortar. This is truc e\,en fbr spans of

the order of twenty feet ; the domes, which we

shall considcr prcscntly, have held up much

better, e\,en ovcr spans of double the width.

Close to Poitiers there arc scvcral wcll-known

examples. At Cir,ra.v, the imposing lagade has

among its sculptures part of a horseman, sup-

posed to represent Constantine, and accepted

into the iconography of the region ; Gengal' and

Montmor i l lon also deserve ment ion. ' fo

the

north-wcst of Poi t iers thcre are interesl ing cx-

amples at Parthenav, Saint-Jouin-de-N{arnes,zI-5. Angers cathedral, eleventh thirteenth centuries, na\:e r025, r 'rultcd r. r r-5o, extended larcr

^.

2 8 2 M I D D L F ' A N D S O U T I I I R N F R A N C I

and Airvault. Melle, to the south-west of Poi-

t iers, has two YerY charming and typical

churches Saint-Hilaire, and Saint-Pierre,

which is one of'the most elegantly composed of

all. It has a fine apse and crossing tower.

Chiteauneu[-sur-Charente, south of Melle and

Poitiers, has a good church with a fine fagade.

Like Civray, it has a Constantine. Not lrar dis-

tant is Saint-Michel-'d'Entraigues', an octofoil

chapel ( r r37) wi th a famous re l iefof the Arch-

angel conquering his antagonist. We are here

on the borders of the Saintonge.

The church of Aulnay-de-Saintonp;e is well

known also; it is oflate date and well preserved.

The amusingly carved voussoirs of the arches

have the motifs radiating, as is usual in the

style, rather than in sequence up the arch, which

is typical o l 'Gothic. The church at Aulnav [2r6,

zrTl has a handsome pointed tunnel vaul t orgl

l hc na \e . a handsome c ross ing l owc r . c r r r l x

dignified apse.

At Saintes (from which the Saintonge trrkc5

its name) there exists, in a very puch reducg6

state, the Clunirc priory church of Saint-

Eutrope, beg;un about ro8r I r38, r391. ' l 'he

crypt, a goal ofpilgrimage, is in its original clabo-

rate (brm, substantially constructed, with aisle s,

apse, ambulatory, and radiating chapels. 'l 'hc

raised choir (1br monrstic liturgies) communi-

cated rvith aisles. and thus with the remlll-

:rble nave, stepped all round and opened on the

crypt Irz.5e], so that pilgrim throngs could sr:c

and hear ser l iccs performed at the shr ine. j '

The fbrmer convent church of Sainte-Nlalic-

des-Dames at Saintes is, appropriatelv, morc

local in f-eeling.'l 'he fagade is rich with arcading

in the Poitevin manner' and rhe main door has' j l , tr .

-r .u.t tously carved capitals and ordcrs

l irraitr i ts voussoirs Thc nave is corercd b1'a

l"ri.r "f

domes The crossing tower' charac-

,..iui".ff y Poiterin and closely resembling that

oiNo,t"-Ot-e-la-Grande at Poit iers' has an

'-3lTTfi::';adius rrom poitiers, we nnd a

series of interesting longitudinal buildings near

Angoul6m.. in which the naves are corcred

* i t i tunnel vaul t ing (Montmoreau, Mouthiers '

PuyP6roux, Montbron)'

ih. t,t""a of influence can of course also be

traced from Poitou to Bordeaux (Sainte-Croix);

to Petit-Palais, near Bordeaux, with a charming

fagade; to Moirax, near Agen' to Oloron, near

Pau, and so on into Spain' 1'he monuments are

sparser in the south-west, which has always

A Q t i t r A N l A ' W I T I I B O R D E n t N c l n r a s 2 8 3

been more lonely, and in places almost desolate'

Rellex influence from Spain shows itself more

strongl-v here, irs fbr example in the vaults

of Mozarabic stvlq, at I-'H6pital-Saint-Blaise,

Saint-P6-de-Bigorle, and Sainte-Croix at Oio-

ron-Sainte-\tlarie. t I

Pirigord: the Aquitttnian GrouP

oJ'Doned Churches

We present the domed churches of Aquitania as

rhe rh i rd subgroup in the school o l ' thc west o l

France. The question ofboth the origin and the

classification of the domed churches of P6rigord

and near by has long been vexed' 'It

is dilhcult

to understand whv so essential a feature as the

roofing of a whole church lvith domes should

not in itself warrant the placing of the domed-

:c.'$

i;,

)

zr(r. Aulnar', church, twellth ccnturl

ff-',if

,{lr.:;isr

,rr::,

2 8 4 M I D D L E A N D S O U T T I I , R N F R A N C E

church type in a separate school,' wrote Sir

Alfred Clapham (who was bv training an archi-

tect),'but it is argued that the adoption of'domes

was more or less accidental, and is an episode

merely in the architectural history of a school

which began without them and only adopted

them in a comparatively small number of

churches even in P6rigord. Furthermore it is

argued that the general ordinance of these

domed churchcs, apart lrom their roof system,

is indistinguishable from other churches of the

school . ' rs

It should be mentioned that the group ex-

tends far outside P6rigord, and that seventy-

seven examples are known to have been built, of

which sixty still exist (thirty in P6rigord and the

rest scattered all the way lrom Fontevrault in

the Loirc country to Agen on the Garonne).

Otherwise this is a very lair statement, and it

justifies the classification ofthe domcd churchcs

as a subgroup within the school of the West of

France.r6

Although we have the eleventh-century

crossing dome at Saint-Martin in Angers [zr3l,

unlbrtunately there is no text which indicates

the beginnings of the Aquitanian church type

with domes arranged in series over the naves

and transepts. There is now good reason for be-

lieving that Saint-Front at P6rigueux had an

early dome, built over and around the con-

stricted sanctuary of an old 'Latin'

basilica

really a church dated about g84 to ro47. The

spectacular church with Iive domes lzz5-7l,by

I'ar the most conspicuous example of the P6ri-

gordine group, was a special development.

Pressure from pilgrim throngs probably in-

duced the construction, by ro6o 7o, ofthe ori-

ginal dome, which had round great arches and

other archaic f'eatures. The other fbur domes

seem to have been envisioned at this time. In-

expert masonry in their lower port ions gare

way to better work in domes on pointed great

arches which were built after the Latin basilica

was burnt out in r rzo.J;

Angouldme Cathedral lzzr, zzz], the othcr

famous example, was begun about r ro5. I r rs

only partly covered by domes, but the schernr

is clearly not archaic, though the domes in thc

nave, covered by a conventional two-slope roof.

look like a utilitarian solution, adopted to avoid

the use of a long tunnel vault (difficult ro abur).

Whether by direct suggestion or not, the solu-

tion in the nave of Angoul!me Cathedral is the

old oriental solution of reduplicated domcs.

commonly used for centuries previously in or-

dinary structures such as cisterns, store-rooms.

bazaars, baths, and the like. Camille Enlart rvas

persuaded that the inspiration was Cypriote, for.

there were churches of similar character in

Cyprus at the time, accessible through pilgrim-

age movements.38'l'he

oldest of the Aquitanian domes arc

simple and rather uninspired in design. Thcrc

is practical iustification for them in the fact that

only about a third of the tunnel vaults of the

Poitevin type - even those of moderate span

have held, whereas sixty out of the sevenfi-

seven domed churches, including several ofrhc

largest examples, still have their twelfth-centur\

cupolas. The builders'instinct, the character of'

the stone, and the quality of the mortar - urili-

tarian elements all - would thus account for the

use of'domes in this region, rather than an aes-

thetic pref'erence. Perhaps the acoustical efects

were admired.3e

The excellent architects who chose domecl

conslruct ion bui l t i t in their own wa1, using-

pointed arches ofashlar on the four sides ofeach

bay to support pendentives of peculiar form.

also in ashlar. Unquestionably the pendentivcs

were suggested ultimately by Byzantine work.

but the reverse curvature in the profile of the

pendentive, resulting from geometrical rela-

tions with the pointed arch, is special to the

Aquitanian domes. The actual shells of the oldcr

cupolas are in rubble stuccoed over on the in-

terior, like ordinary Romanesque vaults of thc

per iod.

Several of the oldest churches in the Aqui-

tanian group consist simply of a file of' domes,

plus an apse and absidioles.a0 A mere straight

row offour domed units on unpierced interior

piers formed the cathedral of Saint-Et ienne-

deJa-Cit6 in P6rigueux Izr8]. The two original

domes, probably bui l t somewhat befbre I roo,

have been demolished; two more claborate

ones, dated before and after rr5o, are still in

position. They show low vertical drums ex-

ternally.

Another simple earl]'example is the cathedral

ofCahors [zr9], which also appears to hale been

begun shortll ' before r roo; there was a dedica-

tion in r r rq. but the construction was probabll'

incomplete at that time. The schemo at Cahors

consists of no more than two enormous and

awkwardly proportioned rubble domes within

low ashlar-f'aced drums, carried on pendentivcs,

pointed arches, and unpierced wall piers ofash-

lar, with the vast interior space thus created con-

tinuing into a capacious open apse with three

radiating chapels. The west lront, which is

rather like a Saxon westwork, and the lateral

portal, which is Burgundian in style, hardly'prc-

pare the visitor for an interior with a clear span

of sixty-five feet. It is eas-v to see how the

southerners, accustomed to the warmth and

zrli. Pdrigueur, Saint-Etiennc-dela-C,it6,

a . l r o o ! r r 5 0

zr9. Cahors Ciathedral, dedicatcd incomplete

in r r rg, l lank and portal

openness of such interiors, were in no haste tbr

Gothic, though at Cahors the east end of the

cathedral was rebui l t in that sty le.

Cahors uas an important ccntrc, xnd i t \

cathedral served as a model fbr a famill'o1'some-

what similar buildings in the region. Among

2u5

2 8 6 M I D D L E A N D s o u r H E R N F R : \ N c E

these is Soui l lac [zzo] , which also has twodomed bavs and a capacious apse with threeradiating chapels opening directly upon it.Souillac is bettcr proporrioned than Cahors,and i t is provided wi th a t ransepr; rhe dare isabout r r3o.

' fhe bui ld ing is general ly known

fbr the man'ellous carvings set into the west wallof the navc and obviouslv made for a portal

which was nevcr brought to complet ion.

Angouldme Cathedral,a' previously men_t ioned fzzr , zzz] , is anorher type-church, inth is case inf luenced l rom Poi tou. The laqade isa rich examplc of the Poitevin stvle, with mucharcading and intercsting Iigural carvings, thewholc liont being composed as a lision of the

Second Coming of Chr ist . Abadie the resrorcr

contaminated the design with regrettable addi-tions tympanum sculptures over the main

doorwar,, an awkward arcade at the top of rhe

lrontispiece; two unlbrtunare western towcrs,

and the lantern, all with imbricated roofs. 'l

he

inter ior was also restored, at rhe cost of i ts o ld

pat ina and much of i ts medieval savour: and

this is l ikewise t rue of the east end.

The range of four domes on the main axis is

very impressive. They are supported in the

usual wav on sol id wal l p iers, pointed arches.

and pendent ives. The fourth dome is the lan-

tern. Bevond it a tunnel-vaulted bay extends to

the open main apse, lvhich is augmented tly lbur

radiating chapels, and which also has an axial

window.

Each arm of the transept :rt Angoul0mc is

covered by a bay o1'tunnel vaulting. L,ach has an

eastern absidiole and a crr.rcifbrm domecl chapel

beyond. The upper stages of these chapels are

lanterns, each one much resembling a bav of the

nal ,e at I -e Puy Cathedral , or thq crossing at

Saint-Phi l iber t , Tournus. ' I 'hc northcr lv chapel

has a tall and characteristic arcaded stagcd tower

over it - suggested, perhaps, bl the arcrded bcl-

fries which were being built at the time in Rome,

as we shal l sce later . I ts matc to the south was

destroyed, else the cathcdral rvould still be in

the rather restricted class of churches with

towers at the transept entls (Cuxa ond St .l\{artin

of Tours in their later per iod; Old Sarum and

Exeter Catheclrals, where thc torvers form

the entire transepfal projections; the Gothic

example at Barcelona Cathedral). So composed,

the whole design of Angoul0me Cathedral ob-

viously came to a handsome climax at the east.where the fbur radiat ing and tu.o t ranscptal ab-

sidioles, the generous arcaded principal apsc,

the dome at the crossing, and the two terminal

towers ofthe rransept produced a very striking

symmetrical group.

-"5+-*l=-:-- 1 ^'u 1 . ,

5 r , ! r

A Q U I ' T A N I A ) W I l ' I I B O R D E R I \ G A R E A S 2 t h

zzt antl zzz. {ngoul6me (lathcdral,

r ro ; :8 and la rc r

zzo. Souil lac, church, irpse and transepf, .. r 1-lo

288

I

wIi]m

?5 11

chu rches o l Po i t ou and \ n i ou . and i t s ec l ec t i c

ier ign i t on. ot ' the good reasons lbr consider ing

,h. Aqui tuniun group ol domes as helonging'

a f t e r a l l . u i t h \ n i ou and Po i t ou '

Before leaving Fontelrault we should men-

tion the abbev kitchcn [zz4], the onll.important

oart ofthe conventual buildings to survive' It is

in the form of an octagonal torver, with a (re-

stored) hollow stone spire serving as roof, man-v

chimneys, and a pinnacle at the top which

brings the height to about ninetl'f-cet. The hol-

low stone spire makcs one think of Saint-Ours

at Loches [zo6l; the bundle of columns at the

pinnacle recalls P6rigord, and these two items

confirm the unitf in variety of thc styles

which we have bcen studYing.

After this account of the Aquitanian domed

style, Saint-Front at P6rigucux+r [zz5 7i seems

like an outsider, which in lbct it now is; lbr the

Greek cross plan, with its pierced wall piers'

was obviouslf inspired from St Mark's in

Venice (ro63 94), the latter church being at

that time still unshcathed with marblc and

mosaic, and, though built in brick, much morc

like the Aquitanian churches with their bare

stone-work than is the case at present.

The new arrangements were so unusual, and

they are so little understood, due to later re-

building at Saint-Front, that it is worth while to

describe them.

One entered fiom the west through the porch

of the basilica, but its nave, afier the fire, was

roofless. and it became a lbrecourt, recalling thc

atria which we havc seen at Clunv II and at

SS. Peter and Paul . Hirsau. As at Hirsau, there

was a plan to make thc atrium into a covered

narthex. Piers uere bui l t in the tbur curners o l '

the atrium space at P6rigueux, but a dome was

never built over them. Instead the-v were madc

into pylons, two of which flank the entrance to

the atrium, while the others flank the entrance

to the church, bcneath the grcat torver.

This great tower, of classic fbrm, is perhaps

the most imposing of all the towcr porches. It

A e u r r A N r A , w r r l r R o R D E R t r c l H r . a s z 8 g

replaces an eleventh-century lantern. 'l 'he

ground store.v passage-wa]' to the nave, be-

tween flanking aisles, has two elaborate dornical

vaults like those which we have found singly at

the transept ends ofAngoulOme Cathedral' and

also, in sequence, over the nave ofthe cathedral

of Le Puy'. The tower porch with its pylons and

aisles is massed rather like a westwork' but the

great shaft is very classical in feeling' built up

in stages with set-backs, and ornamented with

pilaster and pedimental motifs. The tower ter-

minates in a tremendous drum of columns

covered b1' an imbricated conoidal rool-. It was

fairl-v well rcstored bv Boeswillwald.

Once past this extraordinary tower porch,

the pilgrim lbund himself under the spacrous

wcsternmost dome of the main church and near

the high altar. There over the tomb of St Front

stood the remarkable shrine (by Guinamundus,

a monk of La Chaise-Dieu, ro77) intended for

224. Fontevrault Abbe1, kitchen,

twelfth centurv (rcstored)

zz3. Fontevrault, abbei, ' church, dcdicated r r rg

Angouldme also had its family of related

churches; in certain aspects Souillac [zzo] and

Sol ignac (about r r3o) arc in i ts ambient . Their

transepts and apses resemble Angoul6me,

though their naves are shorter. Gensac has its

file of fbur domes in reduced dimension. Bor-

deaux Cathedral was prepared fbr largc domes

o\.er the nave, but Gothic vaults were built

instead.

Angouldme was begun about r ro5, and the

nave was at least part lv vaul ted in r rz8, which

suggests that the smaller eramplcs f'all near the

middlc of ' the century. By th is t ime the tech-

nique had quite definitell- improved propor-

tions were better, ornament was better disposed,

and some of the domes were carried out in ash-

lar (this is the case lbr all the domes at An-

gouldme Cathedral exccpt one).

One of the grandest of the domed churchcs

was built lbr the abbey 01'Fontevrault Plan-

tagenct roval panthcon, with the tombs of

Hcnry I I , Elcanor, Richard I , Isabcl la [zz3] .Iiounded bv Robert of Arbrissel about r r oo as a

doublc abbcy, with an abbess ruling rhe com-

munitl', it becamc the centre of a small but not

unimportant Order (fifiy-ser,cn houses in all,

Sooo nuns b1' r r r7, when Robcrt of Arbr issel

t-, cr-,<>g

6r1d-

t l 1 9

died). Fontevrault is locatcd near Angers in thc

Loire country, and, appealing ro rhe highesr

nobilitv, it prospered. +2 It is easy to see wh1' thc

abbey church is a noble and I'astidiouslv de-

s igned bui ld ing. In r r rg i t was dedicated br

Pope Cal ix tus I I . At that t ime surely thc beaut i -

ful cher,et was complete. The splendid church

is about z7 5 feet in length. Its spacious nave of

fbur bavs, begun about r rz5, is a is le lcss, and

widcr than the crossing, as is so olien the case in

the Loire rcgion. Four domes of modern con-

struct ion, bui l t about rgro to replace thosc de-

stroyed while the building was serr-ing militarr

uses, rest upon the old pendentives. A change in

proportions between cheYet and nave has sug-

gested that domcs were not or ig inal l l 'p lanned:

it is quite possible that the original project callccl

fbr a hall arrangcmcnt. 'I 'he

supports lbr thc

domes are verv stout wall piers with attachecl

columns in pairs. The capitals are excellenl

cramples of carving in thc Poitevin-Angu'in

stylc. 'l 'hc

transept, with a crossing tower, has

two absid io les. I t is covered by tunnel r ,aul t :

lvith transr,erse arches, as is the well-propor-

t ioned ambulatory ' wi th threc radiat ing chape ls.

The high vaul t of the sanctuarv is scmici rcular .

Fontevraul t is dccorated al ter the manner of the

\

I

i

2 q O M I D D L E A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C E

225 to 227 - P6riglueux Cathcdral, largelv after r r zo,liew from the south-wcst, r'icw across transept,

twellth century, rebuilt ninetcenth centurv, dnd plan

the relics of the saint, and there Aymery

Picaud, who wrote the Pilgrim's Guide to San-

tiago, saw and admired it. The shrine was a hol-

low turret with a dome and gables, richly

decorated with hgure and animal sculpture, and

enamels. 'a Fragmentary remains er is t .

In to77, v'ith a sanctuarJ' dome, an imprcssivc

and rvorkable p i lgr image church existcd. Then

three new domes were added transr,ersely, and

beyond the crossing a fifth and easternmost

dome was built really at the loot of the nave,

for the church now had reverse orientation. The

traditional orientation, reinstated fbr a time, was

later given up, however, and a chapel extended

eastward on the axis until modern times, when

it was replaced by a pseudo-Romanesque apse.

The hiEh altar has been transferred once more

to this part of the building, and there are no\\

practically no traces of the old sanctuarv at the

west. In tact Abadie's restoration spoiled the

church.as'I'hus

we leave the style of the West of Francc.

It is interesting to speculate on the question rs

to whether a synthcsis of its varied elemcnts

lvould ever have been achieved ifGothic art hrd

not been invented, or ifthe region had achieved

true national status with one great capital ol'ils

own. As it is, the erportation of the style trt

Spain, the interesting development of Gothic

ribbed dome structure, and the experimcnts

with wide-nave construction, the dccisively im-

portant hrrll-church scheme, and the architec-

tural use ofsculpture deserve to be better known

and more widely appreciated than they arc.

F

f c,t,i1\tnor,nl!,1,!,,,,..,,,

% C h L L r t l t t i r h e t L P " l a s' %

I L S P ' P t l ' n l '

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I

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sollr

CI{APTER I5

THE SCHOOL OF AUVERGNE

Within the eastern limits of Carolingian Aqui-

onir,n"^t Burgundy and the upper course of

,h. Loit", lies the beautiful land of Auvergne,

border"d on one side by the Limousin, and on

the other by Velay. In great contrast to the west

of France, it is a compact district, and it has a

highly characterized series of church buildings

of rr,u." design which the French historians

call the School of Auvergne''

The type church is Notre-Dame-du-Port at

Clermont-Ferrand [zz8-3ol; it is not an earll'

work, as was formerly believed, but rather ofthe

first half of the twelfth century, although there

is a record of some reconslruct ion about r r 85'

In exterior aspect the church is bold, and its

elements are well articulated' It has apse, am-

bulatory, and radiating chapels set against the

precipitous east wall of a characteristic Au-

vergnat 'lantern transept', made by raising the

bays which flank the crossing vault so that a

range of windows may be carried around the

three outer sides above the ridge level of the

transept arms Iz3o]. Pent rools slope upward on

the flanking bays, and between them, over the

crossing vault, rises an octagonal belfry' The

crossing vault is supported on the east by the

window wall above the apse, but on the other

three sides by Carolingian interior flying

screens. West of the transept lies the nave, with

aisles and galleries but no clerestory; beyond the

nave is a sort ofwestwork with narthex and tri-

bune under a modern axial tower ofappropriate

design.

Entering the church' we find before us an

austere nave of four bays with a plain tunnel

vault. The nave wall is dit ided in two on cach

side by an applied column rising liom a cruci-

form pier; these columns serve as interior but-

tresses, but there is no transverse arch above

them. The other piers of the nave proper have

two shafts each for the aisle arcade, and one fbr

the 11nn5vs15s arch which separates the aisle

bays ofgroin vaulting. A quadrant vault covers

the gallery cut into bavs bv diaphragm arches

and spsling into the nave through triple ar-

cades bay by bay. These are cusped, and sug-

gest somc sort of oriental influence, and thel'

repeat the fbrm ofthe Carolingian flying screens

uncler the crossing tower (where also the piers

har'e, logically, four applied shafis). The apse

has ths same height as the crossing arches, and

so have the projecting ba1's (each with a chapel)

of the transept, but the lantern-transept is, of

course, much higher.'['here

is a much-restored crypt under Notre-

Dame-du-Port - a somewhat unusual feature

for the region. I'he crypt repeats the main lines

of the apse, ambulatory, and radiating chapels

above, but the chamber under the sanctuary is

groin-vaulted in small bays carried on stout

colurn15. l'hese are set so as to fbrm a sort of

inner ambulatory; four of the columns are

placed under the altar. The whole arrangement

recalls Al6aume's Clermont Cathedral of 946.

In the church above, the apse and the sanctuary

bav are not separated by a transverse arch, nor

are the groin-vaulted bays of the ambulatory.

Eight columns support the apse and ambula-

tory. The exterior wall of the ambulatory is

logically divided into nine bays, of which four

arc occupied by round radiating chapels, and

the other live in the usual way by windows, in-

cluding the axial one. This is common in

Auvergne, and it is remarked that the arrange-

ment occurs in churches dedicated to the Virgin,

whcther the absid io les number two ot four,

2 2 6 Cllermont-Fcrrand, Notrc-Damc-du-port, trlelfih ccnturv

L

1iI

whereas wi th other dedicat ions an ar ia l rat l ia t -

fg chap. l (somet inres oblong) is int rot l r rced.

bnr f inat an. lmusing rar iet l in rhe but t resses

of the chapels some being pla in spur but-

uesses. others columnar. T 'hc t ransepts harc

spur buttresses; the navc has an arcadc above

5pur buttresses'

There is pat terned ual l -work of a s implc sort

in the interior ot' Notre-Damc-du-Port, and

much more el:rborate cmbellishment of this

kind on the exterior. 'I 'he

local building material

is an arkose or granitc, which allows of very

preffy accents in red, brown, grev. or black,

arranged in panels. Star forms occur, along with

diapers and str ipes. Round and mit red alcacl ing

is used, and also shal low sunk pancls enl ivened

by toy-like decorative columns ancl chisel-curl

eaves-brackets which bring a littlc oriental spice

to the design. In general the picturesque old

structure in the refiactorl'local building ma-

terial seems indeed morc to belong in the rock1.

countrl.'side ol Aur ergne than in ths trre-

z3o. Clermont-F<:rrrnd, Notre-l )ane-cl u-Port,twellth centurt

T H E S C H O O L O F A U V E R G N E 2 q q

making metropol is of Francc which Clermont-

I ierrand norv is .

Notre-Dame-du-Port is a \crv sat is fnctorv

paradigm for a cluster of churches within a

radius of about twent]. milcs of the cit-v. Enne-

zat , the oldest o1' the group, wi l l be mcnt ioncd

again. It is difl 'erentiated liom the re$ b-v an in-

def inable f lavour of ' the I -o i re countr .v. Saint-

Nectai re perhaps comes next , about ro8o, then

others Saint-Saturnin (wi thout radiat ing

chapels) , Orci r ,a l (bui l t about r roo, wi th re-

bui ld ing about r r68), Issoire ( r . r r3o 5o),

Saint-Amable at Riom, NIozac (a Cluniac

pr iorv) , and last of a l l Br ior . r t le.' l 'he

background of ' the Auvergnat t ] -pe-

church is interest ing, br . r t not cnt i re lJ 'c lear. The

ambulator l is o ld in the region, brought in f rom

the Loire, and this may be true of the lantern-

transept also, lbr something of the sort mav har'e

existe cl at Beaulieu-les-Loches ( r oo5 ; much re-

bui l t ) . Structural l l ' the lantcrn- t ransept recal ls

Gernrignr'-des-Pr6s (about 8o6) rvith its flving

screens; in s i lhoust te i t recal ls Saint-Riquicr

(US: 8oS), p lus t ranscpt arms and minus the

flanking round stair tolvcrs. The westworks are

ultimatelr connected with Saint-Riquier also.

Thcre is a tcnth-centur-n- example in Auvergnc,

at Chamal idres. ' l 'he

general formula of the

luvcrgnat church, u i th i ts vaul t ing, appenrs to

hare becn set t led bl the t ime the archaic-

looking little church at Ennezat was built, prob-

ably 'not long af ier i ts foundat ion as a col legiatc

church bet lvcen ro6r and 1o78. One suspects

that the eleventh-centurv cathedral of Cler'-

monl (which succccded Alc laume's bui ld ing),

uas thc cr i t ical design. I t is known to have had

an ambulatorl' rvith {bur radiating chrrpels.

Whercver i t was, the kcv design must havc had

this motif and transept arms of cqual height

composed against the precip i tous bulk ofa lan-

tern- t ranscpt wi th a lof t l bel l r . ' - -as i ts p innacle.-I'here

is a strong tradition lbr carll architec-

tural and sculptural rvork connected with the

abbev of L-a Chaise-Dicr.r, where therc is nou azz9. Cilermont-Ferrand, Notrc_Dame_du_port, twclfth centur\

L

2 9 b T { I D D L E A N D S T ] T I H E R N F R . . l N C E

beautiful Gothic church. The abbey waslbunded in ro43 by Robert de Turlande, acanon of 'Saint-Jul ien ar Br ioude, and conf i rmedby dip lomas of ro5z. l t is reported that theabbel' wa"- responsiblc lbr the consrruction ofroo churches in the r ic in i tv : e lentual lv thenumber o l ' monasrer ics submirred ,o o, , l l i .drvirh La Chaise-Ilieu reachecl 4oo. The abbevis remembered lbr l ror l 0n lhe roads, anr l forder,elopments in husbandry prefiguring thoseof the Cistercians. There are no identifiable re_mains of archi tectural or sculptural work. buttherc is nol icc lhat Thiodard, a master mason.i rnd two sculprors were 5rnl to Saint-Cemme into7g, and that Guinamundus, a g;oldsmith anclenameller of La Chaise-Dieu, made the tombstructure fbr the re l ics ofst Front at pdr isueux

in ro77, as al r t .adr remlr l ,ed.-

Apart l rom the group of churches iust con-sidered, therc arc some I'ew interesting cq_amples in Aurerplne Volv ic and others wi t \_out galleries. Rovat is aisleless, and fbrtificcl rbold, rather arvkward bui ld ing lu l l ofcharactcr . .-Ihese

minor churches talten with the grorrpabout Clermont have undoubtcd interest bLrtthey are not sufficient to make a grand schoolsuch as those rve hat.e studied previoush.. 'I.he

Auvergnat school ear lv entercd into the nomen_clature of'schools. Representing (after a lashion tthe Pilgrimage type of which so manv grcrlrexamples, proportionately, hare been lost. irwill probably' remain in the conr,entional list.Except lbr i ts rather shadowv but indubi tablcear ly importance, the Auvergne manner s l roulc lbe noted merelv as a subgroup under the Schor,lof Languedoc.

cHePtnn r6

T H E S C H O O L O F I - A N G U E D O C

The remaining area of Carolingian Aquitania is

Languedoc plus the Limousin, to rvhich (bc-

cause i t became part of the Countv ofToulouse)

Sept imania or Gothia is to be added. Here the

most glorious of thc South Frcnch schools of'

Romanesque architccturc and sculpture u'as

created. Rightlv so, for it was one of the glowing

areas of early medieval civilization. 'Bient6t

la

rafa le venue du nord tua cet te f loraison, 'savs

Enlar t of the Albigensian Crusade and the In-

quisition (rzog 45) rvhich pcrmanentl-v injurcd

the countrl. and lef t a mark on the Church.

A defect of the plan ol 'our exposi t ion of

Romanesque architecture is that it takes the

greatest monuments created bv Languedoc

from the local school, and puts them in the

general history ofarchitecture with other works

of equal importance. We have already given irn

accolrnt ot- the crcation of rhc Pilgrinagc t].pc

of church, which was matured in I-anguedoc

(Saint-Mart ia l at L imoges I r r3] , Sainte-Foi at

Conques I r r3, r r { r r8] , and Saint-Scrnin at

Toulouse I r r j , r rg zr l , wi th Sant iago ( ,athe-

d ra l I r r 3 , r r 4 ) r 22 5 ] ( r o78 r z r r ) as an ex t ra -

territorial membcr of'the school. Reference has

also been matle to the Cistercians. who built

magnifi cently' in Languedoc.

However, even rv i thout the pr incipal monu-

ments which have bcen analysed elses,hcre,

Languedoc has a considcrable number of not-able examples to show. They represent a f:as-c inat ing interrvcar ing of inf luences f rom theacknowledged masterpieces, and from thcvarious regions bordering on Languedoc.

Toulouse. which was to be the centre ofLanguedoc, had a chequerecl early histor-v. Itwas a capital citv fbr the Visigoths (4rg), Mero-v ingians (628), and Carol ingians (78r) .

' Ihe

Normans capturcd it during a fbray'of 848, and

the fbmous marr iage of Henry of Anjou to

Eleanor of Aqui ta ine technical ly broug;ht i t un-

der English dominion. Its truc history was writ-

ten undcr the ( ,ounts ofToulouse between 852

and r zog. L imoges in the Romanesque age was

ruled (9r 8 to n64) by thc Dukes of Aquitainc.

Oriental influences came there, as to Le Puy.

Because of'the earl'r' date of Saint-Martial at

L imoges (about rooo 95 and later) [ r r j ] i t is

perhaps well to begin with churches in the

Lirnousin which are relared to the Pilgrimagc

group. Among these the abbev church ofBeau-

Iieu in the Corrdzel is surely the most interest-

ing. It is much like a Pilgrimage church with

thc t r i fbr ium of the naye reduced to the scale of

the usual apsidal trifbrium, thus omitting thc

charming enclosing arches abor,e the paired

arches which are so harmonious a f 'eature of the

Pi lgr image inter iors. Bcaul ieu has a remarkable

lateral porta l o{ 'about r r18, r r ther l ike that o1'

N'Ioissac, and hoodecl, likc Moissac. f'he aislc,

ambulatory, and laul t ing arches at Beaul ieu are

pointed, and the portal has an elegant frame in

three orders of pointed arches, but thc round

arch ncrer theless pers ists in the bui ld ing.

Snint-L6onardr is anothcr s impl i f ied example

of the Pilgrimage fbrmula, though it is a rather

confused bui ld ing nou.on account of later addi-

tions. It has a high vault abutted b-v quadrant

vaul ts, and the chevet has apse, ambulatorv, and

radiat ing chapels. ' I 'herc

are rcmains of a smal l

rotunda. -I'he

finest l'eaturc ofthe church is the

adjoin ing tower, bui l t about r r50, which be-

longs to a ser ies found in th is region at Saint-

Mart ia l , L imoges, the cathedral of Le Pu1.

[ rz7] , and Brant i rme, to namc the more im-

portant cxamples. At Saint-Martial thc charac-

2 9 8 M r D D r - [ A N D S O U T H E R N F R A N C i

terlstlc upper stages wcre an addition of rather

Iater c late bui l t on the old westerr l tower-porch.

In the other eramples the dcsign was integral :

at Le Puv, cast of the sanctuarv, at Brant6mc

ancl Saint-L6onard bcside the church.

The torvcrs are al l in tcrest ing studies in t ran_si t ion l iom a square basc to a pointcd roof . rSaint-L6onard is a straightfbru.ard example,and anahsis of i t rv i l l do fbr a l l . Thc rowcr isscluare, wi th two openings on each s ide of thelorvcr storeys, but the scconcl stage has a slightrcr eal at the corner, which sets the prof i le bactl little, because tho square has, in effect, smallnicks takcn out of'the corners. This efi'ect is re_peated at the th i rd stage, where thc arcade restson round picrs.

' I 'he fburth sr i rge is bold l r set

back abor.e a slope, but has a stecp-gablcd ele_mcnt brcaking fbrward. Above the spr ing_l ineof th is gable the to lver is octrgonal , set point_wisc that is , wi th arr ises on thc cardinal anddiagonal axes of the towor. - { l i t t le but t r .cssclerer ly- f i l ls in the anpl le on thc diagonal bcsidethe gable.

-I'herc are trvo arcadecl stages of thc

octagon, then a frieze-like band with a simolep r r rm id abo r c .

\ t Uzerchc ( in a church of s imi lar tunncl_and-quadrant construct ion) a re lated towcr hashal f -eables sst beside thc character is t ic stecoglblct l e lcnrcnt . Thc hal f -gahles. jo in ing s imi-lar hall--gables on the adiacent sidcs ofthe torver,fbrm intercsting acroteria. At Uzerche thc oc_tagon is ser f latu ' ise; ar Brant6me the upper partof the towcr is square, and th is is thc case lv i ththe much morc elaborate tower o l ' the cathedralo l ' I -e Puy, uhich has eight archecl srages bc-neath the pl ramid.

'l 'he octagonal tower set point-wise has in_

terest ingi latcr var iants in the Limousin.r Suchtoners r ise shcer, s tage upon stagc, f i .om asqua.re base, with polygonal tourclles coveringthc l ng l es o l l he squa re , l angen t l o t hc t o t r e rancl carr ied up the l l l l hc ight o l ' thc shaf ' t . Anoctlgonal pvramid of steep slope terminates themain torver and cach of the tourc l les.

- l .hc cathc_

dral of L imoges, Saint-Michel-aux-Lions, an11Saint-Pierre-Pcvroux I )avc at t ract i lc specinrcns

of th is tvpc of tower. The louer part of ' rhrcathedral tower is Romanesque; the lowcst o ithe octagonal stages is t r .ansi t ional to Gothrr .r r g r ; t he uppe r pa r r s have becn rebu i l t i nGothic v'ith a strong Romanesque f-eeling.

J.e Dorar i is another st r ik ing church in thcLim<rusin region nhich is re latecl ro the l ) i l_grimagc group. Like Saint-N{:rrtial, it is rrchurch wi th two axia l towcrs, ancl i t has re-miniscences of 'Saint-Riquier , bur i t is a ru.e l t th_centur ] 'church. There is a bold staged lanterrrand belfiv tower o\-er thc crossing, the tou.crbeing octagonal in shapc and set point-u isr .' l 'he

apsc, : rmbulator l ' , and radiat ing chapclsbevond i t are set against a long t ransept, whic j lis happi l l . acccntcd b)- t$,o turrers.

' I 'hese tur_

rets, wi th the crossing torvcr , recal l the ol t lSaint-Riquier arrangemcnt. At the west cnt lthere is part ia l reminiscence of Saint_Riquier ina hear, t toucr (which contains a dome) srrn_metricallv llankcd bJ- trvo charming octagonalturrets set point- rv isc. Substant ia l spur btr t_tresses conrr ibutc to a r igorous p1-ranr ic la l c l lccrin th is parr of the bui ld ing.

' I 'he main porta l is

plain, two-archcd, with no sculpture on the t1,nr_panum, but vcrr , handsomel l borc lerecl br fbu: .orders of cusped archcs. and f lankecl bv two t : t l llan<et-shaped reccsses. l he cuspcr i . r .h. r r . -appcar on the l i rntern tou,er , and are considercr l .ot course, as an indicat ion ofspanish inf lucncc.(La Souterra ine(, has a s imi lar f 'agade, wi th cn-gaging asvmmetr ies.) ' l 'he plan of 'Lc Dorat is .except fbr the $ estwork, much l ike that of 'Sain r _

I l t iennc at Ncvers. I -c l )orat has no c lerestorr .

except in the apse. I ts lantern tower is espc_cia l lv intcresr ing, fbr i t has sphcr icta l penclen-

t r lcs, and a dome of c i rcular o lan.

\ l o i s sac i s r e l a t cd somcwha l r o Le Do r r r rthrorrgh thc hear.r .western towcr. I t has al reaclrhccn s . r i d r h r r r I l o i s s l c r r r s f i r s r p l anned 1 i r i .believed) as rr hall chr.rrch, then cor.ered b1domcs, and f inal lv reconstructcd wi th the pre-

z3I. Moissac, priorr church, cloister,,. I loo, later relvorkcd

sent Gothic laul ts I r6o] . The famous c lo ister

[23 I ] was also reconstructed in thc Gothicper iod. Moulded and pointed arches of ' red

br ick now rest on the Romanesque impost

blocks which are so beaur i fu l ly carvcd, and srrgracefully sustained b1. the Romanesque col-

umns, alternatelr. single and in pairs. with rich

and imaginat i re capi ta ls. The handsome slabs

with large ligure relief-s of r. r roo srill havc theirplaces at thc corner piers. The rebuilt cloistcr,with its beautiful garth, is ycrl poctic indced.

- Toulouse, the capi ta l of 'Languccloc, has suf-

tered greatly from demolition and roconstruc-tton' 'Ihe

most elaborate cloistcr in Lrnguedocwas that of La Daurade in

' l 'oulousc; i t was c lc-

mol ished in r8r3, and only specimens of thecarvings remain.T

T } I L S C H O O L O I I L A N G U E D O ( 299

In spi te of thc prest ige of ' the Pi lgr i rnage fbr-

mula, uhich ui rs broug;ht to a c l imax in Saint-

Scrnin at ' l 'oulousc,r the nclv hal f -Romanesque

cathedral of Toulouse, begun in I f , r r , " was

racl ical l l d i l lcrent in t l pe- I t marked a stagie in

thc dcrelopmcnt of the character is t ic wide-

navcd Gothic o l south Francc and Catalonia. In

thcse \ i rs t intcr ior spaccs we har e a ncrv vers ion

of the u ide naves which produccd such remark-

able elI'ects in Carolingian and Romanesquc

t imcs. ' l 'h is

k ind of Gothic rcta inecl Roman-

csquc proport ions, ant l uscd a vers ion of

Romanesque interior buttressing to makc pos-

s ib le maximum Gothic varr l t ing spans.' I 'he

church of Bindrent- l 'Abba1'cr" in rhc

Limousin is re latcd to the Pi lgr image t ] 'pc

th rough i t s apse . ambu la to r - r , and r r c l i a t i ng

3 o o M I D D L I , A N D S o U T H E R N F R A N c E

chapels, but thc nave rs like Cistercian work be_causc of i ts pointed banded tunnel vaul t , s tout l l

abutted bt'pointed transverse tunnel vaults bavbt ba-v. - \arron. p icrc ings berwcen sr . . . . . i r .ba1's and a timid clerestorv, norv lrlocked uo.show a conce rn l b r so l i d i t r .

' l ' he chu rch da tes

from the twelfth centurv. Cistercian architec_ture when i t came (as at Si lvanes, S6nanquer l )was al home among such bui ld ings, lor i r isstructural lv s imi lar .

This abutment system of interior recesses.when develope<1 vertically, 1,.ielded the effrcieniinter ior but t ress s lstem of 'southern Gothic.Structuralh. i t is rather l ike aqueduct construc_tion with'screen walls at the back and Gothicvaults sprung betrvecn. In a way it is like thePantheon in Rome, where in effect aqueduct_l iLe arches and supports form a c i rcumterence.w i t h t he dome tu rned be rween rhem.

With clerer irbutment such as the flying but_tresses developed in the i lc_t lc_Francc at ierrr7-5, Gorhic naves could go high. With stoutspur buttresses or interior recesses ther. couldbe g i r en g rea r b read rh . Thus i t * r , po r r i b l . , oachieve on a grand scale the ver\.spaclous n:lvesof ample Romanesque proportions rvhich wereprelbrred in southern France, Catalonia. andI t a l . v . ' l h i s i s r hc s1 s tem wh i ch was emp lovedin t he Toulrusan cathcdra I o l ' r : r r , perhup, ihef i r s r c xamp le o f i t s t . vpc . r The span o t . . s j r t r _f ou r l ee t uas ach ie red i n b r i c k cons r ruc ( i ; nwi th immense square r ib-v4ul ted bavs. bold lvdomed up over p la in rectangul" . r ib. , i ike Lom_bard Romanesque vaul ts.

' I 'he low proport ions

and the detail are very dilfcrent from those ofthe High Gothic cathedral of Reims, started inthe same year. Ycr there is in the nolv mut i larcdand unlovely work at loulouse a good promiseof Alb i and Gerona (where thc widest Gothicspan, s'e venty-three l'cet, was reachccl).ir

It is significant that the developmcnt of thistype of building. with its Romanesque rrncture,rvas continued after the stanclard High Gothicof the ile-de-France had been introduced at

Narbonne in rz7z, L imoges in 1273, anl' I 'oulouse i tsel f though the destruct ion of . rh i

calhcdral o l r z r r was planner. l . and parrL,achieved, dur ing the works undertaken in rz; ,

Calcassonne shows the pa.aiat..r". of tu',,Romanesque schemes. The Gothic Sainr_Vincent (fourteenth century and later) has xsingle-nave span of sixty_eight f'eet, the wiclesrin all Irrance. On the other hand, the wesrcrnl imb of rhe lbrmcr calhedral of Sainr_\azai .c.in the Citd, is a hall church dating back to roo6in i t s beg inn ings . The l i gh t and beau r i f u l r r un_sept and apse of the th i r teenth century respecrthe disposition, heights, and proportions of: thcold building - presenring, in glowing contrasr.the openness and light which Gothic bralurrmade possib le. r3

Along the \{editerranean coasr the influenceof the Pilgrimage rype in the Romanesque ot.Languedoc was weak i conversely, Lombir l r land Catalan influences were strong, as alreaclrindicated. In this ver1, southern u-Ui..r, on.tclimate the differentiations which make a buikl_ing sepm French had no great occasion to de_velop. I'et, perhaps because of the persistcncc

of lor ingl l sculptur .ed ornament, there is sonr. .f lavour ofLanguedoc about these works.

'I'he cathedral of Elne,11 in French Catalonir.

is perhaps the best example. I t is an eleventh_century conception, interrupted in executionand carr ied on, consistent ly , at a later t ime. Thenar,e has a semicirular banded tunnel vaulrcarried on piers with crucilbrm nuclei antlattached shafts or pilasters. Thus there are threeorclers ofarches in the aisle arcade, for the trans-versc arches are single and the nave has noclerestory. The ell'ect is very substantial antlgood. 1'he aisles have quadrant r.auks dividctlin to bavs bv diaphragm arches ; shal low arcadingdecorates the exterior walls ofthe aisles. At anclnear the lbgade there is rib vaulting, a sign of.latedate, but thc frontispiece has two crenellatciltorvcrs of traditional l,ombardic form. One ismuch heavier than the other, but thev comnose

handsomelv. 'Ihere

is a fine and characteristic

cloister attached to the church. Thc church of

Arles-sur-'I'ech was lebuilt rvith similar r.ault-

ing in th is per iod (consecrat ion, r rST). There

are other picturesque works in the mountain

country tirther west, but space does not sulice

for their consideration.

How shal l we achievc an ordcrh 'statemcnt and

explanation of' the wonderful flowering of

Romanesque architecture and sculpture which

we have fbund in the eleventh and twellth cen-

turies in Carolingian Aquitania and its border-

ing lands on the Loire and the Medirerranean ?

It is clear that there rvas an underlving dc-

velopment, alive with Carolingian encrgy., in

the Loire region, in the ninth and tenth cen-

turies. This radiated northward into the region

where Gothic architecture was to be crcated. irs

we shall see later. Its radiation to the south and

east may be roughlv t raced b} ' the churchcs

which har eambulatories, olien tu,oaxial towers.

and, in the earlier examplcs, the t-vpical masonrv

wall-work; we find many such in Burgunclv andAquitania proper.

Obviousll also the Irirst Romanesque arcacontributed to the architcctural fbrmation ofAqui tania. Ser ious studv of lost ear lv monu-ments will have to bc undertaken bclbre thisflow ofinfluenccs can be clarifiecl, but onc clis-cerns that i t must have been drawn on in de-veloping the sculpture, and in vaulting basilicanschemes above the ground let'el. Catalan lault-hg (alread)' fhirh adr.anced at the end of-rhctenth centurv). earlv sculpture norrh of thePyrenees, ancl Burgundian developments underFirst Romanesque inpact appear to har,c llowedrnto Aqui tania.

_ Oriental influences flolvcd in too, from N,Ios-

lem Spain as earlr as the rcnth ccntury., fromthe Near East in Crusacler times. Auvergne.which hat l the ear l ics( on record ol srrch ncnin-sular contacts (Bishop Cot lescalc ant l h is .zoo

T I I E S C H O O I - O F I - A N G L I E D O C . ] O I

monks, g-5 r ), retaincd the strongest imprinr, butor iental mot i l i cuspcd i r rchcs; r ibs in con_ncxion wi th domes and donr ical raul ts i rcnct i_t i r e oc tagona l dom ica l r au l t s and domcs i ne r_haps also imbr ic i r r rd root ing *er . p. .pp. : r .d

about thc rvhole Aquitanian region ancl absorbed

into the eler,enth- and tuolfih-ccnrurv st],Ie.

Catalonia, which was in actual contact tv i th theNloors, shows surprisinglv little trace of thcir

inf luence, though their car \ -crs ma\. have aided

in I I re re-creat ion ol 'scrr lptural tcchnique dur ing

the tenth centurr , rc in lbrc ing perhaps a l inger-

ing t radi t ion in Sept imania or Gothia.'fhe

centrcs trf power, mostl\ secular, began

to gain focus about thc \ear rooo, il 'not bcfirre,in the Aqui tanian area, ancl t t 'pe-monuments

appeared which were to affect regional building

fbr several cenruries afier that. -I'hcre

is, how-

eler, also the intcr-rep;ional influencc of the

monks of Clunv in their bui l t l ing enterpr iscs

and a Roman her i tage, a lso. T 'he arca of Cluniac

wcstr .ard expansion unt i l the end of Odi lo 's

abbacl ' ( ro4g) w:rs a lmosr cotcrminous wi th

Aqui tania,r - i thc domain of their fbrrnder Duke

Wil l iam. Abbot Odi lo is wcl l known as a bui ldcr

in r,arious rcgions. The r.ision of the Cluniac

rnonks can surch be credited with an important

part in the impulsc which brought about con-

sistcntlv larp;er, more ma jestic. and bettcr

vaul ted church bui ld ings, and some o1' the ski l l

ancl success ol ' thc rcgional schools must be dueto thc st imulat ion of ' wide knowledgc which

came wi th thc presence of ' thc Cluniacs. and the

tidc o1' I'i l grimalic ctrnracts.' l ' l ius

in - {n iou r succosstul combinat icrn o l '

thc pr incip les of ' r ibbed and of 'domed construc-

t ion was rnade. In Poi tou qui te surpr is inelv

monumental e l lccts were ear l l - achieved wi th

columnar supporrs and 'h: r l l

church' r 'aul t ing,

which had hardl_y, in prcvious t imes, achiercd

anv reallv noble ell'ccts. 'I 'he

latcr application of'

grouped picrs and poinred arches to th is schcmc

opcnecl up a whole panoramt of interest ing

eff'ects. ancl these, together with -{ngevin vaults

-)-

] O 2 M I D D L L A N D S O U T H F , R N F R A N C T ]

fur ther devcloped, werc successful lv drawn on

in Gothic work indecd at the cathedral of'

Poitiers itsclf, as well as later, with grcat art, in

thc developcd hal l churches o1'South France,

Spain, and Germany. In P6rigord a quite pedes-

trian and utilitarian scheme of dome construc-

tion developed spccial and monumental effects

of ' genuine interest , qui te apart l iom the

achievemcnt of bui ld ing the cathcdral of Pir i -

gucux. The same resi l ience of 'spi r i t sholr ,s in

the l ivelv, or ig inal , and monumental tower and

lantern lbrms, though the towcrs fiile d to

mult ip l ' l over the churchcs as thev did in Bur-

gundl 'and thc North.

.In decorative works therc lvas a notable skill

o fe lerv sort . ' I 'hcrc

are successlu l imi tat ions of

provincial Roman rvork, carvings rvhich havc

the strong bulk o1-car lv mediela l work, and

others which suggest the subtlc refinement of

Bvzant ine or or iental works in ivorv such as

were t reasured bv thc ar t is ts 'patrons and knorvn

to the designers themselves. In Anjou and

Poitou the column-bundles, leaf'age, arcading,

and mouldings arc treated with such conscious-

ness of enr e lopc, such del icacv o1'undercut t ing

and scale, such tirelessness of'fancf in treatinq-

the s imple vocabulary of lcaves and scrol ls , that

the eflects are the equivalent of orientalism. 'I'hc

great sculptures of the School of 'Toulouse hai t

a l - u l l e r c l a r i t r . o l i en an o r c rpowc r i ng i n t ens i t r .

and thel' gain vastlv as decoration from tht

stvlizcd fbrm and subtlc rippling surfaces, sri

sweet to thc l ight , in which thev paral le l or ientrr l

and Bvzant ine works.

With a l l th is. the fundamental archi tectur .a l

tvpes created in the area of ( ,arol ingian Aqui-

tania were not maeinified or elaborated bey-ond

measure. ' I 'hev

alwavs remaincd eminent l r

practical. -Ihis

is the key to their usefulness in

lronticr countr]' like Earl.v Romanesquc Spain.

or the Crusaders 'Holv Land. Both these arcas

were archi tectural provinces of ' Burgundr.

Poi tou, and Languedoc. ' I 'hc

Romanesque ol

Aqui tania showed a remarkable expansir e

power. In the mo\.ement towards Spain lvhich

started seriouslv in the earlv eleventh centllr\.

and in thc Crusades which began in rog7, thc

Frcnch took their archi tecture wi th them. arrd

bui l t i t wi th a local nuance, but reta ined tht

spcc ia l s t amp o l ' l ; r cnch gen ius on i r .

P A R T F I \ E

THE MATURE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

OF SPAIN, POR' I 'UGAI , , AND ' I 'HE

HOLY LANI )

c H A P T E R r 7

S T Y L E S D L , P L , N D E N ' I ' O N ' I ' H I . ,

M O O R S A N D O N L O \ ' I B A R D \

All Christian Spain ultimatell' succumbed to

French architectural genius, as thc Gothic

cathedrals of Letin, Barcelona, and Seville

clearly show. But thc northern kingdoms were

building in the French Romanesquc stvle as

ear ly as ro5o.

Catalonia remained an active province of the

Lombardic st1'lc until the advent of Gothic

the Gothic of Ci teaux, and that of Langucdoc,

referred to in the preceding chapter.

The Chr ist ians in the Nloor ish part o1 'Spain

worked in the Nlozarabic st1'le befbre thc tcnth

centurv, as we have scen. In the lbllorving period

they did not greatl!' develop thcir church art,

except at ' l

o ledo, uhich lbr a t ime uas scmi-

independent. The 'Ntuddjar'

st.vle, that is, thc

Moo r i sh s t l l e i n ( . h r i s t i an se r r i ce . appca rs t o

have been worked out in -I'oleclo

before the

conquest ( ro85), and drawn on as Chr ist ian

buildings multiplied in the middle and southernparts ofthe pcninsula, where the \,{ud6jar was

most appropr iate to local condi t ions. l I ior uslts interest is largely confined to brickwork andwall patterning in the sophisticated Moorishtashion.

The Mucl6iar was outs idc the currcnt ofFrench architecture. ancl the Catalan Roman-esgue alwavs maintained a certain indcpen-

dcnce even in Cisterc ian works. Hence these

trvo st1'les rvill be considered befbre we resume

our studl' of the expansion of French architec-

ture to the other lands which had been r\loslem.

N T u D a J A R R o M A N I s e u E A R ( i H r r E c ' r ' u R L

I \ B R I C K

The elcventh- and twclfth-ccnturv victories of

the Christian kingdoms in Spain advanced their

f ront iers rvel l south of the equator of the penin-

sula, except in the hinter land of Valencia. The

area subject to the Christians lvas nearly' doubled

in two hundrcd 1'cars. 'I 'he

new conquests were

progressivell' more settlcd in character, and

morc densel]' populated, with large N{oorish

and Jelvish contingents in the population.

N'toorish masons in thcsc rcgions built verv

successfullv in brick. Sefror G6mez-\Ioreno

makes the point that ordinar l bui ld ing must

have procccded as before, with ordinarv N{oor-

ish craftsmen.: Clever N'Ioorish craftsmen

learned the Christian style, and ultimatch

Christian crafismen lcarncd the N'Ioorish sty.le

which was, after all, dill-erent rather than

lbreign.

In the ear l ier pcr iod an ambit ious Romanes-

quc work lbr the reconquercd arca would in-

. l o . l s p A I N , P O R T U ( ; A l - , A N D T H E H O L Y L A N D

volve all thc diffrculties attendant on importetl

cra l ismen f iom Poi tou. I -anguedoc,Burgundl

or Spanish crat tsmen f rom the norrh, wi th

simi lar t ra in ing; such lvorks wcrc not nunle rous.

Romancsque architecture in f-act nevcr reached

Tolcdo at all; that was the centre of'rhe N{ud6jar

stv le , and, as t imc wore on, the Spaniards be-

came less dcpcndenr on l i r rc igners. When pos-

s ib lc, i t uas natur i r l fbr them to prof i t br the

erpe r icncc of the \ loor. ish and N,Iud6 jar bui lders

in nervlr occupied arels, and to devclop Rtrman-

esque variations on the N,Iud6jar stvle, built,

l i le the or ig inals, largelr , in br ick, but organic-

al l r Romirnesquc rathcr than or iental . . \c tual ly ,

the r lecorat ive pi lastcr st r - ips and decorat i re

arcading which character ize the } Iudi ' j l r s t r lc

irre bascd ultimatclv on the ver\, same elenrents

u hich lvere de vcloped in thc Lombardo-(,atalan

First Romanesquc stv le. In Spain the pat tern

work on the pale-brol rn br ick rval ls , wirh the

spicv shadows of dccorat i re cusped and intcr-

laccd arches, g ivcs an or iental nuance tu the

r ipple o l sunshinc w hich plavs upon thenr.

\ Ianv of the \ luc l t ' jar churchcs arc ntodest

ais le less af la i rs, wi th polvgonal apses, generalh

precedcd bv a tunnel-r 'aul tcd sanctuart bar

r vh i ch ca r r i es t he t o r vc r . i f t he r c i s onc . ' I - he

nn rcs , and t he a i s l es i l ' p r csen t , a re usua l l r

roofed in lvoocl . \ loor ish 'ar tcsonaclos ' wi th

t l r in t ie-beams of tcr . r occur as nar e cei l ings.

Xlozarabic br ick rvorkcrs were among the

set t lers when Qgintana, near Sahaginr and

Le6n, rvas repopulated in the tenth ccntur \ , ancl

th is point is a l ikel r s tar t inc-place f i r r the br- ick-

bui ld ing str . le o l ( -ast i lc . Earh- examplcs arel lck ing; the1, were ckiubt less ut i l i tar ian, : rncl , in

church archi tecture, rephced bccause ot their

modest scalc-' l 'he

Cluniac abbel .of 'Sahagr in, though sr onc-

bui l t , had the br ick chapcl of 'San Mancio, bui l t

I rbout I roo. ' l 'h is

is a s i r rp le c lesign, and onc ol '

thc o lc lcr prcserrecl \ lud6jar works. Srn - l i rso

at Sahagin lz jz l , tuel f rh ccntur \ ' , is much l ike

a I r i rs t Romanesquc church in br ick. excent that

the round-arched decorat ive arcading is sct i1I loor ish- looking oblong pancls. San Lorenz, ,

at Sahaei ln tnd the Peregr ina come latcr , in t l rq

th i r teenth centurv, and har.e thc cusping rnr lpointed arches which become er-cr morc ti.r_

quent in th is work. ' l 'oro

has correspondins

simple cxamplcs, the Cr isto de las Batal las anr l

San Lorenzo, datccl about rzoo. Lr Lugarcja l rAreraio is a s imi lar work, Cl is tcrc ian, ancl date, l

in the th i r teenth century.+'l'he

oldest prescn'ed example at 'I 'oledo

i.

the extension, dated about ro l l7, of a t t :n l l r_

centurv mosque cal led El Cr isto dc la l .uz.

where , { l lbnso \ r I paused rvhen he enrcred t l r . .

c i t l on .z -5 \ lav 1o8,5. . Here there is a rounr l -

archet l c lecorat i re arcadc in the lowcr regist t r . .

and a cusped range abor.e. Later examples, l i le

Sant iago dcl Arrabal ( r . rz56), Sanro Tomr.

Santa Fi (thirtecnth centur)'), and others arc

more purelv or iental . San Romdn at J 'o lcdo, t i r r .

instance, is pcr l 'ect lv Nloor ish in stv le: a c le: t r

case ol 'cc lcct ic ism, tbr i t lvas c ledicated in r_: : r

bv, \ rchbishop Rodcr igo J imenez de Rada, r , r 'ho

la id thc corncrstone of the Gothic cathedral in

r227 .

This samc' mixrurc of st r lcs is percept ib le in

the southern arca at Scl i l le , Granada, ant l

bet 'oncl , ancl to some extcnt in thc north dur in,r

the Gothic per iod. A remarkable derc lopmenr

of ' thc I Iud!jar stv le wi th srrong Romanesque

rcminiscenccs took placc in the Ebro Val ler

dur ing thc Gothic agc, ancl cont inued into rht

Renaissance. ' l 'eruel

has splendid examplcs r i l

thc fburteenth centurr ' , and there lvas a woncler -

f u l f loncr ing in Zaragc:za ancl ncar b1 . Thc t l t ,

lc lopment t l id not end wi th Gothic t imes, as rh(

handsomc bel f rv and crossing towcr of ' fhe

cathcdral of" l 'arazona bcar lv i tness f t5ry z i )- I 'here

is cvcn one cxample in America . r

l bun ta i n housc o l r . ; { r 3 i n t hc pub l i c squ i r r e , ' l

( . h i r p r dc ( i r r z r r i n \ l e r i co .

1 'he \ ludi jar stv lc of lcrs i rn inrerest inr

parrr l le l and conrrast to thc 'br ick

Gothic ' or '

Bt tkste ingt t ik of Germanv. ' l 'he

lat ter st r lu

,32. Sahagun. San Tirso. tucl l ih centurr . l iom thc east

L

3 0 6 S P A I N , P O R T U ( ; A L ' A N D T I I E H O L Y L A N D

started with rctual Lombard Romanesque elc-

ments about the middle o l the twel l th ccnturv '

rnd devclopcd interest ing lbrms appropr iate to

brick. Its simplicitl accords well with the so'ere

Baltic countrl rvhere it flourishcd. Later', like

the Mud6jar st1 le, i t became pla l fu l and intro-

duced Gothic mot i f i .

IT f i E M A T U R E

C A T A L A N R O M A N E S Q U E S T Y L E

Ram6n Berengucr I I I , Count o1' Barcelona

(ro96 r r3r) , was master of ' the whole Nledi ter-

ranean coast-line from the Ebro to Nice. Under

him French influences filtered into the archi-

tectural sculpture in Catalonia, but in general

the area retained its Lombardic st1'le, which had

dominated since the tenth centur-t. The increase

of means, in Catalonia as elsewhere in the

eleventh and twelith centuries, permitted an

improvement in craftsmanship' particularly in

the use ol'fine ashlar masonry for interior and

exterior walls. 'l 'he

later churches are generous

in scale, and ordinar i ly vaul ted; thet are in

many cases richly ernbellished occasionally

with tvmpanum reliefs, usualll ' ' lvith carved

capitals, and therv often have cloisters, richlv

carr,ed and unfailingly poetic. Reminiscences of

the Mozarabic st1'le are unusual, but there ts an

indefinable half-oriental warmth in the build-

ings which must owe something ultimatel-v to

the Moors.

San Clemente oF'l'ahull,6 well known lor its

paint ings, is a lmost archaic for i ts date ( t t3z) '

It is a perfectly plain triapsidal wooden-roofed

basilica without even a clerestory. The hand-

some square tower is traditionally Lombard.

French influence in Catalonia may, as usual,

be traced bl the ambulatory and radiating

chapels (rare in Romanesque Catalonia) and by

sculptural style. San Juan de las Abadesas'-

shows the old scheme of a tight cruciform plan

ol surprisingly grand scale expanded by an

lmbulatorv and radiating chapels (later rebuilt

ditl 'crentll-) and embellished rvith sculpture 1n

the French mannsr; the dates probabl l t l l l

betwecn r r r4 and r r5o. Yet despi te i ts | rcn11.

elements thc resulting btrilding docs not stcrl

French. Nor does San Pedro at Besalu. ( I t ha.

an ambulator l - u i th n ichcs in the outer \ \ r l l

serr ing as radiat i r rg chapels; the apse arcaclr i5

doublecl , l ike the supports o{ 'a c lo ister ' . ) Santx

Maria o l \ i i labert r in, dated about I roo, r ' t -

sembles a s imple Prorengal or Burgunt l i , r l

church. L ike manl 'such bui ld ings in France . i t

has quadrant v i ru l ted ais les, a scmici rcular tLrn-

nel vaul t wi th t r lns lersc archcs in thc nnrc.

rv i th a t imid c lerestor l ' , but i t has Lombardic

ornament on the exter ior and a c lo istcr o1'Lont-

bardic character.

Of ' the group of c lo isters rvhich mul t ip l ied in

the twelfth centur)'', a I-erv are noticcd hcrc,'

being connected wi th intcrest ing churchcs:

San Pedro Gal l igans, Gerona (about t t . ;o) ,

Srrnta Nlar ia de I 'Estanv (r r33), San Cugat dcl

Val lds (about r I5o); the cr thedral of Gcrona

(neal ly contemporarv) ; San Beni to de Bagcs

(rvel l a l ter r r5o, probabl l incorporat i t . tg c ' t r -

r,ings which belonged to thc cloistcl ol 9;:)'

ancl, beside thc charming little latc Lomb:rrtlic

church of San Pablo del Clmpo in Barcelon"r'

a r i nv c l o i s t c r o l abou r I 2oo , t o $h i ch cus l ' c t l

arches give an odd or iental look. The v is i ror

who makes the rounds of ' thcse and others l ikc

thcm cxper icnccs onc of thc t lc l ights o l l l tc

me t l i e ra l t r r r c l l i ng ecc l cs i l t s t i c ' uho mor t t l

f rom monaster \ to monasterJ and s lu sot t t t -

thing of life in the cloister wherever he r'r'ent'

The monasterv of Ripol l has an at t ract t r t

c lo ister a lso, in t$o storeys, but the import ' rnt

sculptural monument there is the elaborate pi r r -

ta l of ' the monastery ' church. The c lo ister nt ' t l

be as ear lv as I r z5 and the porta l as late as I t 75'I'hev

were added, of course, to the remarlirblc

church of ro. iz , lvhich $e have mcnt lo l rct '

previously.

In r r 35 Catalonia rvas !o ined to the crou t t o '

\ ragon, but the t tn ion did nor b l ing abour ' t t tc t '

233. Seo de Urgel Cathedral , r I3r-?5

and later, from the north-west

orientation in architecture. The Catalans think

ofthe later twelfth centur,v as a rather decadent

period in this art. So it is that the chief great

enterpr ise of the t ime, the cathedral of the Seo

de Urgel 143, 41, is in lar ious wavs l ike a

maturer and more finished version of Ripoll,

and in the lineage of San Vicente, Cardona (r.

tozo-4o), San Pons de Corbeira (c. ro8o), and

SanJaime de Frontanyd (ro7o). ' '

The grand old cathedral of r r3r-75 at the

Seo ds Lht.lro has a T-shaped plan rather like

that of Ripoll, but simpler. It is laid out rvith

tremendous stout walls in fine ashlar masonrv.

The walls oithe transeot encls serve as the actualbases of trvo hear'1' towers (containing com-partments

which open into the transept), the

S T Y L E S D E P E N D E N T O N T H E I V l O O R S , { N D O N L O N { B A R D Y 307

234. Sco de Urgel Cathcdral , r r3r 75

and latcr, analvtical section

east wal ls of the t ransept a lso being th ick

enough to contain its fbur absidioles, and those

of the apse thick enough to contrin a small

horseshoe-shaped ar ia l rotunda. In the massive

nave thcre are t\lo files ofcrucilbrm piers lvith

nook-shalis, supporting banded tunnel vault-

ing in the transept and naYe, groin vaulting in

the ais les. The crossing is colercd b1'a cur ious

fbur-r ibbed dome carr ied on squinches and

shal lo lv pendent ivcs. ' l 'he

nate has a c lcrestor l -

of prettv paired arches suppolted on paircd

shatts like thosc of a cloister' ' l

he fiont of the

bu i l d i ng was p l anned l b r t uo squa te s ta i r l u t -

lets, llhich n'ith the huge tlanseptal torvcrs and

the trvel\e-sidcd lantern would mark a strong

silhouettc ergrinst thc sk-v Not the least rcmark-

'i

\ , l i

)L

3 O 8 s P A l N , P O R T U G A L , A N I ) T H L H O L Y I . A N D

able th ing about the bui ld ing is i ts a lmost pure

Lombard strle, especiirlll 'on the extcrior, where

the design ui th i ts decorat ive arcading, apse

g:rllerl', and other f'eatures might casilv bc mis-

taken fbr an actual Lombard bui ld ing o1' the

err lv or middle twel l ih century.

Complet ion of ' the roof s, towers, and dome

u'as in f'act contracted fbr in r r7S between thc

Chapter on onc part , and Raimundus wi th lour

lamhardos on the other: lumlturdus at the time

signi f r ing no more tha,n masun. But thc sty ' lc

of ' the edi f icc shows thr t masonrv of- the Lom-

bard ty'pe rvas expectcd, as it had becn fbr ccn-

tur ies in Catalonia.' l 'he

conservat i \e charaeter of ' the bui lders in

Catalonia cannot bc too much emphasized. The

Cluniac possessions, though the f i rs t g i f t dates

back t o 966 . se r c ne r t ' r ac t i l e o l impo r tan t .' l 'hcrcfbrc.

af ter thc Lombart ls and thc Pro-

Vengaux, the first ensrrinp; ware of fbreign in-

fluence was thc (,istcrcian sn1e, which came in

because of the interest which the ncw dvnast l '

(of Aragon, s incc rr .1 i ) car l l er inced in the

refbrm of Ci teaur. The Burgundian hal f -

Gothic in France so relativelv conscr\.ative

in Catalonia marks rn adr ancc.

Poblet , l ' a l readv ment ionecl in our br ic f 'sur-

vel of 'Cisterc ian archj tecture, rvas fbundcd in

rr5r , and i t became the Aragonese dl .nast ic

p:rnthcon, which erpla ins i ts f ine construct ion

and i ts vast developmant. ' l 'he pointecl tunnel

vaul t wi th t ransverse arches is of 'undi luted

Romanesquc ibrm. Surpr is ing as i t is in rc lat ion

to i ts contcmporar) , the 1, lu l t of Notre-Dlme

in Pa r i s ( abou t r r 75 g5 ) , i t u : r s qu i t c na tu ra l

in the Catalonia of that ap;e, wherc the r ib vaul ts

of the ais los of Poblet werc) on the contrar \ , ,

surpr is ing. Throughout the vasr er tent of thc

later medieval bui lc l ings at Poblct there is more

than a hint of 'Romanesque character in the rv l l l -

work irnd massing, rvhilc the plal ful Gothic

trlcerr h'ls a half'-oricntal sparkle, and occurs

of ten in winclo l r s lv i th s lender shaf ts and c leqant

narrow openings, l ikc those of the Moor ish

LUlmt: .

In passing, the other great Catalan Cistercian

foundation should be mentioned Santas Creu.

(r r57), a lso provided wi th an austere and char-

ncteristic church which builds up into a beauti-

lu l octagonal c imbor io or crossing lo\4cr r '

Gothic date.r l

Tarragona Cathedral , begun in r rTr , r r is tht

heir of all these tendencies. Metropolitan archi-

episcopal establishment in a city with manr

Romirn remains. the church has the resolute

sturdiness of the most invincible Roman or

Provcngal construction. 'Ihough

finished in

Gothic times, the excellent ashlal masonry has

Romanesque character. The plan has the ar'-

rangement of a much smaller French church ol

the apse echelon type (nave offive bays, single

proiecting apsidal transept ba1's, with sanctuar\

bay and t r iapsidal chevct bevond). The resul t -

ing effect of magnilic:rtion is awkward in vari-

ous respccts, but imposing, since heavy lbrms

dcrivcd {rom the Cistercian stvle (with Poiter rn

influence, perhaps, in thc column-bunclle pier: )

wcre used with f-air consistency in the loucr

parts of the building, and the exterior, flat-

roofed, is blockl' and plain like a Provcng:rl

bui ld ing. - l 'he

c lo ister is surpr is inglv Burgurr-

dian - with Cistercian architectural forms, and

carvings in the Cluniac t radi t ion. Herc and

elsewhere in thc cathedral establishment thcle

are or iental touches. Of course, being fu l l r

vaul ted onlv in 1287, and dedicated complctc

onl l in r j3r , the bui ld ing has Gothic detai ls

also: in thc wcst porta l , the windo$ t r rccrv, lnt l

the (characteristic) octrgonal crossing tower.' I 'he

old cathedral of L6r idara [235] , bold l r

sct on a great rock which dominates th. mod"r',

torvn, is a somewhat more consistent examplc

ot ' th is samc sol id, sunburned late hal f -Gothic

archi tccture (rzo3-78). I ts p lan is s impler thrn

tlrat ol Tarragona (an dchelon of five apscs to

the cas t 0 t l he t r ansep t i handsome c imbo r i o , , t

235. L6rida Cathcdral, rzoj 7ll, vicw liom thc wcst ptrrtrl into the cathedral

^L-

3 I O S P A I N , P O R ' I U G A L , A N D T H E H O L Y L A N D

transrttonal st1-le; heavill,_built nave oI threebays) except that a Gothic . to; r , . , ,o_.r t r ,larger than the church was added at the west.1'he cloister, which reallhas a great port"r

"f i*;;vr.?;;t.,r*.ljr#;

quarter .s are at the north; at the south_west

- l1tn.1, t t t .1. is r ra l l octagonal roucr sct poinr_

wrse, l rke the Limousin t rin the rburtee;;il;:T;:',Tll T:,iRomanesque.

I alencia, though temporarily captured andruled bt, thc Cid (that is, Said, Lor<I; ,"nOlnJwas not rcally incorporated inro the A.ugo.r.se_Catalan dominions unti l rz3g. A nom"n.rqu.cathedral was begun there in rz6z,,- quiti-anarural thing in the capital of that conservativearchitectural province. The rich doorways ofthe bui lding which have survived a larcr re_construction are ver], elegantly embrasured,with manynook-shafts, and ornamenfs of.Moor_

ish style. Certain other details can only beN:lT- in origin, and are doubtless .or,.,..t"dwith Sicily, where aoual Aragonese .ute begairn 1262.

Some remains of medieval civic and domesticrork ol ' the Romanesque period exist in Cata_ronra, bur the f ine examples (the {rchbishop,s

.O"ti:.. t-r Barcelona, the Exchange in L!.i;;

[zj6l), do nor anredare the thirteenth..n,r. f ,when urbanism real lv begins in the.egiorr. Brtan

,occasional donion (,Torr. a. Ho-_.nrj"ji

with ward and enclosure walls, perhaps also

l1*..1 lur survived, along with .ity t,our., in

Mur, Solsona, Vich, Besalf , ard Ge.ona. So_e_times.in rhe back_country r i l lages, where thechrrrch rs l ikelr st i l l ro bc Romanesque, there isa medieval imprint yet remaininp;

"" rt,. ,irnil.

houses, port icoes, and overhanging.uu.r. Th.Romanesque stamp on Catalonia i, i"d;";extraoriinarv.

6 g A P T E R r 8

S T Y L E S D E P E N D E N T O N F R A N C E

p R E L l N l l N A R r C O N S T D [ , R A T I O N S

Conservatism in Cirtalonia prevented an earlv

or effective spread of Iirench Romanesque

architecture to the region. It was quite the

reverse in the Christian states to the west. in

spite of the apparent barrier of the Pyrenees.

The southrvard advance of'the doughtl' Spanish

kings and soldicrs produced a splendid oppor-

tunity for inrmigration, and religious aspects of'

the war turned it into a crusade. French partici-

pation in such crusades has usually becn ac-

companied bv good and practical rcsults ol-some

sort, and thc storl' of thenr is often written in

architecture.

The war of rcconquest began at Cor,adonga

in 7r8. It increasingl-v gained French recruits

as the Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela

flourished. Actually the conquering Christian

kingdoms offered profitable opportunitics to

adventurers because the population of Christian

north Spain was not large enough to stand the

drain of cxpansion. 'lhc

arca of the Christian

kingdoms trebled in the eleventh century. When

the great cities fell, many faithful Moslems

were displaced, their room being taken by Cas-

tilians and French, 'l 'his

occurred alicr the re-

conquest of 'Toledo (ro85), Huesca (rot l6) , Va-

lencia ( rog,+), and Zaragoza (r r r8) .

It was the same with the native Church:

problems on an entirely nelv scale werc pre-

sented to it, and foreig;n ecclesiastics with suit-

able experience had to be called to fill the great

posts. The Isidorian church was overfloocled by.

this tide, and Romanized befbre the end of the

eleventh centurv. So ecclesiastics as lvell as

pilgrims, knights, ancl settlers flowcd through

the passes into thc Peninsula. A large proportion

of them were southern Frenchmen - in part i -

cular f rom Poi tou, Languedoc, and Burgundv.

Benedictinism and Carolingian monasticisn'r

earll-' filtered into middle and western north

Spain, but lvere not rcal ly 'e l lect i te unt i l thc

conr ing of the Cluniacs under Sancho the Great

(97o ro35), King of Navarrc. l

Sancho's grandson, Al lbnso VI ( ro6S -r rog),

the great patron of Santiago and Clunv, re-

assembled thc Kingdom (parcelled in accor-

dance wi th Sancho the Great 's bequests) and

enlargcd it. He continued the ecclesiastical

pol icJ ' o l ' Sancho, as we know. Srhagirn, the

greatest monaster) in Castile, was associated

with Clun1., and its abbot, Bernard of Agen,

became primate aftcr the crpture of 'Ioledo

in

ro85 and the resusci tat ion of i ts ancient ec-

clesiastical dignitl'.

The court became gal l ic ized, not onl f in pol i -

t ics and re l ig ion, but a lso in b lood. Four of the

consorts of Allbnso VI were F'renchwomen, and

sei eral of his children made French marriages;

French chiv l l ry f lo*ered at the court , and so i t

\\'as that the arbitcrs of taste and the patrons

of art were b.v-' nature fitted to desire French

creations, though not quite to the exclusion of

sophisticated Moslem works.

Alfbnso's son-in-law, Ra1'mond of Burgundy,

is known to have brought twent l ' French ma-

s<rns to u ork on the wal ls o l ' . i l i la ( r or lo) | 2.14 l .

Al fonso VI I ( r rz6-57) lbunded a number o1'

Cisterc ian monaster ies in Cast i le, Aragon, and

Galicia, which of course meant an influx of the

usual Burgundian hall'-Gothic. Under Altbnso

\ ' ' I I 's son, Sancho I I I ( r r57 8) , the Order o1'

Calatlara rvas founded lbr the def'encc of the

L6rida, Exchange, rhirreenrh centurl

L.

- l r 2 s p A I N , p o R . I . U G A r , , A N D T H [ . t { o L y L A N D

fiont ier , under the Cisterc ian Rule. Sancho ARAcoN AND NA\ ARREI I I ' s son , A l f bnso V I I I ( r r 5g_ rz r4 ) , ma r r i ed adar-rghrer of Henrl' of'Anjou (who had by his In the fbrmati'e period of Romanesque ar.cl1-marrilge with Eleanor of- Aquitaine

".qui."d tecture these two mountain kingdoms rccciredthat great territorv- which long_int..".,.iE.rg- many architecturar impurses fiom abroacl, du.lish rolalty as much as the Island) and th]s to their contacs wittr ttre pilgrimage

and *irhunion fu'rher opened spain to influences from clun,r,. parrs.f Ar;;';*sess brick Ronran_Frrnce' rn rzrz, at LasNa'a^s a. lotor" , o. r i f . rqu. and Mucl . iar u. .h i , . . ru. . , ancr th is isabout roo miles from c6rdoba, Alfonso vIIi occasionalll.echoecl in stone buildings, like thewon the victory which insured an ultimate eleventh-centu.y.h..,..t ,o.,".rs of Ldrrcclc rrndtr iumph (r492) against the Moors. Meanwhi le Gavin.2 r" -u" .a l f J* , r i ' , , * . , , represcnrcdBurgundian dynasts were acrvancing the' con- in the cathedr"r o inoJ.- i . Ribagorga (ro. ;6quest of Portugal ' \ I i l i tary st ruggles in which (17). Ecclesiast ical connexions brought a Frc.chArchbishop Diego Gelmir . , o is. . r , i "go *r , o. i .nt" t ion. c luniac ; ; ;k ; . " - . abour ro:0,incidentally concerned, resulted in the in'-d.p..r- but thc earliest cluniac church still cxistinS^ isdence ol rhe countr l . under. Af ibnso l in , ' ra3. San Salr ,ador . t L. r r . , i " r r . r r , noted) [ r -q71.In r r47, rv i th the herp of p i rgr imr, h. . rptr r" i I . - t is rvondcrtu i lv ser in , nrounrr in 'a i ler . . r .hc

Lisbon' Al l modern portugal had been con- easrern parts of the church had been buir r hrquered l rom the Moors by rz7g. ro57. They are notable fbr the handsome use of .In spi te of ' the ob' ious French sources of f ro- .* tu, i r regurar) ashrar stone rn m; ln\sty le in northern spain. and the presence of ' , .g ion, st i l l an unusuar th ing at th is date.

. l .heconsiderable numbers of French craf tsme'n, the 'aul ted crvpt somcrvhat reca's saint_\ larr in_Spanishmonumenrsreal l l 'areSpanish.andnot

a, , -canigou, bur i r is - r r . . o. ig inat . srum'rser'ile copies what precisely gi'es the subtle .olu.nn, support hairpin-like rransr.erse archcsnuance it is difficult or impossible to sav liasti- uncler the vault with .r,er1,, picturesque efrccr.dious tastc, rbrmed in the presence of Moorish 'fhc main triapsidal liun.,ur.1,, with parirllcrar t , doubt less counts for something. Mozarabic tunn" l ' ' 'or l t . , rccal ls Languecloc. Bv the t* .c i l iharchirecrure and I los lcrn craf ismen ha. some ."n,u.nawidenarcrvasaddcd, l ikerhoseof. thcsl ight inf luence Tracl i t ional sk i l l in cxplo i t ing i ,o i . . ; i , now has f ine Gothic vaul ts. The r . r r lef l 'ects of sun and shaclow;simpler bulks, ani August in ian fbundat ion ar Siresa bui l t 1als,the indefinable plaJ' of relationships between ,o-"*h"t in the stvle of.Languedoc) a runncl_the bui ld ings and their austere ' a lwavs moun- vaul tecl a isreless c.rc i fbr .nr church in ro l iz .ta inous surroundings or backgrouni may be Jaca cathedral , Lz l l l inaugur{rcd a dist inc_

lliiil:ffiJil"l:'iJil:::T::::l',1':l "' tirle rocarschoor

",.;';;p;; R"o-un".qu. n'.hi-or bu'ding spuin, .'.n *.iililTT:iJ:; ,. *i,,,::.;il;[TT: in:"iJ:"il:*,i]:never bccame French, ancl i t was thc same rv i th of de'e lopment inc luding the cathedral , u.h ichthe architectu.e' 'lhis

nuancc is alrva's to be rvas to bc (perhaps only in part) a raultecl sr.rc-understood' even when not mentionecl. in the ture. A council is saicl to har.e becn helcl in thcensuing discussions. bui ld ing in ro63, but there is no assurance thrrrthe lhbr ic was rhen adranced.

. lhe basic dcsign

is very s lggxnl , but so eclect ic as to suggest th i l ra Spirn iard uas rhc : r rchirecr .

At the entrance o1' the cathedral there is a

tunnel-r'aultecl porch of tlvo ba1s. lbrmcrlv

open at the s idcs, wi th an interest ing west porta l- Burgundian in general srr le l ike the porch,

but with lions and the XP monogram (later

copied in rhc region) on th{j tympanum. 'I'he

nave and ais les havc beaut i l i r l s ix teenth-centur \

star vaufting, but the relativcl-v-. light original

construction prcdicates a Romanesque rool in

wood. ' l 'he nave bals are double (except the

westernmost one) with elegant round columns

as intermediate supports betrvt:en groupctlp iers. There is a haunt ins reminisccnce of ' the

Loire region in the clesign, but onl1. impcr'ttctcorrtparisons can be made (Saint-Sar-inien atSens; Saint-Benoit-sur-Loire; thc abbel' churchof Jumidges, to4o 67, which rvas in( luenccdlrom the Loire: rhe cathedral ofAurerre. where

S T Y t , L , S D E P [ , N D E N ' I ' O N F R A N C [ , 1 I 1

the cr-v ' 'p t of ' ro3o has cyl indr ical p l inths rrnder

thc piers, l ikc those ofJaca Cathedral) . Abore

the arcrde thc wal l at Jaca is p la in, wi th a s ingle

clcrestor] window over each opening in thc

aisle arcatle.'l 'here

is an 'included

trirnsept' with tunncl

vaul t ing in the arms, and a f ine stone dome

the latter slightll 'distortcd to lit over an octagon

made bl trumpct squinches. A rib rises fiom

the middle of each s ide of the octagon in Moor-

ish fashion. Intermediate bays of tunncl raul t -

ing beyond the t ransept preceded three Ro-

mancsque apses, of lvhich the centr l l one has

been replaced.'l 'hornr.

archaeological problems are posed

b1' thc bui ld ing because ol ' the excel lence of i ts

construct ion and the luxur iance, v ivaci t r ' , and

grcat mer i t of i ts sculptural dccorat ion. - I 'he

older Frcnch archi tectural h istor ians \ \ erc prone

to post-date such structures, but nerver studies

hare pushed the enscmble of dates back b1'

t \yentr or th i r t l ' vears. Not ing that two of the

column capi ta ls in the intcr ior of the church

are cven now in a b lockl condi t ion, nevcr having

becn car lcd, we may suppse that the carv ing

rvas delavcd at Jaca unt i l about ro7o. ' l 'he

high

qual i t l of ' thc fabr ic, so unexpectcd in a remorc

place. rvould be due to thc personal intcrest of

the King, and his excel lent choice ot i l master

bui lder.' I 'he

inf luence of 'Jaca Cathedral radiated

through the dist r ic t ; wc f ind an ccho of i ts p lan,

and pcrhaps of i ts st ructurc, in thc f ine ru ined

Clast i l ian abbev church of Ar lanza, dated about

ro8o t o r r oo .

Loarrc ' fz j t i , 239 l , a lso shorving the in l luencc

of 'Jaca Cathedral , has thc f inest Romanesque

cast le i r . r Spain, a b lu l i mass of wal ls tncl towers

bcaut i fu l lv set on a rockt spur, commanding

gorgeous views of the Gdllego Vallel. and its

mountain barr iers. Parts of thc cast lc antedate

an cstabl ishment o l ' Au-rust in ian canons thcrc,

sanct ioned by the Pope in ro7I . 1 'he church,

237. Jtct Crrthedral, in use ro6.1, finishcd later

-&

. l t + s p - \ l \ . P o R T ( ' ( i A L , . { N D l ' l l E I I ( ) L Y L { \ l )

which now dominates the whole group, has an

epi taph of rog5 carved in the lower part , which

probably indicates that construction was wcll

on towards completion at that time.

Approach to the church is through a long

ascending stair corridor to thc castle ward, and

thence bv a lateral portal into the ccntral bav of

the church. To the west of this is an irregular

tunnel-vaulted bay, and to ths east a very elc-

gant arcaded apse, the architectural lines being

delicatelv rnarked by billet mouldings. The

central bay itselfrises through a combination of'

oricntal f-accted f-an squinches, broad trumpet

squinches, and shal low pendent ives pierced

with oculi, to a hemispherical dome all in first-

class ashlar which has endurcd well.

The sculptured capitals, placed on shalts

under the gireat arches beside thc windows, and

in the decorative arcade, resemble -I'oulousan

carr , ings of ' the t ime. The archi tecture, though

close in detail to that of'Languedoc and Poitou.

has a half--oriental warmth and seems verr

Spanish. The aesthetic and acoustical effect ol'

the interior is dramatic, in Spanish fashion; thc

abrupt verticalitv of the middle bay' is startling,-

as one cnters, without harm to the graciousness

or harmonious proportions of the interior. On

the exter ior the domed bay has a stubbl .octr-

gonal tower, brought to a square base over thc

squinches by 'broach'

rool.s cmall half'-pvra-

mids, that is . The castern crossing of Clun1. I I t

had a somewhat similar roof, and the ty'pe be-

came common in Aragon.o

Relationships with Pamplona Cathedral in

Nayarre cannot be traced, owing to the destruc'

t ion of that important Romanesque bui ld ing,

z3g. Loarre, castle chapel, r. lo95

erected by Pedro de Roda, a Cluniac refbrming

bishop, who is known to have been at Cluny in

the year r roo. One of h is masters was Stephen,

who worked on the cathedral at Santiago. Un-

questionably the old cathedral of Pamplona, if

it existed, would throw interesting light on the

tangled architectural history ofits period.

In passing, it is worth while to mention a few

stylistically complex buildings which, with the

Mud6jar work, show foreign architectural cur-

rents in this region ofAragon and Navarre, e\,en

at a late date. There is, fbr instance, the half-

Gothic-half-Poitevin Santa Maria la Real at

Sangi iesaT (rr3r and later) . The hal f ' -Moor ish

Santo Sepulcro in ' Iorres del Rios (a l rcady re-

terred to I r32, r33] ; late twel f th century) ought

to be mentioned, as well as the supposed 'l 'em-

plar octagon at Eunate') - thc last, by rare ex-

S T Y L E S D E P E N D E N T O N F R A N C ] E 3 I 5

ception, bcing set in an octagonal open spacc,

screened off somewhat likc a classical building

in its temenos, or like the Dome of'thc Rock in

Jerusalem, which probably inspired the general

form of this and similar buildings. Stronglv

under Cistercian and Poitevin influcncc in plan

is the half'-Gothic cathcdral of Tudela,10 wherc

the high altar was consecrated in rzo4. A con-

sistent st1''le was maintained on the interior, al-

though the bui ld ing was not f in ished unt i l about

r275. As in Catalonia, the tardv hal f -Gothic

was successlu l lv absorbcd; L6r ida and - I 'arra-

gona are thc comparable eramPles-

L [ , O N , C A S T t L E , A N D G A L t C I A

Union wi th Navarre and Aragon, and ever-

increasing relationships rvith France, stirrcd a

rery ' in terest ing ar t is t ic rcv ival in the western

kingdoms. Le6n ( in the Astur ias) a l readl 'had a

national st1'le of'architccture, which we havc

studied. The capi ta l c i t .v , Le6n i tsel f 's ince gr4,

rallied alter destruction by Almanzor in 996,

and undoubtedll. initiated a new architcctural

revival likc that rvhich had stirrcd Oviedo twcr

centuries befbrc. Both Leirn and Castile had

some peaccablc contact with the Nloors, and

Nlozarabic works eristed in both areas before

the Romanesque stl'le t'as introduccd.'I'he

earliest eristing fragmcnt of Roman-

esquc a r ch i t ec tu re i n t he reg ion i s an e r l ens ion

to the Vis igothic crypt of thc cathedral o1'Pa-

lencia. Date d ro3:[, it is in excellent ashlar work,

and has a clcr,er arcade in the apse vault which

shows competence on the part of ' the bui lders

at th is ear lv date.

In Le6n unknolvn masters ofrcal genius ex-

tcnded the little old church of St John Baptist

and San Pelavo de C6rdoba betrveen ro54 and

ro67 to fbrm a portico and the roval pantheon.-I'he

church. latcr rebuilt, became the church ol

San Is idoro [z4o-z l when the re l ics of ' the grcat

Doctor of Sevi l le were brought to i t .11 This and

z1li. l ,oarre, castle, r. ro1;5

l

3 I O S P A I N , P O R T U G A L , A N D T H E H O L Y L A N D

other changes hare lef t the new work of ro54

67 as a retircd chapcl, whereas in origin the

pantheon was a k ind of inner narthex wi th a

z4o. Lc6n, San Isicloro, ro54 tweltih centurl

t r ibune abore i t . ' l 'he

port ico $as placecl on i tsnorth f lank. and er tended also along the west

s ide. wi th the sol id mass of ' thc c i tv n.a l l iust to

the west of the passagc-wa_l .

The 'P6rt ico

c le los Reres' thus enclosed t lvo

sidcs of the 'Pante6n de los Re1,es, .

' I 'he lat ter ,

onc of the f inest and bcst prcserrcd rvorks ol i ts

kind, is reallv a special vcrsion of the Caro-l ingian bur ia l porch which we hare scen arSaint-Riquier (where Angi lbert was bur iecl ) ,and at Saint-Denis (where Pepin the Short was

la id awav) and also a spccia l vers ion of ' the

tower-porches which we havc seen in the Loire

region ar Sr Nlar t in of Tours (466 7o anclabout ro5o) and Sainr-Benoi t -sur-Loirc (datccl

rn r ts present fbrm short lv af ter ro67).' l 'hc

Pante6n dc los Reles is actual lv more

accornpl ishcd than anl 'ex ist ing French * .ork

of the t ime. I ts oblong area is d i r ided into s i1compartments over two ample columnar sun-ports l the) : rnd the numerous rnal l responl l ,

har.e capitals which are among the best anrlmost interest ing of their per iocl . The wel l_designed system ofdomed-up groin vauks just

above them has remarkable frcsco decoration.

extraordinarily well preserved, which was pain_red abou t r r 75 .

The church ofSan Is idoro was progressirc l r

r ebu i l t , and u l t ima rc l . r r au l t e r l by r he a r ch i r e t l r

Petrus Deustamben. 'I'he

central one of its three

!icnerous apses has been replaced but the hand-

some lateral apses are still in place, with in-

teresting sculptural decoration. The transepr,

tunnel-vaulted, extends bevond the lateral

apscs, and opens into the nave through lrsrcusped arches, above which the high vaul t (car_

ried airily over a clerestory in the nave) is pro_

longet l . This is rcr l sqrnp. lent rvork of the cn. lofthe eleventh centurv and the beginning ofthctlvelfth. The carr.inEl, especiallr. on the latcrtliportal, shows progress bcyond the point rcachcdin the Pante6n de los Reves in the car l ier per iot l .

We now turn to other important Roman-esque works of thc Leonesc school .

A church resembl ing San Is idoro was bui l r( , . ro65-85) as the cathcdral of Le6n, but c lc-molishcd to make wav for the present beautilirl

Gothic building, under the pavement of u.hichthe old fbundat ions came to l ight in r884 8.r

San Nlar t in at Fr6mistarr is a sort of 'paradignrlor the Leonese school. Fr6mista, like Le6n, i,

on the Pilgrimage routc to Santiaso de Cont-postela. A monaster.!. was being built there brDoia Nlavor, widow of Sancho the Great ot

Nararrc, rvhen the dol lager Queen's testamenl

was wr i t ten, in ro66. ' I 'h is

date docs not st r ic t l r

applv to the church, and i t mav be that the

extraorclinarill vivacious sculptures date fronrthe lat ter vcars of the eler .enth centurv.

' I 'he

cnsemb le o f t he bu i t d i ng i s r c r r ha rmon io r r .

and digni f ied, though i t suf iers f iom hxr, ingbeen over-restored a generirtion ago. The platr

z4r. Le6n, San Isidoro, I'ante6n dc los Rc.vcs, lo54 67

z4z.Le6n, San Isidoro, 1o5.1 twcllth ccnturl'

+-a-J

Oo, | ,Ot?

)

lorrrro ,*/

fr?t -a t,{'+

-^..

S T Y L E S D E P E N D E N T O N F R A N C E 3 I 9

3 r l J s P A I N , P O R T U ( ; A L r A N D T L I E I I O L ' l - L A N D

is triapsidal, and rather short, with an octagonal

lantern towcl over a tunnel-vaul ted t ransept;

the nave has no clerestorl', but is covered by a

tunncl vaul t wi th t ransverse arches. carr ied.

with the similar vaulting of the aisles, on logical

grouped piers. The resulting building resembles

a Poi tevin hal l church. The : rbrupt vert icals of

thc pair of cr l indr ical s t l i r turrets at the west ,

and the boldness of the hntern give i t specia l

character.

It is quite clear that Leon could not have

nrade the leap from N{ozarabic to Romanesque

without France, but the exact incidcnce of the

influencc is not easl'' to determine. There are,

as in the case ol ' the Prnte6n de los Reyes,

cledible signs ol- connexions with the Loire

region, nourished by the pilgrimage to the tomb

of St Nlar t in (a popular saint in Spain) and re-

inlbrced b1' contacts with French pilgrims to

Santiag;o. Even more evident are the indices of

Poiterin influcnce. The southward expansion

ofthe Poitevin st1'le has alreadv been the subiect

of comment. I t is erempl i f ied in the cathedral of

Ciudad Rodr igo [243J where also the nave is

vaul ted wi th Angevin r ibbed domes; in the

var ious churches at Sor ia; at Oviedo in the later

constructions of the Cimara Santa, beautifullv

cmbel l ished ui th f igure sculptures i58] . and at

Santiago de (,ompostela in the church of Santa

Nlar ia del Sar ( r r44); a lso, in the porta l , the

Chr i s t i n G lo r l ' , and t he 'Apos to l ado ' ( r r 65 ) o f

thc f-agadc at Carri6n de los Condes.r+

01' thcse bui ld ings, the cathedral of 'Ciudad

Rodrigo is b1. fir thc most interesting and the

latest in dats (1r65 r : io) , proofof 'cont inuing

contacts rvith wcstcrn Francc. 'l 'he

intcrior has

domcd-up r ib-r 'aul ts resembl ing Anger in con-

struct ion, carr ied on substant ia l p iers which

remind one of the column-bundles of Poi tou.

The grcrt cffbrt made in Romancsque times

by warr iors, set t lers, and ccclesiast ics l iom Bur-

9u' 'd! ' makes i t naturnl to expcct the work of

Burgu"dixn architccts and sculptors. Although

in Burgur^. ly i tsc l f the st l lc was capable of ' the

z4j. Ciudad Rodrigo Cathedral, nave, twelfrh cenrun

p1rirndest ell'ects, it was never applied bf itsell

in a real lv large-scale Spanish bui ld ing. Ei ther

it u,as used bv a Spanish architect in an eclectic

composi t ion, or bt a Burgundian master in one

episode ofa long-continued building enterprise.'I'he

Spaniards nerer developed a Romanesqr.tc

stvle strong enough to exclude all importations

fiom the design of large works.

Usual lv , as the great Spanish bui ld ings went

lbrward, the imported forms were progressivell

hispanized, or, through change of plan, other

fbrms were brought in to modify the design

(not ahvavs to its advantage).

A good example of this process, with Bur-

gundian fbrms involved, is offered b1'the cathe-

dral o l Sant iago de Compostela I r r3, r r4, rzz-

61, to which re(erence in detai l has al readv been

made. The main thcmc of Srrntiago rvas first

achieved in Languedoc, but the axia l chapel o1'

San Salrador, o1l'the ambulatorv' seems ratncr

;;;;;tt, or Prorenqal Cusped arches there

"nJ .fi.*t... in thc building gile a N'Ioorish

tang. The corner turrets of the l ranscpt suggesl

poiiou tN.,..-Dame-la-Grande at Poitiers)

fzrz), asdo the rvestern rowers (resembling the

north-"".t tower of thc cathcrlral of Angou-

l!me), but the turrets at the cast end of the navc'

being set pointwrse, suggest ths lirnousin' The

original west front of Santiago Cathedral was

finished offr'athe r like that of Le Pu-v Irz8l' but

the P6rtico dc la Glona rvas inspirecl from Bur-

gundv. In a wlJ'' one ('eels thc eft'ect of the

iunn.l-rhrp".1 map of the Pilgrimagc Roads tn

France with its spout at Santiago delivertng a

varietv ofFrcnch regional (caturcs 'lhe

eclectt-

"ir* of Santiago in<licatcs a Spanish architect'

In plssing one should mention an lnterlor

""p1'of if,. P6rtico tlt la Gloria in the cathedral

of Orense;1i there are other cases of inspirat ion

liom Iirance rrt second hand which have evldent

weakncsses.'

We turn now to other examples where Bur-

gunt l i i rn inf luence is st rong l t is certa in l ) f i ' l t

l , .S .n f f l fU " i n Sego r i a ' a t t hc e l ega r ' t chu rch

oii.n,i*go del Burgo' in Zamora' and at rhe

i.rigit,f"i wooden-rool'ed church of Aguas

Sr.ti"r, *hr.. the cor.ering is sustained b)

nare arcadcs carr , r lng screens and diaphragm

xrches. l t '

' ' g . .su"a] ' is st ronglv f 'e l t a lsoat Avi la : t7 Ra'r -

*on. l . -ot Burgundr hrought l ; rcnch masonslo

star t $orks there. and something of lhc l r t r i lo l -

tior, t;nr* i".a. 'Ihe

rvalls of Avilrr [244]' rrt which

,ft"t'tuUo,',..a beginning in rogo' when the cttl

, ru. ,n nro. . . ' of being rcpopulated.r l ier thc

aonqu.r , . r ,a st i l l complcte and l i l t lc ohstr t rctco

bl subsequent construction' 'lhc1' prescnt u

clt \24+ wall, begun rogo

3 2 O s P A I N , P O R T U ( ; A L ' A N D T H E H O I - Y I , A N D

24.5. ir.ila Cathedral, twclfth centurr or later,

east \ie$, withour prrasitc stru,Jluie( (K.j.a'.)

magnificcnt Spanish ensemble earlier in 1111.

than ( .arcassonne, and not near l l 16 Dtt lch

rcstorccl.

The Rorranesquc cathedral , now repl i rced.

wirs c losc to the c i t -y wl l l , and qui tc possih l i . , ,

was planned as a def'encc work fiom thc beqin-

ning. A normal t r iapsidal p lan ( ) r . rd g in g b1 sr lnc-

tural l incs which thc present Gothic cathcdrnl

has inher i ted) would havc io ined and pcrhrps

extended past the line of'curtain u'all erst o1 rhr

cathedral. In the rebuildinel, thc transept \\a(

apparent l l enlarged eastward, and a spacrOus

nelv apse, ambulirtor)', and radiating chirpt'ls

were erected within a \,ast semicircular projcc-

tion which containecl thesc elements and 'llso

continued thc line of defences: indeed .ru{j-

mented them; lbr the project ion has throe bat t le -

mented passrge-wavs and a machicolatcd g,^rrl-

ler l .of bold design. This work is of Gothic c late,

but i t has Romanesque character , and is mrg-

nificentlv imposing [24.5 ].

San Vicente at Avi lars [u46-8| , a p i lgr i rnarrc

church, rvas begun shcitlr' 'oe{bie

trog, itntl

cont inucd, wi th interrupt ions, to Gothic t imcs

I t has a plarr which bccame classic in Spain

sanctuary t r iapsidal , appl ied wi th short sani-

tuar l ' bays to a long t ransept wi th oblong bal :

project ing rvcl l beyond the ais les; a lantcr t r

tower at the crossing, and a re lat ivelY long nar c.

The narc of San Viccnte has s ix bavs, groin-

r .aul tecl , wi th r ibs on the high r ' : ru l t . I t is aug-

mcntcd by'' r ver-r' Spanish lateral porch antl

(crcept ional l l - ) br a ta l l opcn vaul tcd narthe\

ba\. like a great hood betwecn thc rvestcrn

towcrs. 'l 'hc

tower ba]'s open lateralll upon thc

exi i r l bar. and thut st lgH(st an er lcr ior vresl t l ' l l

t ranscpt . r"'-['hcle

are other Burgundian featurcs about

San \ricente the squ:lrc crossing tower, thc

pier fbrms, thc high nare with half--Gothic

vaulting. The p;olgeous \\'cstern portai, partll

Burgunclian, parth' Poite\.in in inspiration, is

one of the ver l 6nest in Spain; i t is of about

r r 5 0 .

zq6 arfi z,1i ivi la. San Vicentt ' c t roq and latcr

lni_i lr L--

t:' "' i

t ' ' l t r

4

'=

+

",1,:d+,4q

.}-

3231 2 2 S P A I N , P O R T U G A L , A N D T H E I I O L Y L A N D

Santo Domingo de Silos is another site asso-

ciated rvith line sculpture. The lost church

(almost entirelv replaced between rySb ^nd

r 8I6) was apparent ly a smal l bui ld ing dat ing in

part from the lifetime of St Domingo (d. ro73)

but enlarged at both ends. There was a dedi-

cation in ro88. As finished, the church had a

layout somewhat resembling that of San Vicente

at Avila. But the interest at Silos must always

have been in the remarkable c lo ister [249] . I t is

now two storeys in height , and in use bv the

community planted at Silos in the nineteenth

century. The most beaut i lu l o l ' i ts carv ings are

those on the north and east walks at the lower

level, and they are the oldest not dating before

St Domingo's death in ro73 as Arthur Kingslev

Porter supposed, but qui te credib l l . in the per iod

rol jq r roo. l0

The church of Sant i l lana del Mar, near San-

tandcr, is another in this series of triapsicl;rl

Romanesque bui ld ings. Dat ing l rom the twel l ih

century (and continued perhaps evcn into thc

thirteenth), it shows thc Spanish love lbr a sn le

once received and given a Spanish cachet. Santl

Marta de -I'era

shows this in another way: in l

bui ld ing dated rrzg the plan (a s imple cross).

the but t ress system, the massing, and thc dccor ' -

at ive zoning are surpr is inglv l ike those ofa f ine

late Visigothic church, such as Q:intanilla dc

las Vifras but the striking thing is that both rhc

masonry and the detail are accomplished Ro-

manesoue.: r

,48 (0!!0sne)' Avila' San Vicente' ' i r09

z4g. (below)" Santo Domingo de Silos' r'

Another traditionxl element is the Spanish

south porch connected perhaps. but not

demonstrably, with the lateral porches ofSvrian

Ear ly Chr ist ian churches. In and near Segor ia

and Burgos there is a charming group of such

porches: Sepirlveda, ro93 ff', Gormaz, Jara-

millo de la Fuente, San Millin, and with a

characteristic tower - San Esteban, at Sego\la'

This is all twelfth-centurl work'22

On the Duero and to lhe south ' near thc

western border oi the old Kingdom of Leon

(the present Hispano-Portuguese border)' there

is a group of half--Gothic churches which have

a shong and unmistakably Spanish character'

The laiter include simplc, traditional Roman-

esque t r iapsidal p lans (wi th shal low sanctuar ies

because the cathedrals irnd collegiate churches

h:rve the canons'choir at rhe head ol ' the narc in

Spain) ; very heavv wal ls and piers in unexcep-

tionable ashlar masonr)'; ribbed dome con-

struction resembling Angevin vaults; marked

emnhasis on elaboratc lantern towcrs (at thc

crossing); and a superlicial orientalism in thc

decorat ion. ' I 'hcse bui ld ings stand in westcrn

Snain, as L6ri<1a and 1'arragona do in their re-

spcct i \ c d ist r ic ts ' for thc Romanesque and

transitional Gothic as received together in

Spain, absorbecl, and marked indelibl-v with

national characteristics'

The cathedral of Ztmorazr lz5ol is probablv

the ol<lest ofthe group ofthe Duero to be rcalized

in i l s D resen t l b rm . I t uas begun i n r r 5z and

and later

ro8{-r roo and later, cloister

-:-

3 2 4 s P A I N , P O R T U G A L , A N D I H E H O L Y L A N D

dedicated in try4. Gudiol and Gaya Nufro

think that the architect was not a Spaniard, per-

haps because the or ientol ism of the Bishop's

Door irnd the crossing tower is self'-conscious

and exap;gcrated rather than intimately under-

stood. Yct the bui ld ing is eclect ic as Spanish

designcrs' work often is. The transept l-agade

has a strong Poitevin imprint; the interior is

simple and perf'ect Burgundian half-Gothic. It

has becn sholrn in an exccl lent studt ' r ' that the

lantcrn at the crossing was inspired in part by

the domc over thc Crusadcrs' transcpt at the

Church of the Holr , Sepulchre in Jerusalem(dcdicated in r r -19), though the pcndent ives

and thc gored panels in the ribbed dome are

spccial variants of' French and Mosleln work

respecti \ cl\'.

Short l l af tcr i ts f i rs t eonstruct ion, corner

turrets and axial grrblcs wcre ldded to the cross-

i ng l o l r c l a l Zamor l . and t hus i t s cx te r i o r came

ro rescmble the crossing tower of the. l \ lont ier-

neufat Poi t icrs, a vcrv inf lucnt ia l design lz5r l .

One window of the lantcrn rvas obscured by

cach of'the lbur corner turrots, lcavin.q twelve

windorvs open thrce bctween each pail oftur-

rets. 'I-he

vault of the lantern is a singlc shell 61ashlar work with a rib over each of the sixtcsn

piers, and a gore over each of the sixtcen s 11_

dows. -l'hc

ribs have crestinp; which is drau n uD

in an ogee cu r \ e t o t he apex o t t he t oue r . 1 6 .gores and the spirclets (which repeat thc og^ee

curve) both have a scale pattcrn on the stonq

roofing.

At the west enrl of Zamora Cathedral thcre

is, lbr constrast, a vcry simple and impo:ing

squlrc to\\er. 'fhe

east end has unlortunilrl\

been rebui l t , but wi thout spoi l ing the bui ld ing.

Near by, in the collegiate church of Toro, thc

lantcrn of Ztmorr and the more famous onc

which had meanwhi le been bui l t at Salamanc;r

Cathedral inspired a handsome but less erotic

design. I'he church at Toro was built in thc

per iod r 16o rz4o, a lmost exact ly that of ' thc

cathedral o1'Notre-Dame in Par is. Thc herrr

Romanesque walls and piers of Toro, its tri-

apsidal chevet with short three-bav nave, sh()rt

tunnel-r ,aul ted t ransept arms and r ibbed lobu l , r r

and dome d vaults, are in marked contrast to thc

Par is ian bui ld ing, which was al ready on thc

threshold of the High Gothic style.' l 'he

larr tern at Toro has two storeys ol 'u in-

dows, like that of Salamanca, but it is finished

off rather lamelv by a f lat drum and s imple r i le

roof . ' I 'here

is a great show of cusping on thr

windows of' the drum, contrasting with ball

ornament on thc corner turrets.

There alc two latc la l porta ls and an arr . t l

porch at 'Ioro.

The north portal has threc

figured archivolts, two ofcusping with a figulc

in every cusp, and all radiating like the figr.rrcs

of 'a Poi ter in porta l , but set of i 'by a l ternat ing

archivolts of'Moorish leafage.:5-Ihe

spread ofthe characteristic lantern motrl

of Zrmort in the Duero region brought i t t r t

Salamanca, where i t is rcpresentcd, wi th rar i -

ations, in thc crossing tower and the formct'

chapter-house of the Old Cathedral , both datcd

short l -v belbre r2oo. The last important mcdi-

eval example is the thirteenth-century chapter-

i . , , .':." . i *e

- , j ,

z5o. Zxnora Cathedral, crossing towcr, ,. I r7,l

^:-

z5r. Poiters, Montierneuf, renrains ofcrossing tower c I I40

3 2 0 S p , { r N , p o R T L r c A L , A N D T H E H O L y L A N D

house of the cathedral of plasencia, whcre it is

called 'el Mel<in' because of' the lobcs in the

yaul t .

Instinctively one fcels that the great lantern_tower of the old cathedral of Salarnan ca fzqz,25JJ is the masterpiece ofthe series. T.he aesthe_

: i r r "q

i5! .Sahmanca, 0td ( .athcdrr l ,I orrc dcl Gr l lo, s l rorr l r hc lbre r zoo

t ic background of the cathvaried as rhat of zam or a, riiTJ,T"lJill.-: ::was achicr ed at Salamanca. f n. .n r. .h * , , . , i , .Ercatest ornament of Salamanca when th" . i tr l"earl .v conrribu(ions to intel lecrual l i fc ,n.t 1.. , . . ,1dere lopnren l were be ingmaderbout r2oo-

t 'u '

t 'w{*l

-^-

J 2 8 S P A I N , P O R T U G A L , A N D ' I ' H t r H O L Y L A N D

Salamanca, an ancient Roman town, was held

by the Moors unt i l about ro5o. Under Al fonso

VI a special effort was made about r roo to de-

velop it, and it was repopulated under Raymond

of Burgundy. The architecture of the cathedral

may owe something to a tradition started by a

French archbishop, Jer6nimo of P6rigord,

before r rz5. Anticipations of its elements are

found in Poitou, Languedoc, and Burgundy,

but the bui ld ing possesses a mature spir i t of i ts

own as an accompl ished Spanish work of ar t

[254] . The warm but proud and unyie ld ing

mass of the beautiful procession of nave piers

makes one forget that their originals are Poite-

vin ; the grave and severe succession of pointed

254. Salamanca, Old Cathedral, nave,tweltih centurv

nave arches, c lerestory windows, and hal f -

Gothic vaults makes one forget that they' are

Burgundian and Angevin; the crossing tower,

though suggested by that of Ztmora, and ulri-

mately by the crossing tower of the Montierneuf

at Poiters, is too deeph'stamped with the origin-

al i tv of i ts archi tect , Pedro Petr iz , ro be anr_

thing but Spanish.rn

The bui ld ing was begun about r r5z nn,1

finished early in the thirteenth centurl-. Peclrq

Petr iz is ment ioned in r 163 or r r64 in the ni l l

o l 'a Salamant ine ecclesiast ic Vela who directcd

the sale ol various assets fbr the work of thc

cimbor io 's ic

quomodo dixer i t Petrus Petr iz quc

de bet esse'. A Peter was master of the works in

r rEz , r r gz , r zoz , t nd r zo7 . Gud io l i r nd Ga la

Nuio bel ieve that the f i rs t master ( responsib le

lbr the generous layout, with an outer porch.

fir'e nar,c bays, and a transept extending a firll

ba-y to each side of the nave and the triapsichl

sanctuary) was influenced bv the School of'

Avila; that Pedro Petriz, who took o\:er rhc

bui ld ing when the wal ls had been ra ised to l

certain height, possessed more genius, and a

bent towards Zamora.

\mong Spaniar t ls the crossing tower go(\

under the name of 'l 'orre

del Gallo becausc of

its rveather cock. 'Ihe

tower has two storevs ot

rv indows under a lobulated r ibbed vrru l t of s i r -

teen cel ls which carr ies a s l ight l l , 'convex eighr-

sided fish-scale roof of stone with crockets on

the arrises. This roof is in fact a separate shcll

of corbel construct ion weighing down the

haunches of the r ibbed dome. ' fhe

interspacc

was f i l led wi th rubble. The thrusts of rhe dome

are picked up by wide pilaster-like forms bc-

hind the corner turrets, and b1'a projcct ing bl r

enclosing the middlc rvindow on cnch of' thc

cardinal s ides of the rower. ' fhe ba1's. . r re loadcd

b1' wel l -designed gables, the turrers by conical

rool-s which increase their resistance as but-

tresses, and break the silhouette ofthe tower in

thc most admirable manner. The construct ion

of the enormous nelv Late Gothic c l thedral .

begun in r5r3, involved c l ippingthe norrh t ran-

sept and ais le of the old church, but one may be

sure that the architects who left the remainder

of thc bui ld ing in p lace did so because of thc

general affcction in which it has alwavs bcen

held.

There remains for our consideration the area

about Sant iago de Compostc l l ' ; ' l

hc rural

f , -orrn.rqu. ot Gal ic ia has a rarc charm' but

,h.r . i t no f i rsr- rate bui ld ing in that rcmotc

region apart t iom Slnt iago The r i r r tous mote-

mlnt . wt , ic l t produccd lht Romanesquc ol '

Sprin - including Santiago ('athedral itself

"r. ,.fl..t.d in these minor buildings'

'l 'he

cathedral of'I'6v, lbr instance, still has its battle-

ments. Lugo and Orense Cathedrals are tardy

Romanesque and half-Gothic indeed the

flavour ofRomanesque is pleserved evcn to the

fifteenth century in rural Galician works'

Santa Maria del Campo in La Coruia and

Santa Maria at Cambre in the province have a

local interest. Thel- are, in fact, rather like the

handsome Romanesque of near-b1. Portugal,

which is worth)-ofstudY on i ts own account '

P O R T U G A L

It might hale been expected that Portugal, as

the Reconquest went forword, would become a

part of Christian Spain, in spite of its somewhat

more Cel t ic stock and the rather more or ienla l

character of the countrv. The Count l 'o fPortu '

gal (Portucalia. tlking its name tiom O Porto,

the Port) rvas retaken in ro5.5 64, and Allbnso

VI of Spain gave it to Henrv of Burgund-v in

Iog5 as a pl r t of the dowrv of h is daughter

Teresa. This gave Alfonso \iI a certain pro-

tection against the Nloors, uho still hsld con-

s iderable terr i tor ies to the west o( h is dominions'

On Al fonso \ l 's death in t tot l scparat ism ( lc-

veloped at oncc. The Irrench colonizers, who

only succeedcd in gallicizing the court in Spain'

reached indepcndcnt status in Portugal ln

rr43, under Henrv of Burguncl l "s son, Af lbnso

I Henr iqucs, Portugal achievcd an indcpen-

dence which was onlv lost (and temporar i ly) to

Ph i l i p I l and \ apo l con I .

Affonso I{cnriqucs extended the countrl'

southward tiom the old bounclarl' on the Nilon-

dego to the'l'agus, rvhere r'r'ith crr'rsader help he

S l Y L E S D E P ! . N D [ , N T O N F R A N C I - 1 2 q

captured Lisbon in r r47 and held i t , despi tc

N{oorish resurgence which gare much troublc

to Sancho I , h i s successo r ( r r 85 r z l r ) . A f t e r

struggles with the Moors, the Spaniards, and

Pooe Innocent I I I . the dcf in i t i re boundar ics of '

cont inental Portugal were reached and the

kingll' office assumed by Aflbnso III in Iu63'

During this process the Portuguese followed

the policl-' of'repopulation with fbreigners (manr'

o l ' thcm F rench pi lgr ims and rdr ent urers)

which was so success(ul in Spain' It was Aflbnso

I Henr iques, ru ler f iom r rz8 to r t85, who bui l t

the enduring core ofthe state, as his grandfather

Alfonso VI had done in Spain. Many of the

Romanesque churches date from this prosper-

ous and effective reiP;n.

Allonso Henriques's birthplace, the castle of-

Guimaries, is realll ' the cradle of Portugal lt

goes back to g27, but was rebuilt by Henry I

about r roo. and may'st i l l be seen to-day, the

finest example of Romanesque fbrtification in

Portugal i fnot in the Peninst t la l ts bold aus-

tere bat t lementcd towers are lu l l of the sever i t !

of the time, and enormously picturesquc' Near

b-v is the little nave-and-chancel church of Sio

Miguel clo Castelo, where, probably, Affonso

Henr iques was bapt ized in r r I I . ro

The r ise o[ the towns' which occurrcd in the

twelfth and thirteenth centuries in Portugal, is

aptl-\ illustrated by a contemporary monument

(about rzoo) theDomusMunic ipal isorCoun-

c i l Ha l l a t B rag r rnqa l z55 l . Th i s un ique examp lc

of 'c iv ic archi tecture ( in p lan r l ther l ike a f ive-

s ided pocket , on account of 'an i r regular s i te) is

placed over a cistern adioining t he castle church'

In function it resembled an abbey chapter-

house; like a chapter-house it h:ts a stone bench

running cnt i re lv around i t . ' fhe

intcr ior is two-

naved. and wooden-rool 'ed ' ' f hus i t was possib le

to carry a gallery with thirty-cight windows en-.

tirel.v round it at the top of the wall a rare mottl

among existing buildings, but already reported

in Abbot Odi lo 's dormitor-v at Clunl . l ro4l . ' Ihe

na r r l l e l be tueen rhe two cons t t uc t i ons o f r o ' 15

3 J O s p A r N , P o R T U G A T _ j A N D T H E H O L y L A N D

and r2oo points to the re lat ive conservat ism of

c i r ic archi tecture. j '

Braga, the capital of Portugal from ro9-3 to

rr47, was placcd in thc ccclesiastical province

o1'Sant iago, when the archbishopr ic was set up

in r r zo at the expense of ' the ancicnt d ieni tv o l -

\ I6r ida; but th is merely recognizecl an er is t ingstate ol'affairs. Artistic influences had long bcencoming l rom Astur ias and Gal ic ia. We have in_dicated that the tenth-centur.r, church of l.ou_rosa is the bcst exist ing representat i r .e of theSantiago Cathcdral which was built between86r and Ug6.

' l 'he s impler Romanesque churches

carr'\' on the schcme so often used in the smallAstur ian bui ld ings, of a nare, and a smal lershedl ike sanuu:rry beyond (e.g. Sio Miguel doCastelo at Guimar ies, r . r roo); but under new

influences we find that the cletail is Romanesq 1rc' fhe same is t ruc fbr the church of 'Cedofc i t l in

Opo r to ( r r zo i ) ; a t Fe r re i r a t he nc r . r i n l l u cn t t .have brought a Poi tevin apse.3( ,

The local building material, granitc, is x1course s imi lar to that in Gal ic ia; hencc thc

Portuguese bui ld ings as a ru le, l ike the Gal ic ian,are wisely kept simplc, ancl whcrc elaboratesculptural clle'cts are (by exception) sought fbr..the lbrms show the l imi t : r t ions o1' rhe hardmaterial r er1'cle arly.

Pi lgr image and Burgundian Romanesque in_f l ucnces sho r r t hemse l r es i n t he more amb i t i ou .Portugucse bui ld ings.r I Sio Salvador,

- I ravancir

( r ' . r r5o.)) and Sio Pedro, Rates (af ter r r 5z) aretriapsidal

'fravanca with thc traditional deen

rec tangu la rapseon t he ax i s . Bo th chu rches ha re

256. Coimbra C.athedral, begrtn t I6z.

from thc north-ucst

the familiar grouped piers ancl pointed arches,

though the1. were never vaulted. Even more

naturallv do Pilgrimage and Bulgundian inflr-r-

ences come to the cathcdrals uhich Ferc bui l t

progressivcll' as the conquest and repopuhtion

went forward. until, south of the Duero, the Iate

date brings in Gothic architecture instead.

Something remains of the cathedral ofBraga'

a t r iapsidal t ru i ld ing or ig inr l l l begun about

t roo, and connected wi th Sant iago through the

legend that Sio Pedro de Rates, a supposed dis-

S T I ' L - E S D E P E N D E N T O N F R A N C ] E .l.l r

c ip le of St Jamcs, was thc or ig inal fbunder of the

church in Braga. At Oporto a similar triapsidal

cathedral church has been almost complctely

t ransformcd.

, { t L isbon there has becn much rcbui ld ing,

but the cathsdral has been understandingll' '

restorcd to something like its original fbrm. It

s tands pret t i lv on a s lope and st i l l dominatcs i ts

quarter wi th a wel l -proport ioned two-tower

laqade and porch. The nave has an ais lc to cach

side; therc is a t ransept wi th a lantern, and'

gl*w*k*;"ilH'&, o*.ffi

:5.5 . I3 raganga, X{un ic ipa l Ha l l , r . r :oo

I

3 3 2 S p A I N , p O R T U G A L , A N D T H E H O L y L A N D

bevond, an ambulatory of Gothic r ibbed con_ the vaul t of the cathedral and thus mak,.a i r - - ,s t ruct ion wi th radiat ing chapels. There were ingplat formthere.

- - - " -" ' u t tsht-

Engl ishandFlemingsinthepi lgr imbandwhich The inter ior , especia l ly when seen rr rnr th.captured the c i ty in t t47, and i t rvas one of the quadrant_r .aul t .d gol l . . i : abore the , i1. r , ,1:Englishmen, Ralph of Hastings, who began the very elegant and harmonious. The orr,.... .construdion of the cathedral in r r 5o. The supported of'course on ,rr. g-i" ,,rr,ri,, _ i],l itchurch is , however, not an Engr ish bui td ing; a is les,andthereisatunnervaul twi thrransrcrseit has the Latin character and the fastidious arches over the nave, which is without a clere-warmth which we have ment ioned in speaking story. 1 'he lantern, square and r ib_r,aulrccr , isof the finest Spanish Romanesque buildings.32 carried high, and the l(ht which it sheds un theLisbon cathedral shared two masters, Robert head end of the church is a happy f earure ot. rheand.Bernardo, u'ith the cathedral of coimbrarr interioreffect.[.256], norv called the 56 Velha because its func_ t"or", O.i"g in the south beyond the.fagus,tion has been transferred to a newer building. was not captured from the Moors until r166,Work was begun on the Se Velha in r16z, jult when the sanctuary of paris Cathedral s.as al_alier Santiago Cathedral was finished. In this ready under corrst.uctiorr. At Evora a spaciouscase the Portuguese architects produced a char- cathedral was started in the Romanesque sr1,leacteristic variation on the theme of Santiago de in r rg5 or r rg6 and consecrated in rzo4, tenCompostela. The resulti.

resem br i n g that o f San "l:,',::11 "1,1"1_?f : ffiT"'[1'5:;ruffi ,:f i:1H:,TlT:r

fir'e.nave bays, a transept with a t..min"l p.o- dral has the last of the peninsular cimborios infect ing ba1'at each end' and three apses - but the Romanesque t radi t ion, bui l t about r :s :the superstructure, suffused with an elegance when the wonderful chevet ofBeauvais cathc-w}ich betokens an appreciation of the delicacy dral was being reconstructed. yet the cathedralof xloslem arr on rhe part of its designers and of Eo o." il;?il;;;;ihii harf:Gothic, ,,, irhcraftsmen, has a verv different temper from the ribbed .omes over the aisres, and a strong c.is_robustBurgundian sanvicenteant l theopulent terc ian or other Burgundian rnf luence in thcLanguedocian santiago. Decorative a.lditiorrs plan and in many of the details.

.fhe church hrsby' 'Joio

de Ruio' (Jean de Rouen) and his u ,,rr. ..rd aisles of six bays, rhe transept er_school carlv in the sixteenrh centur),have made tending beyond them. The sanctuarl. has beenthe building intcresting to historians of Early rebuilt, unfortunately i. ,rr.'.rrT;'.;il,;:iRenaissance archi tecture wi thout real ly spoi l_ not in a Gothic centurv; fbr the Romanesqueing i t . I t s t i l l reta ins i ts severe west f ront , wi th was st i l l beloved in portugal c lurrng the Gothiccorner turrets and a proiecting shallow tower_ period.jllike mass comprehending the <ieepl,"-' embra- The great quarities of the 'ery spacious cis-sured main portal and rvcst window of the tercian abbey: church at Alcobaga, to whichchurch. Except fbr a corbel table or.e r the portal ref.erence has already U..n -"a., o'J _;#.;-and smal l arches i r t the windows, the walrs r ise que qr . ra l i t ies, a l though the church was bui lshecr' and they are crowned vigorouslv and between r r5g and rzz3. one might well cat thcprettill ' ' with Moorish battlements (cubes or hall church (here so magnificentrl represenrerrsquare parrr l le lepipeda abo'e the parapet ' l in- insturdl . r ibbedconstruct ion)atransf igurat ion.ished with pvramidal blocks). On account of the bv the genius of poitou, of the F-irst Romanes-mild climarc of coimbra, ir was possible ro pave que hail church type which we have followed in

6odest examples of the tenth and ele'enth

.enturles't" nt l , ont. do u c 6nd this outstrnding erample

^f 'Cirr.r . i rn architcctttrc-here at \ lcobaqa in

l"rn-or. fotrugtl . but in addit ion thc 1'r:mplars

"i .-r.p..r"ntt t t

by one of thc f inest of thcir

i 'ui fainst st i l l exist ing the church ot rhc Con-

]Jn,o ao Crit ,o , t ' l 'omar

| 257' :58 l ' " G traldino

pri, *.r elecrecl Grand Nlaster ot the Order of

t i . Tr-pl. in Portugal in rr5o, and i t was he

who fortified Tomar' at the time still close to the

Moorish frontier. The church goes back to r r6z,

with the addition of a nave in the fantastic late

Portuguese Gothic and transitional stylc called

Manuelino.

T H E T E M P L A R S A N D T I I E H ( ) S P I T A t , L } , R S

Since we are about to lbllow Flcnch Roman-

esque architecturc to the Near East, this is an

appropriate place to consider the reflex from

another pilgrimage the great intcrnatitrnal

pilgrimage and series of Crusades to the Holv

Land. These movements werc' greatlv facili-

tated, and serious help was given to individuals

and to the Chr ist ian Levant ine states. b1' the

military Orders of Templars and Hospitallers.

Both Orders had dependencies in Europe which

served pilgrims and wa1''farers, encouraged re-

cruitment, and provided income lbr the grert

work ofdefence, protection' and charitable care

which the Orders perlblmed in the East NIedi-

terranean area.

The 'Poor Knights of the Christ and the

Temple of Solomon' are remembered fbr con-

siderable works of building. 'l 'he

Order was

founded b-r- Hugh oi Pa1'ns, a Burgundian, and

Godefroy of Saint-Omer in the north of'France.

In r r rg thel 'undertook the obl igat ion to pro-

tect pilgrims on the Palestinian roads. Joined

soon after by other knights, they banded them-

selves togethel to l i re in chast i ty , obedience,

and povertv ilccording to the rule ofSt Benedict,

s r \ L E s D E e E N D l . N l o N F R A N c t E i - l - l

g l v rng L rp t he f r i vo l ous ch i r a l r l , o f ' t he dav ' t o

f ight f or the t rue and suprcme King' . ' l 'he-v

had

man! rr'c1xi1s lrorn the vagabond crowd of' rogues

;1n{ impious men, robbers and sacr i -

legious- murderers, per iurers and adul terers '

( to grv(- St Bcrnard 's l is t ) who over l looded the

Hol l - [ - ln t l in search of 'salvat ion and plunder,

which 11'g1g both avai lable thcre. St Bernard

sponsorcd the morement; i ts ru le was sanc-

t ioncd 11 the Counci l of ' l ' roves, and soon thc

Order rl'as establishcd in irlmost all thc king-

doms o1' I -at in Chr istcndom. Bclbre long i t had

rich eq{6s'rpents and cxceptionirl privilcgcs;

i t becapl6 a polrer fu l internat ional inst i tut ion

with establi<hments rvhereler crusrrding enthu-

s iasm could be st i r rcd.

-{ t J crusalem quirr tcrs u ere ear l l g i r cn to thc' Iemp111s

in Balduin I I 's palace adjo in ing the

l)ome 1)f 15s Rock, ( r8.5 9r (miscal led the Nlos-

que ol (161r,) and the'Distant 'X{osque el \qsa

(eighth centur-v, ro1-5, and later) , both on the

imposing rock plat lbrm u'here Solomon's Tenr-

ple an3 thc later templcs al l had stood. Both of '

the mo5qvss (churches under thc C,rusaders)

ancl otr occasion the porticoes of the 'l 'emple

platfbrrn entered into the Templars' pattern tbr

church bui ld ing in the Ordcr.

Thc mosquc cal led the Dome of . the Rock is a

great n.rasterpiece of Nloslem architecture, ul-

t imatr l l , inspired t iom thc Rotunda ot the

Anast ;1si5 at the Church of the Hol l ' Sepulchre.

I t takcs one part o l ' i ts name from a rvood-bui l t

centritl dome carried on a cvlindrical wall

piercc{ b1' columnar arcades. 'l 'hc

dome covers

a rockl outcrop stcred to the }{oslcms because

Mohammed is said to have ascended to hcaven

from i t but the rock is bcl ieved to have been

sacrct l in Jewish t imes also. Onl l thc c lergv

might cn1s1 the domed sanctuary; other wor-

shippcrs rcmaincd in thc a is les (a lso wooden-

rooted) which envelop the cyl indcr, but are

bouncled b1'an octagonal extcr ior wal l . ' l 'h is

arrangement ofcentra l rotunda ancl annular a is le

LILLLU J.ll.l.l.[)

iii iii t

-)Ja

I

u -57 and z-58. T'omar,(lhurch ofthc Convento do Cristo,plan (K.J.C.) and sancuan,

was used by the Templars in a l imi ted numberof their most important churches, and oftenaugmented later by a choir or nave, or by both.

The I'emplars built vaulted churchcs in theRomanesque or Gothic id iom of their t imes,and quite lost the enchantment of'their orientaloriginals. Like Cistercian architecture, the'femplars'

works tend to be monotonous, andnot one of them ever rated high as an archi_tectural masterpiece. The real architecturalgenius of the West never took on the' femplars '

problem as such. Their establishments werelike contemporary conyentual structures, withlittle or norhing specifically T'cmplar, except,occasionally, the church.

'I'he great Tcmplar church of the Con,r,cnto

do Cr isto ar Tomarr5 [257,2581, a l ready mcn_tioned, is a notable exception.

'I'he older part

of the church, begun between rr5o and rr6z,has a sixtcen-sided exterior aisle wrappecl roundan arched octagonal tower-like structure whichserves as sanctuary.

'fhe stvle here is half_

Gothic.

d - L t 5 r i / r - g

- i i -

l iili

11 the Templar church ol ' the Vera Crtz at

a.uoJ, in Spain the ambulator l is s ixtecn-

. l l " "a; t t t t smal l centra l compartmenl ls two-

l . r . t .a ' and there are-proiect ing apses loward

; ; ; ; t , - l ike those of a normal church' Thc

i r , . t r os i s g i vcn fo r t h i s bu i l d i ng ' ' "

The Templars f lour ishcd in Nararre under

Sancho the Wise (rr5o-94)' 'I 'he

octagon at

iunate may wel l belong to h is t ime Eunalc ' ; is

l i tu. t .d near Puente la Reina' whcre the Pi l -

cr image Roads l rom France al l jo ined' I t was a

i i lgr ims' bur ia l church. not a ' femplars ' church,

ihJugh c le" t ly bui l t under the inf luence of the

Templars. The octagon is well proportioned,

but it has no interior compartment; it is rib-

vaulted, and has a rib-vaulted apse at thc east'

The church stands free in a remarkable arcaded

court which recalls (with a difference) the por-

ticoes ofthe'Iemple platform in Jerusalcm ; but

z5g. Laon, 'I'emplars'

Church, r. r I6o

S T Y L E S D E P E N D ! ] N T O N F R A N C E - ] 1 5

the connexion is not proved and the arrange-

ment is not in its original condition.

The odd arcadcd court, with some Moslem

detail, which stands beside the little wide-naved

church of San Juan de Duero may be related to

Eunate, or perhaps to the atrium of a mosque.

The church belonged to the Hospitallers of St

John of Jerusalem, anothcr of thc militarl.

orders.

N{ore familiar among the Tcmplars' churches

is the octagon at Laon, in northern Francerr

[259] , dated about r I6o; th is church has al readl '

been mentioned. The greatest church of the

'l'emplars in France was that in Paris, destroyed

at the Revolution. It was built as a rotunda

about r r5o, but cxtended by a porch and a vast

choir later on.

In England one well-known'Iemplar shrinc

survives, the -l'emple

Church, London, con-

-^-

3 3 6 s P A I N , P O R T U G A L ' A N D T H E H O L Y L A N D

'-**r-*"&rsjw

;( io. Canrbr idgc, St Sepulchrc, i . I t3o

secrated in r r85, a longl wi th three re latcd

churches thc Norman rotunda ol 'St Sepul-

chre, Crmbr idge (bui l t about r r30) [z(ro] ; St

Scpulchre, Northampton; and the supposed

Hospi ta l lers ' church of L i t t le Nlaplestcad (r ' .

r r rg r27z, later rebui l t ) . ' I 'hc Temple Church,

London, is a good examplc of thc E,ar l1 L-ngl ish

Gothic sty'le, with stronpi Burgundian and othcr

Romanesque reminiscences. An oblong choir

was added in the ( ioth ic sty le about rz4o.r"

No 'l 'cmplar 'Comnrndcr'1--' survives com-

pletc. but such a group rvould bc easil,' ' under-

standablc on thc basis of 'what we know of

monastic architecturc. The knights thcn.rselres

would havc quartcrs rescmbling those of I mon-

aster l ' of ' the t ime, integratecl wi th thc church.

Quarters like those of the monastery scrvants

would be provided fbr thc servitors and garri-

son. Some establ ishments werc l ike manors. In

Palestinc the 1'cmplars manned Crusader lbrti-

fications; thel lrcquently built irnd streng-

thcned cast lcs, as necd arose.

Af ter the suppression of the ' Iemplars,

111.

bulk of their property passed to the Otdcr 1;1 '

the Knights Hospi ta l lers o l ' St John of ' - l r rLrr

salem (b1' r3zo). 1 'heHospi ta l lcrsactual l l anrc-

dated the ' l 'emplars,

having been organizrd

about r r r .1. Gcrard, the I i rs t Nlaster of '1har

I louse of God the Hospi ta l fbr the supporr of '

p i lgr ims and the neccssi t ies of the Poor ' , r r1.

conf i rmed bl Popc Pascal I I in Februar l of th. r t

1car. The pi lgr ims wcrc o l ien both poor i rnd

sick; the Hospitallcrs especiall-v carcd (irr sur[

unfbr tunates in their 'Palace

of the Sick ' in

Jr : rusalem. The hospice was located ,ust sourh

of the Church o1-the Holy Sepulchre, br Santr

X, lar ia Lat ina, and i t soon had accommodat i , rn

fbr 75o s ick poor. In r 16o John of Wi i rzburs-

leports 2ooo s ick and rvounded being carcd Ior

there. lv i th i r morta l i t l of l i f t l 'a da1'-' l 'he

Hospi ta l lers lbught a lso; thel he ld,

anrong othcrs, the grcxt fbrtrcsses at thc Kr.,.lk

des Cheval iers (af ter r r4z; r ' . rzoo) [z{r r l , ant l

\'largat (r'. r zoo) 'with

man) towers that scentc(l

to sustain the sky . . . eagles lnd vul tures alont

could rcach i ts ramparts ' . r .

In Er.rropc the Hospitallers had vast posscs-

s ions, wi th myr i rds of bui ld ings of 'a l l sor ts.

sccular and ecclesiastical, but no charactcristie

architccture. One striking Commanderv is pre-

servcd, at Saint-Andrf i t Luz, rz6o.rr I t dor '

not inc lude a hospice, but i ts gr im st i l l hal t -

Romanesque fbrms and i ts lbr t i f ied church r lc

otherwise very expressivc. At th is late per i t , t l

the Hospitallcrs also participated in thc con-

sl ruct ion ol hrst i t les, but thc lat ter t re prop( ' r l \

s tudied under thc herding of c iv ic p lanning

and design in the Gothic epoch.

T I I F . I I O L Y L A \ D

Examples of French Romanesque archi tectr t re

s t i l l e x i s t i n t he I I o l l l . and as w i t nesses t o t l t '

Crusades, which, though a spir i tual movcmerl t .

rcsulted in thc establishment of a nunrber ot

Lat in states ru led by.French dvnasts real l r . t

z6r. The Krrk clcs ('heralters,

loose colonial empire attachcd to Francc by

biood, historv, and sentiment lt wls a !rench

Pope, Urban I I , who' af ter a iournef f r3m

Parma through lirance along a route burgeonln!i

with new Ro*"n.rqu. churches, preached the

First Crusacle at Clermont-Fcrrand on z6 Nov-

ember to95. ln the presence of lburteen l rch-

bishops, about z5o bishops and about '+oo

abbors fiom Francc, Ital-v, and Spain, he pro-

nounced a remarkable tddress in Romance'

making a drarnatic cali upon Iirench picty and

chivalric pride. 'fhe

response was enormous'

and it had the efl'cct ol re-uniting Western

Christcnclom behincl Urban II at the expense

of the Ant ipoPe Clcment I I I ''I 'hcre

was precedent tbr thc enterprlse ln il

force gathercd in Io7.1 bv Gregor] ' YI I ' -a l -

though the troops were not sent to thc Near

E.r t . ' I t was Urbi tn 's p lca that the Crusade

shou ld bc an o rg l n r zcd e rpcd i t i on ' bu t t hc

great waves of'em<ltion which rvere generateo

sent throngs eastward prematurcll ' with great

S T Y L E S D E P E N D E N T 0 N F R A N C E - 1 3 / -

losses and suffering Later the 1'emplars and

Hospitallcrs mitigated sr-rch distress somewnat'

A great military ellbrt came earl-v ; b1 r o97 thele

*.:r. ,5o,ooo .oldicrs in Constantinople on thcir

wa-v to the Holy Land, whereas in t ott'1. a. group.

of Tooo pi lgr ims including the archbishop ot .

It"i.r, ort, .onsiclered remarkablc in point of

n r tmbc rs .

With considerable support fiom thc fleets ot

the Italian maritime cities thc Crusade'r hosts

aclvanced, and capturecl Jertrsalem on I5 Jul!-

,ogq, ,*o weeks befbre L-lrban II died 'Ihe-v

ha.l-not madc lrcll-reasoncd arrangemcnts fbr

l he go re rnmen t o l ' t he i r t e r r i t o r i c s ' and we re

thuJat the mcrcl of inte rnecine iealousics ' whi le

th. N{url.*.. clisunitecl in ro99' reassembled

thcir strcngth. 'Ihe

Crusaders missed thcir earl-v

. rppnr,uni i t lo capturc Dam:rscus lnd \ lcppo'

* ' h i . h *uu id ha rc cu t t he \ l os l em dom in ions

irr two; conscqucntlv the dettnce of ('hristirrn

Palestine was much more diflicult' and ulti-

matell hopeless Perfidy end brigandage b1

w@' :'.1:).:.

clcs Cheraliers, r. tzoo

t

3 3 8 s P A I N , P O R T U G A L , A N D T H E H O L Y L A N D

irresponsible Christians made it necessary for

the Moslems to destrol' the Crusader states.

Jerusalem itself was lost in r r87, and its King-

dom came to an end in t244.

A theocratic government was first attempted

under the former bishop of Pisa, Daimbert, who

had accompanied Urban I I to France, and as-

s isted in the consecrat ion at Cluny' I I I in rog-5.

He came to Palestinc with the Pisan fleet, and

r.rnsuccessfull-v tried to set up a state like the

Papal Patr imony. ' Ihe ecclesiast ical interest ,

holvever, was alwavs strong, and al ier thc man-

ncr of i ts k ind, succeeded in gain ing con-

siderable fiscal advantages. This meant ample

resources for building.

l'he best-known construction which resulted

is the Crusadcr enlargemcnt of the Church of

the Holy. Sepulchrel2 [262, 263]. 1'he originrrl

Constantinian Martl-rion had been destlolq4.

and the Rotunda twice rebui l t - in . ( r r4 . : r1 6,the Patr iarch Nlodestos, and in ro.15 8 hr 11. , .

Emperor Constantine \lonomachos. FIe 1.-

storcd the Tomb of Chr ist , the Rotuncla abqnl

i t , and the ambulatory ' wi th radiat ing chapel5

on its wcstern side besides which he ;rcldgfl

new apses on the eastern s ide of the Rotunt la.'fhe

Crusaders rcplaced these lpses with a Jolg

trxnsept entered through the frmous clouble

portal of its south fagade, which is for us b1 lirr

thc most lami l iar aspect of the church. ' lhg

lagade is flanked on the east b't' a small domcd

vest ibulc, and on the wcst bv a bel f r l . toner. \ t

the crossing of the t ransept, on the east- \ \ rsr

axis of the Rotunda of the Anastasis, a snral l

dome was bui l t ( the model lbr the lantcrn rr t

Zamora\ and the cilst-west aris rras further

. t ̂ tanstt! ) and 2o3. Jerusalem, Church of the HolJ' Sepulchre' dedicated r I49'

th'

"I5"4"'o' oI Crusa'1ers' transept

i i ox r t - '' : : i * s .& l'. .". * *Sb { r*

t *-t ''i tt l'

C A L V A R f' . i ,

@

( ] H, , \ IE L

C E N T U R Y

| + t H

ll."l,:l 7 rrr

NN I r ru

f_l Lat t ,

ffi.w "l$r-:il}*

* - - - r s q

n ffi N -;r rNrr#'h,u' str

W * W f r

. 5

*.;:rwrt$f .{'Zr' l

.r-

-?-,,4"

3 4 o s p A r N , P O R T U G A L , A N D T H E H O L Y L A N D

prolonged across a choir to a new eastern apse

surrounded by an ambulatory and radiating

chapels. Thus the new porrion of the church

was in effect like the transept and chevet of a

Pilgrimage church. The ambulatory was re-

quired in order to provide communication with

earlier shrines on the site. Bevond the apse, the

crypt of the Martyrion basilica survived as the

Chapel o[ St Helena, and a sub-crypt opening

downward to the east from it was none other

than the grotto where, according to tradition,

the relics of the Holv Cross were found by the

Empress Helena in 326. Beside the choir on the

south, and served bv the choir ambulatory, a

raised chapel was built over the traditional Rock

ofCalvary. Exterior access to the Calvary chapel

was through the small domed vestibule already

mentioned. The dome of the Chapel of St

Helena projected upward into rhe garth of the

cloister of a monastcry built fbr Augustinian

canons who served the Hol l 'Sepulchre; th is

lay to the east of the new apse.

This work has largely 'surv ived, though dis-

f igured in parts, and much of the rest is at

present under restoration. Therc is a consider-

able though not disturbing variety in style and

fabric. Fine Syrian limestone is the material

used, and the original work is beautifully cut.

Four rcigning sovereigns of French nationa-

lity were present, during the Second Crusade,

at the dedication of the new lvork, which took

place on r5 July r r49, thc f i f t ie th anniversary

of the f 'a l l of the c i ty in ro99. l t is l ikely. rhar the

bui ld ing was complere at rhe t ime, a l though

there was no specia l need for- the Crusaders to

bui ld in a hurry the Rorunda of ro45 8 which

they took oyer was a fa i r lv spacious bui ld ing.

The existing work is very complex stylistically:

thcre is a range all the way fiom the classicism

of thc transept cornices through the half--

Pror,cngal-half-Poitevin transept and sanctuarl'

to the Gothic bell-tower. The high vault of the

transept is r ibbed, and i ts design has an odd

Burgundian f lavour. ' l 'he

dome is of Levant ine

form. It is much to be hoped that there ma1, b.,,

sympathetic restoration of the Crusader [.o1;

and the Rotunda, where Constantine NIo16_

machos's work was buried within clumsl. ar*cading after a fire of r8o8. The old builclinq

retains a certa in d igni ty in spi te ofa l l i ts drr l r_

ters and the divisioning which has been neccs-

sary in order to accornmodate the various sccts

which possess r ights in the bui ld ing. I ts greatest

moment is at the Orthodox Easter , wi th thg

traditional ceremony of the new Easter firc,

brought l rom the tomb to the mul t i tude wai t ing,

in the darkened Rotunda, with their cancllcs

ready for the symbolic light.

The beautit'ul south doorways ofthe transcpt

ofthe Church ofthe Holy Sepulchre are exccp-

tional in their richness. The carved lintels, rvith

scroll-work and figures, recall early twelfih-

century Toulousan work.a3

Crusader masonrv is fine, and the buildings

make their point bv ercellence of construction,

on which account they are in many cases srill

preservetl entire with but little change. In lirrrl

and execution they are comparable to good

French work; the designers were obviouslv men

in close communication with the motherland.

Many churches were in Cistercian or Burgun-

dian half-Gothic style, though with the rerracc

roofs which the climate permits. The cathedrul

of Beirut (now the chief o ld mosque of the c i t l )

is fairly typical. It has a dignified nave of fi.e

bays wi th a tunncl vaul t wi th t rans\ ,erse arches

and a clerestory. The aisles are groin-vaultcd.

and the east end is t r iapsidal . Pointcd arches.rrc

usecl ; and th is, too, is qui te general in thc Clrr -

sader churches. Tyre, Caesarea, and Sebast ich

have transepts. 'I 'ortosa

has chapels arrangctl

like the Orthodox prothesis and diaconicon; the

C, luniac pr iory church on Mount Tabor (nou

destroyed) had western towers provided rvith

small interior chapels. Apses enclosed in bloclt

masses of masonrv (as is occasional ly the casc t t t

Provence) occur at Nazareth. Ramleh, Mount' I 'abor,

Tortosa, Caesarea. G.oin- t"u l ted n, t , . t

. re uouSul l . but do occur. lbr instance' at St

inn. in J. .u.utem St Annc has a crossing rT i th

, 'aoa. on pc.ndent i \ ( js resembl ing thosc of

i1r igord, which is a lso unusur l "

' -T ies. bui ld ings har e somehow kept a l i r e the

rel ig ious aspect of the Crusadc' too of tqn lbr-

ootLn in t t t . t " l .s of ignoble conrpcr i t ions ' greed'

ierfidy, lealousl '^suffering of innocent \4oslem

folk and waste of human rcsourccs' lvhich are

such conspicuous f'eatures of Llrusader history-'

Arab observers seem to indicate that the popu-

lation of the Christian states was relativell' well

off, and the shrines which still remain breathe

ofa satisfYing religious lif'e.

In passing, Cyprus should be mentioned lt

was conquered by Richard Cceur de Lion in

rr9r , on his wav to the Holy Land dur ing the

Third Crusade, and sold to Gu!' de Lusignan;

the Lusignans held i t unt i l I -189. Bel lapais

Abbey, Cistercian in character though dated

c. r324-g, remains, wi th seleral c ls t les, i rs a

memoria l lo their regimc. ' '

I X C H A N G E O F I N F L U E N C E S :

T H E P R O B L E M O F A R M E N I A

Sir Alfred Clapham, in his exccllent book

Romanesque Architetture in Il/estern Europe'

takes occasion in the chapter on the Holy Land

and the East to consider the theorics of oriental

influence on Romanesquc architecture. Hc was,

quite rightly, a convinced 'Westerncr' inclined

to place high discounts on theories of clirect in-

fluence, except where trust\{'orthv historical

information is available'. 'fhis

is the case with

the Templar churches, rvhere the Western imi-

tation is admittedl]' \,ery imperfect. Supposed

derivations too often repose on guesswork and

suPerficial resemblanccs.

Stress was laid by Sir Alfrcd on the point that

intercourse between East and \\jest sufered no

interruption at the fall of the \\iestern Empire'

and that the rcconquest undcr Just in ian ren-

dered Eastern influence in It,rl1. :rnd parts of

S T Y L E S D E P [ , N D [ , I , { T O N F R A N C L 1 1 I

Spain stronger than i t had been befbre. This

was true also of the Nloslem conquosts and the

Iconoclast ic t roubles, which expatr iatcd vast

numbers of'Greeks some of them artists, some

ofthem patrons with a taste fbr Eastcrn art. 'I 'he

Ottonian Bl zantinism afi'ectcd architecture but

l i t t le . Bt Ottonian t imes divcrgcnces betwcen

East and West were strong in churchmanship

and monastic practice especially strong at thc

t ime rvhen Romancsque archi tecture uas being

formed. Consequent l l ' , at that t ime the actrra l

oriental inlluencc was relatively small, be1-'ond

what was bcing absorbcd by a sort ofarchi tec-

tural osmosis.

Critics with sound architectural training

and Sir Alfred \\'as one are littlc imprcssed b,-v

supcrlicial and literary resemblance s when

practical and structural elemcnts do not corres-

pond. -I'his

objection is valicl in the case of Ar-

menian archi tecture, rvhich is the most subt le,

I in ished, and impressive of a l l the proto-

Romanesque stv les.

The - \ rne nian archi tccts deal t wi th the same

elements ant l manv of the same condi t ions as

the Romanesque archi tects of the West. Thcl '

developed paral lc l solut ions at an ear l ier pcr iod,

and s ince thel- t iced their bui ld ings l ' i th ashlar ,

the superf ic ia l appearance of the bui ld ings is

somet imes qui te s imi lar to Romancsque. One

of the most notable bui ld ings in th is respect is

the cathedral of . {n i (98q rool) b.v ' I rdat . This

is a domed basi l ica possessinp; grouped piers;

pointed arches, r ibs. lnc l Iaul t ; decorat i re cx-

ter ior arcading somewhat re sembl ing Pisan

work, and (befbre i ts destruct ion) a gracef i r l

crossing toner wi th a dome on drum and pen-

dent ives. ' lhe

Armenian church designs most

t \ p i c a l l \ ' b u i l d u p ' i n t o d o m e s a n d t u u e r s o f

th is t1 'pe. The not iceable lack ol th is arrange-

ment in supposed imi tat ions counts hear i l l '

against the idea of d i rect inf luence f iom Ar-

menia on the Occic lent .

Simi lar doubt : l t te nds the idea o1'd i rect tn-

f luence f iom - \ rme nian r ibbed vaul t construc-

3 4 2 S p A I N , p O R T U G A L , A N D T H E H O L y L A N D

t ion to the West. ' l 'he

historr ,of ' th is sort of r .aul tconstruction in Armenia begins with SurbI{r ips im6 at Valarshapat (6rg) , rvhere twelvedecorat ive r ibs exist , probabl l suggested br StSophia in Constant inople, but ibrmine ( ingroups of threc) the arms of 'a la.ge decoiat ivecross on the soflit of the dome. The Roman_esque-loofting -{rmenian ribbetl work of thetenth centur\ is a passing phase ; fbr th e clcr cloo_men t con t i nues i n t o i ngen ious c t ,mh ina t i on , o l .r ibs arrangcd (somct imes over fbur supports)like a printer's sign for space ftf ) wirh a turret arthe summit. centrall\ placecl. In l.act, the Ar_menians rvere alwa\-s interested in ccntralizedr ib schemcs, and these hare had onlv s l ight in_f l uence i n r hc \ \ c s t .

It is knorvn that the .\rmcnians r.ere goodmasons . and | e r f t xp . somr th i ng o l t he f i nequal i t , r o l ' the ( . ru"-ader churches in Svr ia is dueto them; but thc Sr. r ians, equal l1. , are goodmasons, ; rnd douht lcss good masonr a*rna l iornFrance. I t is s igni f icant that u,hen rhe Frenchpatrons rvere actualh, c lose to . { rmenia and i tsarchi tecture ancl indeecl there uere Armeniansin - ferusalem also the archi tectural in l luenccrvas ni l , or but l i t t le more . Instcad, rvc have an'6cole

d 'outrc-mcr ' lvhich is verv largelr . Bur_gundian and Prorenqal Frcnch.

.{n authentic case of influence f rom the Near.East on the Romanesclr-re and Gothic norlcl isol]'ered br rhe lbrtifications. .I.he

Crusaderslearned ' thc

hrrrd waf ibout Bvzanr ine and-{rab impror ments on ancient Romln fbr t i f ica_t iorr , which u,as al l , or near l r .a l l , rhc ! t r 'esternersknerv. Iircnch dci.clopmcnts of. thesc Near_Iiastern motil's in fbrtification becamc in the cnclrcal architcctural fl.atures of the French chi_teaux, and occasional l r . of ' the chur.chcs. Theincreasing scrle of rvarfhre in the \\rest for itbecame national in scope in thc course of thetrvel l ihcenturv would inant ,caschavebrouehtabuu t i nno r l t i ons an t l imp ro ,e * . . n t , . non_taneous l . \ i n r he Occ idcn r . because o l r he h i eh

o rde r o l t a l en t a t t r ac l ed t o t he p rob len r , : l n r l r h .\ ast resource\ made ar a i lable fo, , . r ron", l

1, ,1_grammes of def'ence.

' l h c ea r l r C rusade r cas r i es i n pa les r i n t .

l r , . rr r a t l r t i ona l squa re o r ob long don jon . .

" ; , 1 , 1 "angu la r su r round ing ua l l s : t r eng rhen . . t U . , , f r llong towers. The perennial shortage ol ,rr,,n_power lbr fighting in the Holy Land made effi_crent design imperat ive. , \ Iuch was lcarnedIiom local examples oi' Byzantine ..d \,.;;lortification, and li.om experienced .ngin..r",,tthe arca. Progressir e impror cmenrs rnclu. l i r r ,r ound t oue rs , t a l L t ses . o thc r de r i ces . . on . . n , r i iarrangements, and regional s ignal l ing bcrrccncast les - taught a lesson to the West.

Richard I Caur de Lion of England, son of .Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II, after pr,rc_tical experience on the Third Crusade, buiit thcfinest o1'the twelfih-century castles in FranceChdteau-Gaillard on the Seine at I_es Andelr s.no t f a r I r on r Rouen ( r t gh 7 ) . I t had p ro j c t . r iD ,gto$e rs . ( h r ce succcs \ i \ e w i t r ds , o f r h i eh r i r ei nne r had *a l l s w i t l r ) ucccss i \ . c con rex n r r r i e r_t ions to increase the ef lect i r eness ol .defcndrr r .fire, and a central donjon. It prefigured the con-centnc cast lcs which were dcle loped in thcth i ncen rh ccn lu r \ - r nd bu i j t . i n impos ing l r r . : r r .bv the Crusader knights in Svr ia ( inc ludins t l , .K rak des Cheva l i e r s and Marga r ) . Fu r rhe r . J . -velopments of machicolated galleries. bratticcs.crcnel lat ions, appl ied to the royal and nobleres i dencc t , g radua l l r ga \e t o , u .h , t r r . t u r . .the picturesque and unmistakable charact t rwhich we lssociate wi th rhe latc medie r . r Ichi tcau. But the development was funct ionrr l .and t he J ) iC tU rcsquencs : r \ as gcnu rne . n , r trontantlc.

P A R T S I X

MATURE RON' IANESQUE ARCHI ECI 'URE

IN THE LANDS ASSOCIA 'TEI )

WITHIN THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE

INTRODUCTION TO C I {AP ] 'ERS 19 -22

The areas which are to be considered in Part

Six have a very loose geographical and stylistic

connexion. Thev oftbr a magniFcent architec-

tural panorarna ol-local developments based

on the primirive Romanesque of the rcspective

regions.

They developed spectacular l r , in scale, r ich-

ness, and supcrior cralismanship from thc local

Ear ly Romanesque st1. les, but lackcd the inven-

t ive dr ive which cventualh.achieved the del in i -

tive solution (in Irrance) of'thc esscntial vaulting

problem. Gothic archi tecture might hare come

out o l a number ot- the schools which we are

about to analvse rhc components of Gothic

were therc; but the est lb l ishcd sry lcs had givcn

a fa i r ly good lccount of themselves, and the hold

of traclition was too strong. A certain unitl' will

be givcn to our cxposi t ion by ment ion of the

lcatures u hich the respective st]'lcs contributcd

to thc dc\ e lopment of 'Gothic archi tecture.

The order to be follorved is geographical,

beginning wi th the ' f

wo Sic i l ies and procceding

northward through I ta lv and, a l tcr an excurs ion

to Dalmat ia and Hungar l , northward again to

the Germanic lands.

I t needs to be emphasized that th is account is

purell topographical, and not dcvelopmental.

L,ach locrrl group has its own historl' but the

strands which are inter lvor en represent st1 ' l is t ic

impulses which we havc scen appear ing in thc

great st l les the sty les al readr t reatcd as our

pr incipal thcrne.

With this comment on the reflex liom thcCrusadcs, rye leave the Hol l .Lant l , : rnd also ibr .a ttme the regions lr,here French influencc l1rr:paramount, in order to take up the subiect o jma lu r c Romanesque a r ch i t c t . t u re i n t he q r c , r ra r c i l s assoc ia ted n . i t h i n t he Ho l r Roman Emt r i r . .

C f l A P T E R I 9

T H E T w o S I C I I L I L ' S

APUL T A

As to the Hol l 'Land, so also to south I ta lv and

Sic i ly , Romanesque arcbi tecture came because

of fabulous l i rench adventur ing. Thc mountain

barrier of the Apennines and the Abruzzi, to-

gether with the stagnant Papal state, kcpt off

influences tiom the north - except what might

come through the pilgrimagc to Nlontc Gar-

gano, and later to Bari while the brilliance of

Byzantine and Moslem civilization was rcflected

from the south and east, then in closc maritime

and political contact with south Italv and Sicilv.

The Eastern Empire had gradually- lost the

Beneventan and Salcrnitan arcas fo local dukc-

doms, and thc is lancl to the Arabs in 9r7, but

reta incd Apul ia, Crr labr ia, ancl thc Basi l icata.

Bcginrring about ro-jo seleral sons ol"l'ancred

of ' Hautsvi l le or Hauttevi l le- la-Guichard, near

Coutances in Normandv, came into thc south

I t l l ian area at the head of Norman bands. and

b1 ro.1r had a strong hold on Apul ia. Onc of thc

sons, Robcrt Guiscard, rvho arr ived in ro4(r , was

bv ro5g rccog;nized as Duke ol ' Apul ia and

Calabr ia; a lso as f i r ture Duke of Sic i l1. , as he

said. ' i f

thc grrce of 'God and St Peter help me' .

The same year marks the consccrat ion of the

f i rst church at thc abbcv of Venosa, which was

bui l t to be the fami l .v panrheon. In ro6r qr

Sic i l l was conquerecl ; Roger I I , Count of 'Sic i lv ,

2b4. Bari, San Nicola, undcr construction to89

3 4 6 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D w I T H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N E M P I R I '

obtained the t i t lc of 'King in r r 3o ; he uni ted ancl

filled out the Normirn posscssions on the main-

land b1 rr37, but in r rg.1 thel ' passed to thr :

Empire . ' l 'he area passed to the Roman l rom the

Blzant ine patr iarchate in the pont i f icate of

Urban I I , and saw hosts of the First Crusade

depart in rc96 7.

The f i rs t ser ious beginnings of Romanesr luq

archi tecture came t t th is t imc, and Lombi l l . ( l

in f luencc. rvhich had played upon Normant l r .

i r s c l l . i s f e l r i n . { pu l i a i n r he o l des r No rn r , r n

church of importance in the south of I ta l l ' . ' l

hc

bui ld ing in qucst ion, San Nicola at Bar i r

lz6q 61, stands as the head ofa regional stJ- l isr ic

As an architectural composition San Nicola

is sophist icated and eclect ic wi th the t races ol a

matur. inai t iat ra l pcrsonal i tv in thc design'

, r th. t t t t tn the s igns ol derelopmenl wi lh in the

frarne ofa tradition'

The church was planned from the first as a

pilgrimage church; here, as earlier at Saint-

lenign", Diion, that meant a large crypt, with

groin vaults az quadrille , supported on columns'

Lombard fashion. Access to the crypt was

arranged by stairways opening into the eastern-

most bays of the church ais les, where there were

suitable lateral entrances' This part of' the

church, with its superstructure, was finished in

rog8, when Pope Urban II held the Council of.

Bari in the building. A large part of the church

was bui l t and embel l ished by r I3z, but the

work dragged on to a dedication in r I96 - a fact

which explains irregularities in the western

towers. With these towers San Nicola became,

in intention at least, a fbur-torver church (one

tower at each corner), and perhaps the original

of a Hungarian group of such buildings' Almost

certainly, however, the fine great bulks of the

western towers one Lombard in appearance,

t he o the r ha l l - o r i en ta l \ e re no t pa r t o l t he

f i rst design, though the sheer prccip ice ol '

masonry which they m:rkc, flanking the strong

basilican profile of the church, is verl' efi-ective'

If San Nicola was indeed at first intended to

have only lhe two s lender sent inel rowcrs at tht '

eastern corners, be-vond thc crossing, it lvould

originally have resembled Sant'Abbondio at

Como (r . ro6J 95) l . ;ool . However. one ol ' the

tower pair has never bcen completed 'l 'hc

aislcs

were raul tet l , as at lhe cathedral o l Pis: r ( rof i . j

ff.). Disorders in the western ba1's of this con-

struct ion hare caused thc int rusion of low dia-

phragm arches spoiling the efitct of the wcst

end of the great nave, rvhich was intended to

rise free. as the castern part does' to the wooden-

trussecl roof abore. - I -hc

handsomc rangic o l

arched spur but t resses on the f lanks, rather l ike

those ofa Poitevin church, has taken care ofthe

i r ' o s r c r L I E s 3 r + 7

c-rut 'warcl thrust of the ais le raul t ing. - \borc i t

thcre is a r ich arcaded ual l -gal lcr l at the t r i -

lbr ium levcl an ear ly cxanrple o l ' th is mot i l ,

rvhich became very common in Lombardl' Thc

tr i lbr ium space i tsc l f . as at Pisa. oPcns upon the

nave through a ser ies of ' t r ip le arches under en-

closing arches; above there is a simple clere-

stor!'t as at Pisa. Analysis thus shows that thc

debt of the bui ld ing to Pisa Cathecir : r l is more

rcal than 2rpparent .

A fur ther debt to Tuscanf is evi t lent in the

nare. d i r idcd into two mir jo l bals ' each corres-

ponding (as at San Nl in iato a l Nlonte, Florence

Iz9o]) to three ais le ba1's calr ied on columns'

As at San Nliniato there is a grouped pier at thc

junction between the maior bays, and it is pos-

sible that a diaphragm arch was inrended (as at

San M in i a ro ) t hough ne re r execu (ed '

It seems likely that the western maior bay was

designed speci f ical ly for the congreg:rr ion l1 ser-

r ices- 'l 'here

arc thrce portals xt the tag:rcle' ancl

there is a lateral porta l in each ais lc at the hcad ot

th is maior ba1' . The eastern maior bal of the

nirr e would then serl'e specilicalh f'or the scholu

(dnturui l t of the monks, market l o l l ' f iom the

publ ic thus leaving the f lanking ais lcs and

portals ibr access to the pilgrimage cr-vpt'

1 'he t ransept opens behind a t r iumphal arch

rvhich f r rmes the al tar and the apsc ln ldc l i t ion,

thcre is iln open three-archecl screen rvhich

ser\es to mirrk of f the monks' choir f iom the

transept, and at the same t ime to strengthen the

sul) l )or ls o l the crossing to\rer ( i rn oclagt ln i t l

l i rntern on squinches). The high rr l tar ' rv i th a

balc lacchino, is p lacecl bcneath, as ol ien in Ear l l

Ch l i s r i an t imes . ' l ' he mode rn a r l l ngemen l r ' l

flanking stalls kceps this area clear fbr thc clergr''

but in thc Romanesque per iod the u 'holc t ran-

se pt of I Benedict inc church would ntr rmal l l be

reserret l fbr the monks' derot ions This ma1'

st i l l bc sensecl in San Nicola, uhcre ' logicalh

t 'nough. lherc l re nu t r i l l )sept por l r t ls

E,ach arm of ' the t ransept has an absid io lc; the

main apse has a s1'nthronon in the Ear l r ' ( 'hr ts-

265 nnd z(16. Bari, San Nicola, r:nder construcrion ro89

FI

I

T l l i t r rI

group localized on the east coast of Norman

Italy'.

The relics ofthe venerablc wonderworker St

Nicholas, b ishop of \ { ,vra in Anatol ia so much

in honour wi th the Greeks and Russians, ant l

knowntousasSantaC.hus had beenabstractct l

t rom his tomb in thc ancient cathedral ancl

brought in ro87 to Bar i , rvhcre they st i l l are, in

x sanctuar) rvhich was al readv bui ld ing in ro[ i t1.

under Benedict ine auspices, to receivc them.

a

-^-.

348 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D \ 1 I T H T N T H E H O L Y R O M A N t , M P I R E

t ian manner, wi th a b ishop's throne on axis. TheBar i

' l 'hrone, as i r is cal lcd, has an interest ins

p lecc i n t hc h i s ro r r o l Romanesquc scu lp t u re ;Ibr , dated ro98, i r is a marure u,ork o l .Guel ie l_mus , onc o l t hc mcn uho f i r s t r encue , l t h . , a r tin I ta lv. I t is possib le thar I re inrcnted rhe wel l_known mot i f of 'a church porta l lv i th i ts columnscarr ied on the backs ofanimals; at anv rate themo t i l dpnce rs i n S ln N i co la a r Ba r i . w i r h r heanimals in the fbrm o1'corbels. :

I t rcmains to ment ion thc box_l ike wal l whichencloses al l the apses of 'San Nicola, and makesa sheer st ra ight east wal l for the church, cm_bellishecl bv the rich rvinclow of the main arrse.a n d i n t c n d c r l t o h l r e t h c : l e n d e r t u i n r o u c r sr is ing abor,e i t at the corners. I t was a Roman_

esque addition, perhaps suglgested b-v thcI-ateran transept [283]. The wall has shallou.arcading with a half-pisan, half_Lombard lookahnut i t . wel l re lated to thc more v isorousbu t t r ess a r cad ing . r he ga l l e r y . and t he po r t a l s .

Nor rhe leasr charm of San Nicoia is i t ,hanclsome ashlar masonry. Thc stone_wort.f inel1.cut , has mcl lo ived to a warnt sof t grevishhrown, acr i r e in rexrurc and l r i th lo, e l r iur i r . .e f l c c t s i n r he sunsh ine .

' f h i s beau r i l i r l . , on . * r .

gencrallv ar.ailable, and its use characterizes thewhole ser ies of bui ld ings re latecl to San Nicola,vert grearl,v to their advantagc.

' l 'he gencral design ol san i ' i . .o la u.as quickl ,

absorbed into Apul ian archi tecture, ,na ,n.resul t ing t lmi ly .of bui ld ings consr l rutes a \er t .

z6j (lpplsitt). 'l 'rani

Cathedral, bcgun Io98' from the west

2f8. Alberobello, trulli (corbelled tlomcs), traditional

at t ract ive regional group ranged along and ncar

the coast north-rvesterll 'from Bari. 'fhc

notable

examples are al l cathedrals. Several of them

stand boldly with their sentinel tolvers close to

the water 's edgc on the Adr iat ic shore, and thus

add to the picturcsqueness of thc rowns. \ lost

closelv rclated to San Nicola are thc cathedrals

o fBa r l e t t a ( beg lun abou t r r 39 , unde r wav i n

rr53, and enlarged in a d i f i -erent st1 ' lc in the

foul tecnth centr . r r l ' ) , B ' , r r i (begun al ter r r56,

under wav in r r7<. ; ) , Bi tonto (begun r r75;porta l

tzoo). Rur o ( t l 'e l f th centur l ' ) , and Bi tct to (morc

or less contemporar l ' ) . r

Less c lear l l l i 'om Bar i is the f i l ia t ion of the

cathedral o1'Tranir [ : ( r71, begun in rogl l and

dedicated to St Nicholas the Pi lgr im, an id iot

boy unable to sal anvthing br t K.1 ' r ie c le ison.

who at t racted pious at tent ion. ' I -h is

p i lgr image

church has a complete cr ] 'pt ; there is a f ine wcst

porch lcading to bronze c loors; therc is a s ing; le

bold western towcr. The u'ooden-roof'ed basili-

can nr \e has an included t t 'ansept; thc east cncl

has no towers or 'box ' only thrcc project ing

round apses. tseaut i f i r l lv u 'catherecl , the bui ld-

ing is ler l ' handsome in a set t ing which hrrs

hardlr changccl s incc i t rvas bui l t . ' l 'hc

detai l is

largcl l l -ombrrd.

To this rathcr Lombard group of Normano-

I ta l ian bui ld ings ma]. be adclcd a sporacl ic

domed group. Domes had been rrsed t i r r a long

t imc in the 'hcel '

of ' I t r r l l ' , as at Alberobel lo

[2681, fbr ut i l i ta l ian construct ions. '

---

3 5 0 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I l H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N E M p I R E

Nfol f 'e t ta Cathedral [2691, l ike that o l Trani ,

has Lombard detai l , and is set c lose to the

water. L ike the churches at Bar i . i t has s lender

paired eastern towers, but the na.r'e is cor.ered

with three domes in l ine, and the ais les are

quadrant-vaul ted: a most unusual arrange-

ment. f'he date falls late in the trvelfth century

(r l6z f f . , wi th some reconstruct ion about

r- loo).

2611- \Iolfctta C,athcdral, r rf)2 and latcr,fiom thc north-ucst

The repeated dome occurs a lso in 1 l1oca thed ra l o l san Sab ino i n Canosa , da r ; n ,f iom r roo and later . Here at Canosa is a lso th"domed c l ass i c i z i ng t omb ( r r r r t 8 ) o f r hc r . . . . , -less and laithless crusader Bohemond, son ot.Robert Guiscard."

Tuscan influences flowed, rather parsimon-

iouslv, into Norman Italy too.7 Troia Cathc_dral, lor historical rex.sons, is Tuscan in str lc.

,acept perhaps on lhc ( \ ter io l of the apsc.

* i f i i r suf f ic ient lv l i lc thar o l Kalat Seman in

sur ia to ra ise the quest ion ol F 'astern inf luence

lot n. . . r r r t i ly through thc Crusadesl tb l the

.hur.h *" t begun in roq. l ' and uas wel l a long

i1 r t zT f zTo l '

Siponto Cathedral (twclfth century) has

Tuscan exterior arcading also, but the church

is an abrupt squarc block. \'er'\' oriental-

21 o.'I' roia. Cnthcdral. begun I ot1-1,

upper Part of west far,rtle

T H t . T W O S I C t T . I E S 3 5 r

interest ing, except for a later campani le ancl a

domed tomb or bapt is ter ] - ( r . r r8o).

So far we have seen little or no l"rcnch

influence in this architecture of the Norn.ran

dvnasts. 'I 'he

latter were fighting men, and their

entourage was lar too mixcd to havc anr'

artistic orientation. Moreover', when the Hautc-

villes lef t Normand-v, the Norman school u as :rs

vet hardl , r 'const i tuted i ts great ear l l monu-

ment, Jumidges [ : .SZ ql , dates l rom ro17 66.-l'he

Norman French wcre then still under

strong influences fiom the Loire, fiom Bur-

gundl-', and fi'om Lombardv, on which the

south- I ta l ian Normans also drew.

l n t he l a t c r pc r i od a t i e r l 05o ' t hc f ( i s

occasional French inf luence in Nolman I ta l l '

l:,]iF

iil

looking in mass. It has a rich portal in the

Lombard style, and thus is suitabll' eclectic for

the region.

The great shr ine of St Nl ichael of ' Monte

Gargano, or Monte Sant'Angelo, resulted from

a vis ion of the archangel seen bl a b ishop of

Siponto in 49r. The s i tc is not archi tcctural l .v

3 5 2 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N t ' , M P I R E

This is the casc at Venosa (begun af tcr I roo and

nerer f in ishcd or d i lapidated, so that i t sho*s

the technique of Romanesque bui ld ing) and in

Acerenza (related to Venosa). A't'ersa," not far

lrom Naples, has a cathedral dating lrom about

r r 5o, containing an archaic-looking rib-r'aulted

ambulatory, which would sccm to be ul t imatel l

ofFrench inspirat ion, though wi th the church

of San Ciemente at Torre dei Passieri, 'l 'cramo

(r rTt l -82), which has a hal f - -Burgundian t r ip le

porch, i t may have acquired thc l ibs through

Lombard influcnce.')

Riroira believccl that thc ambulator-v at thc

cathedral ofAversir dated back to ro49 56, and

Arthur Kingsley Porter rvas lcd to give con-

siderable emphasis to the sculptures of San

Nicola, Bar i , as ear lv examples due to Pi lgr im-

age connexions; but the remoteness 01' the

Apulian school, and the f'act that the civilization

of the Two Sic i l ies was hardl l a Romanesque

cir,ilization, make this Romanesque really a

Romrrnesque in ltartihus, oi which the reflcx

influence elsewhere was perceptible, but not

grear.

T H E B A S I L I C A T A

Worthl .of not ice is a smal l group of churches in

Calabr ia. 'Roccel la

d i Squi l lace' , near the s i te o l

Cassiodorus's sixth-century monasterv o1'Vi\,a-

r iunr. has an imposing ru in of rather Bvzant ine

character, in some wavs like the tenth- and

clerenth-century churches in the capi ta l . The

pol icv of the Normans, who acquired th is

region in ro57, was countcr to the Orthodox

Church. ' I 'he

plan o1'Roccel la d i Squi l lace, wi th

a crypt, a wide transept, and a lvide wooden-

rooled navc, seenrs Western, probabh of the

latc e ler ,enth centurv. I o

'La Catto l ica ' (Cathol icon, the chic l church

of a monasterl') of Stild, near thc coast, closell

rescmblcs the late l rust ic Bvzant ine rvhich is

fbund in the Balkans, and mav date f iom the

fburtecnth ccnturv, though i t is ot ten dated

ear l ier . l l I t is one ofa group o1'churches whrr .h

are basically versions of the Byzantine firtrr.-

column church.

Another Byzirntine reminiscence is that ot

St Nilus of Rossano, who, driven fiom the

region by the Saracens, carr ied the Eastu. l

(Basilian) monastic mle to Grottaf-errata, nrrr

Rome, where Otto I I I , perhaps remembcr ins

his Bl zant ine mother ' Iheophano,

a ide d i1

founding a monasterv ( roo4) which is sr i l l

Brrs i l ian. though under papal auspiccs.

S I C I L Y

The fantastic history of this island guarantecd

i t an exot ic archi tecture. \ iery l i t t le o l ' rcr l

importance to the histor]- of architecture $as

built. as lar as we know. between Greek and

Norman days, though the successive Roman,

Bvzant ine, and Moslem regimes lef t their mark.

The Normans, who conquered Sic i l -v in ro6r

9r, hare lef t monuments of great d igni tv but

composite st1'le. Like their English cousins.

thel achieved, wi th papal sanct ion, a t ight con-

t ro l of the church, and inte l l igent ly prevented

fiiction between the Latins, the Orthodox, ancl

the Moslems. New episcopal sees \4erc set up

and staffed with Latin ecclesiastics. 'fhe

hall-

Nloslern-half-Byzantine charm of' the place

afl'ectcd them. the court. and the architects

protbundlv, and their Romanesque archi tecture

absorbed. with much grace, thc alien elemcnts.

This mode of bui ld ing was st i l l in logue uhcn

the Two Sicilies were united to the Empirc.

r rg-+.Court architecturelr naturally. inclined to

Moslem modcls; for the Normans of thc court

we're human alter all, and thc N,Ioslem pallccs

were designed to house a lif'e of sophisticrtecl

rsf inement such as wrs hardly known in the

north. l 'he Farcra, Menani , L,a Ziza, and L; t

Cuba are knolvn cxamples - Palermitan bui lc l -

ings in which the or iental lords of Sic i ly would

ha r c bcen r e r v much a l homc , The l oe , r l

27r. Palermo. Palatine Chapel, r r3z- tig

. t f + L A N D S A S S O ( ] I A T t r D W I I ' H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N } , ] ! t P I R E

1 ''t'l

bowers of orange, lemon, and palm trees.

Roger II acquired territories on the mainland

of Aftica, which accentuated the orientalism of

his dominions and naturally came to expression

11 the architecture.

It has been very reasonably suggested that

the Orthodox in the Greek parts of the island

had for two hundred years been assimilating

Moslem and Byzantine archirectural motifs,

achieving t satoir-faire by which the Norman

architects early profited.lr

A famous example of' l'aried architectural

combination is the Palatine Chapel in Palermol

[z7r], actually within what remains o1'the rovalpalace there. It was built br,Roger II between

rr32 and rr43, and dedicated to St peterl

really it is a miniature church, with slenclercolumns of marble dividing the nave from theaisles ofa triapsidal basilican plan. The columnsand the lavish wall mosaics - applied, exceptfor some restoration, between r r43 and r r89 -

are purely Byzantine in stlle. Tall pointedarches of Moslem form, and an elaboratestalactite ceiling over.the nave are the orientalcompon!nts in this design.

The'N{artorana'15 [z7zl, real lv the church ofSanta Maria del Ammiraglio, built and cleco-ratedbetween I r4-t and I r5r forKingRoger I I 'sgreat admiral George of Antioch, was dedicatedto the Virgin 'with

much love, and as a smalland unworthy-recompense' so the inscript ionsays. Later building has disturbed the originalentrance system. An axial porch (still existing,and marked by a late tower) gave upon anatr ium and narthex, as in an Early Christ ianchurchI hovlerer. bel.ond rhe narthex rhebuilding was arrangecl and decorated like aByzantine four-column chur.ch, except that thePointed arches and the squinches of the domewere of Moslem design. The tower (fburteenthcentur) ') is basical l l . l ike the crossing tower ofthe Montierneuf at Poitiers [25 r]. Perhaps thereis influence from the Salmantine school of

T H E T W O S t C r L r E s 3 5 5

crosslng towers here. Wherever originated, thetower design of the N{artorana has been half_orientalized, and developed rowards thc fbrmwhich we shal l f ind in the dramat ic c lusters ofturrets at Palermo Cathedral later on.

San Giovanni degl i Eremit i , r , of r I jz , has

on the church (a s imple block of a bui ld ing ofaustere oriental exterior fbrm) a series oftrloslem domes which irre hemispherical, andplaced wirhout mouldings on short cvlindrical

drums. The tower terminates coquett ishh in asimilar dome. There is a poetic cloister. San

273. Palermo, San (laraldo, bcfore r r6r

Cataldo [2731, essentiallv similar to San Gio-vanni, was built as a svnagogue and taken overas a chutch in r r6r . Exot ic and unchurchly as i tis, with Nloslem domes and decoratir.e pointed

arcading. i t does not seem out of 'p lace as an

ecclesiast ical bui ld ing in Palermo.

N{eanwhi le, in r r .1r , construct ion of the

cathedral of Cef 'a l i r had been begunrT lz74l . ks

patron, ( ,ount Roger I I , was accorded the t i t le

of King bl thc ant ipope Anacletus I I . and f i r r

th is a l l iance was excommunicated in r r 1q bv

z7z. Palermo, the X,{artorana, r t_1.j 5r irnd later, flank

building material, none other than the prtros(rough limestone) which the ancient Greeksused

_-fbr their temples, adapted irself verv

happ ih r o r he new a rch i r ec tu ra l mode . I n i tdecoratir.e Moslem arcading and pattern_wortlooked u'ell; ir combinecl happill: wirh stuccofor panelled effects, and with marble andmosaic fbr rich interiors. One finds in thesedesigns, without seeming contracliction, theround Roman arch, the interlaced Normanarches which make pointed_arch patterns, rhe

N4oslem pointed arch, and rib u.ork. ,l.here

rredecorat ive detai ls where Romanesque, Moslenr,and Byzantine motives frolic together; ther.care columns of classic proportlon takine thcirpart in composir ions u. i rh Br.zant ine mosair .and Moslem domes, honel,.comb roof art(.-sonados and sta lact i te cei l ing.s. Al l are br i l l ianrin A{editerranean sunshine and glowing rvirhwarmth; lbr the limestone walls weather toenchanting toasted browns, buffs, and grers,richly contrasting with rhe azurc ,krl ,n.l

--r

pope I nnocen l l l . bu t , t he s i t ua t i on was

," iut^t i r ra in r r ' lo

.Celal i r was serrcd b1' a

at-rpt . . of August in ian canons' For them a

l . . i ty . lo i t r . . was bui l t . in the stv lc of the

ihurch, iust to the nor lh. { f ter Roger I I 's t ime

the $e^t project at Celilir languished; ulti-

pately the royal pantheon was established in

palermo, and even King Roger's sarcophagus

was transf-erred there from this, his tomb-

church'

In plan Cefalir Cathedral is very handsome

[275].'fhe walls are substantial.

-lhe east end

has a sanctuary covered b1 groin vaulting and a

pointed semi-dome; flanking it are two deep

runnel-vaulted chapels. The transept, slightlv

proiecting, is covered partly by tunnel vaulting

and partly by wooden roofing. These parts of

the church had been hnished and decorated in

rr48, but there is much later work the nave

was bui l t between rr8o and I2oo on a reduced

plan, and the wooden-trussed roofing of the

nxve was restored in rz63; the faqade dates

T l l E T W t ) s r c r t . r E . s 3 5 7

fiom rz4o, with some rebuilding in thc htteenth

century.

The exterior of the cathedral is perhaps the

6nest in a l l the Sic i l ian Romancsque. ' l 'wo

handsome to\r'ers, like North-African minarcts

in design, flank an elegant columnar porch

rvith three pointed archcs, bchind rvhich

appears the faqade wall ofthe church, decorated

with Norman interlirced arches. 'lhc

nale ancl

aisles are of course basilican columnar shafis

mark of f the ais les, u 'h ich are sroin-vaul ted,

with lateral arcading. In the nave proper, the

roof is at a lower level than was at f i rs t intcnded.'Ihe

transept is carried higher than the nave,

more than at N{ontecassino on the mainland;

the sanctuary be-vond it, though Byzantine in

plan and decorat ion. is Ronranesqt tc in st t 'uc-

ture, proportion, and extcrior decolation. The

great Christ of the semi-dome, singularlv im-

pressive, is one of'the finest Byzantine mosaics

to be fbund anywhere. It is a perf'ectly pure

exarnple of the Second Golden Age, and goes

iif

*

zTq,and z i5. ( lc la l i r ( lathedral , beuun rr . i r

-l-

back ro or ig inals in Constanl inople ' l -he

minor

IuUi . . ts are also.of great interest and bcaut l '

The ca lhc t l r a l o f San ta \ 4a r i a l a \ uo r l i n

Monrealel8 lz76-8.) is the clin.rax of Sicilian

Romanesquc archi tcctu lc.

' l he see \4as est i lb-

l ished and the cathedral hui l r br King Wi l -

fiam II as a counterpoisc to the po$er o{ the

archbishop of' Palermo. It was served b1-

Benedictines from La Cava on the tnainland,

where thc monks observed the Cluniac ru lc,

and for them an intcresting conventual struc-

ture was ra ised to the south of the church. ' fh is

bui ld ing and the exter ior of the church are in a

markedly local Romancsque sttle; integrated

so happily that one is not so conscious of

sty l is t ic ' ingredients ' as in manl o l the Siculo-

Norman edifices.

Ho* 'evcr, i t must be said that the mot i f -s are a

rather riotous growth, interesting lafgcl.v for

T H E T W O S T C T L T E S 3 5 g

their decorative character and conscquenrlt.

quite the reverse ol' the development in the

north of France, which at th is verv r ime was

systematizing the flying buttress and ushcring

in the accompl ished phase of F-ar lv Gorhic.

There is no sign ofthis architectural progress ar

Nlonreale. Fires werc not so li 'equent in the

south as in the north, so that it was admissible to

risk wooden-trussed roofing over the wide

spans. The Moslem t1'pc o1' :rll-but-pointcd

vault and the Moslem pointed arch were

suf f ic ient l l 's tablc fbr the narrouer spans.

Monreale Cathcdral was apparentl) started

in r174; in t t76 decds and endorvments wel 'e

deposi ted on the high al tar , and in r r8z the

I-abr ic was substant ia l ly complete . 1 'he s i te, up

thc Conca d 'Oro l rom Palcrmo, is onc ol 'grcr t

l r eau t ) , bu t t he ch t t r ch ex te r i o r i s no t as f i ne l s

that of' Cefhli - fbr thc interlacing pointed

II

I

lil

tiI

I1lI

II

L

zi6 and 277. Nlonrcale C.athedral, begun r r74

-3-

3 6 0 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N ' I l l E H O L Y R O M A N T M P I R E

arches on the apse are overwrought Roman-

esque Baroque; the two blocky tower bases

have disparate and not altogether pleasing

terminat ions; and the heavy port ico ot t77o

between the towers is very inappropr iatc ' r "

The interior, however, is perfect. The plan

is Romanesque, with nave, aisles, transept,

deep sanctuary and deep flanking chapels; the

sup!rstructure fbllows Early Christian lines in

the basilican nave, which is divided from the

aisles b.v classic Corinthian columns (though

with Moslem pointecl arches). The st1'le is

Romanesque in the transept and sanctuary.

where pointecl arches are used also. -I'hc

dr:cor.x-

t ion is Byzant ine ( in the mosrr ics) and \1n51."

( the marble dado of the ais les, the polrchlory l"

ceiling). No attempt was made to tirse 16.

sty les: they' are here independent, anLl ;n

coniunction.2('

The cathedral at Monreale has ;r r s1,

beautiful cloister enclosed within the bloclr

ser ies of monrst ic bui ld ings on the sotrr l r .11.

of the church. This c lo ister is dated I 17: 89.

Possibly' refugee sculptors came here aficl thr:

fa l l of , lerusalem in r r87 I the work was sutel r

f in ished b1' rzoo. The c lo ister has twentr- f i ie

d*iillffi,J:['iri::i*

As the twelfth and thirteenth ccnturtes

advance<l. the Sici l ian designers achiered a

strange but satisfying exotic stvle - eruberant'

Jetig'i-tti.tg in spicy decoration which g as

beautifully handled' lts great monument \1as

.i. .t,ft.i."f of Palermo' r'ebuilt in r r7z-85 b1

ir.ftbltit"O Walter of the Mill (Gualterio

o;;; i i t" , ' ' r6q 85) 'rhe gorgeousl l modelled

"""*'i'""0., with its rich arcading and cresting

irt t ' f ' t . "

prinre cxample ot thc st\ lc Perh'tps

". rnt, l . . . 'ogni" the inf lrrcnct of the Hohen-

,, t t i ." a"- i"at ion (r194-1266) in the atn

.rfit"* u, the four corners of the cathecltal' irnd

' l H E T w o s l c l t . t t s 3 6 r

i3

tf{i.,1

tl:,t-.ff:t..lfi:,:

:i

r ,i,

:78. Monrcale Cathedral, cloistcr, I I7:-Et1

27() (af?oete). Palermo ()athedral, r r7z fit ieenth centur\ ' south firgadc

3 6 2 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N E M P I R E

in the fantast ic group of turrets jo ined b1' a

br idgc to the rvest faqade (r3oo 59), fbr thcl '

have strangc, belated reminisccnces of the

Carol ingian rvestwork at Saint-Riquier . ' Ihc

south porta l dates f i 'om r4z-5, and i ts great

porch l rom later in the samc centurv. un-

lbrtunatelv thc interior was spoiled bt rebuild-

ing between r7[ i r and r8or, but i t contains the

roval and imper ia l tombs of thc dynastv,

inc luding that of the E,mperor Fleder ick I I .

f 'hev scem strangelv lost in the plastcr whi te-

ness of the uther austerc Baroquc inter . ior .

Sic i l r ' 's orvn r iotous, warm, mcdier a l s t l lc

lvould f i t them much bet ter . r r

C A N I P A N I A A N D N E I G I I B O U R I \ G R E G I O N S

The Normans acquired -{ r 'ersa and i ts rcgion

about ro3o, ( ,apua ( in which rcgion Nlonte-

cassino l ics) in ro i8. Gaeta in ro6j ; thc regions

about Benevento ancl Salcrno, inc luding {mal f i ,

i n r o77 : Nap les , hna l l r ' , i n r r 37 .

81 l -ar thc nrost important shr ine in the region

rvas Nlontecassino, wi th i ts august memol ies of '

St Benedict . - l 'he

monaster l ' , lbunded in -5.2g,had bcen restorccl af te l barbar ian desolat ions

(Lombards, -58r; Saracens, 8[J:) , and subsc-

quent to 95o i t f lour ished again. An elegant

interprctat ion of the much rebui l t Renaissance

church and conventual bui ld ings has replacccl .

on thc same si tcs, the structures dcstro l -ed in

thc Seconcl \ \or ld War.

The great Abbot Desider ius assumsd ofhce

whcn the Norman repJime was beginning. I {e

gathered a ple iad of important churchmen,

scholars, and ar t is ts about h im, and made the

abbey. a light to its age, as rccounted bv his

excel lcnt archiv ist and biographer Lco of

Ost ia. : r Desider ius labourcd to re-establ ish the

fine arts in Itah, lvhcre '\.,Iistress Latinitas had

been want ins in the ski l l of thcse al ts . . . tbr '

f ive hundred vci r rs) and more; and bl the el1brt

o l th is man, rv i th thc inspirat ion and help of

God, mer i ted to regain i t in our t ime. ' Dcsi-

der ius imported objects of 'ar t l rom Constant i_

nople, cal led ar t is ts thehce, ancl actual l l . mrr11s

provis ion fo l t ra in ing I ta l ians and others in thr

var ious ar ts.

Great resources were ar ,a i lable to h im 11npart surely f i 'om the Normans), and Desidcr iLrs

undertook a general re building of the monaslu.,,.

i n t he n i n th r ca l o f h i s abbacv . r obb . ' l

l r u

dimensioned descr ipt ion in Lco of Ost i ; r 's

chronic le lear.es no doubt that the main parts o l

thc church and monaster t , though rebui l r rn

t he f bu r t een th cen tu r \ . and [ a te r , r . e t a i nc t l

Desider ius 's scheme down to modern t imes. I l r

means of paral le l exanples bui ld ings obvior i . -

l l . inspired in var ious l -eatures b\ N, Iontecassino

i t has been possib le to make a t rustworrh\

restorat ion [z8o] . In roTr the church urrs

dedicated nninto trepudio 'with

the grearcsl

possib le st i r ' in the presence of numer.oLrs

ranking ecclesiast ics; knouledgc of i t instant l r

sprcad f-ar, and Montecassino continued to

draw vis i to ls of malk.

1 'he la1-out was obviousl l taken f rom Olr l

St Peter ' 's in Rome [ j ] , wi th monumental sra i r ' .

propvlaea, atr ium, and T-shaped basi l ic . r ,

though on a much smal ler scale ( roughl l ' onc-

th i rd l inear ' ; s ingle a is le at cach s ide; no

screcned reccsses at the ends of thc t ransepr.

which was t l iapsidal ; i r hcavv, stumpr. bel l -

tower of local tvpe at the north-east corner o l

the atr ium). ^{ctual mater ia ls rvcre bror . rght

f rom Rome, and some ol ' these were carr icr l u1,

the great s lope b1, the fh i th lu l an ant ic ipar ion

of the cart cul ts o1'Gothic cathedrals.

Sevcral I'catules of'Desiderius's church rvelc

novel , and they should be noted here. Somc ol

the builders were from Amalfi. then at thc

summit of its powel as a widelv ramillcd

commercia l republ ic , wi th stat ions in Cairo.

Jcrusalem, Cyprus, Constanr inople, Alexln-

dr ia, and Tunis. The c i ty- , ru ined so soon i r f tcr ' .

must have shol ln these or iental connexions in

i ts archi tecture. I t is our bel ief that the novcl t ic :

at N{ontecassino which har e or iental charactcr-

'1,,f,

;'if :

z8o. Montecassino Abbe1, restoration stud]' as ln ro75

ist ics were due to th is inf lucncel and in tact

some of these feutures are anl ic ipated in

existing North-Alrican work

Fo r examp le . abou t l o5o t he i nne r po r l i co o l

the Great Mosque at Mahdia (Tunisia) had

pointed arches and peculiar groin vaults, with

arrises nearly straight, as at Sant'Angelo in

Formis, a priory of Montecasstno.

Desider ius 's propylaeum and church porch'

each with five arches, are reported as having

fornt tes spi ,u l , t5 ' lanceolate ' arches ol ' \aul ts '

wi th a ver-v b lunt point i l ' they were l ike the

single remaining original pointed vault in the

south pylon of the outer porch,r3 which I

measured befbre the destruction 'l 'he

porch of

Sant'Angelo in Formis,21 though later than the

church of ro58-75 and more oriental in feeling,

is a somewhat unskilful conflation of the tll 'o

porticoes at Montecassino lz8o z)' The pointed

arch and vaul t were wel l est i rb l ished in Eglpt

by the tenth centur.v' Eg1'ptian arches, eren to

this day, are constructed over a rough fill ing

carried by straight sticks forming a mitrc, and

the arches, brought up to the apex ofthe mitre,

(K . J . c l . )

naturalll ' take pointed shapes' The character-

is t ic st ra ight arr ises ol thc groin vaul ts o l ' the

porch ol ' Sant 'Angelo in Forrnis [z8r ] were

doubt less formed ovct ' d iagonal mi t res '

Abbot Hugh of (,lun1' r'isitcd Nlontccassino

in ro8l . Great l f in terested in bui ld ing (as we

have seen), he, or an archi tect in h is sui te,

suppose t l l r t r ansm i t t ed t hc no re l l ea tu res l t . r

Clunl l I I , the bui ld ing ofwhich began b1' r o88'

Unquestionabl-r- the oriental pointed arch, the

B1'zant ine i rnd or iental p inchcd laul t ' i rppror i -

nritel-v of catenarl' profile, and the straight-arris

groin rault were rationalized b-'-' Desiderius's

and Hugh's engineers. 'fhel'

marked a distinct

step forwarcl in Romanesque engineering, and

perhaps started the process which eventuall]'

c r cJ ted t he nev t Go th i c t l pe o l eng inec r i ng '' fhc

tbr tune of the pointed arch lnd vaul t was

m l t l e u l t en t he l we re app l i ed , t o t hc numbc ro l -

neir r l l ' two hundred, at Cluny' As f : r r as rve are

able to make out at present , thev went thcre

Iiom Montecassino.

Desider ius 's porch had plaster-work decora-

t ion, presumably a lso Moslcm, and bronze

, I ' I I } - T W O S I C I I , I E S J , ' 5

304

28r andz8z. Sant'Angelo in Formis, fbundcd ro58, Iinished r. ro73 5

plates fi'om Constantinople on rhe door-\,alves;

a dccorative lunette was or.cr each of the door_

wavs, in the Bvzant ine manner i and the inter ior

was Ii'escoed in Bvzantine stvle. 'I 'hus

we ha,r,e

hcre in ro66 7.5 an apposi t ion ofsty- les l ike that

which lr'e find in Sicilv a centurv later.

In lerel l ing the rocky ' r idgc to make a place

fbr the basi l ica, a tomb understood to bc that of

St Benedict was discovered about ten I'eet under.

the surface. The monks at Montccassino in

thcir recent cxcar.ations har,c corroborated this,but the g;rave was empried ( in 7o3 ?) , when rel ics

supposed to bc those of St Benedict wcre taken

to Fleury-sur-Loire afier the Lombard cleso-lation.

'l 'o retain the ncwly--discovered tomb

untouched, the transept pavement was estab-lished eight steps above that of thc nar.e.I)esiderius built a cenotaph, clestroyed later,

with most of the tomb, when the high altar *rrs

moved here.

Thc paint ings of the inter ior mav be judgcr l

by- those o1'Sant 'Angelo in Formis, a Dcsider ian

church (as remarked) [z8zl . Thc whole inter ior .here is painted in the Cassinese style. It is

bel ieved that th is srv le was taken up by.Clunl :the chapel of Berzd-la-Ville surr.ives as rwitness.l-t

'I 'he dvnamic I'eatures of Montecassino. then.

were taken up and developed in Burgundl .

But in the main the abbey church was a con-serr,atir,e building, and the conservan\.e asDectso l ' i t a l e r e f l ec ted i n t he ca thed ra l s o l 'Sa le rn ,(dedicated in ro84), Benevenro (rebui l t r r r .1rz79), Ravel lo (by rr56), and Amalf i (Roman-

esque, to rz76; rebui l t ) . Al l are basi l ican.Besides these there are many rustic rcductions

of the mot i f inc luding the church of the town

of Aquino, wherc St Thomas Aquinas * as born,

and Minuto.

In the region therc are manv elaborate

pulpits,rb usually of white marble rT'ith mosatc

rlnd opus Alerandrinum insets, in medielal

Roman st-v le. Examples dated befbre r2oo exrst

a t Ra re l l o ( a l t e r l og5 ) ' La ( . a ra ( a l i e r r r ' 1h ) '

and Salerno (between rr53 and r I8r) - l 'hev

show, as does the basi l icrn archi tectule ' thr t

architecturally this part o('the 'I'wo

Sicilies is a

Roman province but the attentive e1'e will

find Byzxntine and Nlloslem details in them'

The pulpits are parapeted platforms carricd on

columns and reached b1' f l ights ot 's teps; usual l -v

there is a plojection with r lecteln whele thc

actual reading is done. XIan-'-.- baldacchinos in

marble have also been preserved' Such furni-

ture is often verl' picturesque, wherc thc work-

manship is rustic and the air is of folk art

On thc other hand, th is archi tectural and

sculptural t radi t ion was thc basis of the revival

of antique st,-vle in thc works of the Emperor

Freder ick I l . r ; His gate at Capua ( t233 4o)

was bui l t in Roman-stv lc ashlar and adorned

with c lassical busts, of ' rvhich thc Pietro dcl la

Vigna is the best known. Such c lassic ism was

doubt less suggeste d b,r ' thc ancient memorie s of

Capua and the imper ia l o l f ice; i t is a wi tne ss to

the cathol ic taste of the Emperor, and i t ma) '

l ' ep resen l a l so I r t ac l i on aga ins t t he e ro t i c '

overblown Romanesque of Sic i l -v ' l t was

obliousll the training-ground lbr Nicolrr Pisano

( . . | 2 2 5 7 8 ) . s o n o l ' P c t t u s d c \ p u l i l " a u t h o r '

of the c lassic iz ing pulp i t of rz ig rvhich rve shal l

f ind in Pisa.

-f-

CflLPTEn zo

C E N T R A L I ' r A L Y

R O M E A N D T H E P A P A L S T A T I . ,

The removal of the capital of the Empire from

Rome in the fourth century'' the barbarian dis-

locations, the rule of thc City as a part of the

Byzant ine exarchatc i the coming ol 'Greek and

Syr ian Popes; the strugglcs ol local noblcs. the

commune, the pontifl.s, and the emperors not

to mention the malaria and the burning of a part

of the City by Robert Guiscard - all make a

tragic story. In such a history therc is little room

for interesting building. Architectural style re-

mained so stagnant in Rome that the church of

San Clemente, rebuilt alter Robert Guiscard's

fire of ro8a. was mistaken for the fburth-cen-

tury church on the site, until the ruins of that

building under the present church were sus-

pected (r847) and excavated (r857-6r) .

Though it figured in the military struggles of'

the Middle Ages, Old St Peter's [3] escaped des-

truction, only to be demolished piecerneal

between r45o and 1585 to make way for the

present church. Recent excavations have re-

vealed the history ofits apse, where the altar, iI'

present, stood until about 6oo in fiont of the

Memoria Apostolicu,asmall ancient recess at the

pavement level. By the ser,enth century the apse

pavement had been raised to the top of the

memoria, and the high altar cstablished abor,e

the latter. A semicircular corridor was formcd,

contiguous to the apse at the original pavement

level and giving access to an axial corridor b1'

which the memoria could be reached from be-

hind.l'I 'his arrangement underlics the primitive

Lombard crypts, and contains the germ of the

arnbulatory scheme.

The cathedral of the Saviour. bui l t under

Constantine, and overthrown by an earthquake

in 896, was rebuilt betwcen go,1 and 928 bv

Sergius I I I and John X as San Giovanni in

Laterano, wi thout los ing i ts rank.r I t was fur ther

rebuilt alier suffcring gravely from fires in r3o8

and r36r. - I 'he

apse, though damagcd, reta ined

its old ambulatory, laid out in the ninth centurl'

(or possibly' in the lburth) without radiating

chapels [2831. This august example probably

had some influence on the development of am-

bulator ies at the main.pavement level dur ing

the N{iddle Ages. It was destroy'ed onl.v in r 876 ;

the medieval transept and navt: had been masked

bv Renaissance and Baroque addi t ions.

Near by' was the Lateran Palacc, replaced in

r585 6. The venerable o ldcr bui ld ing [283] was

in various fbrms the papal palace for nearll'

twelve centuries, though fiom the time of'

Gregory lX ( tzz7 4r) malar ia l condi t ions in

the district led to the transf'er ofthe actual ponti-

fical residence to the Vatican Palace.r The medi-

eval bui ld ing (resul t ing l iom progressive re-

construct ion of the palace of the Laterani , g iYen

by Constantine to Pope N,liltiades) was much

larger than the present one, and more open in

construction. It had a great man]' rooms with

apsidal recesses, and these included scveral

ceremonial halls. Of all this, only' the terminal

apsc of the Tr ic l in ium surv ives as a sort ofpavi-

l ion, by the Scala Santa.+

The monastery adjoining the Lateran had a

long historl'. It was the refugc of the Bene-

dictincs of N{ontccassino, whcn their own mona-

stery was destroyed by the Lombards in -58r,

and was their first establishment in Rome. The

pretty cloister, in the Roman Romanesquc st]'le,

was built about tzz7, Pietro Vassalletto and his

son being the masters.s ' l 'he garth, squarc, has a

fbuntain hcac in the middle of a sarden; the

.*""#;'tt:Yi

z8l. Rome, I-atcran Church and palace, restoration stuclv as rn r r45o (Rohault de Fleurv)

1 6 8 L A N D s A s s o c l A ' l E D \ \ ' l T l l l N l H l ' r l o L Y R o M A N [ ' N l P I R F

walks. on al l tbur s ides, arc now groin-r 'aul ted'

' fhe L-shapet l corncr p iers terminate rangcs ol

supports, inclucling lour oblong piers betrvccn

each pair. I classical entablaturc with a (irsmat-

esque liicze is carricd entirclv around the cloistcr

abore them. Each intetval betwccn t$o plcrs

has 6ve grrrcctil arches cirricd on {bur pairs ot

slentlel colunns abore a pilrapet the middle

prrirs in each case bcing twistcd. It rlas an easy'

step liom this thirteenth-centur]' work to some

o f t he Ea r l l Rena i ssance c l o i s t u r s

Cosmati and Cosmatesque work, iust men-

t ioned, takes i ts name trom a Roman fami ly-

which f lour ished af ter I r -5o. 1 'hcy did one ser i -

ous work of architecture, thc portico, in the

Ionic st1'le, ol the cathedral of'Civita-Castcllana,

ncar Rome.(' rvhich is aln-rost pcrfectlv classical

in design, though built in r z r o b1 Lorenz<.r and

zfl-1. Romc. Santa \Iaria in (,osmctlin.

interior, r. r roo (rcstored)

Jacopo Cosmat i . I t has the character is t ic t lg1, , t -

at ive marble and mosaic ornament rvhich rr 1n

index of the Cosmat i s t -v le. Thcl ' and ot l l11.

rvork ing in the samc mxnner devekrptd 16.

ancient t ] 'pe of opus ' l lc . r t t r r t l r inum ts orni l lnrnt

fbr cloisters, pulpits, chancels, Paschal crrrl1ll1-

st icks, thrones, tombs, a l tars, and the l ikc.'I'he

most f'amiliar t\pe ot'olrl.\ '4ltttn,ltttttrut

i lppears in the beaut i lu l Roman church p11c-

ments. Thev are made of s labs of whi te nr . r rb le

and disks ol -colourcd marble (o l ien porphr 11)

wi th l ines of gold and coloured mosaic sct in the

bordcr ing s labs as an embel l ishment. \bbot

Desider ius had such a pavsment maclc lbr

-N{ontecassino. A beautilul example ttnc o1'

manf in thc citl ' exists at Santa Nlari:r in (.os-

mcd in i n Rome I i t i s da t cd l bou t t t oo l : \ - 1 :

see also 285 ] . ;

e85. Rome, San Clcmcntc' rcsroration stud-r as in r' I roo (Ilunsen)

3 7 O L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T I I I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N [ , M p I R E

Cosmati work applied to church furniture is

naturally more delicate in scale than the pave-

ments, and this is true ofthe cloisters also. While

in general the columns are Corinthianesque, as

is usual everywhere in the Middle Ages, the

Ionic and Composite appear frcquently, and in

important works. Elsewhere these orders were

little used until Renaissance times. Columnar

fbrms are ordinarily much enrichcd: often the

shafts are 'Salmonic'

(twisted), and straight or

spiral fluting was regularlv garnished with

mosaics set in running designs, especially star

patterns. For a long time classical reminiscences

were strong in Cosmati work, but it was also

used in conjunction with Romanesque themes,

as in the cloister ofN{onreale, and eventually in

Gothic designs.

Very handsome baldacchinos, sometimes in

Cosmatesque work, were made at this time.

Thev are square or near ly.square in p lan; they

have four corner columns with connecting archi-

tra.r,es, above which there is a staged open-work

turret with small columns; ther. ordinarilv ter_

minate in an octagonal pvramid, with orb and

cross. f 'hus a plaJ. fu l ' turr i tus apex' took the

place of the dome which is usual in Byzantine

baldacchinos. Beautilul examples are to be seen

at San Lorenzo fuor i le N{ura (r r48 ancl later) ,

San Giorgio in Velabro, Santa Maria in 'I'ras-

tevere, San Clemente (where the top is gabled

[285]), and Santa Maria in Cosmedin [zSa] (a

Gothic design), all in Romc. The baldacchinos

in south Italv ar Bari, for examplc lz6ql - arc

inferior in desip;n, proportion, and execution to

the Roman works, but they and the pulp i ts

o [ i cn ha re a na i r e l ush a l t r ac t i \ eness .

Few churches have preserved the old arrange_

ment of'stalls, namely, a chancel marked off bva parapet at the head of the nave. as at San

Clemente [285] , wi th i ts auxi l iar ies of pulp i ts ,

lecterns, and Paschal candlestick. 'I 'he

canons

or monks used to stand inside these enclosurcs.

though in the eler.enth or twelfth centurv sralls

began to be pror,ided, as by Gelmirez at Santiaso

de Compostela. Originally- such sralls werr 1.stone. but wood was later int roduced for 1. , ,6fort, and canopies were built to preventdraughts

Theo ld chanc r . l bu i l r b r PopcJohn V I I I 1 i - . , ,was re-used at San Clemente. when that c l r r r r l \

was rebui l t by 'Paschal I I . Santa Sabina also l lx .the old choir arrangement, recentlv restorecl g ithlragments dating back to about [12.5. Occasion_

allv, in the monasteries, fald-stools (-fitnrrtrlrtst

are ntent ioncd; thev nrust hare becn of tcn Lrsr t l .

Al though there was a grear deal o1'd isturb_

ance in Rome during the strugglc o\rer thc In_\.estltures, the r.igour of the Papacy. induccrl acertarn amount of' building. Verv little recrrlls

Gregor l -VI I , Victor I I , or Urban I I , bur sc\ cra l

interesting churches are connected with Paschal

I I ( r o g g r r r 8 ) .

I t was he who rebui l t San Clemente (ru intd

in ro84 dur ing the s iege of the c i tv bv Robert

Guiscard), and thc works cont inucd to about

rr3o. The resul t ing churcht [285] non h.rs

adventitious Baroque decorations, but the old

arrangements are clear. The old propl'laeurl

and atrium are not greatly changed; the orienta-

t ion is reversed, as i t was in the fburth-centLrr . r

bas i l i ca . The nave s r i l l shous l hc o r i g i na l a l r . . r -

nat ion 01'p iers and Ionic columnar supports. I r

has a clerestorr. 'fhe

head end is triapsidal, rvith

a raised central platfbrm. The semi-dome has ir

quite lovely mosaic with patterns of'rinceaux in

gold against a dark ground, perhaps a work of'

the twelfth century. Bclow, there is a marblc

throne on the axis, with a sl.nthronon lbr lou cr

clergy extending along the apse wall to cithcr

side. l'he altar is beneath a beautiful baldac-

chino, and the celebrant, with his back to thc

throne, officiates at the west side or back ol'the

altar, looking eastward tolvard the choir in the

nave (previously mentioned) and the conlire-

gation. 1'he lront ofthe apse platfbrm is pierced,

beneath the altar, by a f'enestrella giving upon :r

space fbr relics. 'l 'he

arrangement is an unusuallr

perf'ect example of the Constantinian disposition

of the sanctuary elements.'r

fhe chancel or choir of San Clemenle ' dat ing

" ' - - t^ , , r Rrz as al ready indicated' ma1 bettor" - '

l, because here the^iled, r schola cantorum atslv"- ' - ' - ^anons would gather-^in bodY of the monKs or c

l i r ' r i .o off ice, which wassung' Such l i turgical

l?.., ftt". t.taings from Scripture at interr als'

InJfor,t t . t . the pulpirs uere prorided one to

.r. f t . ia. used for the epist le and gospel during

ti. rmr, and a lectern for use in readings dircc-

ted towards the congregattonal space'

286. Rome, Santa \ la r ia in Cosmcd in '

l i1 ; ra r , r ' , I20 . toscr ' r 2oo ( res lu rcd)

c t N T R A t , I T A L Y 3 7 r

The church of the Santi Qyattro Incoronati

was l ikewise rebui l t by Paschal I I , rogg rro6

or r r r2, by which time the rather stump-v cam-

panile was finished. San Bartolomeo was also

rebui l t , about r I r3 i the tower ' ho$'ever, dates

from about rzI8. San Giorgio in Velabro and

Santa Pudenziana have towers which ma-v fairlv

be ascribed to the twelfth centur].. 'I 'he

towers

of Santa Maria in Cosmedin [286] and Santa

Maria in 'Irastevere

may have been built before

L

L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I ' T H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N E M P I R L ,

lr

1]li

r2oo. The tower oI SS. Gior .anni e Paolo is

dated to rzo6, that ofSanta Ceci l ia to rzzo. an<l

that of Santa NIaria Maggiore to r378.

Rome has thirty-six of these campanili, allvery true to type. The one which is most advan_tageously placed stands at rhe lbcade ol thechurch of Santa Maria in Cosmedin. This is anold building incorporating a Roman corn hall.but i t is basi l ican; i t was rhe church to whichGelasius I I was at tached l rom roTg unt i l h iselevat ion (r r r8) to the papacy. Al ter Gelasir . rs 'sdeath (r r r9) Cal ix tus I I cont inued repairs andembel l ishments. The inter ior , wcl l restoredwith a cei l ing a nd a schola cuntorum,is archaic inl'eeling because ol the piers in the colonnaclc andthe small clerestory winclows.

._fhe fine pave_

menr darcs l iom the r imc ot Gel ls ius or Cal ix_tus. At the cosr ofa very folly Baroque fiontis_plece ln stucco, the f'agade has been restored toi ts o ld condi t ion, as ofabout r rzo, wi th a porchin f ront o l an open narthc\ , and a chamberabove. Brick is tlre constructional material, astrsual in Rome.

'lhe tower, hardly chansed in

8oo years, has seven store_r.s abo'eihe wiidow_less shaft which reaches to the eaves line of thechurch nave. Each ofthe seven storeys has arcad_ing, u ' i th the impost I ine carr iec l as a str inEcourse around the (or ler l e lch srage al .o has abr ick cornice. gr-acel i r l l r propor. i ioned. . l .he

lower storevs, logically more substantial, havef'ewer openings, and piers; the uppcr storel,shave triple openings with marble mia_wattshafts. Somc of the Roman towers havc ceramicrnsets, but th is is not the case at Santa N{ar ia inCosmedin.r( ,

Santa Maria in Trastevere, with a fine towerof r r .18, is st i l l essent ia l ly the church bui l t bvInnocent I l as a thankof fer ing lbr . h is successover the anripope Anacletus II. Ir was finishedundcr Eugcne I I I , the f i rs t Cisrerc ian pope,about r r50.

' Ihe intervening Lucius I I ( r r44lS)

\r'as the restorer ofSanta Croce in Gerusalemme,near the Laleran. Sanra prassede, remarkablefbr ninth-century mosaics and the beautiful

chapel ot San Zeno(8zz\ , receir .ed i ts rernr i . - -men r o f d i aph ragm a rches i n r t . r * . t t i r , ] i r -t u r l . SS . G io r ann i e Pao lo . bu rned i n ,

" ; , : '

restored (by except ion in t t . t -o. t r rU' . , . " ,1tl a rge l y b1 Had r i an IV ( r rS+ q , t heon l v I . , " i , ' ^ l rPopc): the touer is , howerer, i " ,h. R; ; ; ls ty le, and dated rzo6.r1

At San Lorenzo luor i le Mura a s imple, rerraustere cloister was built to. the Ci.t"r.i.n,about r rgo. In the monastery at St puut , ,

out_side the Wal ls, a new clo isrer , r , bu; l r .boutrzoo, similar to the Lateran cloister which r.shave ment ioned.r :

The Torre delle Milizieli is a private lbrti-fication dated about r2oo! or later. Nlore irrter_est ing is the miscal led House of Rienzi , nearSanta Maria in Cosmedin, a strangelv cnrbel_lished brick tower-base where the architect ( per_haps about r roo) used unconr.ent ional mruns(partlv Moslem in inspiration?) to enrich rhedesign.

This completes the list of Romanesquc de_signs of importance exist ing in Rome, ,n. l . rn_phasizes the conservat ive character of the c i r r ina r ch i t ec tu re . Bu rgund ian ha l f -Go rh i c t l i t l n , , tcome in unt i l about rz8o, and then uniquclr inSanta Mar ia sopra Minerra. f in ishet l ,1. , ;oo.The French High Gothic is not reDrescnredi r t a l l . B r r 4o : B rune l l esch i and D r . r n r r r r l l owere in Rome together, studying Antiqr.rin inorder to br ing about the Renaissance.

T U S C A N Y

Florence, rvhere the Renaissance was to begin,had monuments less la i thfu l to the ant ioue sr \ le

than contemporary Roman *o.ks. bui hrr,llfless clas.sical in spirit. The area covered br rheTuscan Romanesque school inc ludes the Ducl : . .Sardin ia (which the Pisans conquered), i rndsome special monuments in the northern lnd

southern parts of the I ta l ian peninsula. Esscn-t ia l lv the st1. le covers the dominions and reprc-sents the effective reign of the great Countess

.r.tjld,.Oo46-rr I5)' well remembered not only

' i )^ ,n rgr, i 'pro-papal pol i t ical f igure' but

?"' .r ,n enl ighrened ruler. patron ol ' the arts

S liUfopttite' the personal friend ot Hildc-

ilrr'na rna Anselm She encouraged the Lom-

i l la ,o*nt, and.favoured the derelopmenr of

f'eschool. of Bologna..then among the greatest

ii-Europ., where active progress was being

Irade in ciui l and canon law' and in medicine'

While architecture does not necessarily reflect

such conditons, the'Roman-mindedness' ol'the

qreat sovereign made i t natttral that thc Roman

lwle should be rt home in her domain. I t is no

less natural - given the active temper of the

Deriod - that creal ive dit lerentiat ions should

.pp..t , . t they did parl icularl ] in Florence and

287. Florence, BaPtisterl 'exterior, f if ih ( ?), eleventh, and twclfth centuries

c E N T R A L r T A r . Y . 1 7 - l

Pisa. Endowed with a classical sense, and able to

profit by an excellent tradition offine workman-

ship, moreover, provided with good builcling

stone and the means to use the easily available

marble, the architects put a special stamp on a

considerable number of 6ne buildings, particu-

larly churches.

Florence prospered in the age ofNlrtilda, and

characteristic works were created there. Recent

studies have brought down the very early dates

( lor3, ror8) assigned to conspicuous Roman-

esque works without disturbing the relative

importancc ol the bui ld ings.

In coming to Florence we instandy encounter

the controvers!' over the date o{'the Baptistery

of San Giovanni l r [287,288] , the vaul t of which

-f-

3 7 4 L A N D S A S S O C T A T E D W T T H T N T H E H O L y R o M A N E M p T R E

.288. Florencc, Baptisterv,rnterlor, supcrficiall.r' eler.enth and trvellth ccnturies

was srudied as a model fbr the .dome, of the

present cathedral, the 6rst great vaultins enter_pr ise ot ' the Renaissance.

San Giovanni is octagonal in plan, with anoblong extension on the western side, whereformer l r there was an apse. There are doors onthe south, north, and east sides, filled respec_tively by the memorable valves of Andrea pisano

(tr3o) and Lorenzo Ghibert i ( t4ot 24, tq47

5z). From wall to wall it measures about go f'eetEnglish, or close to 93 Roman feet.

_ While proximity ro the ciry wall sugglcsts that

the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore mauoccup) an Ear l . r Chr isr ian carhcdral s i re, in t .ac ithe see was not mored l iom San I .orerrzo (ac_cording lo t locuments broughr forward b1Franhlin Toker) until the ninth centurr,. Nor_

malll' a baptisrery would first be built ar thartime, and the familiar opinion that the ocrasonwas the original carhedral buildinE would sccrnto bc un renab le .

'I'he oldest documcnted remains are those (,1

the ear lv-s ixth-century basi l ica of SanrrrReparata. We recognized a stretch of sesnienljlf b r r nda t i on ua l l r a i t h i n t he oc ragon as rh tremarns of'a henricl,cle at the west end ol. thcor ig inal atr ium. The act ive bishop Andrcrrs(869 031 i s c red i t ed w i rh mov ing rhe see , bu i l t l -ing the early octagon, and installing the relics olSt Zenobius, so rhat thc basi l ica becam., , r

Pi lgr image church.r5

Foundations show that the original octagon.a re lat i r .e l l smal l bui ld ing, lacked ais les arour i . lthe central space. However, two episodss in thc.

construct ion ol ' the present hui ld ing arc indi-

Jt"a -

" mcdian io int t l i r idcs thc foundat ion

lengthwtse'

io the east of(he ear l l octagon thcre was an

46ium, now.represenled b1 the street . and hc-

oond the atr ium stood (as belbre) the basi l ica of-

Santa Reparata, originalli ' built in the sixth

century. For a long period it served as the

cathedral building. The remains may be seen

in an archaeological crypt which has been ar-

ranged near the west end of the nave at Santa

Maria del Fiore, the present cathedral.

Santa Reparata was augmented in various

ways: the sanctuarlr level u'as raised; the apse

was flanked, as commonly in Imperial churches,

by two towers. A transept and probably also a

crossing tower were built.

Beginning earlf in the eleventh century, both

churches were rebuilt on a slightly larger scale,

respecting the old locations. At San Giovanni

the core of the existing octagon was built,

replacing the earlier baptistery with a clear open

space. The u'alls sheathe an aquedtrct-like

construction bent around the eiglrt angles. The

new basilica, also rvooden-roofed, was more sub-

stantial but resembled the old design in many

ways. This work was deducirtcd in ro-59 by

Gebhard of Burgundy, the Irlorentine bishop

who, at the time, in Florence, was clected as the

reforming pope Nicholas I I ( ro-Sg-6r) . In th is

election the present rule of having the pope

elected by the cardinals a lone was introduced.

About the ' rear r2oo the inter ior of San

Giovanni rvas giren its present charactcr and

covered b-"- the existing vault. The better to

sustain this r,ault, the present system ofcolumns

and arches was appl ied to the inside of the wal ls

o f t he o t l agon o l r 05q , r es l i ng on con l i guo t t s

foundat ions iust wi th in thc octagon of ro.59. In

the new upper structure a ser ies o1'arches,

three to a typical bay, carrl' the remarkable

cupola and the buttress-like external ribs which

support the roofing. The exterior attica datcs

from this period, but the arcading below which

c E N T R A L r 1 ' A L Y 1 7 5

sheathes the octagon o{' ro59 seems later, fbr it

corresponds to the upper arcading on thc

present cathedral.

The latter building was planned by Arnolfo

di Cambio about r zg6 to replace Santa Reparata.

Arnolfo's design, already started, was con-

siderably augmented in scale about r j-55.

T'hough Gothic, its interior thus became almost

Roman in grandeur, and this great building

presented Brunelleschi with his opportunity to

construct, in r4zo 36, the first splendid monu-

ment o{' the Renaissance.

The Baptistery's Corinthian columnar and

pilaster orders, with entablature or arcades, and

its parti-coloured marble veneering became and

continued to be usual in the Florentine area

until the Gothic came. Parti-coloured marble,

coffered panel work, and paving slabs of great

beauty and delicacv (exemplified also at San

NIiniato, Florence) were made as time passed.

Some importation of the zebra-work of Pisa

occurred as on the corners of the Baptistery,

which befbre tzg3 showed the structural'macigno'

stone.

The interior of the Baptistery is dignified.

Pairs of handsome free-standing columns be-

tween pairs ofpilasters at the angles of'the octa-

gon sustain an entablature in the lower storey.

Each column or pilaster of the ground storey

has a pilaster above it, with the entablature

abo\,e serving to mark the spring of the great

octagonal vault. The recesses of the aqueduct-

like structural arches of the wall are masked by

pretty bifora between marble parapets and

parti-coloured panels. The vast mosaic above,

and the extraordinary parti-coloured pavement

beneath, both belong to the thirteenth century.

San Miniato a l Monterb [z8g gr l is the most

remarkable Florentine basilica. It became a

Benedict ine abbey church in ror8, and by rogo

a new church was essentially complete, though

the fbgade was finished in the twelfth century

and the pavement dates fiom rzo7. There is an

interesting open groin-vaulted crypt which en-

gfls a raised sancruary' 'I'ht'

navc has a series ol-

free three-arched bavs with three clerestorr

l indo*r and tbur trusses in each, dit ided br '

dirphragrn arches on grouped piers The apse

f,1s a decorative arcade. with a mosaic on the

rcoi-dome; the fagade also has a decorative

z9o and u gr. F lorcncc, San trliniato,tnterior, linished ro6z go, and plan

c E N , t R A L t T A L \ , 3 7 7

arcade with a mosaic above. Marble vencering

and the brightly painted ceiling and rrusses add

to the colourlul effect.

San Miniato is believed to have inspired the

fbgades of the Badia at Fiesole (late twellih cen-

tury, though the church was given to the Bene-

dict ines in ror8) , and the col legiate church ol

St Andrew in Empoli (twclfth centurl').

Smaller churches in Florence and the sur-

rounding region are much simpler. -f

hey have a

great deal of bare stone-work, but possess the

classical dignitv and good proportion which are

generally characteristic of Florentine buildings.'I'he

year ro6z was signalized b1' an over-

whelming victorv of the Pisan navy in a battle o1I'

Palermo. This action marked a 6nal success in a

long war against the Saracens ofSicily, whom the

Pisans, with the Genoese, had fought to a stand-

still in Sardinia. and driven fiom that island.

I

t .414:-." *

a : a

a : : : : :a

a

a

a

a

- |l '' l ' 1l

ITFI f 'a l- - t

i l

llrzl!9. Florcncc, .San Miniato, llEade, ro6: and twelfih centurr

'- 'ro following year' 1063' the Pisans began

.ll l,."t"raUte cathedral ltg' +l' The fbund-

llt""r "t

the church were laid in an open stte'--.

- -^ ̂ lqr Ee ftee-stanolng oaptistery ( r r 5 3 ff')'

#;';i;;;- tr')' and camPo Santo (r278 ff')

ffi i i, to make :l '.:f .tht finest examplcs of

tJl"t* cathedral bui ldings' Al l the bui ldings

lr. t*.0 with marble panell ing' arcading' and

Li-nra.r, thel hare weathered beauti ful ly '

l ; ; ; t stand as a splendid monumenr to rhc

*rna.ut of the Pisan rePublic '1;

" lh..r,h.dtt l was designed by Buschetus or

Boschetto. Building began in earnest about

lo=ig. .t.or,t".tation was perfbrmed by Gelasius

i i" in t t ta. A fair ly homogeneous westward

,*t.nrion of the nave by Rainaldus was not

nnirft.a trrr:Jl 126r-72' The plan is an elabora-

tion ofthe basilican layout really the conjunc-

I R A L I T A I - Y 3 7 9

tion of three basilicas, each with a galler-v: the

great double-aisled nave is intersected b1' a

transept formecl of two single-aisled minor

basilicas set front to front, with the domed cross-

ing of the great nave between them lzg5l Each

oflhe minor basilicas was provided with an apse

of its own at the outward extremit-v, and with

returned ais les at i t s inu ard end' Thcsc re l urned

aisles coalesce with the inner aisles ofthe great

nave, screen off the transeptal basilicas' and

plovide extra support lbr the oval dome (on

squinches an<1 shallow pendentives) at the cross-

ing. The aisles are groin-vaulted; the galleries

are covere<l in wood. Except at the extremltles'

the aisles and galleries arc continuous around

the building.

Like man-v othcr great sttuctures which have

initiated u group or school, the cathedral ofPisa

zgzandzg j . P isaCathedra l , ro61, ro8g r :72

zg4. Pisa, cathedral group from the air' tob3 t35o

C E N T R A L I ' T A L Y

296. Scctions of baptisterics:

,r. Pisa, r r.5-j i265,

comparative hall-scctitlns lvith hall-plans

n. Parma, I r96, section' rvith Plan

3 d r38o

zg5. Pisa Cathedral, Io63, roli l rzTz

a a . a r : 1 . - : a - ! E

f . , f -

I

is, within an embracin!i unity, stvlistically,com-

posi te. I ts beaut i lu l lv sheathed marble exter ior

has decolrti ve arcades and pilaster rirnges which

were probirbly suggested from Rome and

Florence, rarher than (as has been suggesred)

ii'om Armenian works remote in time and place,

and dillelent in design. I'he lbur-sroried arcad-

ing ofthe faQade, Iinished in the thirteenth cen-

turv, probably' reflects Lombard lree-standinE

gal lerr wor l . Such arcading in marble, f ree-

standing or appl ied, becomes thc s ign manual

of the Pisan school , especia l l l when accom-panied wi th square panels set poinr uprvards in

the t lmpana of the arches. - l 'he

nave arcade of '

the chulch is sct on a magni f icent range ofant i -

que columns, purelv Roman in sty le , wi th s lab-

l ike impost b locks. f 'he upper parr of the nave

has zebra u 'ork (u l t imately inspired f rom the

classical olur mittum) which becomes onlv too

I-amiliar in 'luscan

Romanesque and Gothic.

A pointed t r iumphal arch terminates the navc.

but the rrches bevond are round, ancl thc mosaic

of the apse is c lear ly in the Bvzanr ine t radi t ion.

The bapt is tery, designed b1' Diot isalv i [29.1] ,has leminiscences of Roman anr iqui ty, and ot

thc Hol l Land, to which the Pisan merchanr

marine was transporting crusaders and pilgrims

at the time of its construction. 'fhe

scheme is

l ike that of the Rotunda of the Anastasis in Jeru-salem, but the detai l is Pisan, and the inter ior is

vaul ted. The or ig inal vaul t is a t runcared cone,

wi th i ts ere now closed; the outer vaul t ( later) is

a dome Iz96,r ]. Both tvpes of'roof , in wood, har-e

protected the Anastasis. The older carving on

the building is very beautiful, and r,erv classical

in spi te of i ts date ( r r 53 and later) ; Nicola Pisano

part ic ipated in the remodel l ing of ' the exter ior

i n t he Go th i c s t y l e ( r z5o 65 ) . tN

The great Pisan belfr.v Iz9z] is c1-lindrical like

the old belfries in Rlvenna, but much morc

elaborate, being faced rvith marble and embcl-

lished with six storel's of decorative malble

gal lery arcading. Unlbr tunately i t was bui l t wi th

insuf f ic ient lbundat ions on ground ot unc\cn

resistance, and was carried fbrward in spite ol'

ear ly set t lement. Loading the uppel s ide and

bending the shaft (which as a result has some-

wha t t he shape o l a b ; r nana ) ue re una ra i l i ng t o

arrest progressile deliation fiom the perpen-

d i cu la r , and t h i s has on l r t t c cn t l r been s toppe t l

by a modeln fbr . rndat ion The bui ld ing is con-

s istent in stv le wi th thc bapt is ter .v and the cathe-

dral , a l though cal ' r ied fbrward as late ts t27r

(by Gerarc lo) . The mot i f is cssent ia l ly that of

the galleried fbgade ofthe cathedral envcloping

the cvlindrical shali of the tower' 'I 'he

bcll

chamber at the top dates f iom about r35o' As

thus linished the torver is r79 f'cet high, and it ts

slightly' more than thirteen f'eet out of plumb'' Ihe

Campo Santo [ :94] is the lburth of thc

great bui ld ings in thc cxthedral c losc at Pisr .

and i t is said that the earth cover ing the garth is

indeed holy, hal ing been brought f rom Palest ine

as ballast in Pisan ships Although the fianrpo

Santo was largel-v built (b1' Giovanni di Simone)

in rz78-83, and has I ta l ian Gothic arches xnd

tracer] ' , i t is la id out l ike an c longatcd c lassical

atr ium. Later i t was t lccot 'a led u i th tamous l ies-

coes. which made i t l ikc a c lassical stoa poeci le '

In passing one should note that the t tor t l t t r ium

came to metrt ((ttt(lcr.)t in medie\al Latin' Both

the usagc ancl the ar 'chi tecture are mcdieral ized

in th is lerr beaut i fu l examplc ( I t sul lered

great lv in the Second World War ' )

In the c i tv , thc chlractcr is t ics which rve have

noted in the cathedrrr l group are fur ther cxem-

L'. lFr-

: : ?

-]-

3 E 2 L A N D S A S S O C T A T E D \ [ ' I T H I N T i l E I I O L y R O M A ^ * E M p t R E

pl i f ied. San Paolo a Ripa d 'Arno (begun aboutrzro) is a smal ler and sercrer r .ers ion of thegreat chur.ch. The r erv much be_str.iped ancl be_pinnacled miniature chur.ch of Santa N1ar iadel la Spina (a thorn f iom the cr .own of thorns).r . 125 7 . shous hou some lh i ng o l t he sp i r i r o l .t he ( . a thed r r l Romanes t l ue l i v c r l on i n Tu : canGo th i c . 1 "

Lucca has a beaut i f i r l ser ies of churches in thePisan sty le, inc luding the cathedral of san Ntar_t ino, r lh ich, through i rs possession of the , \ 'o l to

Santo' lrom the eler,enth century onwar.d, be_camc a place of 'p i lgr image. Though rhe inrer iorofthc church is Gothic, our architectural interest

is in the Pisan Romanesque I'aqade, rvith a nar.-thex, dated about r zo4. San NI ichele, a lso pisan.

dates lrom r r43 to the lburteenth centurv. SanF led iano . | | | z . 4 j . has a s t r i k i ng mosa i c t n r h .fagade, and is more Roman. Al l are basi l ican inscheme, and employ marble, as is usual in1 'uscanv.2o

'I'he' expansion olthe Tuscan school was r erl

considerable. In Sardinia it is found with litrlcchange.rr An Ear lv Chr ist ian domed cruci formchurch surv ives, in part , in San Saturno, Cagl iar i( f i l ih centur . r ) , and there are rarhcr roush larc lexan rp les i n t he same s r y l e , s . e l l r . uu l t . d . Bu rf rom the eleventh to the fourteenth centur \

man) wooden-rooled b;rs i l icas in the Pisan st t le

were bui l t . Among thcse \ \e ma\ menl ion San

Gar,ino at Porto 'forrcs

(late eleventh centur-Y

to t . r r r r ; b-v except ion a 'double-ender ' ) ,

the

Tr in i t i d i Saccargia at Codrongianrts ( r r t6 and

, . r rSo-r2oo), and Santa NIar ia d i Castc l lo at

Caglialrt (r. r zoo-r. r 3oo).

On the mainland the Pisan Romancsque

spread far bevond the boundar ies of ' the Re-

public. The style is exemplilied in parts of the

cathedral ofGenoa ( r r gg and later) ; at Pistoia in

the church of San Giovanni luor civitas, trvcllih

century ( three stages of Pisan arcading on the

long flank ofthe church) ; at Arczzo in the 'Pieve'

or parish church (ranges ofcolumnar galleries on

the laqade of the church, above an applied

arcadei in stone, Izr6) . Massa N{ar i t t ima

Cathedral was built, still in the Pisan Roman-

esque sty le, in tzzS-67. Othcr examples are San

Giusto at Bazztno in the Abruzzi , and, f i r l ther

on, the cathedral of ' ' l ' ro ia in Apul ia ( rogt to the

thirteenth centur,v) rvhich wc har c alreadr'

seen22 [z7ol.

Before quitting central Itall w'e should men-

tion three sites ofspecial interest. At the abbey

of Sant 'Ant imo, near Siena, a Burgundian-

looking church with apse, ambulatory', and

radiating chapels, embellished, too, rvith sculp-

ture in the Toulousan st.vle, was begun about

I I I 8. Burgundian archi tectural in l luence befbre

the arrival ofthc Cistercians is almost unheard-

of , and Sant 'Ant imo is not wel l expla ined. I t was

not Cluniac.r i At San Galgano betwcen Siena

and Massa Mar i t t ima the Cistcrc ians bui l t their

chief house in Tuscanl ' . The chulch there (a l -

readv ment ioncd) dates f t 'om rzz4.

c E N T R A L r r l r _ v 3 9 3

The remaining s i te is near Siena also, namclr . .

San Gimignano, which st i l l has th i r teen ta l l

towers (out of ' 48, or t ladi t ional l . r ' 76) which

were raised as prir,ate fortilications liom the

twel f th centurv onward Iz97l . Such tower.s i r lso

servc as refuges fi'om the Iiequent conflagra-

t ions which dcsolated the wood-bui l t and

crorvdcd c i t ics of the t ime. At San Gimignano,

as elsewhele, thc towers are square in p lan, and

rise sheer with no ornament and ver]. f'ew open-

ings. Such indiv idual c i tadels,rvere bui l t in great

nunbers dur ing the intense struggles and com-

petitions of medio,al cir,ic lif-e. At San Gimi-

gnirno the towers of the Salvucci arc ascr ibcd to

the twelfth ccntury. The Palazzo Comunale

(1288 13-23) has a touel r7.3 f -eet h igh rv i th a

mark bel.ond which private towets might not

r i se . : r

Florence is reported to havc had r5o such

torvers, and Lucca ' rose

l ike a lbrest ' . As the

desolated c i t ies werc rebui l t . bet ter construc-

t ion, wi th greatcr use ol 'masonr1" in the houses,

rendered the towcrs less necessarr. Because of

thci r considerable bulk and their tendeno to t ip

when not well fbundcd. almost all the towers

have now been destrol'ed- 81, erception, thc

tower of the Asinel l i l -ami ly ( r r09-rg;3zo I 'eet

high; foul feet out of p lumb) and the Torre

Gar i senda ( r r r o ; t en f ce t ou t o f p l umb ; neve r

f in ished) i r re to bc seen in Bologna, which

fo rmer l r had abou t t 8o p r i v l t e t oue rs .

Of the Countess Mat i lda 's ancestra l cast le on

a rockl' f'astncss near Reggio Emilia Canossa,

so much in thc news of ro77 - pract ical lv noth-

ing rcmains. In generll thc tbltifications of the

resion are r-erv nuch later in date.

297 San Gimignano, gcncrrl r. icu of torvcrs,I a r g e l i t s c l t i h t n ( l ( h t r l c ( . n ( l t c c l l u r i c s

CHAPTER z t

N O R T H E R N I 1 ' A L Y

VEN I CE

Constant rel'ltionships with thc Bvzantine East

qaue Ven.t iun archi tecrure a Blzant ine cast

"which is a. . " . i l ] pcreept ib le as the c lassic ism ol '

Rome and Tus.anr'. This shows itself most fulll '

in the church of San Marco'r begun in Iob3' not

as the bishop's seat but as the ducal chapel ; i t is

the shrine for relics of thc Evangelist St Mark'

brought to Venice from -{lexandria in 828, and

housed in a cruciform church after 976 The old

tower in thePiazza, which tell in r9oz, and u'as

afterwards rebuilt, lvas associated with this

building. The ncrv church o(' lo63 w''rs dedi-

cated in rog5, but it was not linished with its

mosaicembellishment until wcll into the twelfth

century. As first built, it was almost purely

Byzantine in st-vle, and undoubtedl-v due in large

oart to Byzantine architects and craf tsmen The

standard of workmanship is verl' high, espe-

cially for the time.

The church is a good example of ' the t -vpe

known as the 'cross ol domcs' or composi te

cruciform five-domed church, for it has five

domed uni ts so combined (u i th i rpse ln '1 narc

extension) as to mark a gleat cross in ground-

plan. This was thc'rrrangement of Justinian and

Theodora's imperial mausoleum church of the

Holy Apost les in Constant inople, and Just i -

nian's church built at tl-re tomb of St John the

Evangelist in Ephesus, both of which hirve been

destroyed. San N1arco difters from the original

in lacking a gallerl', in h:r'r'ing the sanctuary in

the eastern limb ol the cross (rather than cen-

t r a l ) , i n hav ing w indows i n t he domes co re r i ng

the l imbs ol ' the cross, and, ofcourse, in the later

additions of pointed and Renaissance st1.le' The

proiecting pierced piels go back to the B1'zln-

tine originals, and were ttansmitted, as wc have

seen, to Saint-Irront at P6rigueux. A Bl.zantine

church sould probablv not have large mosaic

subjects on the pier rvalls, below the spring of

the vault, but otherwise the decorative scheme

runs t rue to tvpe' ' l 'he

marble veneer of the

interior, now patinated to a beautiful soft brown,

is actualll- made of slabs which werc almost white

when applied. Much of thc furniture of the

churcl-r is Byzantine in style also.

No ' schoo l ' de l e l oped ou t o l t he eons t t ' u c t i on

ofSan N{arco in Venice''l 'he building, bcautiful

as it was, had ver.v little direct efect a sure sign

tha t i t s r r r ch i t ec t s $c l e B l z i r n t i ne ' r nd ou t o l '

touch wi th I ta ly. ' l 'he

Byzant inc mosaic ists, not

so f'ar removed in sentiment, rverc more influen-

t ia l .

At Padua ' I l Santo ' ( the church of 'Sant 'An-

tonio) l r as la id out ( r 23I ) in somelvhat thc same

*a1' , but inter ior ly- faccd wi th handsome ashlar ,

and cxter ior ly carr ied out wi th l 'ombald br ick-

work and detai l ' [zg8' 299] . At Torcel lo, Santa

Fosca (perhaps d ated I o r i ) is a much Italianized

version, with exterior gallcries, of'a centralized

B1'zantine squinch church t5'pc Perhaps therc

is something of Bl.zantine subtlcty in the hand-

some but s imple basi l ican cathedral (6 '1r , rebui l t

in 86+ and again about Ioo8) ' The serene in-

ter ior is st i l l arranged as Desider ius 's basi l ica at

Montecassino was. The torvcr beside i t is very

elegant, and enriched with tall dccorative irrcad-

ing, which is essent ia l l l ' Lombard' but re lated to

B1-zantine work. It recalls the original shape ot

the tower of San Nlarco on the Piazza in Venice' '

Pelhaps something of'the elegance ofthc church

at Mur ano (a cruci lbrm bui ld ing wi th a beautt -

fully arcacled rnd gallelied apse, finished about

t I.1o) comes fiom thc B-vzantinc contxcr also'

zg l i . Padua, Srn t ' - {n ton io , bcgun rz - l r

3 8 6 L A N D S A ^ S S O C I A T I D W T T H I N T H E H O L } - R O M , { N E M P I R I

Rut the lict that the Lombard stvle flooclecl in soclose ro San l {arco in Venicels n; . ; ; ' ; ;artistic maturity ofnorth ltalv_

L O M B A R D Y

Thegreat alluvial plain of the po and rhe Adige

11 whicl l_ombardv lies is r.evealed br a mere

9r"l-._. rt the map as a narural corridor. Th. t;

itselfis navigable lrom near the .onflu.rr.. ui,hJRiver Sesia, for 337 miles to rts mouth. This rvasa great aid to trade in the Middle -tg"r, ,lr.nland transport was so dilicult. Ur.l,lrn. V.ri."connected Lombardl, u,ith southcrn Italv andthe Near East . A system of Alp in. purr . . . * r lr ing upon Mi lan faci l i tared connexrons wi th rheNorth. We ha-ve already seen how ar.chitcctur.altoeas moyed from Rar.enna through this corri-

dor ton'ards Spain, Irrance, S*itzcrland, andGcrmant.

A magni f icent rotv of towns existet l crcn inan l i qu i r v j n r hc po | a l l e1 . \ f t e ra dcc l i ne , r r , r , l ederelopcd ant l ther. increased great l l in poprr l . t_t ton and urban consciousnes^i^ _ part icular l r inthe eleventh and twel f th centur ies. so thal rhcluere capable of conl ionr ing Fr.edet . ick l t r r r_barossa wi th their Lombard Leaguc (r r ( rS g. l )when t ha t Empero rsough r ro r cga rn

r . i gh r s u h i r . hnad l apsed du r i ng rhe pe r . i od o l . papa l an t l i r n_perral anarchv.

In Lombard-t . thc o lder Romanesque bui l (1,lnFs prcsenr d i f t icul r chronological p.ohl .n, . .There are two schools of 'archaeological thoughr

one inclincd ro stress cu.ly exumplc. :;r.,1,_posedlv t raceable to the ele\ .enth centur l : thco the l i nc l i ned ro ass i gn f he g r . ca te r . r h r , . . , , ,

cristing Romanesque,$ orks to the pcl'iod of the

Lflgue and alterwa,ros

-,

-

Wcause of i ts a l lur ia l character . the region

bui lds in br ick. The c lar burns to enchant ing

dnls and browns tn the ceslern pal l o, thc

dley, and to fu l l , beaut i [u l . br ighr. r ich reds in

dre region about Nlilan. Sout'ces of'stone are,

hOWever. never \er l remote, and eas-t com-

municadon made it possible to use that material

freely, often in combination with blick. The

g1one is rather grey and grittv; hence, lor better.

311ect, marble and breccia (also obtainable) N'ere

used when the means allowed it. 'fhough

Vene-

thn architecture was littlc imitated, the gaiety of'

Venetian colour and rich matelirrls had its eli'ect

on the mainland design.

Architecturally, as we har,e scen, rhe rcgion

had international importance bt the year 8oo.

Its style of that time, the Lombardo-Catalan

First Romanesque, did not change mr.rch as it

matured. It was used in larger, more substantial

buildings of much better workmanship, withmore ambitious vaults, and enriched br, moreelaborate mouldings, galleries, ancl sculpturalrnotifs, but it shows little trace of outside in-fluence.

Two striking features do,eloped, horveyer:the square bel f r l rower, and the r ib vauh. Ot 'course Roman towers stubby tlrrre.s - had beenbui l t in Lombardi . Thc scr ics of monumcnralchurch towers appears to begin wirh Sanr.orenzo in Mi lan (abour 4oo. later rcr . r exten-sively rebuilt). The church, a qurrrefbil, hasfour corner torvers, with pr-oiecting apses be-tween three of the pairs. T 'h is scheme ofan apsebetween a tower p. i , *u. taken up in Germany(Fulda, about 7go. and manj orhers subsc-quenrly).

I t is the ta l l Lombard tower bui l t speci f ical lvas a belfry, with pilaster strips and .o.b.l ,"b1..ils decoration, which appears to otle somethingto Rome, the Exarchare, ancl thc B-rzanr ines.The great betfiv of Old St Peter's in Rome, builtinto the propl'laeum range [3], largel-r- in 755 6s,

N o R T H E R N r r . r r _ v j g 7

u,as undoubtedly very inf luent ia l . The pla in o ldMonks 'Touc r bes ide San r ' . \mh r .oc i o i n \ l i l an

[ .1o2 | is one of thc o ldest norv in e\ is lencc (renr hcentury) though the bel f r f is modcrn. SanSatiro in l\{ilan has a characferistic cxamnle.dared ro43 rarher. than conlemporaneousl_r u i rhthe church. Belfl.ies multiplied in the eleventhcenturv because of improvements in bell castins.ant l increase of means mat le i t possih lc forrnrn,chu rc l t es t o ha re se t s o l bc l l s . Consp i cuousamong the tvpical Lombard towers of ear l1. dateand mature design is that of pomposa (ro63),

bui l t by Abbot Guido of Ravenna [3or] . I t hasnine stap;es, marked by pilaster strips, appliedshaf-ting, and arched corbel rables. Orieinallvthe openings on each s ide increased f , . , r - oncnarrow loophole at the bottom to tbur generous

arches in the bellil-.-1

While within the Po Vallev onc f'eels Lom-bardy as a great corr idor, in the north one isconscious of the radiating mountain pirsses andthe reflex influences {r.om Germanic lands. l.heLombard belfry r'25 represented on the pied_

montese cathedrals of Ivrea and Aosta bv theea r l r e l e r cn th cen tu r ) . The re i s a f i ne exan rp l c

of paircd bcl fn rouers on lhc church ofSant 'Abbondio ar Como in north Lombardv

| 3ool . h replaced an interesr ing Ear ly Chr isr ian

structure which has been t raced by excavat ion.' fhe

newchurch, bui l tofstone, was begun aboutro63 and dedicated in ro95.r ,The deep sanc-tuarv has two bavs ofr ib vaul t ing and a r ibbed

apse; lateralll ' there are two groined ba1,s to eachside at the entrance of the sanctuar l ' ; each has anapse in the th ickness of the wal l , and oler th ispair of l i t t le sanctuar ies, one at each s ide. the ta l l .act i \e bulks of the bel f r l rowers r ise. The

church has a dignilied basilicrn lbq:ade and agenerous clerestory in the nave rvhich, like the

double ais les, is roofcd in wood. I t is wel l known

as a typical example of the use of 'decorat ive

applied shafting, pilaster strips, and corbel tablesfbr articulation of'the dcsign, and fbr the enrich-

ment of the wall surface. The wooden roofine of'

zgg. Padua, Sant'.{ntonio, begun rz.1r

E

1 8 8 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N E M P I R E

the nave is both archaic and prophctic; for alter

the carthquake of ' r r r7 manv f ine naves wcre

roofed on wooden truss-work to ar,oid the risk of

fa l l ing vaul ts.

In passing, the trefbil plan lnd the vaults of

San lredelc at Como should bc mentioned, fbr

these arc said to have been inf luenced l rom thc

north. The aisles are carried entirely around the

tronsepts ro ths r l ' iapsidal cast end, perhaps in

partial imitation of St Mary in Capitol at

Colognc ( ro45 65; somewhat lebui l t l ; r tcr) .1 'he

date of San Fedelc apparently' fhlls, fbr most of

i ts present st ructure, in the car l I ' t rvel f th centurv.

I fso, San Fedele has an ear l \ example of the de-

veloped Lombarcl caves gallerl' which we havc

notcd previously at San Nicola in Bar i . The

earliest definitell- datcd. fully der,eloped ex-

3oo. (lomo, Sant'-\bhondio,r . ro63 95, south f l rnk

ample is claimed against conservative protesl

for the church of San Giacomo in Como ( r or ; ;

t try).i

We now turn to a considerat ion of Lonrh116

rib vaulting, a much rnorc difficult subjecr 11

involves some qucst ions of-date and scopc 61'

inf luences which may never be solved, becauss

of ' lost monuments.

For us i t is sul l ic ient to say that about lo5o

there was, ovel a wide area, st retching al l the

rvay f rom Armenia through the Near Easr to

Italy, Spain, and lirance, a eireat interest in rib

vaul ts o( ' r 'ar ious sorts r ibbed tunnel , domical

or c lo ister , r ibbed groin, and compound vaul ts.

The or ig inal impulse was Byzant ine ( thc dome

of St Sophia is the l i rs t ambi t ious r ibbed raul t ) ;

hter the idea was taken up bl ' the Nloslems and

3ot. PomPosa'

church and tower' Io6j' from the wcst

4

3 g o L A N D S . { s s o c l A T E D W I T H I N T H L f i O L Y R O M - \ N E M P I R E

used successfirlly though sporadicalll ' by them.

The Armenians f i rs t appl ied i t systcmat ical lv

to church archi tecture, beginning ear ly in the

seventh century. Trdat, the Armenian architect

who repaired the r ,aul t of 'St Sophia about 975,was one of the innovators in the'Second Per iod

ol'Bloom' of'Armenian architecture. Afierwards

(perhaps in the eleventh cenrury:) the Arme-

nians der,eloped (especiallv for nartheces) a

cler,er compound vaulr with thc r.ibs arranged in

plan like a prinrer's sign for space (f ). 'fhe

narthex of the church at Casale Monf'errato, so

arranged, but dated about rzoo, is late enough

to show Armenian influence of'this sort operat-

ing th lough the Crusades, but i r is not possib le

to trace definite influence from Armenia either

at the cr i t ical r ime (about roso) or upon the

critical form (groin vaulting).t At most, oriental

contacts mal har,e stirred thc originalitv of

Western bui lders, and led them to der e lop their

own essen t i a l l \ Roman i nhe r i r ance .'l 'raccs

of a Lombard ribbed groin vaulr

c la imed for ro4o exist in the ru ined older part of

the former abbel 'church o1'sannazzaro Sesia

(north-west o l Nl i lan and Nor ara) . The or ig inal

church, reported as fbunded in ro4o. has becn

replaccd. but there are remains ofa br ick narthex

with two-storer groin-r'aulted aisles flanking an

open nave, and c lear indicat ions that the t r ibune

was (as at V6zelay, about r r4o) carr ied across

the open nave at the east end of ' the narthex. Onlv

th is axia l t r ibune bav hacl r ibs, and thev rested

on terracotta capitals of archiac lbrm. Herring-

bone work and pebbles in the construction also

give i t an archaic a i r . Such wal l -work usual l l '

indicates a ninth- , tenth- , or ear lv e leventh-

century date. Restoration work has shown that

this wall was not integral, and that the narthex

may be of the twelfth century. While Sesia is

on the border of the Milanese area, the first

Lombard ribbed groin vaults were most prob-

ably built farther east, in or near Milan."

In v iew of Nloslem r ib construct ions. i t is

worth not ing that the piers at S:rnnazzaro Sesia

are rather like Moslem piers turned thron[\

for t r - f i re c legrees. Again, the ais le and rr ih, .11,"

vaul ts st i l l ex ist ing have strongh'sal ient ar . r ises

In the oblong groin vaulr br idging rhe nar c, 1 l "addition ofdiagonal ribs produced a much bctter

system of intersecions and made the vaul t easicr

ro construct , in addi t ion ro enr iching i t . Odcl l r

cnough a r Veze la ) t he h i gh rau l r abo r r r he

tribune actually has diagonal ribs also, thougtl

the other bays do nor (dated about r r . lo) ; arSant 'Ambrogio in Mi lan, as wel l , the narthex

has r ibs, though the other ba-v--s of the atr ium

(dated about rog8) do not

Note should be taken that Ivrea Cathedral .

twenty-fir'e miles from Sannazzaro Sesia, .nas

rebuilt after 96z and before r oo r on a large scalc,

and wi th an ambulatorr ' . Without minimiz ing

the importance of the mountain barrier, rvc mat

sa) that the interr ,ening Kingdom of Ar lcs

uni ted lather than div ided Lombardl . and

France, for by the year r ooo very interesting and

clever structural work (including a remarkable

narthex) was done in the Lombard st1- ' le at Saint-

Philibert, Tournus, scarcely 25o miles norrh-

west from the Nlilanese area. William of Diion,

who did such important architectural work at

Saint-B6nigne (roor-r8) , came from Volpiano

(forty miles distant) and Novara (only twenrl'

miles distant from this same region). Hovrer.er,

these works at Tournus and Di ion do not posscss

r ib vaul ts, and would seem to show that the

Lombard r ibbed groin vaulr does not date back

to the earll years ofthe eleventh centur]-.

In Lombard churches the ais le arches arc

of ien paired, wi th an intermediate column be-

tween the successive piers. The columns are

\ erV pract ical and unobstruct ive supports, whi le

the piers provide bases tbr inter ior wal l but-

t ressing. Consequent ly the l ,ombard designers

of ten thought of their naves in terms of double

bays the more so because the aisles were abottt

hal f the width o l ' the nave, and div ided into

square bays. The nave, i f i t had double bays, l l as

rhythmical l l d iv ided into near lv square uni ts.

Theshaft-like interior.buttresses rising from the

ooup.a piers somet imes. cal l ied diaphragm

irches. *h i . t lur ther emphasizcd thc bav com-

I 'os i t ion. Thus-the wav wa.s prepalcd lbr large

I lur t . ur1. .of groin vaul t ing ' resembl ing in

,J* . * ty t thc large raul ts ot thc Basi l ica of-Mr*rnr iu.

and Const lnt ine and thc rherml l

establishments in Rome'

The square vaulted bays, inherited fiom

Rome, begin their medieval history in the cr1'pts,

where they are used e n quadtille (as in Moslem

work). Agliate, near N1ilan [65], already men-

tioned, has an archaic eleventh-century ex-

ample. The raul t ing i tsel f is in rubble, wi th

erches between the bays. In earll' ' work these are

,disappearing arches'at their base, for the im-

post blocks of the columnar supports were

relatively small, and wall responds were shallow

or lacking. For the arches belween bays ol '

a is le vaul t ing in the churches, the pr imi t ive T-

shaped grouped nare-arcade pier developed

spontaneousl!'! since there \rcre three arches 1br

it to support. When transverse diaphragm arches

were planned ro span lhe narc. lhere ucre four

aiches to suppor l . and the pier thereupon qt t i te

naturally developed a cruciform plan (SS' Felice

eFo r tuna to , V i cenza , . . r ooo ; Lome l l o , . ' r 025 '

with diaphragm arches resembling Carolingian

flying screens; San Carpofbro, Comtl' rozE

4o;r0 compare San Nl in iato a l Nlonte, Florence

[z9o] , where the appl ied elements are round,

r . lobz f f . ) . Further development in the raul t

suggested the addition oflogical elements in the

piers. Nook sha(ts on the diagonal appeared

when diagonal ribs were introduced.

Since the : r is le bals vaul ted wi thout r ibs

obviously ' indicate rvhat unsupported area the

engineers could convcnientlv vault, it is worth

noting that a criss-cross ot ribs in the dotrblc

bays of the n:n 'e would div ide such bays into

four triangles. each equal in area to a squilre

ais le bay. A stout arched center ing was erected

under each arch and r ib; fa lse-work bstween

provided a suppol t fbr the rubble of ' the Iaul t

N O R T H F . R N I T A L Y l g l

whi le i t was being constructed, and also in the

per iod of ' lveeks or months dur ing which i t

solidilied. 'I 'he

Lombards built these vlults as

ponderous dome-like affairs which were not

good to look at or easy to abut [So: 6] . Actual lv

the ribs neutralized the advantage of domed

construction, for the.v brought to the angles of

the vault strong concentrations ofthrust which

were neither understood nor prepared for. 'l 'his

was particularll dangerous in large-scale high

vaults. and in consequence such vaults have not

behaved well. Partisans of earlv dating suppose

that man] earlv vaults of this tvpe failed during

the severe earthquake of r I17, but that ex-

amples continued (though less fiequently) to be

built. Partisans of later dating assign such

rauk, in general to a generat ion or morc af ter

r r I7. Lighter vaulting' built more or less in the

French Gothic manner, superseded the pon-

derous Lombard type late in the thirteenth cen-

tury. Many important churches which had been

rooden-roofed were successlully vaulted at

that time.

There is no speci f ic documentar l reference

to ear ly r ibbed high vaul ts, though, by what one

might call 'historical dead reckoning' con-

s ider ing thc whole great revival of the mid

elerenth ccntur ] these were due to appear in

sonre iml tor tant btr i ld ing Proiects aboul l065

or 75 or 8.5. But i t is pract ical ly certa in that the

original examples are lost, and the more conser-

vat ive methods of studl indicatc a later date '

For the creation of the fbrm, it would only be

necessarv, as we easily perceive, for an en-

gineer to imagine auxi l iarv r ibs l ike the usual

arches ofthe little groin vaults in the crypts, but

placed on the diagonal at the suggest ion, prob-

abl,v, of Roman groin vaulting (where, to be

sure, the arr is r ibs are not auxi l iarv construc-

t ion, but integral) . Since the engineers were

alrcad. t bui ld ing subst int ia l center ing under

the arches ofconvent ional vaul t ing, the diagonal

centering which is so uselul in facilitating the

construction of big ba1's was easil-v imagined'

3 9 2 L A N D S A S S O C T A T E D W r l ' H r N T H I ] H O L y R O M A N [ , M p t R E

:oz. X{ilan, Sant'.{mbrogio. fiom thc *e.st.tent l t ccntur l af ier r r8 r

a long wi th the nook shafrs in the piers fbr thepermanent support of the diagonal r ibs.

-I-he historically important church of Sant'

Ambrogio in Mi lan L:oz .Sl is a convenicnrerample ol ' rhe developed fbrm ol ' th is archi tec_ture and engineer ing. Hcre the Lombard Kings

and German Empcrors were crowned with theIron ( , rown, rvhich is nou, at Monza.

Unfortunatelv the clating of the church islargelv conjectural, but it is usuallv accepted asrepresent ing what the I ,ombard engineers anddesigners were able to p lan and undertakc aboutro8o.r1 As ear ly as r196, however, the vaul tsl lere being repaired, and the high vaul t mav

not actual lv have been br . r i l t ear l ier than r r r ; .

We have referred to the bui ld ing prer iou: l r

b1'mcnt ion of thc o ld apsc which u ' i th i ts intnr-

ductorv bal of tunnel vaul t ing (an ear l r cr-

ample) was lef i in tact , rvhi le the sooden-rorr l id

basi l ican nave was replaccd by ' a complcrc l r

vaulted, aisled str.ucturc of bricft u.ith stuccoed

br ickandrubbleraulrs. I t isapproachedrhror. rgh

a spacious atr ium wi th bold arches and snLr '

but t resses [3oz] . ' l 'h is

seems to be dated aborrr

l ogS b1 ,an i nsc r i p t i on , t hough i t h : r s been t , -

bui l t to a certa in cxtcnr. I t jo ins the church in , r

handsome narthex, which, u. i th i ts t r ibunc. i r

inc luded under a wide su'eeping gable.

3o3 and -io.1. Nlihn, Sant' \mbrogio, ninth. elcr cnth. irnd twcll ih ccntrtries (rcstored I l i63)

-3-

nave was not, for i ts north wall ioined thar ofthe'r irr .r ,

rna the rrults of tht aisles rnd tr i t<-rr ium

*ri i . t t *"t t .subsequently bui l t against the

l"rUi*a wall . According to documents' the

oiJnt". was st i l l in u^se-in ro67 I and (he new

iru. rt t .uay in rog j '1 ' We must admit this and

,uppot. that special condit ions prerented com-

r E R N r T A L Y - 1 9 5

to have been in use in r r3o lv i th the al tar re-

habi l i tatecl , the date of r rz8 fbr thc f i rs t com-

pletion of Sant'Anrbrogio appears to be reason-

able. Frankl , hower"er , dela.vs i t unt i l r rT l l (wi th

repairs as ear lv as r r96).

Sant 'Ambrogio has a r ichl l car led and em-

brasured main door-wa1.. Upon cntcring the

elevcnth and trvcllih centuries

The church was servecl , not a lwar s pcaceabl l ,

bv a communitl' of monks and a chapter of

canons. Each hrrc l a c lo ister . To the south stands

thc lerJ' simple N{onks' -lower

(tenth centur'1)

and to the north the verv handsome Canons'' I 'ower

of r r 2.1, intcrruptcd in r r 28, and f i n ishcd

according to the or ie i inal scheme al icr r r8r a

sophist icated design which is much admired

and r .erv ty.p ical . I t has pihster st r ips and appl ied

shaf i ing, wi th corbel tablcs to d iv ide i t in to f r r c

s tagcs abo r e t he ea res o f t he chu l ch . Thc on i r

large opcnings are three i r rches on each s idc ot

the lof t l ' bel l chamber. ' . I 'he

late date explarrn

i ts s imi lar i tv to the beaut i f u l bc l f i l . of 'San Fran-

cesco at Assis i (af ier rzz8).

The masonr l indicates that the atr ium *r ts

alreadJ. finished when the tower was unde:'-

taken in r rz3, but the wcsternmost bav of ' t l tc

pletion of the westernmost ba]' of the nave,

where it joins thc tower.

In the nave ofsant 'Ambrogio, doublc bays of

domed-up rib vartlting were plannecl fiom the

first. Conservative archaeologists hesitate to put

their actual construction befbre the earthquake

of t r r 7. In r r z8 revenues which had gone to the

rrronks, presumabl-v tbr building' were reas-

s igned to the canons, and s ince the nave appears

bui lc l ing, the v is i tor sees threc great ba] 's o l '

domed-up r i bbcd quad r i pa r t i l e \ au l l i nF ' much

rebuilt, but probrbl-r likc the original late

eleventh- or ear lv twel f ih-centur ' ,Y raul ts ' 1 ' } re

fburth ba-v, be-vond, was formerlv covered like

the others. but subsequent l l 'can' ied up as an

octagonl l lantern. Tht a i r les l re cor ereel ht . t tn-

r ibbed groin laul ts ; so also is the tntor lum

galler,-v, rvhcre thel' are ill placcd to rcccl\e tne

3o6. Rivolta d'Adda, San Sigismondo, ro99( r)

3 g o L A N D S A S S O C T A T E D \ \ r T I l t N T H E H O L y R O M A N E t \ t p t R E

thrust of the r .ast r ibbecl b l .s of the nar.e. ' I 'he

supports are logical l r c lesigned, and conse-

quent lv the 's ls tcm' is ahernate, wi th s lenderer

intcrmediate supports not columns, but i lp-

propl iate l r ar t iculated grouped piers. Each pair

of 'main piers supports not onlv i ts share of ' the

raul t ing, but a lso a substant ia l but t ressing ual l

uhich r iscs to rhc roof ing. c l i rect ly abore thc

t lanslersc arch. Such rval ls , b l isolat ing the

separate ba1,s of uooclcn rool' construction,

would arrest a fire thele. 'fhe

big vaulting ba1..s

arc harmoniouslv composed, but lack thc proces-

s ional qual i tv of tunncl vaul t ing. Unqucst ionablv

the church was \.ery dark befbre thc construc-

t ion of- the lantern; for there is no c lerestor t . . r '

l \ lent ion should be made ol 'Ear lv Chr ist ian

churches in Nl i lan. rebui l t in the mature Lom-

bard Romanesque stv lc thc Basi l ica Aposto-

lorum and San Simpl ic iano part icular ly .

Rivol ta d 'Adda has in the church of San

Sigismondo, dated ro9<y( i ) , authenr ic earh,

Lombard domed-r . rp r ib-r .aul ts [3o{r l . The

church is instruct i re, in that the east end is

cor cred by two windowless bays of semicircular

tunnel vaulting with transvcrse arches. Beyond

these come tr.o navc-bays of rib vaulting, which

are vcrv irregular in curvaturc - in parts almost

conical- This shows inexper ience and, though

admit tedlv rust ic , c i rut ions us against acccpt ing

very earlv dates for the rjb construction. Here.

o$inq to smal lness, a c lercstory is possib lc. r l

I n t hc g l ea r chu rch o l 'San \ | i chc l c a r Pa r i a '

[3o7] rve have a stone counrcrparr of Sant 'Am-

brogio in Nl i lan. I t was bui l t s lowly, l i .om about

thc vear r roo to about r r6o, over a cruci fbrm

plan and uas providcd or ig inal lv wirh a smal l

clerestor\'. 'I 'he

church has a semi-dome ancl a

big s ingle quadr ipart i te bal . at the east ; rhe

transcpt has i ts absid io les s imply cur inro thc

subst:rntial east wall, with a crossing cor-cred br

an oct i rpSonal domical vaul t on squinches, and

arms hy tunnel vaul t ing wi thout t rans\ ,ersc

arches; the ais les and gal ler ies are covcred bv

unr ibbed groin vaul t ing; the nave was inrcndcd

tb r t n o b i g don red -up douh l c ba r s o l ' r . i b r ; r r r l t _

ing, but was actual ly 'covered bv oblong s inq1.

bays in the French manner. The c l i l l - l ikc srr in.

fbgadc, wi th a s ingle sweeping gable f r -onr ing

bo th na re and a i s l es . i s r c r ' l l amous . an , l , . r ,

i n t e l es t i ng l b r i r s f r i c zes o fbeas t scu lp ru r . c . | 11 .

fagade is articulated by shafiing and dosscrcrs

which lbrm shal low but t resses, and is adorncd

at the top b1, a f ine arcaded gal lery. There is

s ingular power in th is design; and th is com-

ment mav be made gencrally on works in the

Milanese area.

Qui t t ing the region about N{ i lan fbr F,mi l i r r .

we f ind two excel lent examples nl Lombald

s t t l e i n P iaccnza . San Sav ino ,dcd i ca t cd i n r r o ; .

has an apsc ui th a tunnel-vaul ted sanctuar)- bal .

fb l lowed b1' three big double ba1.s ofr ib vaul t ing-.

each wi th a s ingle c lerestorv window on cach

side, and accompanving unr ibbed ais le bals.' fhe

inter ior has much r , igoul and harmoniou'

proport ions. The cr i t ics who date Lomblrd

laul t ing conser\at ivc lv assign thc dedicat ion ol

r IoT to the c l tpt , which is a f ine and spacious

example. The date might better be applied to the

tunnel-vaul ted sanctuarv, in which case the big

double bays of r ib vaul t ing might be later

perhaps ( inevi tably l ) af ter the earthquake of

r I17. I t is an admirable example of the large

Lombard par ish church.r"

Piacenza Cathedral , lT begun by r r22' in use

by r r58, and f in ished, wi th somc rebui ld ing, in

the thirtecnth century, is one ofthe grand row of

Emi l ian cathedrals. I t has a wide t ransept wi th

apses at the ends, l ike the t ransept o l ' l ) isa, and

screened, as at Pisa, lrom the main navc. 'l 'he

bold exterior forms ofthe church at the east are

dramat ized happi l l ' by a ser ies of 'Gothic p in-

nac les ( i n b r i c k , l i ke t he l a t e l cons t ruc l i ons i n

the church). There is a s ingle b ig br ick tower,

of the usual sort , to the north of the nl re ' l 'hc

N O R T H h R N I T A L Y 397

lbqade is, l ike the older work in the cathedral '

carr ied out in stone. I t has thc usuir l sweeping

wide gable, gal ler ies, and three porches wi th the

columns carr ied on the backs of animals. Each

porch has a recess and t r ibune above i t . ' I 'he

Gothic st-vle appears in a dignified rose window.

Here ancl there in the fine m:rsculine interior

there is a touch of the Gothic, but thc e l lects arc

Romanesque. l 'he nave has big r ib-r 'aul tcc l bavs

with a c lerestoly (except fb l thc t radi t ional

tunncl- raul ted sanctuarv ba1-) , a lso the usual

octagonal domical vaul t on squinches at the

crossing, and a spacious cr1'pt under the raised

choir. Thc efl'ect, both extcrior and interior' is

verv impressive .

I n P l rma ( l a t hcd r l l ' " l - i o l { l ue have a t t o l hc t '

sp l end i t l c ramp l c . The re uas a dcd i ca t i on i r r

jo7. Paria, San Xlichelc, r. r roo 6o, from thc rvcsr 3o8. Parma Cathedral, twcllth ccnturv

-a

j g 8 . L A N D S A S S O C I A ' , I E D \ [ I ' I H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N F - M P I R E

r I06, but the earthquake of l r r 7 was disastrous,

and only parts of thc old work were reta ined in

the magni f icent rebui lc l ing. ' l 'hc

church was la id

olr t as a great cross in p lan [ jogl , wi th a huge

cr_r'pt recalling that at Spel'er Cathedral. The

cr lpt is covered b1'a qLradr i l lc of 'groin-r 'aul ted

bar s. Here, as at the pr inci p l l ler .c l , the crossing.

the sanctuary bar, and both arms of the t ransept

a I c p rac t i c r l l \ squa l ' c i l he t l ansep t t e tm ina les

in apses at the ends, and each arm has an eastern

apse near lv as large as thc pr incipal apse. On the

extcr ior th is p loduces a powerfu l composi t ion

of serniq, l indr ical and cubical fbrms bui ld ing

up to an octagonal lantern. ' l 'he

apscs, the t f : tn-

sept , the sanctuarv ba1' , and the torvcr a le a l l

enr iched bv gal ler ies.

The western l imb, r ' : ru l ted in r r6z, has seven

bavs wi th square groin vaul ts in the ais les; there

are uni form oblong r ibbcd bavs, now sustained

by tie-rods, over an arcacled tliforium gallerl

ancl a c lerestorr ' , in the nave. ' l 'h is

uni lbrm

s\stem marks the surrcnder of ' the t radi t ional

Lombard scheme which rve have fbund in Sant '

Ambrogio and elsewhere; i t is in l ine r i i th

French developmcnts, though in France all thc

vaul ts would be r ibbed, the construct ion l lould

be l ighter , and the c lerestorv windows woul t l of

necessity (on account of the climate) be lalgcr.

The weight iness of Parma is in the l taLan

tradi t ion.

At the f -agade the design, bui l t of s tone, mr in-

ta ins the Lombard character intact . I 'here is a

precipitous great wall carried up to a tremcn(lous

sweeping gable, bold ly accentuated by a r ich

cornice and a continuous stepped gallerr bc-

t rveen pvlon- l ike vert icals . t th. .orn.r r . ' l

h .

horizontal is masterfullv intloduced b1'trvo less

open horizontal galleries and the threc port.rls'

wh i l e t he p ro i ec t i ng cen t ra l po r t r l l r i t h i t ' t l i -

bunes and buttresses, and the big oculus pielccd

between the latter, give a vertical accent.' I 'h is

st r ik ing f lqade was augmentcd bv t \1o

towers, st i l l represent ing the old t radi t ion ot t l rc

f ree-standing bel f ry, s ince thev arc not inte-

arated wi th the nl lc ' but p lanted l t i r short

t r , "*n. . f rom the church. l ikc the pr i r ' ' r t Strnt '

i r l .ogi" in l \ l i lan

' f he toners har e thci r t 'ear

* r f f r i " f i n . u i t h r he f a l ade wa l l o t t he chu l ch '

,J t l r t t f t .u proiect both in widrh ant l in dcpth '

ih.y .onrtut t in colour i tbr only the corner

f l r r t . t t r t ip t . thc corbel tables ' and t l tc open-

lngrrr . in t ,on. . thc rest beingot led bl ick Thc

no-rttt ao*at \\ iIS carried up onl.r hal I ;r sta ge : the

fourth tt"g. oi the other is capped b1' a Gothic

belfry in stone, and that in turn bl.pinnaclcs and

a tall pyramidal roof'of active profilc but late

date.

To the south-west near this towel stands the

bapt isterv of the cathet l ra l , bui l t of br ick lnd

stone in the tw ellih-century' st1 le, although not

finished until the thirteenth [296e, .ioSl' I'here

are rich portals and other sculptures by 'Bene-

detto miscalled Antelami' (in X'{r Porter's

phrase). The sculptor is believed to be the

authorof the bui ld ing, which was begun in I r96'

I t has, abore rhr : g lound storer . lbur stage' of

gallery colonnades between strong spur but-

tresses (at the corncrs); a decorative arcade and

arched corbel table, plus corner pinnacles, ter-

minate the design. Perhaps the colonnaded

galleries were sup;gested b1-' the fagade of Pisa

Cathedral, which was being finished at the time.

The interior also has colonnadccl galleries, two

in number, coming above the porta ls and their

intervening niches and below a ribbed vault

of eight compartments. -l'he

font is of convcn-

tional form, with steps and an octagon:rl parapet.

Monumental baptisteries of'this sort are rare in

the Middle Ages; they recal l the t imc rvhcn

bapt ism was an episcopal funct ion, and when

large numbers of' catechumens were baptized

together at Eastertide.

Cremona' , rhas a s imi lar cathedral group

begun in r r2g-.+- l wi th the church, but the

transept arms date onlv fiom r 288 and lverc not

f in ished unr i l about r342. T 'h is t ransept) the

crossing, and thc chorr arm arc \cr \ impressi te

N O R T I I E R N I T A L Y 3 9 9

in composi t ional mass. ' I 'he bui lc l ing is largelr ot

br ick, rv i th a faqacle of stonc. This is in put

Romanesque, but i t is adorned b1' a Gothic

porta l , p ierced b-v a Gothic rose rv indow, and

capped by huge scrolls of Renaissance design

with a Renaissance arcade, pediment, and pin-

nacle on the axis. A vast torver of Gothic date

r ises to the north, and a large b:rpt is ter l 'o1 r r67

is set at the south and rvest . ' I 'hc

cnsemble ] ras

bold scale and is s ingular l r apposi te in shou ing

how the grand qual i t ics of thc Lombard Roman-

csque lived on into the Gothic and Renaissance

per iods.

There are, of course, great numbers of smal ler

bui ld ings, each wi th somethinq of interest ,

rvhich cannot be taken up in a general work o l '

th is sort . Passing ment ion only can be made of

thc substantial rotunda ol the old cathedral in

Brescia (about r I r 5) ; San Pietro in Cielo Aurco

at Pavia, dedicated in r r 32, f in ished about r r 8o ,

Sant 'Eustorgio at Mi lan, wi th f i 'agments dat ing

back to ro4o, but made over into a vaul ted hl l l

church. wi th uni lbrm domed-up groin vaul ts '

af te l r r78; Fcrrara Cathedral , wi th a f ine pol ta l

of ' r r35; Verona Cathedral , wi th sculptures b1

Niccol i r . dated about r r35i the cathedral of

Borgo Sirn Donnino, wi th sculptu les bl .Bene-

det to Antel lmi ; San Pictro at Ast i and San

Salvatore at Almcnno. both c i rcula l churches

of the elerenth centurY (a rare fbrm in f ,onl-

bardl ' ) .2"

As ,r fine example of thc twelfth-centurv

wooden-roof'cd church in [-ombardv' there can

be no happier choice than S:rn Zcno Nlaggiore

i n \ c t ' on l r r [ . i l o . . 1 r r l . ' I h c

s t f uc tu r c i nco r -

por: r tes l raBments dat ing back to about to.1o,

but the bui ld ing which we know took character

about r r23 3-5, and was long under wa1' ' . F ine

marble. now beautifullv patinated, was used

licelf in its construction. '['he

f'aqade is much

aclmirecl fbr its harmonious pl'oportioning, with

basi l ic i rn prof i lc : i ts enrbcl l ishments in thc lb lnr

ol' marble relief.s neal the door (dated abottt

3og. Parma C,athedral, trvell ih ccnturl

; 1 O O L A N D S A S S O C I A ' t E D W T T H I N T I I E H O L y R O M A N E M p T R E

I r40; by ar t is ts named Niccold and Gugl ie lmo)

and bronze door valvcs (incorporating earlr

eler,cnth-ccntury elements) are wcll known.

Familiar also is thc soaring; tower, set to thc

south of the church near i ts east cnd.

The interior is basilican, with a relatir,elv

small clerestorv and no trilbrium. The nar,e,

covered by a beautilul Gothic rrelbil ceiling, is

la id out in a ser ies of bay-s, d i r , ided by inter ior

buttrcsses which rise from compound piers.

T 'hese bavs are i r regular because of ' the delavs

in bui ld ing. Thcre is a vcry narrow single batjust ins ide the fagade; then there fb l low, be-

tween compound piers, a three-archod bar, and

thrce two-arched bavs, all with columnar shafts

as intermediate supports. The succeeding bav

is s ingle-arched. The absid io les at the head of '

the ais les opened into th is bay, which scr ied rs

a sort of dwarf t ransept. The same bav ancl i ts

neighbour, p lus a vaul ted square sanctuarr bar

and apse of Gothic date, lbrm a line Lombar d'h igh

choir ' . Br idge- l ike sta i rs to i t , in the ais les.

span a desccnding f l ight which extends the $ holc

width of the chulch and leads to a magni f icent

cr) , 'p t beneath the'h igh choir ' . The crypr ope ns

through three gencrous arches upon the sta i r ' -

way leading liom the nave, and a large part of it

is actual ly v is ib le f i 'om the nar.c. 1 'he l i tu lgr ,

seen across thc depression, gains somewhlt in

dignity' because the sanctuary- platlbrm is clc-

vated and somewhat remote. Lccterns fbr thc

readings are efl'ectivelr placed on the parapcl

here and in a number of other churches ui t l r

s imi lar crvots.

3rr. Verona, San Zcno, r. r rzl and later

The arrangement iust described is, of course,

the fullest possible and most monumental de-

velopment of the old crypt and high choir

scheme which we saw in its.beginnings at Old

StPeter 's labour 6oo), Sant ' . \pol l inare in Classe.

Ravenna (ninth century), and Sant'Ambrogio

in Milan (about g4o), all places of pilgrimage.

This further reference to pilgrimage may

serve to introduce the group known as Santo

Stefano in Bologna,:r rsall].a Lombard Roman-

esque red-brick version ofthe Holy Sepulchre.

The octagonal church representing the Anas-

tasis has a twelr,e-sided central structurc. It is

rather rough wolk, dat ing h 'om about r r5o.

Adioin ing i t is a court of t r4z which represents

the Holy Garden (covered, in Jerusalem, b1'' the

Crusader transeDt dedicated in rr49). -I'he

ad-

N O R T H E R N I T A L Y 40r

joining church of San Pietro is more or less con-

temporar]'. The interior of San Pietro is dis-

appointing, but the fagade is one of the best of

i ts k ind.

With this we conclude our general study of

the Romanesque church architecture of Lom-

bardy. But we must go f'ar in order to reach the

fbrthest limits ofthe style for echoes ofit pene-

trated to Dalmatia (and on into Serbia as we

have seen), Hungary, Gcrmany (and on into

Russia, as already mentioned), the Netherlands,

Scandinavia. and even, in some degree, to the

north of France. It shared eastern Italy with

designs partly dependent on the'liuscan style,

all the way to Apulia.

One Lombard monument will be best under-

stood in this combined Lombardo-Tuscan am-

1 r o. \ 'erona, San Zeno, r. r r zl and latcr

-3-

w

402 L A N D S A S S O C I A ' I ' E D W I ' I ' H I N ' T H E H O l , Y R O M A N E M P I R L ,

i..:.:. Miniato [zgr l and San Nicola [:.661 in irs 1sx,l:'l.::: big double ba1--s, with intermediate colurnnr,

i.l1i'l i supports, a trilbrium (though lalse) rvith t1io1.

a. arches under enclosing arches, a c lerestorr , 41u-rr",.'.i

phragm arches, and wooden rooling. F-rch dia-

phragm arch carries a parapet which hrrs bqq.

bui l t up wel l above the r idge lcvel i rs a precau-

tion against the sprerd of fir'e starting in 15.

intermediate wooden looling. I-ike San \icolr

at Bari, Nlodena Cathedral has an 'inch.rded'

t ransept. Onl f in Gothic t imes (r4- i7, r -14(r , and

later) d id the church receire i ts vaul t ing. ' l 'hcrc

i son l r one t oue r , o l Lombard t t pe . se l t l o t l l t r ' 1

the t ransept. I t carr ies:r Gothic spire. ' lhc stn-

tinel towers of San Nicola are reduced to ir pllr

o l t u l r e l s abo re t he apse .

Lanf ianco was the archi tect , and, to j r t t l$c

bv his bui ld ing, an independent and ver\ pcr ' -

sonal r les igncr. L nder h im cloubt less thc t t r l ' l

was f in ished (r ro6), and he is supposabl l . r 'c-

sponsib le fbr the ordonnance of thc i I ) tef t ( ) r '

wh i ch i sa l l i n ua rn t r c t l b l i c k , as r r e l l as t i r l l he

ex le r i o r , t h i ch i s a l l i n t i n c ash la r ' S r t u r r ' : l J

ma l kcd a l cad inc uh i ch i s P i san ra the r t b ' t t t

b ient namely- , the cathedral o l the c i tv o1'

Modena, which, though Lombard. \{'as actuxll-v

wi th in the dominions of the Countess Nlat i lda

of I'uscanl'' and thus particularl)' open to Tus-

can inf luence [3I .2, 3I31. The bui ld ing was

begun in rog9.23

Tuscan influence, and doubtless the success-

f u l des ign o l 'San N i co la a t Ba r i ( begun r o87 o )

[264, 265], explain the other\4ise surprising lack

of Lombarcl rib vaulting in this important work

which has rather emphatic Lomblrd stl.listic

detai ls . Actual l l - ' the plan [3 r 4] recal ls San

rn in feeling encloses, rather than sup-

ias at B"ri;, I gallerv This, rvith rather

ive t r ip le arches in each bav, makes a

NEIGHBOURING REGIONS SHOWING

coMPoNENTs oF MATURE LoMBARD srYLE

Eastern and Middle ltalT

Echoesof Lombardl in Liguria (Genoa Cathed-

ral, twelfth to thirteenth centurv) and Sardinia.

(Uta, twelfth centur-v) are slight' In Rome itself

SS. Giovanni e Paolo (about rr55) is the onl-v

example; howeret ' in the region near by' ex-

trrnples are more nurnerous and thel' often show

interesting combinations'

Anagni CathedraF+ has a strong Lombard

e"terio-r, but the interior is of Roman chalacter'

possessing a throne of lz63 b1' Vassalletto'

*ho- *J have met in the cloister of St John

Lateran in Rome. At Arezzor5 the'Pier e' (parish

Jrt.fti rttt tt exterior which is Pisan' while the

i;i"; is Lombalcl, with double ba1's and a

3 r 2 t o - l r + .

N{odena Cathedral,

begun togg,

e\tcrl0r, rntcnor!

ancl plan

{$I

g,

$& $$

tt:

+ o 4 L A N D S A S S O C T A T E D W T T H T N T H E H O L y R O M A N E M p I R E

raised choir. Ancona Cathedral (dedicated in

rr28, largely l in ished in r r89) has a cruci fbrm

plan with apsidal ends on the transept, and

zebra-work masonry, all of which recalls pisa,

but the general feeling of the superstructure,

with its lion-backed portico, is Lombard. The

fine church of Santa Maria di portonuovo nearAncona is Lombard (twelfih century, some_

times dated earlier) with a dome, but arrangedin plan like a Norman church.

Farfa (Fara Sabina):o is a disappointment,

though there is now, once more, a monastervestabl ished ar rhe place where rhc famous Con_suet'udinary of ro43 was tbund. Architecturallvt he re i s no rh i ng recogn i zab l v C lun iac i n u .ha tremains. There is a single old tower, with threeClarolingian lower store1.s. an intermediate staee

-;l-;. Tuscania, San Pietro,clcvcnth and twcllih centuries

dated about ro8g-gg, and three later 511n."abo le . {pparenf l ) fhere was a sor t o l .u " r , " , *r ransepr w i rh somerh ing l i ke a . t

t . tn , t , ru r labore i t . The survir ing constructions ar.. 1.r, i - ,simple in fblm and Lombard in lecl ing. \ ,xi_

[:H:ll, ;ffil:: J;"i,,::'1il:;., ll;, hibe rewarding.

At Spoleto the f'agade of San pietro:; (trrcl{ihto fourteenth century) is rich with

".cldiug "nJsculptured panels, somewhat in the manncr of.San Zeno in Verona. Over the main door is anexcept ional horseshoe-shaped tympanum. . [ .hs

three portals are flanked by proiecting bcasts.but wi thout the Lombard columns and hood.

A,{ost attractive and best known among thisgloup of churches are San pietro and-.Sanra

-. ,:^ Messiore at Tuscania (formerly called

T'-^^-" t t " t . 'o San Pietro I 3 I 5 | appears (o be the

ir i i " r , ^"a archaisms have led Riro i ra to

i r t rn otro of i t to thc e ighth centurr ' I t is a

ilr.""-;tf .a, wooden-roofed col umnar basilica'

bJt , of t ton. ' There is an interest ing crypt of

the end of the eleventh centur) ' support tng a

arell-proportioned triapsidal raised sanctuary'

The main baldacchino dates from iog3 Con-

structional work on the church continued to a

conclusion about rzoo at the west front' 'I 'he

fagade is overwrought. wi th reminiscenccs of

Burgundy, Tuscany, Lombardy, and even

perhaps Spain in the rose window and its

flanking ajimez windows. The best effects at

San Pietro are in its powerful nave, where the

protruding voussoirs of the ais le g ive a s ingtr-

rr6. Tuscania, Santa N{aria Maggiorc,

ilenenth ce.turv-rzo6, l'agade and tower

N O R T H I , R N T T A L Y + o 5

larly vigorous effect, and the view to thc raiscd

sanctuary is indecd imprcssrve.

Santa Mar ia Maggiore [116] , wi th a f rce-

standing square Lombard tower, has a similar

though simpler and finer fagade which has been

much copied in modern times. It has a rathcr

barn-like nave with exceptional dw:rrf- transcpt

arms at the head; beyond is the sanctuary, with

a Moslem touch in the cusped arches of the

baldacchino, and a Byzantine touch in the

extensive painting above the chancel arch,

which matches the transept arches and thus

suggests a centralized scheme. Santa N{aria was

begun, it is believed, in the eleventh centur]' '

and f in ished in rzo6.

Influences projected forth from Lombardy'

and Tuscany, which engendered the interesting

In the period which concerns us thcse two areaswcre architectural provinces of I_ombardy- andeastern Iraly. Architectural influence fiomBurgundy began with the Cistercians, in r r4z,but monuments earlier than rzoo har,e notsurvived. Villard de Honnecourr had r,isitedHungary by r235, and French Gothic influencedoubtless came in with him. Some Germanarchitectural influences had come durine thereign ol King . {ndrew and eueen Ger i rude(d. rzr3) , but wi th a srrong Lombard imrrr intupon them. Inf lucnct :s f lowed natural lu a lonsthe Danube, and later through Croatia.

We have heard of'the Hungarians before, asunwelcome pagan r,isitors to Burgundy in 937and 954. In g55 Emperor Orto the Great ad_ministered a crushing defeat to them, and thevwere converted to Christianitl,- as a rcsult ofstipulations in the peacc treatv of g73. Thereigning Duke was baptized, and the Churchwas organized under his son Stephen, whosereign began in 9g7. Pope Svlvcster II (Gerbert.

whom we har e fo l lowed f rom Reims toCatalonia, to Otto III's entourage, and finallvt o Rome) , r ecogn i zcd S rephen as K ing i n , oo , ' .Stephen died in ro.3U, and was canonizet l inIo83. In his time ten dioceses wcre created.and an intercst ing s.vstem of crossroat l churcheswas instituted, with ten villages responsible foreach church. A palatine church was built atSz6kcsfehdrvdr (Alba Regalis, or Stuhlwcissen_burg, south-west of Budapest) for KineStephen. His great sarcophagus no* hr , ,place of honour in the museum there, but allhis buildings have been destroyed. The kine_dom. which mighr hare hecn conquerecl for the

i + o o L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N T H E I I O L y R O M A N E M p I R E

local works iust reviewed, also operated across

the Adriatic Sea, and thcre produced a number

of interesting churches in mixed style, but (as

in l ta ly) wi th strong Lombard emphasis.

Croalia and Hungury

Empire but for the struggle over the Inrr:sti_tures, was able to abstract itself lrorn 11.troubles by becoming a ficf of the Holv S,..,u n d e r G r e g o r y V I I ( r o 7 6 ) . a n d , o . o n q , , . 1 -Croatia - thus acquiring a stretch ol. 16iDalmat ian coast dur ing the ensuing confusign( r r o . z ) . La te r r he k i ngdom a l so i nc l uded ' l r , r n_sylvania, and it extended almost to Craco$ inthe north, almost to Vienna in the west. In thisgreat region the Hungar ians constructed, u i r la local savour, buildings basically relared t6Lombard, German, Burgundian, and other.French models. The plans, however, er,en inambitious buildings, remained relatively simplc.' fhe

mounrain barr ier has aluavs forbidt l in , :_ly h locked of f rhe inrer ior of Croat ia f rom rhcAdriatic, but the coastal region was alrcacllundq r Lombard a r ch i t ec tu ra l i n f l ucnce e ren i nthe Carolingian period, as already noted.

.I.hc

stream of Lombard influence continued to flo\i.in the mature Romanesque period, when it wasaugmented by that of Tuscany, as in the case,already considered, of middle and southernItaly. The Croatian area, though theoreticallr81 zant ine. was then too remote ro be inf luencejby Byzantine architecture, except through theExarchate. Easy navigation of the Adriatic en_couraged contacts with all of eastern ltal\..Def in i te Apul ian inf luence ( i tsel f parr l r Tuscanand Lombard) can be rraced also, especia l l r inthe baldacchinos of rhe churches.

There is a succession of striking cathedraltowers on the islands and mainland of the coast.which mark it as the twin sentinel towers markthe coast of Apulia. Thev are Lombard ingeneral character. One of the best known o1'these towers was bui l t beside the mausoleumof Diocletian at Split (Spalato), rhen, as now,the cathedral; another, in the Ravennate stvle,was constructed at Zadar (Zara) Cathedral inr r 05 .

St Mary, the cathedral of Zadar, has aLombard east end, but the west end is p isan.

-"rking a change in artistic orientation befbrc

Tl i .a i . t r io" in r 285' San C'r isogt 'no ̂t Tadnr '

l t j f f r , tn I t75. is a more c.nsistcnl Lombard' ru ion. '

Rab i \ rhc) p l . : t "nt t anolhcr am-

l luor, . *^-Pl t wi th an ambulalor \

i r i . " . " tn century.) . inspired perhaps f rom

[.nro S, . funo at Verona (qgo) ' ln general thc

i lnraru. , ionut mclhods appear to bc Lomhard

i i . Uu; fa int mater ia l is good ashlar s lone and

rubble''-There are rich doorwavs also, more or less

Lombard in form. 'I'he

finest of them, though

i h., ,o-. Gothic leafage, is essentiall-v tardv

eclectic Romanesque of r z4o This is the

i.rt..n doorta-v of Trogir ('Irair) Cathedral

bv Radovan' a Slav sculptor' The door has

prolect ing l ions. but . as at Spolelo in l ta l r ' ther

h.ne no columns abole them - l

he t )mpanum'

r Nativity, recalls Venetian work' The rough

execution and thc late date makc it essentiall-Y a

piece of folk art. It is charming in its place; in

iaa the island of -l'rogir

is a place ol enchant-

ment.30

Turning now to the properlv Hungarian

monuments,rl we note that the Benedictines

came in ggg ancl afterwards as genuine agri-

cultural colonists, and greatly improved thc

economic basis of the still distracted countr-v'

The rvestern connexions oi these monks arc

archirectural lv acknowledged in the oldest o l '

their abbeys, Vdrtcsszenkereszt (or Vdrtes, west

of Budapest ; r r 46), and in the second cathedral

o f Ka locsa ( suu th o f Budapes t ; a l i e r r r 5o ) '

where traces of ambulator-v and radiating chapels

have been r c r ca l cd b r e r ca ra l i ons '

The Cistercians, welcomed and much fav-

oured beginning about r r8o, d id their usual

part, as in western L,urope, and the other orders

ioined them. 'l 'he

olclest surviving ('istercian

work. at Kcrcz ( fbundecl in rzoz; in ' f ransl ' l -

vania, now a ruin), is of the usual tvpe, except

that the church apse is polvgonal; Apitfalva

(founded in r z3z) is normal Cistercian work'

N O R ' T ' H E R N I T A L \ +o7

A curiositl ' of the region, from the eleventh

cenl ur \ on. and known Part l \ f rom ercar a l ions '

is a relatively' large number of round and pol-v-

Ibil churches, often with Lombard detail, and

usualll ' connected with local courts' Romanes-

que architecture has an eastern fringe of these

central-plan churches which extends, by wal'ot

Bohemia. as far as Bornholm'

Lombard influence shows strongl]'in the prc-

sen l ca l hcd ra l o l 'Pdcs (F i i n l L i r chen ' nea r l hc

Drava River and the old boundarl. of Croatta)

[3I8] . The church was burned in ro64, restored

"boo, , r5o' and in r8[Jr gr ' The plan is t r i -

aosidal. with seven big ba-vs three (br the

,".,",urr,n and Lombard cry'pt, three fbr the

open nave, and one, at the west' lbr vestibules

and a t r ibune. ' I 'h is p lan looks rather l ike that of

San Nicola at Bari or Modena Cathedral' but

3r7 . Prague (Bohcmia) . S t George ' I r4z f l

4 o 8 L A N D S A s S O C T A T E D W T T H T N T H E H O L y R O M A N E M p T R E

L a t e r a d d i t i o t t s

L c t t e r a t l d . i t i i t r t - ,

3rll. P6cs Cathedral, r. r r5o li-.

without the rransept and wirhout columns be_tween the piers. It is a fbur_tower chtrrch rhatis to say, a church with a to\r.er on each of itsfour corners. There are rwo towers attachedouts ide the ais les just west of the apses, and twof l ank rhe ma in f r on r i n a s im i l a r v rav . (Th i sarrangement looks ocldly. like an augmentationof the scheme for the west front of.the Ottoniancathedral built afier 994 ar Augsburpi, nor larfrom the Danube. euite unusually for Ger_many, this building had a pair of square belfrvt ouc rs sc t no r t h and sou th , r cspcc t i ve l r . o f r hewesr fagadc, with a rvestern apse terminatingthe nave between. The similaritl, between Augs'_burg and P6cs may be for tu i tous.) In

"nu. i . .t he chu rch a t I ) ecs has man r . l ea l u res wh i ch a reLombard, even to the raisecl choir. The westcrngallery, however, is characteristic in the Hun_plarian Romanesque.

'I'he striking scheme of fbur rolr,ers was uscd

also at Sz6kcsleh6n.dr (whcre St Stephcn hacl

9 s l s x r .F+!+-]-.|-+=\) 25 -5() F f . .

bui l t the palat ine church) ancl Esztergom (Gran.$he rc S t S rcphen nas h t r r i ed ; i t l i c s nc , , r r r l r , .grcat bend in the Danube norrh of But lancsr.and i t s Romanesquc chu rch i s kno r * , r l i . , , n ,excavations). At Szdkesf-eh6rYdr and F,sztersonrt hc t owe rs a re u i t h i n t he r c t . t anq le o f t hc n l ; r r r .' lhe

l 'oundat ion of thesc churchtr is ase r ib, i t l 1, ,G i i l t t r r o3o ( r o . bu r i t i s ce r ra i n t h r r r he r c rL r , r l .existing structure)- rvere not begun earl1., or scionl in ishcd. Though we ma\.recosnlze the sourccsof Hung'arian Romanesque, we are alwirr sconsc ious o l i t s r i gou r and i t s l oca l t bc l r ne .

Esztergom Cirrhet l ra l , l t r r inst lncc. oa, , . -btr i l t under Bela I I I ( r r 73 9(r) and latcr . ancl hr t ia porta l lv i th columns on the backs ol ' l ions(rzoo-g), showing a conf inuat ion ot Lomb:rrr lin f luencc. In contrasr there is Bela I I I ,s nalat inechape l , w i t h t no po r r l l s o l Bu rg r rnc l i : r n . . hu r . , . -tcr .

' fhe Burguncl ian componcnt, n.h ich c lnrc

car lv to f lungar ian archi tecrurc. was \ .er \ . Der_s i s t en r . ' l he apsc o l t hc chape l , l l n r r . r . r , i , j n

ransir ional Gothic. and rcminds t ts that Queen

Ann. *r , French: l ike wise, later . Qrecn l \ lar-

quer i te. a s istcr ot 'Phi l ip \ugtrstus. lnder:d ' the

lrnrr tu, through papl l in ter lent ion ' bccame

f,ngevin in r3o8'

The capablc Hungrr ian ar t h istor ian G. Entz

identifies influences from the upper Rhinclancl,

flep Alsace, and fiom South Germanv in the

twelfth centurv and latcr times. 'l 'hc

principal

existing architecturaI examples showing a tinc-

flrre ofthese influences in our period arc a series

of important Beneclictinc anrl Prcmonstraten-

sian abbel' churches, almost all near the rivcr'

These with their dates arc : L6b6n1' (not r er-v f ar

f iom Vienna, r rgg rzr2, tz lz f r ' . ) ,JMk (orJ ik,

almost south of'Vienna, near the fionticr, r : t o

56, wi th an elaborate hal f -Romanesquc porta l

dated about I z5o), f iirje (south o1'L6b6nv, near

Lake Balat6n I about I 24o), and Zsirnb6k (ncar

Budapes t ; be fb re I z58 ) . l ' hese we re 'S ippcn '

l/oster' (nobles' toundations). Thcv and their

der ivat ives arc basi l ican in p lan. s ingle apsed or

triapsidal at the east. with no transept. -l'he

western towers are paircd, and set over the cnd

bays of the ais lcs, wi th opsnings into both thc

nave and the ais lcs. as at the cathedrr l of 'Strass-

burg and i ts extensire re lated group in middle

Germany.

The cathedral of G1'ulafl'hirvir (Karlsburg

or Alba Jul ia in l ' ransl lvania) rvas f in ished in

its original forn-r shortll bc{bre the Taltar in-

vasion of r24r 2. I t l rs part lv rebui l t a l tcr-

wards, but the new work does not d isguise a

Romanesque plan, Lombard and German. The

sanctuarl has becn lengthenecl, but the tw<.r

semici rcular t r rnscptal absid io les renia in as

before. 'l 'he sancturrr bal, crossing, irnd trvo

transept arms are colered bv square r ib raul ts;

the nar.e has threc double ba-vs, with alternatell'

s t ou t and s l cndc r s t r ppo r l s i l \ r o b i g $ ( s te rn

towers rise boldll' wirh a high open sqtrare

Eroin-r 'aul tcd porch sprung befrvcetr them, and

a st i l l hal f ' -Romanesquc pointed ml in doorwav

is set in the f'aqadc wall. ' l 'he

re construction afier

N O R T i l [ R N t T A r . \ ' + o g

r2+2 was not rapid. I t was st i l l under q ' i r r in

r287, and one feels that bv then thc Gothic of

Hungary, l ikc i ts Romanesque, had become a

sort of folk art, delightfullv local in feeling. Yet

it is said that a Frcnch master, John, son ol'' - f lno

of Saint-Di( ' , was at work in r287. Vi l lard

de Honnecourt 's v is i t was in rzt<.

(-1tptr Burgund.), and Neighhouring '!re as

(S a.- o.1,, S n, i t zer I a n d)

-I'here is a special charm to the mountain chur-

ches in the north of Lombardy'and on thc Alp ine

slopes which descend towards the north. The

region had treen a part of thc old Kingdom ol'

Ar les or of Burgundl ' , wi th border ing areas in

I ta lv and Swabia. Here, as in Catalonia, - \n-

dorra, and rural Burgundl ' , the fbrms ot the

First Romanesque provcd tenacious, and thel

still give ch:rracter to thc countr]'sidc. On thc

upland s lopcs the modest 'barn '

church wi th r

singlc toll'cr. as wcll as thc navc-and-chancel

chu rch l r i t h a s im i l a r t o$e r , eon l i nue i n us t ,

and are adrnirable in silhouette against thc

gigantic mountain masses. 'f

he stee p rool-s

necessi tatcd b1' screre wcather g ive thcm a

sharplv indiv idual characte r . T1-pical lv , the

churches are wel l constructod o1'stonc, and thcl

:rre often vaulted, though in manv crrses the

laul ts were bui l t af ter the Romanesque pel iod.'fhe

towers. also, often reprcscnt ir latcr mo-

nent. for thc south-Ge rman and Austr ian

Baroque f lour ishcd in Switzer land too. ' fhc

belfl' ics of the mountain churches ofien hare

ver!' prettv rncl cffcctire Baroquc silhoucttes.

- \part l iom the mountain churches, thc rcgion

hardll' has an architccture of its own. -l'he

towns wcre not large, :rnd no great movement

was centrcd here. The abbcl' of Allerheiligcn'

Schal lhausen I r361, was undcr ( ] luniac inf l t r -

ence, and, lvith Cluniac Pa-v*erne I r 3-s I and

Romainm6t ier , represents the t radi t ional C' lu-

n i ac l b rms . r hough w i rh G r : rman i c t l i t l e ren r i a -

t i ons i n su l ) e r s t r uc tu r c and t l c t a i l C i ' r r r t i co ' r t

+ r o L A N D S A S . ) ^ O C I A T E D t v t t i l r N T i l E H O L y R O M A N E t \ I p t R E

mounrain church rv i th paint ings (r . . r roo), isstrongly Lombard.

The combin:r t ion of inf luences in th is cross_roads area is easi ly obseryed at the largest of ' thcRomanesque cathct l r r ls o l ' thc rceion, th l t t o, .Bascl , r : at thc border of ' the old Kinedom ol .\ r ' lcs or o l Burgundr.

' l h is chrrrch hls the

general f'eeling of a Rhinelancl church. whichindecd i t is . ln i t thcre arc somc remlrns of a

lireat church consecratcd in thc prescnce ofHcn lu I I i n r o rg ; l b r r h i s ed iEce rhe l , rmousgolden altar fiontal now in paris was made. flut

t hc bu i l d i ng l r as r ep l l t . ed a l i e r a f i r c r , 1 I 11_and t he ncw i n t c r i o r i s r au l t cd . po in r . , l , , , , . 1 , " thcing use d, as i r ) nerr-h\ . Burgund.v. f L i . j , , . i '

il ff 'l; *|.".' :'"'j..",T,ili..i:.l,',: I il,,li

t iom S t rassbu rg . a l i t t l e l a r t hc r dou n t h . , r r , , r r nhql The elaborate ,Gr l lusptbr te '

. , f ; . , r . l iCathedral is named fbr St Gal l , th. p i , ,n. , . ' , ,missionlr t of ' the re g ion; basical l , r , gurgun, l ;a;

in dcsign, i t is a handsome but rarher uninspirc4twel f ih-centurv work, somewhat rebl j l l 1njaugmented.

QHAPTER 22

G E R M A N Y ' W I T H T H E N E T H E R I , { N D . S . \ N D F L A N D E R S

In rn earlier part of this I olunle we have gir en

dl account of the chief monume nts of German

Romanesque up to the end of the Iiranconian

rule. Under the new Hohenstaufen dynastv,

which ruled fiom rr38 to rz(r8, the country

rchieved greater maturitv in political matters,

rnd embarked upon a large programme of ex-

pansion, colonization, and elangelization.

There was a regularly authorized crusade

against the Slavs in rr47, followed by- a long

process of expansion at the expensc of these

neighbours which rvas onl,v- undone rvhen the

Third Reich fell.

Freder ick Barbarossa (r r5z go) considercd

himself the heir of Constantine, Justinian, and

Charlemagne; and he did something after the

manner of each to make German-v powerful and

prosperous. His son Henry VI ( r rgo-7) brought

the Holv Roman Empire to its maximum idealll.

rnd territorially. 'lhese

two great nloments are

faithfully reflected in architecture. But the Em-

perors had dreams ofgeneral union lnd univer-

sal dominion which could not be realized be-cause ofirreconcilable Italy, and the competing,

mutuallv exclusive ideals of the papac1,, cspe_cia l ly under Pope Innocent I I I ( r r98-rzr6) .

The diverse archi tectural inf luences which

had been interwoven to fbrm German Roman-esque became mature in the course ol' theeleventh century and wcre brought to a fuller

maturitr.in the twclfth. under ir new irnd lbr.cc_ful plal' of influences from L,ombardv andBurgundl .

We find the powerful Carolingian architec-tural s t ra in cont inuing. Proot 'of th is is the

Beneral design, comparable to Saint-Riquier, oftlany ofthe greatest churchcs in thcir larcr lirrm-

Mainz, Worms, and Spel,cr C-athedrals among

them. There are mrnv other e\anrples none

more imposing than St Gertrude at Nrf-els or

N i vc l l es r l j r g , 3zo l , now h ' i ng1 u i t h i n t hc Be l -

gian borders, vct related, perhaps (through its

massi'r'e lagade) to r group of churches in

Saxonl , [1" : Sl . The bui ld ing was burnt out in

the last war. It has a great wooden-roofed nirle

(now handsomelv restorecl) , an interest ing

vaul ted sanctuarv, and an imposing westwork,

dating basicallv fiom thc eleventh century. Thc

Palatine Chapel at Aachen also served as an in-

spiration in this period; the octagonal Ottmars-

heim in Alsacc (dedicated ro49) is an example

intermediatc in date i Ni jmegen is of the twel f th

3rg. Nivel lcs, St Gcrtrudc,eler cnth century tnd latcr, liom the south-u est,as restored after rvirr damage.

4 I 2 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I ' I H I N T T I I , T I O L Y R O M A N E M P I R E

centurl'. Something of the influence of Aachen

survives in thc two-storel' opcn-rvcll churches

and chapels of the twel f th centurr ' .

The Lombarcl internat ional Fi rst Romanes-

que component of the old archi tecture opcncd

the wav for mature Lombard influcnces.

The influence of Clunv continued, thoush

with d iminished force. I t had come ro Germanv

graphically, ecclesiastically, and stvlistic11l,.

wi th Hirsau; the date of foundat ion is r095, andafter a preliminary dedication of r ogg const..s-

t ion cont inued unr i l r r27 or later . Paul inzclh

a little later still, shows some influencc f10nr

C lun l ' I I I . r'I 'he

special influence o[ Burgundl, caq.

strongilv to Germanv with the Cistercians bejbr"

G E R M A N Y . W I T H T I I E N E T I I E R L A N D S A N D F L A N D I R S ' + r 3

ot'it as arrangcd st'hernttte longohurdiwt.5 Richcr

mouldings and greatcr elaboration of parts re-

sultcd liom Lombard influence. lior cxample,

the handsome two-storev church of Schwarz-

rheindorf," ncirr Bonn (crucifbrm, trefbil' rvith

a centra l wel l , , . r r5o), hrrs rvhat is said to bc

an ear lv Gcrman example of the fu l l l -developcd

eaves gal ler l of Lombard charactcr [3zr l , and

qzz. I lurbach, abbcl church,

t \c l f th centurr (n l re destror tc l l

thc motif had been used on the \'{inster at Bonn

befbre the dedicat ion of I I6(r ' - \ t the same t ime

thc r i h r ' ; r r - r l t uas muk ing i t s p rog ress :u i t ness

St Patroklus, Soest , belbrc the dedicrr ion ol -

r r66i Worms Cathedral , af ter r rTr ; Schwarz-

rheindorf , in the er tension of r r73; Murbach;

l . l z , z l . r ue l l i h cen l t r r \ nou on l r d l i agmen l o l

thc beautifirtll proportioncd lireat church which

fbrmcrlv existed at this historic sitc with rich

arcat l ing, ant l paircd toncrs comparahle lo lhosc

o l san t ' { bhond io i n Como l . i oo l '

-i:o. Nir ellcs, St Gcrtrude, interior ol sancturrr'.declicrted ro-16

under thc auspices of thc Emperor Henrv l I ,

Bishop i \ Ie inwerk ol ' Paderborn, and Abbot

\ l ' i l l iam of Hirs: ru, who refbrmed about r lohouses in Switzcr land and Gcrmanv, vet e\ .en

then the speci f ical lv archi tectural inf luence had

not been strong. The 'Hirsauer

Schule ' , based

part lv on Clunl I I , is real l r , German in manr

w: lvs, and, according to recent opin ion, perhaps

not sumcicntl)'closc-knit to be callcd a School.l

Ment ion should, hower-er , be made of the hancl-some church of Alp i rsbach, associated geo-

the middle of the twel l th centurv.+ Kamp, near

Krel 'e ld, rvas the f i rs t Cisterc ian foundat ion rn

Gc rm: rn r ' ( r r z3 ) , and i t s p l an appea rs t o h i r \ c

been thc s imple ear l l ' p lan used by the Oldet

Bu t f o r somc t ime . i n t he ea r l v pc r i od , t f t s r l r , l r i -

t ec tu re o l t hc Ge rman C i s te r c i ans $ : t s o l t ( n

l oc r l i n t r pe . \ { ; r u l b ronn ( r r - 16 78 ) | r \ +

marked a new e ra bv l b l l ow ing t he t u l l r , 1 . ' c l -

opcd, wcl l -establ ishet . l . s t rongl \ Burgun, l i . rn

Cisterc ian modcls, thoueh $ i th German u t i r : l t l -

iness in mass and detai l .

3zI. Schwarzrheindorl. tloublc church.r . r r 5o

In France, meanwhile, Cistercian architec-

ture absorberl the somewhat inert rib lault of

the Burgundian half-Gothic' which was repre-

sented by about r r6o at Cla i rvaux, as wc have

seen, and the authoritv of this design brought

ribbed construction into German1..

Concurrcnt ly there u 'as an inf lux of n laturc

Lombard Romanesque motif-s to German.v. The

trefoil plan has becn thought (doubtfully') to be

a case in point; at any rate the medicval descrip-

tion of the trefbil of'Klosterrath (Rolduc) speaks

1 1 4

- l 'he Romancsquc thus matured is character-

is t ical ly 'weightv, somet imes almost to the point

of' clumsiness. N[any' of' the examples sufl'ered

greotly from over-rcstoration in the nineteenth

centurv, but thc mass of ' accompl ishment in

Romanesque belbre the t rue Gothic bccame

dominant in Germany- (not be fbre r 2qo, though

Magdcburg Cathedral , begun in rzog, shou.s

the first Gothic lbrms) was verl grcat: so llreatindeed as to impr int i ts characrer on I he country.

I t is no accident that St Gcorge at L imburg on

the Lahn" is in*ardll rather likc Laon Cathe-

dral, whilc extcriorly it is a notablc example of

Gcrman Romanesque, elegant and beautilully

composed and i ts dedicat ion date is rz j5.

In order to deal unt lcrstandabl l wi th such a

large number and var iety of bui ld ings over so

extended an arca and chronological scale, it will

be necessary to dir,ide the subject geographi-

callv and morphologically.' I 'he

arcas at the east and north of Germany

with in thc Empire have re lat ivc l l l i t t le to con-

t r ibute to our studv; we therefbre al l but omit

Moravia, Bohemia (except ing Prague [ r r7])

and Prussia from our considcration, and dir,idc

the remaindcr into (l) South Gern.rany, rvith

Baiar ia and Swabia, inc lucl ing Alsace; (a)

Saxony, wi th Westphal ia, Eastphal ia, ancl ' f

hu-

r ingia; (c) the l ,ower Rhinc and the Nlain

countrv (Franconia, Upper Lorrainc, and

Lower Lorrainc) .

S O U T I I G [ , R M A N Y

This region is traverscd by thc upper waters of

the Rhine and thc Danube, natural connect ing

l inks wi th Lorraine and l lungary respect ively.

Thc parts of the south-Gcrman rcgion which

are most important archi tcctural ly l ie in the

ecclesiast ical provincc of Mainz. The mctro-

pol i tan archbishopr ic of ' Mainz also includcd

the important centra l and northcrn bishopr ics

of Speyer, Worms, Wiirzburg, Paderborn, and

Hi ldcsheim ; a lso Strassburg.

The important south-German churchr. 1y, ,bas i l i can i n l b rm . bu t t he r c a re man t smr r l l 1 . n_tra l ized structures of the twel f rh and th i r tcr l lS

cenlur ies. Some are chapcls satel l i te t , r l ,1p*.

churches. Others. wel l reprcsentet l br . r 1;n.example of rzro, wi th an apsidal e lemcnt, 11Hartbcrg in Styr ia, are cemetery chapels 61charnel houses. Still others are palace and casrle

chape ls. These latter are tvpicallv of two storcr,5,

l ike Schwarzrheindorf [32 r ] . ' Ihe

idea goes hnsf t

to thc Rhineland and Aachen, where, as regularh.

in chapels of th is sort ( inc luding the Sir inte-

Chapel le in Par is, the Chapel at Versai l lcs. 116

St Stephen's Chapel in London), the ru ler and

his sui te are provided fbr at thc uppcr lcrc l .

Thcse south-Gerrnan churches are smaller than

the eramplcs iust mentioned. Thcy often con-

sist of n ine compartments, wi th the middlr one

open fiom the ground floor up through thc

second level , and carr ied, above th is opcn

ccntral space, upward to a dominant central

towcr. I t has been est imated" that over roo o1'

these ccntrllized chapels existed in Bavaria, thc

Austr ian provinces, and Bohemia. ' l 'hc

r lpc

was represented in the castlc at Nurcmberg^. {

s impler p lan, t r iapsidal , was rcpresented i l St

George, Regensburg.

St Jakob (otherwise cal lcd. f rom i ts ibunt l ing

by' Irish monks, the Schottenkirche), Regcns-

burg (dated about r r8o), has a lateral port : r l ,

qui te unusual ly 'e laborate fbr the era and the fc-

gion. ' l 'h is

church is a columnar basi l ica, s i th

groin-r'aultcd aisles and vaulted triapsidal sirnc-

tuarv; there is , however, no t ransept: the bui ld-

ing is , so to speak, cont inuous f rom cnd to err , l .

l ike the Hungar ian cathedral nf P6cs (which i r a

pa ra l l e l e ramp le . da t i ng l i om abou t r r 5o , , r r r J

possib ly re lated to th is German type). l )ccs.

ho l r cve r , has p i e r s l and i t shou ld be remar ' L . J

that s imple piers l re of l icquent occurrene. in

the south-German churches. 1o

In Latc Romanesque t imes South G..* .nt

prol usely cmployed Lombard dccoral i r e mot i l '' f yp i ca l

a r cad ing and bands en r i ch t h r chu r t h

exter iors. as.at \ l l Saints ' Chapcl ' Rcg-cnsburg

i i lso a t refo i l : . . I | 50), and Curk C'athcdral ' to

[ rnr ion ont" , ' *o anlong a consi t l t rablc numbcr

of examptes '

S A X O N Y A N D N L I G H B O U R I N G R I I G I O N S

In Saxony (wi th Wcstphal ia ' Eastphal ia ' and

iiuringit) there arc several groups ofchurches

, inr . r . t t us. \s in the south ' thel arc basi l ican

in t r you , . w i t h se r c ra l r a r i e t i es o l r he bas i l i can

olan. Local variations give them great savour

and character '

The'Saxon f'agade' in particular is interesttng

and imposing. It is relatcd to the laqade tvpe

o" i h,*o integrated towers (Strassburg, roI5)

[7g], but gives prominence to rn intermediate

,riu.tu." which is as dcep as the to\ucrs' and is

323. Gandcrshcim. ehrt rc l t ' \ \cs l l runl '

late eleventh centun

( ; E R N I A N \ " \ \ . I T H T T I } , N } - T H [ , R I , A \ D S A N I ) I ; I ' { \ D F ' R S + I 5

r'ery often carried abo\ e them. This produces a

tall, rather flat, but bulkl and strongh profilcd

mass which tcrminates the church at the west in

rnonumental fashio l l , and, i t thc church is a largc

one, it cleclares itself stronglv in the silhouette

of the whole c i tv . Somc ol the examples hi rvc

alread,v been mentioned, others rvill bt: tbund in

the Lower Rhine area and in Srvcden'

At Wimplen im Tal , r : I i ranconia ' the middle

structure is emphasizcd in that it is pl:rced as it

1 \ e re on a b r i dg t o re r t hc wcs l po rch i l h i \

arrangiement is cxccptional, but thc early clate of-

Wimpfen (befbre 9q8, but rebuilt in the twelfth

ce ntury) sugllcsts it as an intcrmediate cxample'

Gandcrsheimlr in Saxony' has pelhaps thc

handsomsst crample of thc faqade tlpe u'hich

we have under considerat ion [323] ' ' fhc

church

was rebuilt atter a fire which occurrcd between

rzr . \ l inden ( lathct l l i r l ,

.l"i.nth and lwclfth centurics' fagade

L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T I I I N T H E T I O L Y R o M A N [ ' M P I R E

f.mf

4 I 6 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N E M P I R E

1063 and rog5. ' l 'here

is a great show of 'arcad-

ing in the lower register, and abovc that a veri-

table precipice cut by simple horizontal string

courses into fbur stages, bevellcd at the corners.

These bevels arc carricd up into octagonal

towers, each with a shaft, a bellry stage, and a

pyramidal roof. Between the towers, and just

below thc shali, there arr: three twin openings

with mid-wall colonnettes, admirably placed

with respect to the similar opcnings in the

belfries and the tunnel-like portal directly

below.

The N,linden Cathedral of ro6r had two

towers, betwecn which, in thc twellth century,

a taller oblong belfry was built, forming a hand-

somelv stepped mass [jz-1]. 'Ihis

same process

changed thc liont part ol'the Carolingian west-

work of Corvcy on the Weser into somcthing

l ikc a 'Saxon faqade' . r '

At St Patro l i lus in Soest l5 [325J the corner

towers are reduced to the mcrest pinnacles

between the gables ofa stout bel f rv tower which

has a porch and gallerv wrapped around three

sides of it. The eristing church wirs built, rvith

groin raul ts, in the sccond hal f 'o f the twcl l th

century, and the astonishing great westcrn

tower just mentioned is ascribed to the !'ear

r zoo or thcreabouts.

Freckenhorstr'' has an equallv astonishing

f 'agade, dat ing f iom rr16-z9. A pla in ground

storer, with a single relatively small portal is

flanked by the bases of'two cylindrical towors,

each advanced s l ight ly , and provided wi th an

entrance doorway. 'lhe

central mass rises sheer

to a tall hip roof, with thrce stagcs of bclfiy

openings. Each stage has two twin mid-wall-

shali windows. 'l 'he

cylindrical towers, enve-

loped at thc base by decorativc arcading, are

plain through a part o1'their height, above which

the cylinders (now disengaged by a sct-back of'

the main belfry) rise to two stages with twin mid-

wall-shaft windows. Their conical rools are set

upon eaves a littlc higher than the caves of'the

main bclfry. Behind this imposing and beauti-

Iully prolilcd great westworli the nave and aislcs

o1' the church extend to the t ransept. bevont l

which is the sanctuarv f lanked by t rvo ta l l squrrc

towcrs.

The evident love of towered masses rccrlls

the pr imi t ivc examples of the type which *e

have examined in Saxon England. Evident lv thc

same spir i t in forms thern al l , a l lowing Ibr thc

sophist icat ions and outs ide inf luences in thc

mature Romanesque of Germany.

I t i s ha r t l t o douh t r ha t son re th i ng o l ' t he , r l t l

spi r i t under l ies the warm yet austere charm t , l

the fine basilican constructions in Saxonr. Sinr-

p l ic i ty of form ; weight iness in detai ls l ikc mould-

ings and capi ta ls; excel lcnt nrasonry, adherencc

to traditional even Carolinsian idcals: thcsc

are the notcs of ' the sty le.

Hildesheim Cathedral (dedicated in I o6 r ) htts

bcen rcbui l t , hur Sr Michael [84J, a l rcr t l '

325 (olposttt). Socst, St Pxtroklus, wcstern to$cr' ' ' I2oo

326 (ahrrce). Hildcsheim, St Godchard, r r.13 7z

i+

--

. l r7 lnd .128. Gos la r , thc P f l l z , rchu i l t r t te r r r - i : , rcs to ra t ion s tudJ ' i s in r . r r -5o lnc l c - r tc r io r ; scc a lso ( r -1

6escr ibed. part ly remodel led under Bishop

i l . log f , r7r-qo) and wel l restored recent lv '

iiandswell for the accomplishmenl ol'the school'

I t i , t ingul t . ly_ impressive ' I t had a wooden-

i l f rd .pt . , which is unusual . and a painted

.gi t ing, of medieval date ' Important among i ts

;er tures was a remarkable sculptured choir-

.oeen dat ing f rom Bishop \delog's per iod

lr186). Examples of r ichlv decorated cuhical

Lpitals occ,.tt, on the pairs of columns between

oiers which su pporl the na\ e u all in'l r e i u t h s i g e m

Stiitzennethsel, as the neat German phrase has

i t . This type of support is o l course common in

the German basilicaslT [82, 83]. (St Michael

suffered severelY in the last war.)

S t Godeha rd ' a t H i l deshc im ( r r 3 .3 7z ) l . 3z6 l

is a similar building, differing in that it has a

masonrv apse vault, an ambulatorl.with radiat-

ing chapels, an octagonal crossing towcr' and

paired western towers. It has preserved a stucco

tympanum which is a notablc example of that

sort of sculpture seldonr secn at pr( 'senl . ht l t

practised importantl-r'b.v the Germans fiom the

t ime of Saint-Riquier onwards. '

In Goslar , the old Imper ia l Dict town' the

cathedral (dating fiom about ro4o and later,

destroyed in modern times) was vaulted, in a

heavy manner, at a rather late date. Its rathcr

archaic'Saxon tragade' stood svmbolicallv at thc

foot of a long easterl-v slope which was used for

vast offi cial assemblages.

Placed t ransverselv at the top oi the s lope, the

old Pfalz,'z0 dating originalll ', as alreadv reportcd,

f rom about ro5o. and reslored af ter a col lapse of

r r3z, s l i l l ex ists (ovcr-restored, r873) [327, j :81.

The ground floor is enclosed, and could be

heated upon occasion. 'fhe

main hall, on the

upper level , is a t remendous two-nar ed rvooden-

roofed afi'air with a central throne room marked

offby parallel arcades, and communicating with

a balcony. The throne room and the lateral parrs

open upon the outdoor assemblv phce through

characteristic double and triple arches, now

glazed, under enclosing arches. 'fhe

sober bcst

G E R M A N Y . W I T H T t { E N E T H E R L A N D S A N D F L A N D T I R S ; + I 9

qualities of' German twelfih-centur1. architec-

ture may be discerncd here. At the south end of

the building there are imperial rptrtmcnts.

which include the interesting two-storcv chapel

of St Ulrich. cruciform in plan, and balancing

the older Chapel ofour Lacl l 'sct near the north

end of the palace. The cathedral boundcd the

east side of the assemblv area

Another great house, wic leh'known to opera-

goers because of the 'sangersaal', is the Wart-

burg, p icturesquelv p laced on a height near

Eisenach. Actual l r El izabcth 's ' teure Hal le ' was

superposcd on thc or ig inal residence of- the

twelfth centur--v [329] not long after the Iirst con-

struct ion. I t addcd grcat l l ' to the ameni tv of the

bui ld ing. ' I 'he

structure rs f i rs t bui l t had three

spacious rooms in enlilade on each of'two levels,

fronted bv a graceful arcaded galler-r of lighter

construct ion, u i th d i l 'cet er ter ior access l iom

the courtl'ard. 'I 'he

main room on the ground

floor (central and largcr than the others) was a

kitchen, and the larEle room abole it was the

original hall. 'fhe

structurc was much rebuilt in

r838 67 .

,,?,a:-

' i

'^-:::- l

i ; ( fl

I

i i i

/-l\ ]t l l

ffiffif f i F i H

frE #l Edf f i a i wt r f f i t i -- f f i s f f i

ffiAH ilI

ffi'&fi ffiq E { H

;ffi m+F+ffi effi

qz9. l i isenach, Wartburg, twelfth ccnturr

restorlt ion stud!'

=-.....-./,/,/

--

-:=/18-=

J 2 O L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N T H E H O I - Y R O M A N E M P I R E

In Tr ier the Frankcnturm (c lated about roqo)

shows what the Romanesque tower-house was

like, with single sup-erposed rooms. One is likell

to fbrgiet how rvidelv distributed and horv impor-

tant this cit_y-'t)'pc of rcsidence rsalll.was, becausc

so f'ew er:rmples have sun ir,ed.

In Saxony the vaulting ofchurch na\,es comes

tardilv. 'Ihe

oltlcr vaults are hall'-Cistercian.

hall'-Lornbarcl, with domed-up rib vaults or.er

double bavs, and thc churches thcmsclves, er,en

l t a late datc. arc Rom:rnesquc in cont .ept ion,

wi th re lat ivelv s imple cxrer iors, heavv wal l -

work, re lat i r ,e lv smal l windows, and 'mural

values' in the inter ior dcsign- Magdeburg Cathe-

dral, begun in rzog, counts as a true Gothic

church, the first in Germanr,. Ycr ar Miinster in

Westphal ia, u hen ihe cathcdral was vaul ted in a

rebui ld ing of rzz, .1 65, the resul t recal ls Frcnch

transi t ional churches l ike the cathcdral of : \ngers

(nave vaul ted about r r5o) [zr5] , though Mi in-

ster has aisles, and Germanic detail.rr

Under Lombard inspirat ion and Burgundian

auspices, brick construction appeared in north

Germanr, and, largelv becausc ot ' the penurv o1'

good bui ld ing stone, spre;rd a l l a long the Gcrman

Baltic coast, into Poland, and cven to regions

near Pskol in Russia, befbre rzzo. I ' I 'he avai l -

able clar s burn to a fine red brick; good mortar

is obtainable, and from thc beginning the Ger-

man bricklavers possessed a map;nificent sense

of their craft. The church at Jcrichow, not lar

fiom tr{agdeburg^ and on the borders ofBranden-

burg, was bui l t about r r ,5o, wi th most adnr i rabl l '

ser,ere lines and good proportions, fbr a Pre-

monstratensian house of August in ian canonszr

I r 82, r 8- j ] . ' l 'he

bui ld ing is wooden-roofcd.

basi l ican in p lan, and round-arched.

Brandenburg Cathedral , onl l ab6s1 16111'

miles lrom Jerichow, hrrd bricli construction

under wa-y in r r ( r5, L i ibeck Cathedral in r r73.

I t was natural that the pointed arch should

soon appcar, and wi th i t the name of Buck-

stetnqot ik ; the r ib r aul t was introduced (Lchnin,

t . r2oo 70); t racery mot i fs came wi th incrcas-

ing Gothic inf luence. Charming and ingenioLr5

translations ol the Gothic elements were ntl(lc

into brick and rerracotta fbr thc embellishnrtnt

of the bui ld ings, and srucco panels br ightcnt l l

thc wal ls wi th near-Gothic pat terns. The Cisre r_cianabbevsof 'Lehnin and Chor in} ( rz7j r . i . iqy

are both good examples of this, as are rhc gr-r1r

churches and town halls o1'Danzig and Liibe cl

Bockstcingttil,is in fact the first reallr. succes,-

ful German Gothic lbr the imitatir.e works in

stone of'the earl-v pcriocl invariablv I'all trrr shor.r

of their or ig inals in the i l . -d. -Frunce.

The 'l 'eutonic

Knights logicalll ' adoptccl the

B u c k st e i n go t i k . rs their archi tecture, anr l impos-

ing monuments l ike X{ar ienburg (r276 ancl , .

r jzo l4oo) and Nlar ienwerder ( r . r j4o)r . t spcal ,

mutely o1-their act ion. A large number of tht '

Hansa cities were in north Germany, and in

neighbouring rcgions subiect t<l north-Gernran

inf luence, and ; f that inter-munic ipal mercant i lc

commonwealth ma1- bc said to have a national

archi tecture, i t rvas the B, tckstein.qot ik .

In our iudgement the best of the Batksttitt-

{r/il is not surp:rssed bv anv but the finest of the

late, mature, and charactcr is t ical ly German

Gothic buildings. 'fhe

qualities which thr,'

car l ier Gcrman Gothic inher i ted through thc

Romanesque f rom Calol ingian bui ld ing do not

olien combine well with the G:rllic qualities ot

I r rench Gothic. But the Germanic qual i t ics,

under the limitations of brick-work, are at rn

xdvantxge in the Backsteingotik. The winc-

coloured precipices ofbrick breaking into sharp

spires and pinnacles of copper l green arc i r t

every wa!' as fine as the massive stone \a'alls ol

the Rhenish cathedrals and abbel 's . The exccl-

lent preservat ion of the bui ld ings af ter per iocls

l rom 6oo to goo years should also be countc. i

heavily in their favour. Symptomatic is the lict

that great archi tects of the twent ieth centur l

l ike Ragnar 6stberg, Josef Olbr ich, and Domi-

nikus Boehm have drawn on the Backsteingotil '

stvle, sensing its elemental force and authentic

grandeur.

T H E L O W E R R H I N E - l \ ' t A l l

The Scheldt l \ leusc l \ loscl lc Rhinc rcgion.

with its extension along the Nlain, is the old-

established part of Germanl', wherc Roman

traditions are stronger and fine building has its

longest and most distinguished history' The

territories lie in the venerable ccclesiastical pro-

v inces of Colognc' Tr icr . and ' \ la inz ' I n ear l icr

parts of this volume man]'of the most important

Luildings have been mentioned, because first-

rate works appear earl.v in the region' Nlaturitl '

of style is early here as well' Maria Laach,

founded in Iog3, has al readl 'been descr ibed;

t he chu rch ( l a rge l y bu i l t bc tween I r 3o and

rr56) [92, 931 is accompl ished though austere

in style, and the latest parts have, as mature

German Romanesque generall,v'. has, a Lombard

dnge.

33o. Trier Cathedral,

Ia"rgely eleventh and twelfih centurics' from the west'

Liebfrauenkirche r. r21o- 53

c E R M A N Y , W t T H T H E N E T H I I R L A N D S A N D ! I - A N D r ' R S ! + 2 I

What remains is to show how in the pcr iod ot

full Romanesque maturitr the architccture hcre

was, as Sir Al t red Clapham so lpt l l 'sa ic l . 'Carol-

ingian (brms clothed in Lombard guise'' Son.re-

how the placid spirit of Hersf'eld and Limburg

on the Haardt, along rvith thc frank grancleur of'

Wi i rzburg Cathedral and St Gertrudc at Ni-

vel les [3rg, 120] , was t ransmit ted to these later

bui ld ings.'l 'he

Franconian cathedrals ofT'rier Ij3ol and

Speyer acquired their 'Lomb:rrd guisc' onl-v in

the latcst works of' construction' Worms and

Mainz were more profbundll. affected b-v the

new morement.

The ear l l e lerenth-cent t l r \ calhedral ( ) f

Worms:( , [33 r j is said to ' l ive on' in the present

one, in that the lbundations are the same A con-

secrat ion of r r8 l marks a stage of the rcbui ld ing

at the east ; the polygonal western choir was be-

4 2 2 L A N D s A S S O C I A T E D W I T H I N T H E H O L Y R O M A N E M P I R E

gun in r 234 in Lombard hal f -Gothic. The nave

has five very sturdy clouble bays with rib vault-

ing above an arcade s]-'stem rather like that of

Speyer. Tie-rods have been neccssarv in order

to keep these vaults secure, as flying buttresses

have never been built for them. The belfiy of

the north-west tower is frankly Gothic, but the

architect respected the old scheme, which called

for round towers of equal weight flanking an

octagonal tower of larger girth but inferior

height. These round towers are on a transverse

axis, flanking a sanctuary bay with (exception-

ally) an octagonal tower over it, whereas those

at the east are staggered, for the round towers

are one bay east of the transept and its corres-

ponding octagon. The apse is included within a

straight east wall, and the towers are tanpient to

the line of this wall, which again is unusual.

1'his arrangement results in a very successful

tower system.

Mainz Cathedral,rt the grand old metropoli-

tan church of middle German-v [78, 332] , is

-^ !{ainzCathedral, restorrlion stutly as in the tweltih centur-1 (Kautzsch)

tt"' '

, .., Mainz Cathedral, ele'enth ccnrury' much rebuilt alter r r8r

JJJ 4nu rrt

. ' , t , ' - . ' t - l - , ., l n r r r r Y ' i ! , ' " '

,..". r, " !- r+"9 : l

: . ' ,? l ' , L i..rt j, l= i :.;,r..

I ! i l l

- - r r r I r ' - l r ! - - - - 1 - - ' - ' -

t ' l l l i " , '

. )

i l ,' , - , l i , i : , ; I : - t - ' l i t l ' r " : i " . ' " ' l t = - '

- o - ' . . , . , , " ' , , , ' )

i i f ' ' i r ; ! ' ' " ' " t ' " ' :

- - - . , - ; ' - ; i t ' '

i ; r

i l ! l i l I

,_ i.,fr : ' l l i l -,t I I I l l r! i l - ' l=l= r::.r: '

t$

r - . ,

t , ' - ' t

about equal to Speyer Cathedral in magnitudc,

but the effect is rather different. The red sand-

stone gives i t warmth; the r ichness of ' thc

twelfth- and thirteenth-century articulation

gives i t movement [3J3, 334] . This work on the

bui ld ing was done between rr8r and rz. l9,

though acrual l ] the eastern crossing fo\^cr \ \J :

carried up in Gothic and then replaced In

Romanesque Revival sty le, the top of the

western crossing tower having meanwhile becn

rebui l t in Troubadour Gothic ( I769-74). - l

* t t

o ld round towers dat ing f rom the carhedral , ' f

roog j2 at Nla inz terminate the axis of the

western transept, which with its central octago-

nal tower and western apse makes an imposing

front . At the easl there are a more impo: i : tg

transept and octagon, with a trelbil sanctuir-)-

bel'ond, accentuated bv a pair of slender oct-

agonal towers, all enriched by arcading and

gal ler ics. The huge bulk of the cathedral stanr l :

up grandly abore the town, and is v is ib le iot '

man-v miles in the valley of the Main, which' ' 'ts

3lr. Worms Cathcdral, eleventh, tu'clf ih, and thirteenth centuries, f iom the south-west

4 2 4 L A N D S A S S O C T A T E D W t T H T N T H E H O L y R o N , r A N E M p T R EG E R M A N Y , W I ' I H ' T H E N E T H E R I , A N D S A N D I L A N D F , R S T 2 <

i t approaches the conf luence wi th the Rhine.f lows ncar ly st ra ight towards the church.

1-he interior, covercd bv rib vaultine indouble ba.vs ahore a generous c lcre"torr . . hLrs afrement lous aquet luct- l ike arcat le on cach s ideof- the nave, wi th vaul ted ais les beyond. Theefl'ect is overwhclming because of its vast scale,which makes one fbrget the rarher dry design.The trefbil which has just been _.nrion.ji,sometimes thought to have replaced an earlierone; at any rate the trefoil motifwas establishedin the Rhineland by the eleventh ..n,u.y, ,nJrt underwent a special development ihere.Supposedly the trefbil scheme came fiom Lom_bardy - Early Christian Lombardy _ ro theregion.?8

In the Rhineland the key church of trefoilplan is St Mary in Capitol at Cologne:e [::S_Z].A sanctuary which was the scene ofthe dedica_

jJ5 to .].]7. Cologne, St Mart, in Capitol.. . ro4o 12r0

tion ofthe church by Pope Leo IX in ro4g was

,rached to a wooden-roofed nave antl aisles

[egun about ro-1o. Befbre the definitive con-

s!cration in Io69 the old apse had been replaced

by a new chevet, consisting ot a vaulted apse

1nd a transept with crossing tolver and vaulted

lpses. The nave rcmainccl unvaulted, but

groin-vaulted aisles were carried all around the

building, except at the west end. 'l 'he

f'agade,

with its projecting tower ancl lateral stair turrets,

recal ls the Palat ine Chapel at Aachen. With the

construction of this fagade St Mary became an

example of the old church type with two axial

towers. Like a Lombard church, it has a vast

crypt, which, however (unlike a Lombard

crypt), is closed at the west - being approached

by narrow stairways liom the transept arms.

Actually the e{l'ect at St Nlary in C:rpitol is

very different from that of its supposed model

the (now l r r rgelv rebui l t ) church of 'San Lorcnzo

in \ l i l an . Thc re t he ma in sp : r ce i s . so r o spcak ,

uni f icd, rounded, and centra l izcd. St \ Iarv lacks

gal ler ics, which in San Lorenzo aid in b inding

in the centra l space; St Nlarv has a strong axia l

movement, both longitudinal and transYcrsc,

which is lacking at San Lorenzo.

St Man, in Capi to l becamc more Lombard in

charactcr during a reconstruction at the end o[

the trvellth ccntury or the beginning of thc

thirteenth : the exterior, formerly-rather austere,

was enriched with arcading. -l'he

vaulting of'the

transept and sanctuary was completed at that

time, and thc nave then receivcd the first ser-

partite \,ault in Germanl' ( r z r g).

T'he church of the Apostles in Cologne is a

r,ariation on the theme ol St Mary. in Capitol,

dated about r rgo and laterr" [ j38] . In spi te o l '

i ts tar t ly date. the chevet is r ich wi th Romanes-

i I - i

o 'o,

- .la[

l l '

tt fi'

f

lot _

I

*

+

tlrl

uI

426

fi8 (belon,). Cologne, Church ol the Apostles,

r. r rgo and later, f iom the east

(small cupola and castern spir.es not replaced

in post-war restoration)

y9 ( right ) . Tournai Cathedral, nar.e and rranscprf i ' om the south-west , r r ro , r r65 f i .

que arcading and Lombard eaves galleries. Thetrefbil does not have an ambulatory. Its mainapse is flanked by a pair of slender cylindricalstair towers which are carried high above thecrossing tower. At the west a deep bay underand behind the axial entrance tower ioins thcwestern transept in making a sort of angulart r e l b i l . ' l ' he eas rc rn pa r t o l t he chu rch i s r au l r cdlike that of St Marv in Capitol, in the Romanes_que manner; the nave has sexpartite vaults andthe west cnd quadripartite and seven_Dartr au l t s . r a the r i i ke t hose o f t hc much ea r l i e rchurch ofSainte-'lrinitd at Caen.

The axial tower and the eastern stair turretshave each individual f'ace finished ofi' with asharp triangular gable, as is usual in Gcrmanval th is r ime. Ridgcs r isc sharpl l . to the apex oi

r^ , r rna i Cathedra l ' narc t t to ' chcre t t t65

ill ,io;;-'n cenr ur) ' nar c r ault modcrn

T H E N E T H E R L A N D S

From Cologne the trefbil passed b1. wa-v of

Flanders to a number ofcathedrals that ofthe

former Merovingian capital cit-v of Tournai on

the Scheldt (then iust o\rer the border of the

Empire, in France, and flourishing with textile

prosperity) and also Cambrai, Th6rouanne'

Noyon, and Soissons. The cathedral of Tour-

nai32 [33g, 34o] deserves especial mention fbr

its remarkable Early Gothic development of the

trefoil. As at St Mary in Capitol, an old nave

was augment ed to the east . ' l 'he

nar c is an ast on-

ishingly consen'ative round-arched wooden-

roofed construction of r I Io' 'Ihis

nave, which

still exists entire. has aisles, gallery, trifbrium

passage (al the lcr e l of the roof-spacc o\ er the

3.1r. Andcrnach, church, r' Iuoo

the tower from each gable. Sometimes therc isonly a single roof--slope betwcen adjacent gables,as in the western tower of the church of thcApostles; otherwise there is a vallcv betwcen.. { pa r t i cu l a r l y ou r rageous examp le o l ' t h i s I l r r u rsort of roofing was built over the central oct-agon of' Charlemagne's palatine Chapcl rrAachen [7, 81. The facets are carried up in .r

curve to a central pinnacle. '_fhis

type o1'rool islittle admired and rarely imitated outside Gcr-many.

'fhe trefoil had a much happier historv. Ir

was used in other churches at Colosne GrossS t Ma r t i n 1 r r 85 f f . ) . and (one m igh r men r i on i npassing) the Romanesque St Gereon,3r whcrcthe sanctuary extended eastward from a oolvfbjlna r c ha l t -Go th i c i n s t y l e ( r r 9 r ) .

gallerl'), and clerestory. All lbur of these levels

were carr ied into the t rc lb i l begun about r Ib5

with rib vaulting a good example of the Earlv

Gothic fbur-storev interior elevation'lournai

is also notable Ibr its exterior derel-

opment of the trefbil by means of towers' This

is not surprising, lbr it is only seventy-five miles

b-v air lrom Saint-Riquier in a countrv which

has loved its towers ever since Carolingian days

'Iournai reproduccd the Rhenish two-towsr

apsidal f'agade in tall proportions at each end of

the transcpt and presumably at the root of thc

main apse which was dcstroycd in r z4z: thert ' ts

also a lantern tower at the crossing: thus the

trefoil was planned lbr scven towers' Moreovcr'

there are clear signs that two towers were rn-

tendcd, rather than thc existing pinnacles' at

4 2 8 L A N D S A S S O C I A T E D W l l H l N T I I E H O L Y R O M A N E M P I R F ,

the west cnd of thc navc. Thus was created, wi th

true logic of placc, the pattcrn of the nine-

towered cathcdral which lvas in the mind of'

more than onc great French designer o1-the

thirteenth centur]-, but never lull1, realized.

( I -u jan Cathedral . in Argent ina, lacks but one

spire.)' l 'h is

excurs ion l rom the Rhincland has in a

way pointed out a lack which one f'eels, in the

cnd. in German Romanesquc a lack of sophis-

tication and what the French call 'adresse'.

When one reacls the commcnts of 'German cr i -

tics on the great Gcrman works, it is clear that

their overwhelming simplicity and strength call

forth thc deepest response. Therc is a sip;nificant

difi 'ercnce between 'l

ournai Cathedral and the

fine Romanesque church at Andcrnach (dated

about rzoo) [34tJ. t t Andernlch is a fbur- tower

church strikingly silhouetted, but basicalll

naivc in arrangenent. Tor.rrnai CathetlraI also

has the lbur towers, which are contempor-

aneous; they, l ikc the towers of Andernach, are

built up ofmany stages, but are subtly arranged

to cmphasize the vcrtical florv of their line, and

thcy break more easily into the sky. They are

composed within the indir,idual tower, and in

respect to a ref-ercnce point, the crossinpl tower,

which by contrast makes thcm appear taller and

more graccful still.

Grandcst , perhaps, among the cathcdrals of

thc Nether lands is St Servaas at Nlaastr icht .s l

L ike thc other churches to be ment ioncd, i t re-

flects the twclfth-centurv prosperity in the

Rhine country. I t has an apse rvith paired towers,

as is so f requent in the Rhine country; the west

end has a spacious narthex with an elaborate

chapcl abovc i t . ' fhe

westwork, heavv at the base

l ike that ofSt Patroklus at Soest , b lossoms ener-

getically into three towers. Our Lady at N{aas-

t r icht ( largely r . r r .5o) has, s imi lar ly , an apse

bctwecn two towers, and at the wcst a remark-

ablc precipitous westwork of blocky form datcd

about rooo, which is f lanked bl anorher,

rounded. Drir of towcls. Both churchcs haye

intcr iors in the Rhenish sty le of ' rhe r$ 'c l l ih

centurv, wi th Gothic vaul t ing. The Nt i insrcr 11

Roermond is a more active, Gothic-r,aulrrd

vers ion of the Apost les 'Church in Cologne ( . r l r1r

twel f ih ccnturv) ; Rolduc2s (r r69) makcs ong

think of Speler , wi th i ts substant ia l p icrs . rnd

heavy Romanesque vault. St Peter at Utrecht

and the fbrmer abbey at Susteren ha\-e somr () t '

the savour of Hildesheim, for both are in 1

simple German stvle, both date back in origin t9

about ro5o, and both are unvaul ted.3- t

N{uch reconstruction in the prosperous (io-

thic period has left us only a few great Romancs-

que monumcnts in the Nether lands and Fl ; rn-

ders, beyond the examples already mentioncd.

but there are a number which mer i t a passinr

ref'erence, such as the church of Soignies, neru.

Nivclles,r(' which like the great church at the

latter place, alreacly mentioned, stands up

glandlv with its bold towers.

LidgerT was important in Romanesque timcs,

and notable for two churches in particular St

John thc Evangelist (a rotunda of g8z inspircd

lrom Aachen, but qui te made over) and Sainr-

Barth6lemy. ' l 'he inter ior of Saint-Barth6lemr

has been rebuilt, but the exterior has retainecl its

Romancsque character. '-f

he church was fbund-

ed in I o r o ; however, the present basilica is much

later. 'I 'here

is an imposing westwork. '[ ' l ie

i n t c r i o r p r cse r \ cs i t s o r i g i na l a r rangemen t n i r l r

t ransept and three apses.

In various places, like Huv (near Lidge), thcrc

arc Gothic bui ld ings which perpe tuate Roman-

esque schemes, of ten bJ ' the incorporat ion ol '

actual Romanesquc remains- Thcv arc a t r ibutc

to the influenccs which the area received fronr

Carol inp; i rn Saint-Riquier and thc impcr ia i

Rhine, rather than evidence oflocal creativeness.

With this we close our exrrosition of thc Roman-

esque architecture in the broad lands controlle(l

by the Hol l 'Roman Empire. As rve remrrked in

the beginning, it has been a view ofan architec-

$ral kaleidoscope' 'Ihat

vel'y tact rs ot coursc an

a*pra. t ion of lhe essent ia l l ) heterog(ncou5

ihrrr . t . t uf rh. Em pire. and thc grou I ng di r cr ' -

" i v o i t n . cu l t u r l l a r cas w i t h i n i t r vh i ch madc

, i . f -p i t . i tsel l imprrct icable ' L n i t r in : r rchi -

, . . ,ur . .o. . . of cul tural uni ty ' Cul tural uni t l

in the Church existed' ofcourse, but i t lvas not

inclusive enough to hold the European arel

tog. th. . . Exclusiv ism in the Church had. i ts

effect in putting new movements ot declslvc

importancc outside the ecclcsiastical pale; the

G F . R M A N Y , W I T H T H I N l ] T H E R L A N D S A N D F L A N D I l R S ' + 2 9

new act iv i t ie s werc c;r r r icc l on morc and more in

thc vernacular language, '.rnd thus the Empire

Iost i ts eommon L:r t in fonguc' l hc strength ol -

the Empire is nowhere bct ter exprcsse d than in

t he impos ing chu r t hes l r h i ch r ' r c ha re i us t r i s i t -

ec1 in the Rhine country, rvherc its basic porvcr

residcd alwa)s. ' l 'hese

grcat monumcnts can

st i l l help us to understand the grandeur of the

meclieval imperial ideal, and to lbrgct thc n.ris-

fbrtunes which prcvented the ideal fiom being

real ized.

.L

P A R T S E V E N

MATURE ROMANESQUE ARCHITEC' [ 'URE IN

SCANDINAVIA, BRITAIN, AND NORTHERN F .RANCE

C H A P T E R 2 3

S C A N D I N A V I A

Reference has alreadv been made to the remark-

able framed wooden churches of Scandinar,ia,

pre-Romanesque in style, though showing

Romanesquc influences. In Sc:rndinavia rvood

has cont inued to be an important bui ld ing

material for structures of all sorts, and, as in

Russia, solid log-wall construction was devel-

oped and widcl l used for both sccular and

ecclesiast ical s t ructurss, especia l lv in the north.

The advent of Romanesque archi tecture is

marked bv the use of masonry, at f i rs t a lmost

exclusivel l fbr church bui ld ings. I ts coming

corresponds wi th an era of- intcnsc act iv i tv and

wide foreign contacts, including thc temporarl'

pol i t ical uni ty achieved under Cnut. l An in-

effaceable character was given to Scandinavian

Romanesque archi tecture b1. the heavy wal ls ,

steep roofing, and simple fbrms necessitated bv

the climate, and bl thc fict that carlv mason-

work was carr ier l out ver l ' larg;e ly, uncler north-

European infl uence. Indeed Gothic architecturc

in Scancl inavia shows strong str rv ivals of Ro-

manesque f i r rn-rs, and such sunira ls arc easi l l

recognized in Rent issance and modern work

also. Scandinavian cr i t ics l re r ight in saf ing

that , whi le the elements t iom abroad bccome

simpler <.r t ten rust ic , : rnd in the casc of 'sculp-

ture, crude thel 'are combincd to nrake a nerv

and vigorously characterizcd art.

During the fbrmatir,e medieval pcriod, Den_

mlrk was in thc ecclesi:lstical l)rovince of'Hamburg-Bremen ( f rom about 9.5o r lnt i l r ro. j ) ,

and thus was basically- influenced fiom Ger-

many. The Norwegian Church was set up ab.utgg5 lrom England, and the architcclulq qh6\,1.5

th is, though ecclesiast ical l r Norrvar, rvas undcr

Hamburg-Bremen, and then ul)der Luncl( I ro3 5z). Swedcn, unt ler Lund (r ro1 64), rvas

i r r { l ueneed l i on r Ge rman r , l nd a l . , y , r h rough

Norwlrr ' , b1- England. ' l 'he

re arc sul l ic lsnl d i6e1-cnces in the architectule to iustif'v considering

thc Scandinavian countr ies scparalr lv .

D I N N , l A R K ]

The monumental masonr l - t rchi te ctu lc 6f f ) . r -

mark begins at the same per iod as th l in6l t rar ion

of 'Norrnan Rornancsquc into Engl1n6. As * i th

L ,du l r d t l t c ( . on lesso r ' s \ \ ' c s tm ins t ( . r , h . *e re r ,

thc bui ld ings have becn replaccd. ' l

he car l iest

Danish group centred in and abonl Rosl i ldc,

near ( i rpenhagen, on the is le of Ze1lnnl1. '1 'hs1s

the cathedral , duc to the labour 61 l l ishops

\ i i l he lm( ro6o 7 .1 )andSvendNordnanc l ( r o7+

8X ) . shos cc l Ge lm : r n i nJ l uence r i n i t , 31 ,1 r ' q l n1 r 1 . ,

i ts a is lc less chirncel , arrd i ts squarg $cst cnd,

4 3 2 S C A N D I N A I , . i A , B R t T A t N , A N D N O R T H E R N F R A N C E

jqz ( htlon ) tnd 3+1 ( rieht ). Lund Cathcdral, consccrared r r46,much rebuilt later; c\terior, and interior btrbre nrodcrn ,restoratron'

t++ (Jir rr,glrJ. Qsrcrlar, Bornholm, church, twclfth ccnturl. ( i)

arb i t rar i ly , in thc n incteenth centurJ, when

there was a gencral restoration. l'he westcrn

pair of towers, begun about r r 50, werc f in ished

in Lombard st1.le during the restoration. Old

photographs make one rsgret thc simplcr, more

austere, and obviouslv provincial building which

lost so much of its local savour at that time.r

The smal l churches l iequent l ) 'have the t radi-

tional northern barn-like nave ancl chancel fbrm.

of ten augmented b1'a tower. Manv rre in br ick,

which Dcnmark owcs to Germanl ' and ul t i -

mately to Lombardl .

Br ick archi tecture $as introduced into the

Danish church under Waldcnrar the Great

( r r 57 -8 : ) and A rchb i shop Abso lon (d . r zo r ) .

Good examples of th is pcr iod exist on the is le

o f Zea land R ings t cd , So ro , \ bbc l s ; a l so V i t -

skol ( in _Jut land, ( , is terc i i rn) . r I t is said that of

2ooo Dar ish churches in Dcnmark, ovcr I8oo

S c A N D T N A V I A 4 - l . l

we rc bui l t belbre rz5o. Sincc th is is a per iod ol '

strong German influence, there is a marked

German Romrncsquc imprint on the ecclesi-

ast ical archi tecture o1' the whole country. A

Dutch nuance is int roduced by steppcd gables

in br ick. Nether landish fhshion.

A series of'round churches mrkes an interest-

ing episode in the medicval archi tccturc of 'Den-

m:rrk.5 -l'heir

plan may perhaps be :r result of

King Sigurd 's great p i lgr image to Jerusalem

(r lo7 r r ) . ' Ihere

are lbur important and char-

acter is t ic Danish round churches on thc is le of

Bornholm, dated betwecn Io5o and r3oo N-v,

N1' lar , St Olof . Oster lar [1441. These bui ld ings

har,e s ingle centra l p iers and annular vaul ts,

apsidal extensions, and upper stages (now

covered by conical roofs) which were fitted for

def'cnce. Others are more elaboratc. At Horne

(on l -ven), ' I 'orsager

(of br ick, in Jut land).

project ing berwcen two rowers. . l .hc

rcbui ld inqo l -Rosk i l dc i n h r i c k Go th i c , b "gun abo r r , , 7 ion a much larger scale, shou,s a cont lnuatron ofGernran inf luencc, though thc inter ior is Frenchin spirit. Venge church, Benedictine, is bclievcdto shon'Engl ish inf lucnce because of . i ts smal ltr:tnscpt lvith narrow entrances, and its squarechancel.

Germ:rn and Lombard influence becameparamount in the construct ion of . the cathcdralso1'Dalb_v ( , . ro6o) and Lund (c. rogo), in Skine(across the Sund f rom Zealand, now in Sweden),of \,'iborg (in northern Jutlan<J) and Ribe(southcrn Jut land). Their inf luence, in turn.r a r l i : r t c t l l i om the t h r cc co rnc r s o f t he coun t r \ .

Da lbv has a Saxon j ook abo t r t i r , t houeh a$ e s r u o r L o l I l 2 + . 3 4 , b u i l t a l r e r . \ u g u s r i n i a ncanons took over, oddly resembles Cluniacarchi tecture. In the region thgre are vrr ious rc_

:.. ;a..,...,. .aa,::..,...:.aa.)a::a,,:a::::..),:

I lcct ions ofDalbyand the westwork theme . I l i i re( , . r r io) recal ls the Romanesquc ofColognc.but wi th an echo of the old pagan art in rhecarvings of the porral . Viborg, latest of . r l rcgroup, and bui l t in grani te, ref lects Lund (rhcn,and ibr a long t ime at lcrward, st i l l Danish).

Luncl is a complcx bui ld ing [342, 34:J . l .he

schemc of r . ro8o was augnented af ier thechurch becanre the seat of a metropolitan ( r r o.j ) lDonarus, presumablv a Lombard, was thc arch i ,tect . J 'hc a l tars of a rcmarkable crvpt in Lonr_ba rd s t v l e wc rc dcd i ca ted i n r r z3 , r r z6 , an t iI r - l r ; ths h igh al tar , in a tunnel_r ,aul tecl sandLr_ary, was consecrated in r1.16; the handsontcapse (o l ' that date) has f ine exter ior arcading, in_cluding an caves gal ler1. . Tne navc hrs a doulr lcbay_s1'stem, and is supposcd to har.c had groirrlaul t .s , but thc r .aul t was- bui l t on a Wcstphal i , r r rmodcl a l ter a 6rc of r :14, and : lgain, somcwhrrr

\

4 3 4 s c A N D I N A V I A , B R I T A I N ' A N D N O R T H E R N F R A N C E

Biernede, near Soro (on Zealand), and Store

Heddinge (octagonal, on Zealand) the churches

have interior piers, an upper stage, and a central

tower. They would be l ike the German palace

chrpels but fbr the fact that the central area is

vaulted at the level of the lorver aisles. Ledoje

on Zealand, however, has an open wel l . Kalund-

borg on Zealand has the most monumental

example, fbr there are four tangent octrgonal

towers on the major axes in addition to the cen-

tra l tower.6

S W E D E N

Nledieval Sweden arose l rom a union of Scan-

dinavians and Goths. 81-the year rooo there

was a strong kingdom established in and about

Uppsala. 'fhe

first xpostle to Sweden was St

Ansgar (d. about 865) who laboured in the

region of Lake Mi lar wi th ephemeral resul ts. I t

was two centuries later that St Siglrid and others

from England established here the first Christian

settlements of importance in Sweden, not f'ar

north of ' the prescnt Stockholm.

-{s in Norwav, there wcre wooden churches,

but none has come down fiom the earliest period.

Sc id ra R : i da , t l a t ed l bou t t j oo . su r r i r es : i t i s a

barn-type nave and chancel church with 5o;,1

Iog wa l l s . -

As in Denmark, there is an interesting florr.,,1

inf luences l rom abroad in the masonr\ archi_

tecture. The work is often rrther crude hut

novel, eff'ective, and energetic cornbinatil;n,

were macle, and the prevai l ing s impl ic i t r of 16, ,

works gives them an austere charm.

The coming in of foreign influences is pe1-

Ibctly exemplified on the isle of Gotland, which

was Swedish f rom about the year rooo, and

centred in Visby, one of the Hansa cities.' \' isby

had active relations with all Scandinaria, ths

Rhineland, Westphalia, France, Englancl,

Russia, Byzantium, and even Persia. 'I 'he

Russians had a church there. and Russian in-

fluence may account for the 'icon

churchcs',

with carved exteriors (like those ofthe School of

Vladimir). which once existed on the Island. Its

heroic age ended wi th Danish conquest in I t6r .

Visbv Cathedral, the finest of all the manr old

churches on Got land, is the old German nl t ronr l

church ofSt N{ary, first built in the twelfih cen-

tury ' , rebui l t and dedicated in tzz5. I ts wcsrern

towcr ancl i ts pair of 's lendere' r eastern to\ \crs

flanking an angular sanctuarv now h:lve Baroque

bcl f r ies, but t l re (brm of the bui ld ing, dcspi tc

^^rhic windows, is unmistakably Romanesque'

fl l l ' . i '"t.n of rhe Hotv Spirit is a norel inrer-

]j:;;i"t of the motif of Schwarzrheindorl"pt?li''t"n.

mtinrand' Sigtuna' which is near Lake

r-,ri,.l ""r r r"::T: :, t:*rj,

il"ill:'il:--e in f rom Lnglano wtt

I l"r"it*stt"ainar iansi at an r tt:: tnt t":1:Ln

i',i"'r"' o'l 1::':-::lT:: )."JHl' l:i:in the two church rutns' tt" i" t tr t

The stone-work is vigorous' but

"$Jtx:?l ,"8o- r Ioo) is an o dditv 'actoisttnni

or lo.O,"- tnted church,r l i th two a\ ia l to\ er :

iha.o-put ,* tnt under the crosslng com.. . 'unl -

; ; ; ; i ; the narc b1 a narr ,w door ' and br

i l , . . . ia l f " t doors u i th the sancluan and lwo

"."r* i r tU.

chapels ' each wi th an apsc' l -herc

; ; . sor t of west t ' r ork ' no* replaced bv an

,lrrr raa"r., so that access to the nale is lateral

il; ;;t. ambitious St olaf (r ' I roo-3s) [345'

;f ;rt; has the crossing towcr still preserved'

ii.r. ,r. tg'o arches uncler cach side of. it

those at the west giting upon a short nave' tnosc

at the east upon a sanctuarv of nearlv equal

Lngth, whilc those at the side under thc to$er

takl tfreir places in the arcades which bound the

inner sides of the aisles' The lateral entranccs'

s c A N D l N A v l A 4 3 5

the screening-off of the sanctttaries and their

;;;;;;d,,osether with an anguur weighti-

ness in plan, recall Anglo-Saxon examples'-ntou.a

about r r j5 f rom Sigtuna to the,old

rovrl centre of Uppsala' now Gamla (old) Upp-

mi" ,tt. .". b.."*t archiepiscopal In rt6.+:

prn"" . l . . were st i l l held as late as ro84 in the

oi i r . -pr . 'g l is tening wi th gold" which was

i.pf"..a,'o" the same site, by thc ne w cathedral

"bout , r34--5or ' r I f+2, :+Sl L ike St Peter '

Sigtuna, the church had sanctuary and transep-

,"i"l<a..t1."t in the form of compartments with

aoses. r lh i lc the screencd crossing compar l -

ment, with tower, and the basilican nave' were

like those of St Ohf : all, however' on a targer

scale. This church was burned about I245' ano

l;, ;.." rebuilt as an aisleless 'aulted church of

oo*.rtul form on the area formerlv occupied bv

th. c.os.i.tg and the sanctuarv'

At Husaby in Skaraborg [ :+g] the memorres

"r" "i st slit ia rna his companions' but the

church, clateci about Irqo' cornes in the period

*h.n G"r-r" influence was strong' The west-

rvork looks like a Saxon lagade' a common

feature esPeciallY in Skine'11.-

,t,Vrrttt,.- Abbey,12 where excavations have

brought the substructures of the conventual

3+7 and 348. Gamla Lppsala' former crthcdral'

t. Ir34-5o, thirteenth centur]'

a. Na.c. ais les. t ranscpt fbundat ions'

traced bl excarat ions

t, . 'ntr"ni p"*, ut tathcdral ' st i l l usct l rs a church

i. -{del i t ions, largcl l medicral ' to closc tn

rnr l augment thc Present church

). ' t

t . . : . . of t . .pl" , lburd br c\ci \ at ions i sce 3fr

3 ,1.5 and 346. Sigtuna, St Olal , r . r roo 3r

S C A N D I N A V I A 4 3 7

4 3 6 s c A N D I N A V I A , B R I T A I N ' A N D N O R T F I E R N F R A N C E

In t he sma l l e r chu rches t h roughoq r l n r , . , r ;

Sr+eden the same charactcr is t ic \ , t . n; : r : : i 'Er en as lat e as lhc fourtccnth cenr urr . . i , r r . i , lo l Romanesque cha rac te r ue re he inq L , , ; t r u r ,matter of course, rnd ther f i t bt .aut i t i r l l r inrnthe northern landscape. 1 'hev usual l r 1n1. . ,round apse, a higher sanctllar\, comp,lrtmrnt,

astill higher nave, and ordinarilv a lairlr talltower. Except lbr the towers, thc morcment 6 ithe designs is strongly horizontal, and surpris_

ingly recal ls such t radi t ional br . r i l t l ings x5Aurbche ( tenth century) in the Loirc countrr

l . zoo l , 1 he i n t e r i o r r au l t i ng i s hea r r , ' r r , , ng i r

reminiscent of Romanesque, and nci cr carr ie6

r c r r h i gh . so t ha t t hc i n t e r i o r p r r ) l ) ( ) r l i r l \ a r!

spacious. 'lhis

description applics to the filur-

teenth-century church at Lrirbro on the isle ol'

Got land, ls a l ready' c i ted as posscssing st i l l a

Romanesque-t)'pe \.ault with its centcrins ;ntact

[ :5o, JSt] . In such late bui ld ings the v i ru l t ing is

at most hal f -Gothic except in metropol i tan

examples. 'Ihc

ornament is sparc lnd sobcr, a

fblk alt.

The Swedcs took th is sty lc to Fin land. as thel

expanded their power on the east sholc o l the

Baltic. The oldest Finnish churches il) nr;rs()nr)

come after I2oo, but in man-v wr)'s thc\ lre stlll

Romanesque. l | ' f

hc sty le l ives on unrccogl . l l rcdl

but real ly unforgotren. in much of t l r t l ; r tcr

archi tecture throughout Scrndinavia.

N O R \ 4 ' A Y ] 5

I t i s t o be remcmbered t ha t t he Shc r l ' r r r d : '

O l kne l s , and no r t he rn Sco t l and $e r ( r ' l l l ( l ( r

No rse con t ro l i n t hc e l e ren th cen tu r r . t r r l i l r t

the Br i t ish Is le s seemed less remrt tc f rorn

\ i da ros o l T rondhe im than Denmark r r r ' l l h c

Con t i nen t . Hence t hc com ingo l 'Eng l i sh chL t r cn -

men l o No r r . r a r i n t he m idd le o l l h c t t t t t n

centur ] ' . I t is doubtfu l i ianv structrr res of con-

sequencc were bui l t fbr the Church fcf i r rc t t55 '

\ {ast churches cont inucd in use, r l i t l r r ' t t t -

at ions. even in the th i r teenth centur f i rnc l l ' t tc : '

Ringcbu and I 'om are examplcs ' both aug-

-..,,.a Ut'tog-wall or vertical planked elements'""nlli;"..tnd

b-v tall Gothic spires Urdal'

also thirteenth-century' was twice lengthened

i l. "n."*r

in 1684), and became cruciform

iiti.,i. ""r-"nted Ringebu and Lom) in rTzo'

'"Wt.n;-po'tant church building in stone be-

ean in Norwav about rroo' the Norse Wcst

"-..*"i tt t derivatire Anglo-Norman style'

i..i*..u is fbund at St Nlagnus Cathedral'

Kirkrvall, Orknerl (r r17 to thc thirtecnth cen-

turvL which has understanclable similarities to

nur'iu. Cathedral (c1'lindrical piers' square

.hrp.t, cast of the transcpt)' Stavrn-ger Cathe-

l.ul ..."-blt' r large aisled Anglo-Norman

i"'tri.i- *n." onc of the existing transeptal

. i to" t . \ \ i ts consecrated in t l6r ' Thc corrcs-

Oo"ai"g navei never completed' ga\e wa] ' to a

'Cothic"construction' and the tomb-church was

iti"i"il. *t thirteenth centur' bv ir Gothic

;; ; ; ; ; " ' complcted bv r3zo' of . the rotunda of

ititi-tie.tr*, Diion' as has alreacl-v been

noted I like Saint-Benlgne' it was a great place of

349. Husaby, Skaraborg, church, r. rr5o

buildings to light south ofthe church, the mona-

stcry was lbunded about r r5o b1'a colony f rom

.\ l rastra, the f i rs t Cistcrc ian monaster \ in

Sweden ( r r .1 j ) . The church. dated , . r 235 -6o,

is a kind of Northern Pontigny smallcr in

scale, but re lat ively heal ier and s impler .

In Ostergbt land, Vrcta monasterv churchr:

was begun aftcr r Ioo as a simplc littlc basilica

wi th t ransepts; befbre r r6z a smal l royal bur ia l

chapel of centralized plan and a nerv crucilbrm

east end had becn addecl. In the ycar mentioned

a Cistercian monasterv was fbundcd here, and

the monks doubtless fbund thc austerity of thc

church to their l ik ing.

.il-- +f iil..i,0., -'th an amplc *'-i"1f"iin'."-11

rl l. , . lt * ". 1 fn io',*n"o' (about^rr5o; ' i l:Y]^:.:.:1t'i

' ' -1 I

' ^- H [ ;;";;ih'" pair or nanking':"':" 1:]-':l' ' " ' [ ] "<^:{

= "" ' rhat thr ther to the,6=Ji{

.. . \--l Bcrgen cathcdrll' so1e1

.. .r:-htl\. earlie(

-fff:-.ffit rt,)r \ ."*:;;;;; ro hare been a srightrr earrier

i'rl.{ i F I I E ., *' l rs .'"-i"'.Ji^::,t-:-i".fl1l,il,tli'"*' but the,$ examplc of \nglo-Norman lntluence' uur rrrL

.:.tF vault is of the thirteenth centur\"

. i - ]" '"; ; i l ;" ' (Trondheim) " 'T"l l- :n:: 'hl l .1o.;;;;;;;;r'er the tomb of st olaf bl olaf

it.'. i' "uo q:)' Thc see^was

:ilYj,: i::i:-35oand35r. Ldrb*r.c:llT1:u..cnrh cenru^. il;;;i;;'';: ':

] :,:-,.1fflil::',;:i:.*:llfl#:fU**lill',1;""il;o'ismut "n'"ing

Norman chrrreter \\ as Ihcn btrr

,t. t'o-U-.t'urch' This was at least partll'

^'to ,, F l,;

1r

nilsr image' " '"" l i""r". t .n

"ence (perhaps operat ing t hrough

H;;;, ii;"t No'ma" England) was f.clt in thc

."uitr r"a "",'of

Norwav' where influencc liom

;;;;;; and Dcnmark was necessarill- rcrl'

Jt""* *n." the pi lgr im King Sigurd wrs

i.rJ,n"* tt r r 3o' Oslo Cathe<lrai was alrcad-'-

;;;;,t; u,' li'1"1 building with transept'

4 3 8 S C A N D T N A V T A , B R r T A r N , . 4 , N D N O R T H E R N ! R A N C E

central tower, sanctuarv, and apse with flankinEchapels; Hamar Ctthet l r -a l . bui l r at ier . r r S: . , r a la someu har s imi lar bui l t l ing u. i rh ge'nerouscv l i nd r i ca l na r . e p i c r s , and rwo * . r , . . , i , o * . r r .Both these buildings are in ruins. More fbrtun_ate is Ringsaker ( r r r3 3o and later) , an unusualbuilding, with quadrant-\.aulted aisles, tunnel_vaul ted nave, long narrow transept, deep sanctu_ar.r , and crossing touer. Hcrc , rnd c lsewhere,w .hen rau l t i ng i s p r cscn t . i t i s no r ca . r i e . l , e r t lh igh. so rhar the inrer ior proporr ions , . . broudand spacious.

NIanv rustic churches dot the NorwesiancountrJ 's idc.

' fher are ol s imple rnnronrr . .on_

s l r uc t l on , o rd i na r i l , v woo t l cn_ roo le r lt imes * i t h r imbe r gab les . Bas i ca l l r ; 1 , , , , : ^ .ba rn - shaped na \ c . w i t h a sma l l c r b "__ . ' . '

t ,

chancel berond a narrou chanccl , r .1, ' r1 l ,do l i en i n Saxon Eng land . I n con t ras r , , , , u . l ]

. o

churchcs, these designs ha'e a srrong h , ; . ; : " i :mo lemen l . To t hc i r b r r i . . l emcn r , . , . , ] " 10 ,added a barn- l iLe wcsrern porch, a , " rn i ; ; : : , . , t .apse, a wooden pinnacle . The or ie inal , , , ; ; :1"werc neirher large nor nunlcrou. l " i " , . , . : : ; lJcxamp le o l , . r o5o o r a l i t t l e l r t " l . , , , i r r . " r lHlaler, with trusses of Ro:membering; it is more

"Jii:T::'1"3::rl:slope.

cflLPTEB' 24

N 9 R T H E R N F . R A N C E A N D N O R \ I A N E N G I , A N T )

9 R E N C H R O M A N E S Q L T E O F

O , " " U U o t t ' O R R H I \ F L { \ D F R { \ ( ' E

In Rhineland F]1n: t " . :

r re st i l l u i th in thc

bord.r , of the old Cirro l ingian {ustrasia The

l-od.rn . l . t t i f r .a l ionot i ts- archi tcct t r re as thc

i rench S.hool ot thc F 'asl does not d isguise the

b.rarn forcefulness in uorks of the Rhinelant l '

snd this made itself felt f'ar towards the \\est'

though with progressivell' less emphasis' -l

hc

German 'douhle-endcr ' scheme' lb l inr tance'

penetrated as lar as the cathcdrals of \rerdun''B"rrngon,

and Nevers, the westwork as far as

Chitillon-sur-Seine.

However. there is earlier French precedent

for both the schemes u'hich have iust been cited

as examples, and it is sometimes diflicult to

judge whether Rhenish influence u'irs direct, or

whether it merelv rcinfbrced local tendencies'

This is the case with the motif of paired towers

flanking an apse. traced (as round stair towers)

as far back as Saint-Riquier . Because of ' the un-

doubted power ot'the Rhenish stvlc, it is reason-

able to admit its influence in this matter, even as

far away as Pirris. In Alsace, the Rhcnish st,vle

dominates; Neuweiler, Rosheim, Andlau, the

examples previousl,t cited, and others' are

evidence of this.r

T H E R o y A L D o M A T N ( i r - n - o r . - n n a N c t )

A N D C H A M P A G N E

Farther west, near the borders of Carolingian

Neustria, a morc French touch is disccrniblc in

the designs. In Champagne, for example, Nlon-

t ier-en-Der ( , ' . q8z) and Vignory ( , ' . Io5o [92] ;

with lalse triforia re sembling Carolingian

screens between the nave rnd aisles) have a

Frcnch ta l l t rcss ol nale propor l ions and are

casi l l grouped u ' i th Saint-Remi at Reims

(roo5 f f . ) [ r r r ] lbr that re lson, and becausc ot

t hc re l : r t i r e l r l ou a i s l ea rcadesandsc rcen a r ches '

The ambulatory and radiating chapels of Vi-

gnory are of the French type, as already noted;

indeed Vignor.v was a priory of Saint-B6nigne'

Di jon.

Champagne ancl the ile-de-France in Earll'

Romanesque times fbrn-recl a sort of bridge be-

tween the Rhenish and the Loire regions l'he

area included Reims, Laon, Beauvais, Saint-

Denis. Par is, Melun, Sens' Or l6ans, and

Bourges, wi th Chartres and' lours at no great

distance. Some imposing Calol ingian bui ld ings

survi ' r 'ec l ; the order lv government and growing

power of the early Capetians had showed itself

in the construction of hrge and important

churches, and as a result. no really notable

works appear to have been needed, or built, in

the late eleventh century, when the architectural

developments llrere so intercsting elsewhere '

The problem of nroderniz ing the shr ines ot '

r he i l c - de - l t r ance d i d no t become acu le un t i l

t he t nc l f t h cen tu r ] ' uhen t he b rea th o f ne r ' l

intellcctual lif 'e was drawn in Paris' Then the

same t)pe of intellect which created scholastic-

ism was lbcuscd on thc problems ofgreat church

lrchirecture. Vt 'h; r r berr in ls a local d i f lercnt i -

ation of' the Romanesquc stvle in ordinarv

builclings with a clever t1'pe ofrib vaulting, be-

came i l ne \ \ s t r l e t h roug l r t hc r casoned ' no re l '

and s r s l ema t i c de r e l opmen t and exp lo i t a t i on o l

such vaul t ing. From the moment of Suger 's ne u '

design fbr Saint-Denis (about r r35) the lace ot

rr [ 'cstern archi tecr t r re began to change '

4 4 O S C A N D I N A V I A , B R I T A I N , A N D N O R T H E R N T , R A N C E

The Romanesque school ofthe ile_de_Francelbund thc wav to maturity _ ancl immortalitythrough the patient work of rh. ma.on, irr- ih.region bounded by Reims, provins, Sens,Etampes, Mantes, Gournay, Saint_euen;in, ;;;I .aon. They- discovered the best ur.-oi t t . ' in.local stone - cut to shape so that the mortarlornrs and the vault ing.cel ls could U. ,m",sl ightly swell ing, and bui l t up of.rr.h"r. .r t ingon. rather than engaged uith. the ,rnp.r; ; ; ;r ib strucrure l . lzq. juot. when rhe o";, : ; ; ; : ;was introduced about rr25 30, chief l ,y underBurgundian influence, this tlpe of-r.ault became

l-.-.Tlr. l t berter. ancl capable ot.morc rp..*u_

rar de le lopmenr , than anv o ther f tpe in , , ra n ,the time- Since under Norman,-;. ;.;;;;Lombard inspiration, "n

el"-"nt t" ;; ;:;rvas provided fbr each r ib ofthe urutr, , t . ionuas opcned fb r a spccracu la r aesrher ic dere to f_ment based on linear and symbolic ,O*"lamovement. 1'his explains whv the Bureundiu;

ha l l ' -Co th i c u .as l c f t beh ind t t oncc ; i t , r , , , ,were ol - rough stone l ' i th th ic l_ rnor, r ' . i , , , ,1] ' rand rhc ribs ofien ended apologe,i.ri,," ' i l ' .

r t t . te i lu or herc l orcr the oier . i ' ' - - " ' rn r

Wh i l e r c r t I i t t l c r cma in , o l t he wo rk o r r r :cr i t ica. l t ime, ouing to u.ars,arrd r" .on. , r , , . l ,u l , ] .a lew bui ld ings mer i t our at tent ion_

' . , ' ,

_ In Par is. Sainr_Gernrain_de:_pr is.

I t i : r . , ; , ,shows , am id much Go rh i c *U r i f a ; " n l r . ) , fse\enteenrh_cenrur\ . pscudo_Corhi . r l . , t r i r lo ,o a\ra l enlrance to\rer o l .q(ro lor . { , t .o. . ,h: , :wirh rhe nar c and ais les ol .a .hrr .h . l ; , i , ; ; l , r : : :yerhaps_to about ro5o.

' fhe nave f , .a

""1, i , . ,bays, with semicl.lindricai interior brr,i;.;;.;between larple clercstorl lvindows, tr.n..,un'lwooden roof. It in.o.po.ute, reproclucrions of.carred capira ls ( lhe or ig inals are norn in rh.L lun-v Museum) uhich need to be studir , i inconnexion with the contemporary Gcrnranrevival ofsculpture. .fhe church haj a transcprending in absid io les, and an apse ichelon. T.hcrewas a pair of towers f lanking th.

"ps. , *n i . l

again recal ls German pract lce.

the high vaul t . lnr ihbcd at the c i rs l . chrnges

gxper imental l r l iont br t r to bar. heing t in ished

* i ih tbur r ib r aul t s I t here is a lso a Gut l r ic pol t a l

sheltered under a charactcristic rib-vaulted

porch. Cern]-en-Laonnais [ .15 j lha: d iaphr:rgm

rrches oler tne na\-c'

Another church of-the period, honest rather

than inspiring, is Saint-Etienne at Betuvais

BS+1,^n ais led bui ld ing of r ' . r rz5 .1o wi th an

ungainly later sanctuar)-. The building has a

r ich lateral porte l , and a famous reprcsentat ion

of the Whecl of liortune about thc circular

window of the north transept. There is per-

ceptible progrcss between thc archaic aisle

vaul ts of , . r rz5 and the high r : ru l t o1 ' r ' . t r4o."

In p lan, the smal l churches which remain to

us general lv have nrres wi th a is lcs; thc t ran-

septs have absidioles; the sanctuar!' rnav tcr-

minate in a stra ight wal l , or wi th an apse. The

porta ls are columnar, but their sculpture is

s imple; there arc porches occasionalh. ' l 'hc

N O R T H E R N T I R A N C E A N D N O R M A N E N G I , A N D +4r

towers:rre picturestluc f'eatures oi-the lrrndscape ,

i rncl their pretn ' design docs much to rcdcem

the churches. Some towers arc at the fagade

(th is is thc case at Nlor ienral ) , others r t the

crossing (as in thc case of 'Saint- lvoul , Provins) ,

or f lanking the choir - s inglc, as in the case of

T'rao'-le-Val (an exceptionaloctagon), or plired,

as at I lor icnral . Srr int -Remi, Reims, has a pair

of (agade to$ers, or rather turrets, ot 'Roman-

csquc origin- 'fhe

eastern towcrs of Nlorienl'al

are tvpical , being bui l t up stage upon stage wi th

arcading over a square plan. In the regions of

Bcrrucc, Br ie. rhc .Soissonlra is, ; rnt l the i le-de-

lfrance, the opcnings arc flankecl br flat but-

tresses, but such buttrcsses are not clrarac-

ter is t ic in Champagnc, Bar, and Lorraine. ' fhe

workmanship is mediocrc in the older build-

ing;s, and the ornament (chelrons, frets, stars,

and geometrical designs, together with corbel

tables) is lar from inspired. How difcrent rvas

the future I

iii: Pitit, Srinr_Gcrmrin_des_pres,

e lc \en th and twe l f th ccn tur ies_

'Ihe samc tower arrangemcnt occrrrs tt

N, lor ienr.a l , near Compidgne, dated about ro io. ;e \ cep t l b r t he f amous ambu12161 .1 ac tde . t ; r r ' r 1 , ,Ear ly Gothic st , \ , le about r rz. : .

. l .he inter ior h.rs

a, Car.olingian fl,yinfi screen across thc nalc, ilr)(]the_ais les are groin-r .aul ted. I t was pionn. :d ,obui ld a tunnr l vaul t over thc sanctuarr l r : r rbc lween l he t owe rs , h r t r r r b r r "o r ; r , l ; n , , , , i ,was erected instead.

In th is br idge-terr i torv betrveen the Rheni , j rand the Loire regions, on" rnu1. cr te othcr . in_stances 01'e lements which fb l low a German n:rr_tern as in the pret t1, , narthex at L rcel but r i , .l u t u re o t r he Schoo l o f . r he i l c_de_F r ; r n t . c r r . r .not bound up wi th Germanv. I t was fo f lo lcr .as Gothic, in the glow of'gJrcat Norman Romirn-esque, lnsplrsd at an car l r . per iot l f iom thc[ , o r re coun tn - . and de re l ope t l i n r he D r r ch r ; u t , lr n Lng land ; meanwh i l e , t hc re u : r s much hcs j r , r _t ion. The pla in l i t t le church of Sainr_Loup_cle_Naud ( r . r o5o r r 5o ) i sanap t i l l u s r ra t i on_ . I . hc r t ,

353. Cerny-en-Laonnris, church, r 15 .1 . Beaura is , Sa in t -E t iennc , L . t rzs +o

4 4 2 S C A N D T N A v I A , B R I T A I N , _ { N D N O R T T I E R N ! R A N C E

N o R N t A N o y r o

' l 'he Northmen, once set t led (9rr) and con-

verted. to Chr ist iani tv , undertook to bui l j astafe. As usual , there are faces of . th is in thearchi tecrure.

Jumicges, a grear abhcl lbunt ledrn o)-+ bJ - \ r phi l iber t ,

whore namc \rc harenea rd so o f t en . had dec l i ned du r i ng rhe pe r i odof the in'asion, but Duke Willir_'Long.;;;;

l : t t o t . d i r ( q34 and l a l e r ) . r r ' l he * " r , . n j o f , t , l

' ,n , , r : l o, Sajnr_pierre. t l i r l . r . wcl l pr .escncd in

the abbe]. ruin, rvhile it is small ir, ,.uf., ..f._sentsth is mor i rent , and al reacly .ho*, , f r . . r*mistakable r.err.e which Norn_,rn R";;;;;architecture was to possess so abunAanrlv 1j551.Thc ruo n.csrern fo*err (menr ion. . t in 'u 'a- .nou ru rnous ) . t he t r i bune he t$e .en , f , . , o * . ' r l ,the trifbriunt passage, and the excellent ashla;

t55, Jumrcges. ru in o l rbbcr churt .hul Sir int - l , icrrc. , . q. t+ rnd larc.

work a l l had a d ramar ic fu rure in N, , , *church arch i rcc tu re . Thc nn . U_. . , , , ,1 . t0nCaen. wh ich is unsurpasset l , r " . , , . , , , " i ' , ]1 , -1 ,r re rcadvantageous: he ingsk i l lad r , * . , , . , , , . ,1 . tpor t , (he Normans made thcm F. "_r r l l , , ; , : : : ; -rOf

.41 fne bu i ld ing . . r .n in Eng l r , " ' "

' \a r l -

Eth n ic con nex ions u. i t h D.n_rrl , .n..n,, , . , . . , ,comm unrt.at ions a nd engender.cl nr r l r int, . , , , .1-"t rme and orher con lacrs a long rhe i " , ; r r . , , : " :shores and r i vers . inc lud i " *

" , . " " r r . ' , r ] l

R h ine land. ' l he power t u l Or ron ian r r .h ; , . , , ; , ,1 :of ' r ha r region undoubredly i"f l ," ; . ; . i ; l : \ : l lmans ro some extent in their feeling fbr gra14scalc, and rheir predilection lbr .cu

bical, ca;i l;f;*Through Maine the No

to the Loilrc cou ^; ;';; ;:1;;::r*l ;, :l#:architectural heritage, the lbrcc of *.fri.f, ,rls,somehou.communicated to the Norman". Bur_

N O R T H L - R N F R { \ L L A \ D N O R M A N E N G L A \ D + 4 . J

built of better masonrl', and morc elaborate in

certain details, such as oblong piers aug;mentcd

b1' engaged columns, a decorat i re arcade sug-

gestive of a triforium, and sculptured capitals

ofa rather crude but interest ing sort [356J. ' I 'he

latter have some relationship to carh' Clunirc

sculptured capi ta ls. One of ' them is s igned

TsEMBARDUS ME FECI . ' . La te r , hOweve r , t hc

Normans preferred the Germanic and Lom-

bard'cubical 'capi ta l and s imple fbrms f rom the

gundian architectural influence came to Nor-

mandy in rooz, when, at the invitation of Duke

Richard II, William of Dijon sent monks from

Saint-Bdnigne to reform the Nornran monas-

teries. It was doubtless in this waJ' that the

scheme of Clunv II became one of the themes o('

Norman Romanesque architecture, beginning

with the abbev church ot'Berna1..

Bernal , ' , r2 under construct ion l iom rorT to

about ro55, was grander in scale than Clunl ' I I ,

357. Jumidges,abbey church of Norrc-Dame, ro.;7 6(r

356. Bernal , abbel 'church. rorT . . ro.5-5

358. Jumiiges, abbe.r church ol \otre_Dame, ro37 6(r

Lo:r.e tea,. The mouldings have some con-

nexion wi th those of the crypt ofAuxerre l r rz l ,

perhaps through the Loire region. Bcrnal

stands ar the head of a whole group ot t ine

f,nglo-Norman abbey and parish churches.

A second great group was soon filrmecl. Be-

forc ro37 an ambitious cathcdral with apse,

ambulatorv, and radiating chapels in the stvle

of the Loire countr ] ' was begun at Roucn. I t

was dedicated in ro63.r ' r

Into this ambicnt canle the great Lantianc

(ro3g) and other l -ombard ecclesiast ics, open-

35g. Interior elevations: (r) -lumregcs,ebbey church o{ \otrc-Dame, to37 6(i, nave,(n) Durham Cathcdral, rog-i 9, choir

N O R T H E R N F R A N C [ , A N D N O R ] \ I A N E N G I , A \ D + 4 5

ing thc wav fbr inf luence f iom their rerv in-

terest ing part of ' thc wor ld. At the abbcv ofBec

in ro4.5 Laniranc set up a school wl i ich soon

achiered internat ional imDortancc. ' lhc chiet '

Norman monasteries became important organs

of the f lour ishing ncw feudal state.

Thus lvr: understand thc grand scale and

noble dcsign of thc latcr abbe\,church ofNotre-

Dame at Jumi iges' r [ :SZ ql . 1-his church wrs

begun in ro37 and f in ished in ro6(r . but not

dcdicatecl unt i l r067, bcc:ruse Duke \ [ ' i l l iam,

whosc prcsencc l tas dcsired at the ccremonv,

had an errand in England. 1 'he l iqat le o l ' the

abbel ' church is madc up o1' tuo substant ia l

squ:rre to$ el.s with octagonll upper sterges

(double on onc s ide, s ingle wi th burt rcsscs and

n c. i lcular stage on I he ot her) . a proicct ing porch

l i t t t i uun " . an t l t he na rc ua l l u i t h i r s gab le .

i i . nrn. . begun in ro5z. h i rs lbt t r gcnerou:

, r rd hrndtorn" l t . d imcnsioncd t lo uhle har : s i t h

i term.diate _. : l .uTnt t supports and crouped

nia6 f tom which intern:r l bul t res\cs l 'ormer l r

r osa to t ha t op o l t . he na re sa l l ' l

h t ' l i s l c t l n t l

the tribunes (opening through triplct arches on

the nave) are nrade up ofsquare bavs di r ided bl

trensverse arches, and sroin-r'aulted without

ribs. The tribunes were continLlecl, supportcd

similarlv, as platfbrm chapels, one in each ,rrm

ofthe t ranseptr and thence eastsard orer p iers

llanking the sanctuarr to a small gallerv around

the apse, which had an ambulatorv wi thout

radiating chapels. 'lhe

nave and transcpt -

perhaps also the sanctuar.t- had wooden roof-

ing, and at the crossing there were fbur grcat

arches, supporting a nragnificent lantern tower

of two stages, also rool'ed in wood. Roofing in

wood permitted encrg'etic tall proportions and a

vast clerestorl' '. -l 'he

stout walls of fine large

ashlar blocks arc one of the beauties ofthe build-

ing, which is harmonious in proportion and verv

simple in detail. Capitals of a good rudimentarr'

Cor inth ian shapc receired painted decorat ion.

The Norman Romanesque was now matllre,

except for the problem ofthe high vault, which

was sat is factor i l l sol rcd in a generat ion more.

Jumiiges w:rs onll' one of a notable scrics ol'

churches bui l t at the t ime; the abbevs ol 'Nlont-

Saint-Michel ( roz4 t l4) 136o, 36r I and Bcc ( , .

to66 i l ) together wi th the cathcdrx ls ofRouen

(c. ro37 63), Coutances (r . ro3o t ; r ) , Barcur

(before ro4t1, to 1077,rebLr i l t wi th an elaborate

arcade in the twel l th centur ] ' , and thcn again in

the Gothic sn, le) , and Erreur ( to ro76), rvcre

the chief amons them. Becausc almost a l l thesc

bui ld ings hnr. -b. .n lost , i t is d i l }cul r to lb l lorv

the growth ol the Norman Ron.ranesquc str le,

and to know exacth,what fcatrr res part icularh '

ofvaul t ing - had bcen dcrelopcd at the t ime

when the Conquest gar,c to Norman architects

their s tupen<lorrs opportuni tv in Englar-rd.1 l

. l l ie t$o grer tabber, r f ' ( ,acnshou adl tncing

slStrs ofnratur i tv . - I 'h t

rvere f i runt lcr l br \ \ ' i l -l i u r l l 1 n i \ t l r i l d l i n : x p i a r i o n , , 1 r h e i r u n -car11;nic1[ marr iage (r r rh in the fbrbidden c le-

Brtcs; later d ispensed' : rnd arc stock examplesof the Norman Romar:sque on thc Cont inent .

Sainte- ' I ' r in i t6r l [3( , : , . i6 i l , the church con-

nct tecl rv i th . \ Ia t i l da 's .bbirvc-a ur-Dames, wx s

b(t ju. t in ro6z and hiJ a prel inr inarr ,dedica-

t i ( ,n in ro6f) . - I 'he

Qrecn uas bur iecl in i ts

sarrctu i l r l in ro83, but rh is vcn l iandsonrc part

o l t he chu rch undou l ' c ' c l l r r cp rescn t s an i ug -

I"Il,rntation of' the ori:inal schcmc, su!igestc(l

ptrhaps bv the roval j randeur o l l ,d ivard t i rc() ,n1 'e" .or ' ' " Wcstmin, : r r ( r . ro-5o 65). Sl inte-

30 l \ lon t -Sa in t -Michc l , : rber church , r . r roo

\{ont-Saint-\I ichcl ,{bbcr., tozq tzz6 and later, air view

4 4 8 S C A N D I N A V I A , B R I T A I N , A N D N O R T H E R N I R A N C E

Trin i t6 had : rn apse dchelon. of 'which thc dccp

northcrn chrpels have been restored, but not

the southern pair . The main sanctuarr . has t rvo

grand big bavs of 'unr ibbed groin vaul t inp; abole

a c lerestorv and wal l pxssa!ie j p lus a handsome

apse u i t h a f i ce - s tand inq a r cade i n t r \ , , \ r ( , r . , .uh i ch s r s p robah l l i n sp i r ed bv Sa in r - l t . n i sn j

at Di ion. ' l 'here

is a broad t ranse pr . , , , . r " . .1 h.

quadr ipart i te r ib vaul t ing (rv i th doubler l cc1; .at the cnds, making two ingenious c incr ip l1.1111

raul ts) , then a long nave of 'which thc ais l r r i r l l .are archaic (of ro66 ?) . l 'he ais les are co\ r r rd b\a ( restorecl) cont inuous tunnel I aul t * i r l t prnt

t rat ions; the grouped picrs are uni fbrnr .

J6z and -tb-]. C.rrcn,

-\bba1'e-a ur-l )ames, Sainte-' l 'r in it6,

bcgun ro{r.:

, {bole the nar.c arcade the rvork is l i r rcr . indate and more elaboratc in dcsign. l r hrs adecorat i re t r i l i r r ium, an arcadcd c leresror . r u i th

a l r ' : r l l passage, and a pseudo-scrpart i te r11111

dated perhaps t r r -5 or ear l icr (corrso.r i r r i rc l r ,

r r2s) . This raul t is l ikc: l scr ics of h ig t lLr . r t l r i -

part i te r ibbed groincd doublc bars \ \ r rh rhc

addi t ion of 'a t rans\ersc diaphragnr i r rc l l { )n lhc

axis o l each, so that each of ' thc bals has s i r r r rc ls

of vaul t ine sur lhce. Such a vaul t is cal lec l p ieudo-

sexpart i te because the t rue se\part i te r , tLr l t rnu

bal has on each s ide ( instcad of 'a la lg-c l r r rc l r l

bar b isected bv the rer t ical d iaphragn.r) r r r r ' , rns-

Ye rsc r i b and two l a t e ra l ce l l s o f r au l t i ng . ' l ' he

church has a quadr ipart i te ba1 or er thc l r is t unj t

of thc nar e propcr, and a sexpart i te h l t ' br t r i cen

the western tower pair , or ig inal l r open on the

grourrd str rgc, but s1 ' ro i led subscqucnth br le-

bui lc l ing. In thc roof-space olcr thc a is lcs t l ic

pur l ins of the roof 'arc supported b1 l ight , r rches

'@@6, ,@'s4 '@@@@- @

iq [Fe'Snsffils i'trnt qha4 @firo

N O R T H E R N F R A N C E A N D N O R M A N E N G L A N D 4 4 9

,nnn ::::[:': iii:i"Il:ilill ];: :i::l

ro;*ixrilllf]rt:lTH**fi '#

ir iiri r''i'":; T i' lilril:[i:ll,::' : l;': i: :1j' :' J:.. i:' il' :J] ; lili" t .n. t o l Ouis l reham and Berni i rcs ' r '- ' i r inr-Et i .nt te ' :

! .1t r -1 7 l ' thc church con-

neJiea wi th \ \ i l l iam's \bbare-aux-Hommes'

on r"nat up gr" ' rndlr on the outski r ts o l ' ( ' lcn '

Jough b.r"r i ot i ts mcdierel con\entual st ruc-

tr.r. t, was begun in r o67 or r o68 ; there was a

orat i t ;nt r t consecral ion in roTj ' and othcrs

i o t t o * . a i n ' o77 and ro t l t l n r o85 o5 t hc

ronk, *.r. alreaclr' building a similar but

smaller church fbr the parish of Saint-Nicholas

in Caen,ls on a plan basicalll. like that of Clunl-

II and Berna-v' lt Saint-Nicholas the chevet'

with corridor chapcls squrre-ended on tht: ex-

ter ior , and opening t rpon the sanclu i r \ through

twin arches, is belielecl to repeilt that o1'Saint-

Etienne itself. irnd so it is with tlre transept

absidioles.

Saint-Etienne has a mrrgnificent long nale'

which was plannecl for rvoodcn roofing' though

i ts st ructure is vaul ted at the s ides The ais les

arc groin-r 'aul ted in squrre ba1.s wi th t ransverse

lrr.li"r; th. gallerv is quadrant-r'aulted' with

transverso arches in each case' This iustifies the

interior buttressing which rises lrom the

grouped piers ot the ais le arcade' ' fhe profec-

iion. "..-

alternatclv complex (a half-column

with a dosserct) and a simplc half--colum.n'

$ hich stopped belorv thc arcaded passage ot th.e

clcrestorl'. -l 'here

was a passage between thts

clerestorv arcadc and the window wall an ccho'

evident l i , of the s imi lar passage in Saint-

Bdnignc at Di ion St tch passages bccame. a

reeul"a, (eat.,re of the Norman clcrestories' -l'he

air lcs and gal ler l o l saint-Et ienne onen uPon

the nave through uniform arches in trvo orders'

The arcade ofthe clerestorv has been rebuilt to

rcceive the thrusts of, and to support' masonrv

vaulting in the nlve a sexpartite rib vault

(transitional to Gothic) set out in fbur big

doubie ba1''s.'I'he

nate is extcndcd (b1' a square ba-v with

thrce cclls on its western side) betwcen two

magnificent western torvers, Iinished with quite

lorcly stone spires in Gothic times At the cross-

ing of S"int-Etienne there is a lantern with,an

octopartite rib vault' -fhe

adjacent transept nas

oblong r ib- taul ted bals ' ' fhc sanctuartcs were

replacecl in tzoz b1' I bcrrutiful ancl charac-

"*fu:+"-i > z o 6 o F T

I I I T H C E N T U R Y

364. Caen, Abbrle-aux-IIonrmes, Saint-Eticnne'

begun r. io68

4 5 O S C A N D I N A V I A , B R I T A I N , A N D N O R T T I E R N F R A N C F ,

365and366 Caen, Abba-ve-aux-Hommes' Saint-Etienne' begun ' roti8

452 S C A N D I N A V I A , B R I T A I N , A N D N O R T H E R N F R A N C F -

teristic Norman Gothic design, of fulh {g-

veloped character and local savour.

It is easl'to compare the typical Gothic r a1111-

ing of the sanctuary with the transitional rrol1

in the nave [f66]. The big double nave bars lyg

handsome, but the sexpartite vaults are uncis\.

in design. Nevertheless, due to the prestigr of

the grert Norman works, the sexpartite vault

was widely used in Early Gothic work of im-

portance the cathedrals of Sens, No1on,

Notre-Dame in Par is, and Laon among othcrs,

with two square bays ol'vaulting in each aisle

flanking each great sexpartite bay of the high

v:rult. There were also experiments, as in thc

little church o1'Bury,le with square rib-vaulted

nave bays, each with a narrow oblonp; rib i'atrlt

in the aisle to either side. E ventualll, the superior'processional effect'ofunifbrm nave ba1.s lecl to

the sexpart i te raul t being gi ren up, excepl . t l

Bourges, where magnificent bavs rvere built

over the nave in the lourteenth centurv' not ro

be repeated on that scale until the construction

of the nave of St John the Divine, New York, jn

the twentieth. The normal High Gothic nalc

has, like the Gothic sanctuary of Saint-Etienne,

square bays in the aisles and oblong bavs in the

high vauit.

In Normandy the construction of notablt

buildings continued in the twelfih centur'\,

which was prosperous there, as elsewhcre

About r roo, Henrv I Beauclerc bui l t a formid-

ab le don jon w i t h i n . and o l he rw i se g r c r t l r

strengthened, the chiteau begun by Willirnr

the Conqueror in Caen.r0 I t is now modi l lcd '

but still recognizable as a first-class militart

work. in the t radi t ion of Beaugencv, Lochcs

[zo8l . and Falaise. The age is , horverer. mtt<l r

bet ter represented b1 f ine churches. Less,rr

( r . rogo rr35), Cer isy ' - la-For!t ,2: a( icr I l io

(rvhich may have had diaphragm arches), ano

Saint-Vigor, near Baveux2r (which most ccr ' -

tainll' had diaphragm arches across the narc'

l i ke Ce rny -en -Laonna i s l . 153 l ) . a re abbe rs i n t l r c

reeion of Caen which bui l t wel l . Near Roucn

.he rnost important example is Saint-Georgestl'.^i",-Hl"t,in-de-Boscherville-' { 368' j6q l'

1',, " r"i,. r ."'" 11.' ::.lT ;[i]:-:,:',..1' ffi:dated about r r2 i ' ratner c

nineteenth centur) ' ,

: - +L- arr ofr ib raul t ing is ,ProEress achier ed rn tne I

f r " ; , " ; ; ; ;1" ;" l v iew ot the general h istorv of

ar"afrir"",".", the most important achievement

"of-rh" Nor-u" Romanesque style' How did the

,U""t.. O"tt" t The.question is one of the most

iin"rn,o un.*"t, but we venture to propose

our solut ion ' '^- r ' l rat the French archi-

First of all, we record tl

tectural historians now accept John Bilson's'i#"trt"ito

date of Io93-Iro4 for the rib-

;;i;;.;;tt.,^rv and chancel aisles at Durham

[^JitiJ f,unt, ir6] in far-northern Eng-

ffi.il;;;rk i'u't have a Norman back-

ti"t.u,lit ui*ard the Confessor's vast church

it W"stminsttt (c' ro45-5o' dedicated inroo5)

]-but both buildings were more importxnt tnan

;"il'.* " ; : I. ll"l T J.) :'"T,'JJ,,tii[PerhaPs in the creatron o

some ,park of imperial grandeur was communl-

;;;;;;i" "

*"t *hich *e 'un o"lv suess' throush

the historic contacts of Saxon Engllnd and

il;';;;;t with the Rhine countrY' and that

must be taken tnto account in assessing the

powers ol the st l le 'ru"i . 'N"t*,"t t ' t 'om tht Loire countrr ' aboul

,"r" ."*. * ";e

of auxilirrr'r'ribs in the middle

;;:;;;tAoi""'1 u"ult'd baYs (St Martin"t

i""t t a*er chamber' about ro5o [rr5] l

Srn.u", grouncl store-v of the north-west tower

ii;i. "tii.o'"l,

'o771' Ba1-eux' in the abbe-v of

iri",-Vit.t, also had an example of di:tphragms

"".,,n. '.".- 1trr.6stieve that when knorvledge

oi-,ft. f,o*Uurd rib raults canre late in the

;i.;;;,;;;""r'v' the Norman builders them-

tiit"t'itt"ot""d ideas from the three traditions'""'* i,".t."o'i'- T""f i'ff: lj',::;T.ff :nay (ror7) had been at n

ft * int pseudo-sexpartite vault ofthe nale

"f i"i",.-f'l"it6 in Caen is accounted lbr' and

N O R T H E R N F R A N C E A N D N O R M A N E N G L A N D 4 5 3

t68 rnr l 3oo. Saint-Mart in-de-Boscherr i l le '

i"..", ,itt.t church of Saint-Gcorges' ' r t z3 I

spire Gothic

367. Crren, Abbaye-aur-Hommcs, Saint-Etiennc,

rrppl icat ion of vaul t ing, r . I I r5 ( i )

4 5 . t s c . { N D I N A V I A . B R I T A I N , A N D N O R T H E R N F R A N C E

the rrue sexpart i te vaul t of Saint-Et ienne comes

as a natural , invent ive devclopment, l l readl

suggestecl b1'the cincopartite r,aults ofthe tran-

sept ends at Sainte-Trinit6. The navc vaults r,rf'

Sa in te - l r i n i t e and Sa in t -E r i enne ha re l ong

been dated about r r4o and rr3,5 rcspect ivelv,

but the dates were proposed when the datc o{'

r r z8 l i fbr the high vaul t of the nar e of Dur-

ham rvas not \et accepted.r t The elder genera-

t ion of French histor ians worked out a con-

s istcnt s\stcm ol ' re lat ionships, and a re lat i t :e

chronology which must be maintainecl, but the

enscmble ofthcir dates has been pror.ed to be as

much as twent), or thirtv years too late. 'l 'he

necessar\ correct ion g; i r ,es dates near r ro5 r5

lbr the high vaults which replacecl wooden roof-

inpi over the t ransepts and naves of the abbeys

in Caen.rf .{.fter this, (urther influcnce liom

Buri i -undr brought in the decis i te l r important

pointed arch, used in the r ib r aul t o ler Durham

n a v c ( r r z 8 j : ) l S 1 6 , : l l J . I n t h e e n d . a f t e r

hesitation because ol the prestige of Norman

work wi th i ts double ba1,s, the logic ofdesigners

in the ile-de-Frirnce established the more

beaut i fu l s1 'stem ofuni fbrm oblong ba1's in the

high laul t , uni lbrm square bars in the : r is les,

and l ight , th in ashlar vaul t ing cel ls for them l l l .

E N G L A N D : T H E S A X O - \ O R N T A N O V E R L A P

'lhc eleventh centurl fbund a rather decadent

England, better integrated because of the

Danish conquest , but not progressing in the

rh1' thm ol- the Cont inental countr ies. \orman

influcnce began to plav strongll on the Island

with Edward the Conf 'essor ( ro+z 66). - I 'he

name Saxo-Norman or.erlap is applied to thc

per iod dur ing which Saxon surr- ivals wcre

modifiecl br.the nerl flow of influcnccs. -{.ticr the

Conquest of ro66 the centres became eler morc

markedlr Norman, but re{ugees, going to the

north of England and to Scot land, took the old

stv le wi th thcm, and i t was thcre onh,gradual l r .

brought up to datc. A le lated phenomcnon pro-

duced the highlv nat i le designs ofCormac \ 11.-

Carthv 's Chapel at Cashel of the Kings in { rg-

l and ( . r r 24 3 -+ ) [ 29 ]and S t Rcgu lus (S t R t r l c l

at St Andrervs in Scot land (r . r rz5 3o). : ' I . , rch

one is r steep-roofed narc-and-chancel church.

vaul ted, bui l t of improved masonr l prescnr ins

\ orman detai l and a s lender square I o$ eI r i l l rcr

than thc t radi t ional round lbrm. But the * ' r i r ing

on the wal l for the old snle appeared as e,r r l , ,1.

Edward the Conl'essor's Westminster {bber.

( r . ro45 -5o, dedicated in ro65).r0 Excarat ions

show that i t was l ike a t1 'p ical Norman lbhcr,

grander than anvthing then existent in Engln nd I

thev show that the conventual bui ld ings lcrc

la id out on a Cluniac plan, ' , rnd that the spi l i rcd

rcpresentation on thc Blveux tapestr\ con\ c\ s.

in d iagrammrt ic lbrm, a good idea ol the church.

I t had a $estern tower pair , s ix double bars in

the narc, a t ransept wi th a ta l l crossing to$cr,

and a sanctuarv separated l iom two paral)c l

chapels, a l l wi th apses. Evident lv there was no

more of Saxon in i t than was obl igator l - becaLrse

of craf t condi t ions, and th is became increasin3- l r

t rue as the vears passed.

h - O R M A N E N G I . A N D

With the Conquest , society, thegovernment! the

Church, and the architecture rapidly becarnc

Norman. The Duchv had been c lerer l r organ-

ized irs an ellective f'eudal statc, and this proccss

proved to be but a dress rehearsal lbr England.

As in Normandr ' , a group of great Benedict inc

abbevs became an instrument of pol ic t in thc

paci l icat ion and development of the countr \ .

The greatness of the opportuni t_r- ' r rnd the abun-

dancc o l r esou rccs b rough r i t ahou t t ha t t l r r

most splendid o i Norman churches are to bt

(bund in England.

Therc s 'as a surge of great churchcs rr ; r l l

ecclesiastical England was renewed and trirns-

l b rmcd . Fo l l ou i ng Con t i nen ta l mode l s , t he t l i -

apsidal p lan al readv exempl i f ied at Westminstcr

. \bbe-v ( ro45) uas used lbr the nes cathedral o l 37o. St Albans Abbe)' rranscPt' ittet to77

4 5 6 s c A N D r N A V r A , B R T T A T N , A N D N O R T H E R N F R A N C E

Canterbury ( ro7o),r1 L incoln ( ro7z),32 Old

Sarum (ro76),rr Rochester (to7i),ro and the

abbeys ofBury St Edmunds (ro7o),35 and St

Albans (ro77) [ j7o] . , " Bat t le Abbel ' ( ro67), the

Conqueror's own lbundation near Hastings,

was colonized bv monks from Marmoutier, near

Tours, in the 'ambulatory

country' and naturally

carried onward the Jumidges Rouen group ofNorman works, which now grew bv the addition

ofSt Aup;ust ine 's abbey ar Canterbur) . ( ro73), , t

the cathedral of Winchester (ro79),rn and that

of Worcester ( ro84).3e These bui ld ings were

begun under the Conqueror, who died in ro87.

Other great cathedrals followed immediatelv

G louces re r ( r o87 ) [ 37 r ] . r " and No r * . i ch1 rogo .1 , "

wi th the ambularorv p lan; Elv ( i . rogo) andDurham (ro93) 1359n, 372,375 7l wi th the t r i -

apsidal plan, and every one of them on amagnificent scale.a2

372. Durham Cathedr:rl, Galilee, c. r r75

These buildings, as first built, prcsentecl lew

new problems. and s inee. ther h l rc ' r l l ' uhere

, , i t t . * ; t t ing. bc 'en ctrnsiderahh mot l i t ied bv

i l ter adr ' l i t ion," their dcscr ipt ion ant l rnr l rs is i :

gor th. mott pr t t lc l i to the r o lume ol thc Pclr" r r r

H i s tu r l , 4 ' 4 r t uh i ch i s en t i r e l r t l e ro ted t o

f ,ngl ish medieval archi tecture l r Yet thel 'must

,aaaiua aorn. noticc here' fbr the tremendous

undertaking of church and cast le bui ld ing in

the Conqueror 's t in lc is onc of the most st r ik ing

episodes in the historv o l medieral : l rchi tcc lure '

The great works rre a l l er t raordinar i l r bold '

s imp le , and un i l b rm i n s t r l e ' \ peusc came i n

the Great Anarchl of-Stephen's re ign ( t t i5

54), af ter which a wlrnt , much ornamentcd latc

i.lor-rn stvle rvas used, with the nerv Cistercian

architecture as a becoming foil antl contrast ln

t he g rea l uo rks no l on l t s c r c t he t l imcns ions

imposing rrerntndouslr long prucessional

naves, extended transepts' relativell dcep sanc-

tuar ies but the scale of the smal ler parts was

generous, part icular l ] so in the th ick wal ls , the

stout p iers (o l ten cvl indr ical ) , and the wel l -

turned arches. Churches befbre Durham were

not specificalll 'planned for vaulting' ercept per-

haps in the apscs, a is lcs, and gal lcr ics ' which

means that the clerestorics and galleries could

be generous irntl open under thc trussed navc

roofs. In the navss part icular l ] ' there wcre hand-

some effects of arcading, stalie upon stalie' en-

riched bl' archivolt mouldings ancl shafting'

The bcau t i l u l bu f l : r nd uh i t e l imcs tonc (mr r ch

ol ' i t t ransportcd l ionl ( acn) h.rs rcr : r i r tc t l i ts

or ig inal t ieshncss. and is a grc i l beJt l l \ o l lhcsc

inter iors. Abunt lant l ight l iom thc c lerestor ies

plays upon the boldll' articulated architectural

forms, sometimes in simple rhvthms, some-

t imes in double bals, wi th ta l l proport ions ' l 'h is

is especia l ly t ruc of El .v ( r . rogo r r8o) [ j74]11

andofPeterborough (r r r8 r . rzoo)[373] ,which

has an original painted ceiling. At Ely, Malmes-

bury, Rochester, and Kilpeck there is t)'m-

panum sculpture. .{t Exetcr Cathedral one finds

two r ich towers (of r ' . r r 5o) marking thc t ranscpt

N O R T H E R N F R A N C E A N D N O R M A N E N G L A N D : + 5 7

j ; .1 . Pc tc rborough ( . r thcdra l ' hcg

ot a church now memorabh rcbui l t in Gothic '

Legendarl' Glastonburl perished bv lire in

r r8z. and was rebuilt in overwrought tardy Ro-

mcncsque and p ro r i nc i a l Go th i t . bu t i t nou

r u ine t1.- I 'here

was a ctrnsiderable rencual of .par ish

churches, manl of ' them ver l ' s imple. and not

rcn clill 'ercnt in plan and scale from Saxon

uo rks . Thc n l r c -and -chancc l t t pe co t t t i n t t e t l

i n u r c , l nd \ { i l s t r r nsn l i l t ed t o Co th i t l r c l r i -

t ( c (u r c . The chu rac te r i s t i c \ o rman muson r r i s

eis\ to recognizc. and Norman enr ic l rments '

par l icular lv the chevron, are ef l ic t ivc l r used' St

Peter at Northampton al ld I f t lev church near

Or l b r t l a r c ue l l - Lno$n t r amP les '

Nl lnv cast les were bui l t in England in Ro-

manesquc t imcs thc most notable bcing' ot

coursc. the \ \ l - r i te - l 'owcr

in Lonclon' rvhich

stands pract ical lv as i t was bui l t ( ro7t t q71'

though the satel l i te bui ld ings are much later '

Esscn t i a l l r t hc kecp o t don ion i s r t t o r r c r ho t t sc

such:rs we hare seen in I verv reduced torm at

"".-**WW;,ryT-r

U N I I I i '

37r. Gloucester Cathcdral, begun roo7, nave

458

.;7.1. Ell C-arhedral,rcstorafion stefch ol' fiEade,f wcllilr ccntur.r and later , r35);

cast le-bui ld ing cont inued under FIenr- \

t l ( r r5a-t ig) , $ ' i th a constant l l increas^ing usg

9; 5emicircular, circular. ancl concentric firrrrrs

suggested br' (,rtrsadcr lr>rl and (rthcr lbrt;-

fications in the Near East.

In connexion llith residential work. il e shou lcl

note houses, l ike the Jcw's }Jouse in L incoln.

which recall arcaded houses on thc (.orrtincnt,

such as we hare seen at Clunr.

As wi th the cast les, so rr ' i th the churches: i t is

the earliest great bllildings l.hich arc unlorglct-

table. The Canterburt o l l ,ant ianc 1ro7o 7) as

lugmented br Pr iors LrnLr lph and Conrad ( , - .

IO97-r I3o) rvas an cr t raordinarr p icce <l f

architecture. 'lhe

rvondertul srvecp of \orrvich

Gthedral ( ror-1o r r .1.5) , both crrernr l and in-

ternal, is one of the most dranratic things u,hi ch

N o R T H I R N F R A N c E A N D N o R M A N l \ t i l ' A N D ' + 5 9

Nornt i rncl r ' , and Clunv I I . L i lc i rs c lder con-

t cmpo ra r \ . ( . l un i I I I , I ) u rh r r r t * l s p l anned

f ionr thc beginning to bc cnt i rc j r raul ted, ancl

$as broup;ht t ( ) complet ion in the coursc of

th i rn ' - f i r e ur lc l r t r lears ( t r r r r rS 0l ' I r1.3) rv i th

onlr onc pcr iot l ot hesi tat ign. ( .hdnges s ince

thcn hare fbr the nrost part l rec l r k indlr I the

clorninat ing l i r rcc ot the Ronrucsqtre dcsign

casi l r c i r r r ies Gothic acl t l i t ions l i lc the Chapcl

ol Ninc Al tars ( thc e i ts tern rr i rnsept) ant l tht '

crossing torr 'er . ' l ' l ie

\ ' . rs t bui l ( i lng5 ol thc cathc-

dral monastcrr . s t i l l complerc on thc south ol '

the church, r 'c t rct i r in their . Ronrrncsquc pl i rn,

thor-rsh thc construct ions arc n0$ hrgclr of '

Gothic c iate .

Durhlm is onc of the ntost m;rscul inc of

church c lesigns [ . ; ; - i , . ;Sqsl . ' l

hc nrodrt la l uni t

375. Durham Cathedral, begun rog.1 J'

Il}

o

*

'

t . to+*. t

thr ' l

or , rcr o l Dor la Urraca ar L.or i r r rubi i rs . , l .hc

rcsident ia l parts of ' rhc \ [ 'h i re. l .orr .er arc t ianreclrn uood, u- i rh srout l i re_rra l ls c l i r . id ing i t in tothrce rect i l incar srct ions, cach iv i th fbur lcr c ls .' l

he chapcl o l Sr.John, l r . i th raul tcd ais les anclgal lcr ics support ing a tunncl_raul tea nr , , " , nr . ,r l . roLrn(Jecl apst . \ l r ieh Jrro jccrs on l he \orr l h_ct \ ls lue : i l t \ cchoql l b-1 : t rot tn( l ( . ( l s t i l i r_ lu l . t . ( . f ( , l lI n ( . no r t h_ ( i r s t . . l . h c

u , r l l _uu l . l , i s 6 f 111 [ i l .

s t r t ' l )gthcnc( l b, r quoininr : - l rncl p i l i rs tcr st r ips ofashlar uhich cmphasizc the iurg-uhr. i t r o l t i reb t r i l d i ng . ' l ' he

wa rc l i s i r r cgs l a r , bu l r r r L r s l r t roblong. I fbnc inclu<ics r l re nra n r unlrch i rccr ru. ; r l' n l o t l c - xn ( l - hJ i l c t '

$o rLs . c l os t . t r | ) o r r l u r . l \ tnund f ( . d ( ' : l s l l e s \ \ r . r ( hu i l r i n F l , , g l r , , , l , , , , . l\ \ ' : r lcs betr-ccn ro66 2n{ 1 1 5r . , .' l ' h c

g - r ca t squa re kccp . r . . , u r . r ' l i , , , h .t uc l l t h een tu r_ i no leh l \ ; l R . t . l r t . r l r . r t l r t . t r r l c

t l t . t . to+]

-

Romanesqu. archi lccturr cdn oH(.r . i | )urhrrrn

Lathedral uas hl rdh sur.prrsrcd in i rs r l r r r . ant l

l t "bor, i r rhr : a i r r r f scr t .nr f in: r l i r r u.h ich hc-tongs of r ight to the Bf(are\ t rna.rerpi . . t .cr . l1t ep resen t s

a summi l o f r eh i . r cmcn t ; l l t s ( )Dc r ) lrne,noblest

in scale o l R, ,min(squ(. m,nunrcntstnd one o i l he mus r bea r r r i t u l h . se t .

_ ,EeFun i n r o r t . l , Du rh i rm e remp l i f i r . r l r t . s i n t -

Pler cathedral p lan thr t r .c l l l rc l to Bt . rn;r r in

is thc o lc l northern . r / / / i i l r , (sc\cn 1c 'et) . ' l 'nrr

douhle bars fornt thc choir ' . i rnt l thrce tnot 'c .

p lus nr o oblons bdr s, lbrm the rr l r c 13,76, .377 | I

cach l rm of thc t ransept hrrs r r t loLtblc and a

single har a l l nragni f iccnt l . r lmpl t in propor-

t i on . ' l ' h c r as t g ro r rpe< l p i e l s r r n t l l r chcs l r c

r ichlv ar t iculated, uhi le thc subst . rnf i . r l c , r l in-

dr ic l l in termcdi : r fe p iers l re bol t l l r mirrLet l u ' i th

f l u t i ng , che r ro r r , l n c l quad r t l l t r o r k { l l t he

and 377. Durham Cathedral,

I o9.3- r I3J

N O R T H E R N F R A N C E A N D N O R M A N E N ( ; L A N D 4 O I

capi ta ls arc of ' the 'cubical ' tvpe ( that is , t r immed

clown f iom a cube to a c i rcular shape at the

rstragrr l ) , ancl thel lose nothing bl thc i l r rgorous

.i*pii.it1 . 1'he g:rtler-v is verv handsome ' rvith

two arches, each enclosing twirr l rches' in cach

double bar. - l 'he

Iaul ts of these double bavs'

separated bv t ransvcrse archcs' are seven-part

uni ts, wel l but not pert 'ect lv adapted to their

supports. - I 'hel

arc i rc tual l r much l ike sect lons

o f t un t t e l r ' : r t r l t i ng cu t h r r i bhed penc t r J l i ( ) l l s

lirr thc clcresttrrl' winclorvs' 'l 'hus

the vault is

carr iec l but l i t t le h igher than the windou open-

ings, ancl is lbut ted bctwcen i rnd bclo* thcm'

instead ol ' above them, as (prccar iousl l ' ) at

C lun -v I I I .

I t n 'as Durhanr f lathedral ' theref i r r t " which

made ( . lun1 I I I obsolete b1 shouing' on the

granclest scalc, that r ibbed high raul t ingl was

possib le ancl pract ical over widc spans ln both

bui ld ings therc was part ia l f 'a i lure - \ t ( ' lun1'

( r r z5) i t was a fa l l of vaul t ing in the nar e ' lvhich

was not stable unt i l thc addi t ion ol the f l r ing

but t resses r lh ich rvc hare mcnt ioued { t l )ur-

ham the choir raul t of rogt l r ro '1 htd to bc re-

placed not . as at Clun) ' I I I ' bccausc of ' fauln

design the samc sturdl o ld r la l ls st i l l sustarn

thc successt>r I lu l t but bccat tse ol ' incxpert

construct io l l in the vaul t ing rvcbs themsclres '

which were hear i l r bui l t of rough l l i r t t ish stoncs

with I r r i t le mort iu io i l l t . s t t tccoecl orcr ' ' l 'h is

was massirc v i ru l t construct l ( )n: t t was st tp-

ported bl massirc rval l construct ion ' and' as

such, i t was lcss sophist icatcd than ( ' lunv I I I '

- l 'o be surc, the gal lerv at Dtrrham, which is

lvooden-r t ro led, has thc pur l ins crrr r icc l on arches

(r t rund in thc choir , scgmcntal i l r t l rc nr t rc)

which sr . rggcst f lv ing but t rcsses' bt t t ther rve re

evic lent l l not conceivcd as such' s ince the inner

spanclre ls were not or ig inal lv carr iec l up to lbut

the nalc rvall. L)r.rrham. like ir qreat Imperial

German bui l i l ing, re l ied on mrss f i r t ' s t rength

\\'hlt rt'ntainecl to bc donc ln crcirting the

Gorhic sttlc as rve knou it u'ls tct takc thc llrct-

4 6 2 S C A N D I N A V T A , B R I T A I N , A N D N O R T H E R N F R A N C E

port ion and sophist ic : r t ion of ' Clunl ' I I I . i ts

relatively thin vaulting, its IIJ'ing buttresses,

jo in ing to them the r ib vaul t ing o1'Durham. and

dereloping the ef f ic t i rc f 'eatures of each. This

was done in the ile-cle-France, where the

masons became accustomed to build ribbcd

r,aul ts wi th th in wcbs of cut stone. and were dis-

posed to carrv lur ther the erplo i tat ion of rhe

pointed arch, a l ready-suggested at Clunl and

Durham.

Gothic architecture was achier.ecl. in intcn-

t ion, by another gre:r t and bolc l , fbru:r rd-hroking

projcct , namcly- thc plan ofAbbot Suger, abour

r r i,5, to rcbuild Saint-L)cnis unfortunatclv not

real ized, nor, in fact , ent i rc l \ -capablc o1' real iza-

t ion. But i t was an astonishing dcsign, as the

cxcar,at ions hale shown. + ' ,

Behind the hear ' l .westrvork rvhich st i l l cr is ts

(substant ia l lv bui l t , and crcnel lated to make i t

seniceable as a fbr t ress), ancl abovc the sub-

stant ia l , a lmost Roman lmbulatory o l ' thc 91yp1,

t he chu rch uas t o ha re becn a do r rh l q ._ ;1 .1 , . ,

co l umna r bas i l i ca l j 78 l . w i r h t hc i n r , r , , , ' . , , , ^ "

por ls. e\cel) t lbr tbur p iers at the cros. in- . in, i ' -t b rm o l ' l bu r f i l e s o f s l cnde r c r l i nd r i , , r l , h r r , .on l v a t bo t and a ha l f i n t l i ame tc r . an t l l { , , r 11 .1n Iaspcc t .

' f he enc los i ng wa l l r vas t o h , r r . bq .n

relatir,elv thin, and pierced lvith l,rrgt l.rncetwindows, abor.e rvhich ( i f we mar j r ,dS" hr . th.exist ing absid io les) i t was to [ ra le bccn loadg4to th icken and strcngthen i t , making a sorr of .col lar to rcceive and contain the r ,aul t ing r hrusts.

Except ional ly , f l r ing but t resscs are rcportcd 0nthe chord of the apse by r r45. Originll r:rulting.

s t i l l i n p l l c e i n t h e n l r r h e r , a m h u l l r r , 1 r . 1 1 6

radiat ing chapels, has l ight r ibs, which rrc easvIo cons l r ue r w i t h s imp l c cen t c r i ng i t h t . t r r . l r r t t .

of the sever ies are s l ight l l 'swel l ing, so thr t thcr

could be bui l t up c lever lv, arch br r r rch. br-

tween thc r ibs, wi th l i t t le i f anl .auxi l iarr f i r lse-

rvork. - \ l l in a l l , th is mode o{ r 'aul r ing. mr in-

spr ing of ' the Gothic stv le, was a most admirable

A n..\rt' \t/

-

*oq *

378 ( uhoxe ) - Saint-Dcnis, abbo' ch urch, { . r I l5--l+ and thirteenth centurv, rvith predecessor churchcsPlan largell ' bascd on Crosbl' 's excavations. Later excavations scem to show that the apse wasround irt the upper lerel, and that the transept had an elenrent on the east, here shown h,vpothetic.,t l l l '

37gt c (opposire/. Saint-Dcnis, abhev church, r,aulting in narthex, .. r r15 4oi section ofchevet (K.-1.(and east elerirt ion, showing l lving buttrcsses (K..1.c.) (p. 49r, Note 47). Sens, r. r r5-5, had the firsr scts

flanking a nave

,pfQ

a

f1

technical tlelelopnrent |.]29, .itiol ('rnd illus-

tration r4o right, tbr the apse at \i6zclal' built

about r r7o, resenrbles thc design of Sxint-

Denis in importa-nt rcsPects) '

The c lesi iner ' i t r thus rat ion ' r l iz ing his sr l l

and vaul t construct io l ) ' went belond Romln-

escluc procedures. lnsteacl of thc conrcnt ional

"n. tor ing fabr ic, so wcightv that i t rcquircd

nrassirc and obstruct ive picrs ' Saint-Dcnis lv ts

plannccl to h i r rc a th in shel l ot s tonc and gl i rss '

i r ronf , tgainr t f i re ' r 'e t so amazingh intcgratcd

and disposecl as to require no morc intcr iot ' s t tp-

, i

4 6 4 S c A N D T N A V I A , B R T T A T N , A N D N O R T H E R N T R A N C E

e

:8o. S;rint-Dcnis, abbc_r- church, ambulatorv, rr4o .1

port rhan the r.ulnerable woodcn_roof-ed L,arl\C .h r i s r i a r r has i l i t . a . ' .

\ l lh i lc the support s, \s tent w: ts thus muchsimplcr fhan in Romirnesque : l rchi tccturc. thcart iculated r .a l l and r .aul t werc r crv much moredrnanr ic and complex.

' l 'hc or ig inal c lesien of .

Saint-Denis, \a i t h unlr t wo f l ) . ing hutrr . r r . . . * .ur ;too bold; it was nevcr finished, and onl1, a frae_ment surv ives, but the new mode ner.er thele.sshad revolutionary conscquences. In well_char_acterized Gothic structure, the strcsses are muchmore focal ized and dcf in i tc than in Runran_csquc; thc\- need to be nruch more del ln i te l rLno r rn and t r ndc rs rood . F , r en i nc re l s r . i n t . om_prchension, as t ime $,ent on, led to nrorc f i r l l rcha rac l t ' r i z r d hu i l d i ngs , cspcc i ; r l h r r l l t . r r hc i n_troduct ion of ' per l ic ted f lv ing but t resscs abourI r75.

' I 'hcn the impress of t ra inecl inte l lcct on

the dcsigns becamc ever st rongcr.\ \ h rncc rhe l i r c t r h : r r r h t . p r r r . e Co rh i t . i , I i k c

a theol 'em, anci thc ker. fo undcrstr rncl ing i t is

and thirteenth century

that orderccl intc l l isencc which f lo*ercr l in rhr :Gothic centur ies. Reims ( .athedral , rhe p;rr . r r_digm of Gothic, is a lmost an abstr tct ion. lot i \and aborc t l 'e l ing.

Where the Gothic c le s igns : l rc morc hunr,rnhIe l r . i r i s poss ib l e l o 51 .1 . . 15g l hx t t he c r ch i t t . r r r r r r ,rn union wi th the pasr. In the scrcni f i ,of rht . in_t t ' r i o r o l . {m i cns ( . u thed r , r l t l r e r . . , , g , . , i r . . . ,c lassic nobi l i t r I ike thar oI ' rhe f inest Grccl . rnr lRoman work; in heacl long Beaur.r is t l rc i r l -petuous spir i t t l f ( -entula ancl rhe rh i rc l ( . l r rnr

I i res again; in 5^cns ancl other gret t sout i r ! r .nbui ld ings, onc is conscious ol t l rc unl i ) rgorrctg^enial i t r and anrpl i tude which camc ro thc l io-manssqLie as one ol i ts most valued legacics f ionrRtiman architecturc. Not thc least precioLrs rrs-

pect o l the Rontancsquc is i ts af ier_l i le in ; r

mul t i tut le of ' Gothic bui ld ings chcr ish", l j i , r .

their var ief i , thc i r rvarmth, ancl their grace f i r lconlbrnr i tv to rcgional t racl i t ions which ucr.ct l ' t r r ( c J l r r Ron r l ne :q t r c gcn iu : .

381. S i r in t - f )en is , abber ch t t rc l r . i r s tn ( l r++

p e r s p t t l i r t i n t , r p t t l r t i " t t r ' l i l l t r s t r r t t i " n l ; r r r

Yxi

tt.rt

'i":1','

{Fg

( K l . ( . . )