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HUMN 1124 H: The Equilibrium of Cultures, 500-1600 CE

Gothic Architecture: Origin and Alteration

Benjamin Emanuelson

Gothic Origins

Gothic architecture was born in the beginning of the second millennium, after
religious apocalyptic fear in the year 1000. The study of the gothic is timely, as we have,
as a global population now entered a third millennium, rich with unknowns. It is very
interesting how the Gothic Cathedral architecture has inspired conflicting and
competitive research among historians and technologists since its inception in the early
second millennium. This text is merely an overview of Historic origins of Gothic
architecture and a display of differing viewpoints throughout Time.

Beginnings of the Middle Ages

In order to begin to understand the logic and extremity of Gothic architecture, It is

necessary to consider the social framework responsible for its conception, investigating
topics from Roman imperialism, to eventual French and German origins and Romanesque
and Gothic beginnings, as well as secular building, and technical bases.

From the Roman period to the late 900’s and Beyond

Gothic Cathedrals throughout Europe can be traced typologically to Rome, and
Roman building was present all throughout the Empire, including Britain, of course.
According to John Henry Parker, the history of Christian church architecture was
begun with the Roman basilica, employing a three-part division of a rectangular plan,
later undergoing alterations and additions. It is also important to note the extent of
Roman building and techniques in Britain. Here, Roman walls were built in the third
century with large stones, & without mortar, however most roman buildings in England
were eventually destroyed by barbarian violence. Evidence of Roman building is found at
Uriconium, Silchester, and Brixworth. Parker writes that stone church construction (by
St. Wilfrid) can be be found at York, Ripon, and Hexham (12). Most of what is now
considered to be the middle ages came during and after the fears of religious followers at
the end of the first millennium. This ‘negativity’ was most likely to be attributed to the
prophecies of John in the Biblical Book of Revelation.

“It is most probable…also that at this period the Christians in England partook of the
general belief of Christendom, that the world was to come to an end in the year 1000, and of the
lethargy which accompanied that belief.” (18)
John Henry Parker
 It is important to note that after the millennium, church building, especially in
Italy and France began to see itself in a new light. The beginning of the eleventh century
can be thought of as a pre-renaissance. Anglo Saxon building dominated this time period
initially, but the Norman Romanesque was introduced gradually. In the twelfth century, a
transition from the Norman Romanesque to the Early English Gothic was experienced. In
the thirteenth century, there was a transition to the Decorated Style. The Fourteenth
century transitioned from the Decorated to the Perpendicular style, according to Parker.

European Revival:
Romanesque and Gothic
According to Jotischky and Hull, the term “Romanesque” was formed in the 19th
century as defining Norman Artistic and Architectural misinterpretations following the
breakdown of the Carolingian empire, and Gothic architecture was begun in the Ile-de-
France. Jotischky and Hull explain that Gothic architecture utilized minimal structure and
maximum glazing, Rayonnant Parisian Gothic emphasized light and decoration, and the
Flamboyant style was most concerned with surface decoration. Finally, the perpendicular
style utilized flattened grids of rectilinear tracery (64-65).

Intellect and Universities

Jotischky and Hull write that secular schools were formed in the last quarter of the
12th century, receiving initial support from secular rulers as way of separating ‘church and
state’. Theology was taught in Paris, and Law was taught in Bologna. Curricular models
such as the Trivium, consisting of Grammar, Rhetoric, and Logic, and the Quadrivium,
consisting of Arithmetic, Geometry, Harmonics, and Astronomy were employed
increasingly (66). According to a Diagram of Medieval Academic development,
Universities were established in Oxford, Cambridge, Lisbon, Coimbra, Seville,
Salamanca, Palencia, Lerida, Toulouse, Montpellier, Angers, Paris, Salerno, Naples,
Siena, Arezzo, Bologna, Reggio, Piacenza, Vercelli, Vicenza, and Padua prior to 1300
(66-67).

Medieval Economics
The Medieval Economy increased steadily in cities throughout Europe. By 1300,
many cities with a population over 10,000 existed around Northern France, and Northern
Italy. In addition, these zones, as well as the southern Coasts of England were areas of
considerable textile manufacturing. Other less populated areas such as northern Poland,
Rouen, Eastern Bulgaria, and Palestine were strong in grain production. It is interesting
that wine was exported mostly from western France (Bordeaux Proximity), Lyon, and
Frankfurt, but not so much from Italy during this time.

Civil / Military Construction

Viollet-Le-Duc writes that ninth, tenth, and eleventh century “conflagrations”
destroying wood towns and villages were some of the main propagators of stone use in
“private dwellings as well as churches.” (275) In addition, Viollet-Le-Duc mentions that
mortar used by the military was superior to that of the church builders, and that the
medieval age generally ignored the use of symmetry, at least with respect to non-religious
constructions. Through depiction of images, and drawings, Viollet-Le-Duc clarifies that
non-ecclesiastical medieval building was massive and overtly thick, despite the
standardized use of wood. Hans Hofstatter, in referencing medieval defensive secular
building, makes an interesting point in writing that the medieval fortresses were intended
to defend areas that were normally the most peaceful, not the battlefields, (173) and that
fortress building evolved with respect to detail, but not schema.

Technical Bases of Gothic

Jean Bony, in “French Gothic Architecture of the 12th and 13th Centuries” has noted
that many of the defining characteristics of Gothic architecture were already present to
some degree in Romanesque architecture (7) and that the use of the rib vault was present
in England and Italy by 1100. This is evidenced by work such as Rivolta D’Adda (1120),
Durham Cathedral (1093 AD), and Lessay (1120 AD).
At Durham, vertical surface articulation is divided into round arches, where as rib
vaulting and spatial verticality dominate (9). Normandy began to see diagonal rib systems
around 1125, as proven by Evreux, Lessay, and Jumieges. Bony mentions further that Rib
Vaulting does not make a building Gothic, as tenth century Romanesque History has
referred to Oriental sources influencing Islamic Spain. Bony also writes that English and
Italian Rib Vaulting began shortly after the 1085 capture of Toledo (central Spain) where
rib vaulting had been executed in a variety of ways (13). Every historian does not hold
this view, however. Bony also states that the pointed arch was known to Romanesque
builders, through examples in previously Islamic Sicily, eventually under Norman
Conquest. The pointed arch was clearly used at Cluny (1100 AD). In addition, it is
necessary to note that the St. Etienne church lantern was the birthplace of the eventually
Gothic Triforium, and Norman building prior to 1070 was set on producing an “open
skeleton of arches.”
Richard Branner, in “Gothic Architecture,” mentions that by 1400 Gothic had
become the “universal” building type in Western Europe, spreading to Scandinavia and
later the Americas. Branner notes that eleventh and twelfth century revival of trade
brought about “profound social and economic change” in Italy and Flanders (11). In
addition, it is important to note that earlier isolationist feudalism gave way to a new
cosmopolitanism. Furthermore, it is necessary to reference Branner’s description of
“Abbot Suger’s theory of light.” Suger was a profound proponent of stained glass at St.
Denis, for stained glass: was able to bear “holy images,” resemble “precious stones,”
and glow “without fire” (21).

The Pointed Arch: Origins

Viollet-Le-Duc claimed that pointed arches eventually saw widespread use
because of the immense outward thrust of bases, and that keystones in semicircular
arches were likely to sink at times. Viollet-Le-Duc proposes that the pointed arch was not
only present in Greek architecture, (41) but also at the invention of the compass as a
drawing tool. He further proceeds to praise the perseverance of building schools in
France, Burgundy, Normandy, and Champagne. Viollet-Le-Duc believed that the porch of
Vazelay shows best the transition from Romanesque to Gothic.
It was clear that handwork was abundant in the middle ages. Viollet-Le-Duc
further makes interesting points regarding the nature of a system:
 “Every edifice has its skeleton and its membranes: it is only a structure (of stone),
independent of the garment that covers it. This skeleton is rigid or flexible, according to the need
and location…Its immobility is obtained by means of the equilibrium of these forces, not passive
but acting.” (169)
Viollet-Le-Duc

Viollet-Le-duc mentions that stone was to be acquired locally and in limited amounts,
resulting not only in a vernacular materiality, but a structural lightness resulting not from
wealth, but poverty, limited supply, and means of transport.
Paul Frankl mentions that Albrecht’s “Castle of the Holy Grail” was written after
Reims and Amiens, and does not, in fact correspond to the new Jerusalem as described in
chapter 21 of the biblical book of Revelation. Framkl claims that Gothic is based on the
Rib, such as that possibly from Genesis. Frankl references Dvorak’s propagation of
“Weltanshauung” which places the Gothic as accompanying one particular phase of the
Christian Religion.

Development
Viollet-Le-Duc goes into detail on the construction of the Notre Dame Cathedral
at Dijon possessing “more than the appearance of a logical system,” and even when the
Grecian, Roman, or Romanesque construction are preferred, there is something to gained
from the study of these types of buildings. Viollet-Le-Duc often laments in writing, the
path taken by society. This is clear by certain instances where he compares 19th century
Train technology to Roman Imperialism and criticizes the current use of cast iron as
being substandard to that of the stone mastery of the Gothic builders. But this is also
related to a personal agenda, namely, that of elevating the uses and workmanship
involved with cast iron.

Gothic Scholasticism
Paul Frankl goes into immense detail when explaining the coining of the term
“Gothic.” It is ever so slightly obvious that Frankl adamantly opposes the Renaissance
treatments and opinions related to the medieval and Gothic buildings of France,
Germany, etc. Frankl mentions some early terms that could have preceded the name
“Gothic,” such as “fornices arcuatae,” “style ogival,” “Germanic style,” or
“francigeno.” Frankl adds that Petrarch began discrediting the accomplishments of the
“barbarians,” and this theory of substandard-ness became popular in humanistic circles.
Manetti discussed at length the state of architectural “decadence” between the years of
the Roman Empire (410 AD) and the renaissance, until in Brunelleschi (1419 AD).
Filarete, at some point between 1400 and 1469 labeled Gothic architecture as “cursed…
modern” architecture. Filarete absurdly claimed that the pointed arch was the result of
tying together tree limbs, as the Germans were supposedly unable to cut down trees (218).
Viollet-Le-Duc depicted the roots of all architecture in general with tied together tree
limbs as primary shelter. This was possibly a ‘re-evaluation’ of Filarete’s attempts at
French and German discreditation. Generally, many Italians were probably still
perturbed about the prior destruction of Roman temples and buildings, popularly
attributed to the “rough” Goths. Frankl discusses how Romanesque and Gothic connect to
non-scholasticism and scholasticism, and therefore exist as polar opposites. Frankl, in
addition, states that the Romanesque has been seen to rely on platonic minimal formal
combination, and that Erwin Panofsky has drawn the parallel between Gothic and
Scholasticism most succinctly. (262-3) It is understandable that Frankl as well as Greeks
could view Roman and Romanesque architecture as a misinterpretation of prior logic.

Gothic Evolution
Early Gothic and Passive Transition:
Frankl writes that the Cistercians accepted the early Gothic in Citreaux around
1160. The spreading Gothic style confronted traditions in every locale. Frankl states that
the “passive transition” of Gothic in Italy must date true Italian Gothic in the 14th century,
and that Spain was last to embrace rib vaulting. This contrasts sharply with the opinion of
Jean Bony.

Gothic style from 1194 to 1320:

1194-1250
French Ideas spread to many other countries mainly through clergies. Master
masons from other countries went to build and study in France. There were many
stylistic divisions, such as Cistercian Transitional, the Franciscan, the Mendicant, and the
Premonstratensian orders. Frankl writes that the Cathedral at Toledo in central Spain was
“begun before 1224,” by an architect known as Martin, and was succeeded by Petrus
Petri. Frankl is very critical of Spanish treatment of the Gothic so far as to label the
Cathedral at Toledo “French Gothic Style in Spanish territory,” in contrast to the views
of Jean Bony (120). Frankl apologetically admits that the overview of Gothic transitions
from 1210 to 1240 is “difficult to achieve,” (121) but notes Richard Hamann’s timely
presentations of developments as the work of somewhat nomadic masons. With respect
to French exportation of the Gothic, Frankl adds that the work and Lodge-book of Villard
de Honnecourt was evidence of French exportation of the Gothic to Hungary. However,
this architecture no longer exists.

1250-1320
Frankl states that churches of the Mendicant orders cannot be considered High
Gothic, only that they were produced in the time period generally associated with the
High Gothic. Frankl divides churches of this time period into 1: Hall Church + Gothic
Features, 2: French church + lateral chapels, and 3: Italian churches combining Gothic
and Classical elements.

Late Gothic
The difference between High Gothic and Late Gothic was less obvious in
Germany as it was in England. Transepts and Crossings were seen to have greatly
diminished. Attention and care is given to “net vaults” of the Late Gothic in the
Schwabisch Gmund Holy Cross-church. Hall churches, such as the Sandkirche in
Breslau, depict clearly the late Gothic break with regularity, as vaulting in plan begins to
resemble stars and jagged triangulations.
It is necessary to realize that the Italian Late Gothic and the Renaissance were
highly different periods. Northern Schools can be seen to have developed the Gothic
further, whereas Italians combined Gothic, Romanesque, and Classical elements
seemingly at random, further diminishing the Gothic.
Frankl writes in detail about the life of Gothic architecture through and after the
renaissance. Throughout the renaissance, Gothic was, of course, seen as “the style of the
uneducated” (215) but was accepted in many Christian circles diametrically opposed to
pagan roots of Renaissance, Roman, or Greek architecture. After the renaissance, the
Gothic was embraced by the British, and imitated in America. Frankl states that Neo
Gothic was the result of historicists believing that any style was “worthy of imitation.”
However, Gothic cathedrals initially stood in Gothic towns, later to be further overrun by
divergent building typologies. Frankl concludes by writing that the Gothic can finally be
admired as “a monument to the generations of suffering, striving, and a blessed age.”
(216) Robert Mark mentions that Frankl felt that contemporary critics in 1960 were
unable to solve the debates of structural rationalism, and that the issue should be handed
over to physicists. However, physicists had left the realm of structural mechanics by the
mid 19th century.

England, France, Germany, and Italy

English gothic architecture 1170-1538

English Gothic was believed to be most often about contrast, and not harmony.
Most often a Romanesque nave was combined with a Gothic choir. According to Francis
Bond, the combination and contrast of styles in English Gothic churches, though
wonderful to English people, was not considered to be all that superb to the French. Bond
adds that Gothic almost always shows an increase of height compared to earlier
Romanesque churches. In addition, it is noted that where horizontality resides in the
Romanesque, verticality resides with the Gothic, (62) but Gothic to Bond exhibits a
careful balance between Horizontal and Vertical lines nonetheless.
1170-1315 In this time period, the greatest churches were still cruciform in plan,
with aisled naves, and many Norman choirs were demolished and replaced with Gothic
choirs, for considerations of height and size. Ground story, Triforium arcade, and
Clerestory were still in use as the three primary stories. The towered façade was added
for effect, mainly, and was done on rare occasions. The “tooth ornament” was considered
very stylish, and easy to produce, being derived formalistically from the Norman nail-
head.
1300-1350 At this time period, plan organization was retained from the earlier
period. Many of the chancels were rebuilt in a broader and loftier fashion. In terms of
vaulting, simpler quadripartite vaulting was used in the Beverly Nave, Milton Abbas,
Dorset, and the Howden Choir in Guisborough. Skeleton Vaulting was used extensively
at Bristol Cathedral. (82)
1330-1538 In this time period, triforium treatment assumes a single organization.
The previous tall or short triforium arcade use has been alleviated. Bond notes that in the
western facades of these churches, the central door was in competition with the central
window. It is important to add that at this time, England’s most superior vaults were built.
Fan vaulting, such as that at Gloucester Cloister, Sherborne, and King’s College Chapel
became prevalent.
France & Germany

French and German Origins

In 843 the Carolingian Empire was divided unsuccessfully into the territories of
Charles II “The Bald,” Lothar I, Louis the German, Patrimony of St. Peter, and Tributary
areas under the Treaty of Verdun. Following this, The Capetians revived Carolingian
traditions, and ruled the territory known as France (until 1328 AD). In the late 800’s,
successive weak Carolingian rulers allowed Germany to become divided into various
principalities, etc, in conjunction with Viking and Slavic conflicts. In 919, Henry I was
elected to the German throne beginning the Ottonian dynasty and paving the way for
German Unification. (32-33) After some time, France and Germany were proving grounds
for inventions and innovations in Gothic architecture.

France
France was most clearly the ultimate location for Gothic design and building. The
most widely known Gothic Cathedrals, such as Chartres, Notre-Dame, and Bourges are
located in France. Obviously from the historical evidence of masons traveling to France,
and the exportation of stylistic French Gothic qualities, one can see massive influence.
England, Italy, and Germany, throughout history have been hard pressed to develop
individual experts on Gothic, which might rival Viollet-Le-Duc, or Villard-de-
Honnecourt. Ruskin and Pugin as well as others had their go, to some limited avail.
Though the Gothic experienced evolutionary phases in other countries, only in France
were the three systems of Gothic adequately nurtured.
According to Jean Bony, France utilized three systems of Gothic architecture. In
the First system (1160-1180 AD), the cathedral at Sens was influential for 50 years and
more. Many of the first churches favored removal of the transept in plan. The use of
alternating supports was a concept that came from Sens. This caused space to be divided
into units consisting of double bays. (121) Sometimes a bay might have been divided into
three trinitarian parts, requiring the use of an octopartite vault. This school originated in
the southern Ile-de-France, and finally became more systematized. Two other schools had
formed, the Paris school, and the Northern School. These schools set up a clear datum, as
twelfth century Gothic was decidedly more “hunched” than later styles. The earliest
system was the general form of the later Gothic churches without flying buttresses or
spires, etc. At Laon and Canterbury, it is interesting to note the roof covering of less than
correctly placed buttresses.
In the first Gothic system, there was contrast between the “Parisian” group and
the “Northern” group. Much of this contrast was evident in terms of Volume, Space,
Surface, and Light. The Parisian Group was very fond of compact plans, whereas the
Northern group was more into articulated cruciform plans. Plans of the Northern group
are related strictly to the Compass directions, combined with some type of tower or
elevated intersecting roof condition. Jean Bony adds here that the true Gothic prototype
was the Romanesque Saint Lucien at Beauvais (1090 AD), which was later destroyed.
Notre Dame in Paris and Laon were of the two different “schools.” Laon shows clearly
the elevated portion at the crossing and lantern. At Laon, the Northern sensibility of
“plastic quality of matter” (145) is evident. At Paris in Notre Dame, oculi are used
instead of arcaded openings as the Northern school might have done. In general the
Parisian school does not utilize a plastic layering of organization as the Northern school
would.
Bony adds that the Parisian school was less inclined to utilize the picturesque or openness
to the outside, whereas the Northern school was open, even to forbidden Romanesque
influences. The northerners were noticeably tied to the past in some ways, bringing back
mural styles, etc.
In the second system, many new and innovative concepts came about, such as the
Flying Buttress. Chartres Cathedral was begun after fires of 1194, and Bourges was
apparently begun in 1195. This marked the beginning of the second system, and the
widespread use of the flying buttress, likely already known in the preceding twenty years.
(195) The thirteenth century was dominated by architectural use of the flying buttress.
Chartres and Bourges contrast sharply with one another, and together even more
so with the past. Bourges and Chartres can be seen as analogous to Notre Dame and
Laon. In the second system, soaring linearity prevailed, and new structural world was
opened for architects everywhere. The flying buttress had now made possible the pursuit
of expansive transparency.
In the third Gothic system, also known as the “Rayonnant Style,” giant radiating
compositions of stained glass were now widespread. Jean Bony mentions that the
beginning of the third system was not a constructional ground breaking, but merely a
“change of tone.”(357) In Reims cathedral is Hughes Libergier’s 1263 tomb. Libergier
was the architect of St. Nicaise. It is obvious that Libergier, through his style of dress
depicted in drawings, was not in the least sense a workman or master Builder. This
conflicts with the widely held view of Phillipo Brunelleschi as the first architect, in some
ways.
Other Gothic architects were Robert de Luzarches, Thomas de Cormont, Renaud
de Cormont, Jean de Chelles, and Pierre de Montreuil. Bony adds that many of the others
are still anonymous. Much of Rayonnant philosophy is evident at St. Denis produced
between 1231 and 1235. St. Denis is almost on the verge of becoming curtain wall and
column. Troyes cathedral has many striking characteristics as well. Jean Bony adds, that,

“if (Troyes) preceded St. Denis by a few years, the choir of Troyes may have been the first
building in which the triforium became absorbed into the clerestory…” (373)
-Jean Bony

Other cathedrals, such as St. Germain en Laye (1238), Reims, (1231), Tournai
(1243), Sainte Chapelle (Paris, 1248), Amiens (1250-1269), and Wells (1225) all exhibit
Rayonnant characteristics.
This brings the discussion to the topic of Gothic Grids. Jean Bony writes
extensively on repetitive systems of rhythm, and interconnection of Gothic Grid
utilizations. (79) These grid systems begin to become superimposed and flattened
phenomenally in the later Rayonnant style. The system of repetitious bays in Gothic
architecture can be traced to northern Europe, and Roman examples in Africa and Syria.
In Gothic architecture, there can be seen as well a system of numerical ordering, in plan
defining organization in the side aisles, nave, etc., and in the interior and exterior vertical
surfaces. It is important to recognize the presence of grid systems and numerical devices
in almost every type of Gothic building. These ideas can be traced back for centuries, but
in the Gothic, there begins a deep respect for repetition and uniformity of similarities.
This permeates every level of Gothic Architectural manifestation.
With all of this in mind, the three systems, utilizing to different degrees the
ordering of grids and other elements, the topic of discussion now brings us to stained
glass.

Stained Glass:
With respect to Mont-Saint-Michel and Chartres, Henry Adams wrote extensively
on French Glass work. It is clear that Abbe Suger worked with glass at Saint Denis in
1140-52. Viollet-Le-Duc chose the tree of Jesse for “his lecture on Glass in general.”
Further, it is important to consider the colors involved with this type of masterful work.
(130) Blue is important to understand at first. Red is often secondary. Further, it was
important to use a strong yellow and a weak yellow, a strong purple and a weak purple,
and a strong green and a weak green. It was important for Gothic imagery to be flat, and
non similar to “holes.” Adams further explains the supremacy of French glasswork to the
Byzantine art, and argues that the glass in Chartres cathedral is more French than the
architecture itself. Adams questions as to why the glass is set in lead as opposed to gold,
since stained glass must have cost so dearly. Adams sites M. Paul Durand as describing
the original 12th century glass as superior to 13th and 14th century work. This perhaps
recalls Viollet-Le-Duc’s claim that new civilizations build “more durably” than do more
established ones. This is also concurrent with popular opinion that renaissance concrete
work was not up to the level of the original Roman concrete work. Finally Adams further
discusses the Virgin Mary as the inspiring “Queen” enthroned and responsible for Stained
Glass. (148)
France is obviously deserving of credit and praise for the development of Gothic
architecture and peripherally related qualities. However, Germany and Eastern Europe
were also locales befitting innovation and invention pertaining to Gothic building and
design.

Germany & Eastern Europe

Louis Grodecki writes in detail about Gothic in Germany and Eastern Europe.
Historically, Hohenstaufen rule helped the Pfafengasse region to produce great works. It
is widely accepted that as early as 1230, Eastern Europe was noted as being un-interested
in imitation of Western Europe. However, at Sankt Gereon, Aposteln, and Kunibert, are
distinct evidences of Gothic influence. In the twelfth century, Cistercian architecture was
produced in 1122 at Altenkamp, in 1127 at Walkenried, Harz, and Ebrach in Franconia, in
1131 at Rhengau, in 1135 at Amelungborn, in 1136 at Heiligenkreuz, and in 1138 at
Maulbronn. Between 1202 and 1237, groin vaulting was utilized in the Heisterbach nave.
Clearly, the Gothic was becoming more prevalent in the end of the twelfth century, as
evidenced by churches in Bronnbach, Heisterbach, Bebbenhausen, and Arnsburg. The
churches of Lilienfeld, Zwettl, and Heiligenkreuz in Austria showed further evidence of
eastward expansion. Worms, Limburg an der Lahn, Lausanne, Cologne, Freiburg im
Breisgau, Aachen, and Vienna, exist as stunning examples of further Eastward expansion
of the Gothic.
(251-311)
Sicily and Italian Gothic

Italian Domestic Gothic in Italy, Sicily, and Southern Italy

It is very likely and probable that Sir Thomas Graham Jackson (ca 1915) has a
much more forgiving definition of “Italian Gothic” than might Paul Frankl or Other
ardent students of the Gothic. Some of the examples shown seem to share characteristics
of Islamic/Romanesque instead of Gothic.
Medieval Secular building was apparently of a much greater percentage in Italy
than in other European countries. In Siena, there were 25 small towers standing in the 17th
century. In San Gimignano there are 13 towers, one of which is 175 ft. tall. The Palazzo
Vecchio in Florence reaches a height of 308 ft. Jackson, when discussing the domestic
buildings of Siena, mentions the palazzo Communale with a tower built between 1325 ad
1345, (233) and the Palazzo Publico being constructed almost entirely of brick with stone
only in select areas. Consequently, Jackson then goes on to discuss Venice where
maritime supremacy and adjacency to the Adriatic allowed for reduction of massive
fortification and openness under the will of ”Secret Government.” The Ducal palace,
Palazzo Cicogna, and Pallazzo Sagredo display Gothic characteristics. Clearly The
Gothic can be seen as influencing Florence as well.
Southern Italian architecture has been thoroughly influenced and altered by
Byzantine, Lombard, Norman, Hohenstaufen, and Angevin aspect and rule, as well as
Sicilian Orientalism. In Sicily, it is obvious that numerous revolutions have occurred.
After the Latins Sicani and Siculi, Greek colonization led to Carthaginian occupation.
There were rumored to be 300 mosques in Palermo as of 962, none of which still exist.
The Tower of La Martorana is a striking example of some quasi-Gothic characteristics.
Monreale, built by King Roger in 1172 (283) has amazing views of Palermo and
surrounding Sicily. The Cathedral has a very Byzantine nature, and the exterior (east end)
is highly contrasted as a spotted and overlapping surface. The cloister however, has many
Gothic features. It seems generally obvious that Italian architecture has rested at the
edges between Western-ward Islamic advances and Eastern-ward French and English
advances, all the while returning to Roman massing and platonic spatial composition.

Thoughts and Contributions of and about

Eugene Emmanuel Viollet-Le-Duc
Eugene Emmanuel Viollet-Le-Duc was a historical and characteristic figure
during the 19th century, and his writings and accounts of the Ecole des Beaux Arts, etc.
still inspire architects today. Jean Jacques Aillagon goes into detail on the Ecole De
Beaux Arts, begun around 1819, teaching methods of drawing as are pertinent to
Architecture, Painting, Sculpture, and Engraving. He highlights various quotes criticizing
the Ecole for not teaching architecture, only drawing beautifully. As the Ecole became
more solidified in the argument over aesthetics instead of materials, Viollet Le Duc
instigated a reform in 1863, which helped the institution last well into the early 20th
century. Viollet was later victimized by his reformation, however. (28) The Ecole was
most likely less concerned with building education, for prior reasons, such as a
“Napoleonic Code” (26) seeing the profession of Architecture as near the same level as
Contracting and Shop keeping. Viollet Le Duc was an important figure in the midst of all
of these occurrences.

“Whether he turned his attention to architecture, to decoration, to mountaineering, to

ethnography, to the conditions of women, to Jesuits or to strikes, Viollet-Le-Duc was a man of his
century; he inherited the 18th century’s hunger for universal knowledge and carried within him
the hopes and contradictions of the 20th.” (29)
Jean Jacques Aillagon

Sir Nikolaus Pevsner wrote on the symbiosis between Viollet-Le-Duc and John
Ruskin. Pevsner makes an interesting point that two were both as interested in devotion
to the Alps (through climbing or study) as they were interested in the High Gothic
stonework. It is added that though Ruskin was highly religious, Viollet-Le-Duc was
agnostic. Pevsner also adds that after 1857 most of Ruskin’s architectural writing was
“largely bitter social criticism.” (51) Pevsner discovers an analogy, between Ruskin the
bitter theorist and Viollet-Le-Duc the ‘mountaineer agnostic’ in their opinions of
materials and building. Viollet-Le-Duc is noted as advocating exposed iron and
displaying iron costs in order to convince readers of the beneficial qualities of metals,
where Ruskin was opposed to riding on trains, viewing Gold ornamentation, or visiting
train stations. Ruskin seemed to not fit in with the 19th century, and it would be severly
more difficult for him to fit into the 20th or the 21st.

“The moment that iron in the least degree takes the place of stone…the building ceases…to be
true architecture.” ( 51)
-John Ruskin

Pevsner accuses Ruskin as being wholly backward looking, and praises Viollet-
Le-Duc as being wholly forward looking, advocating iron use in every part of a building
much to Ruskin’s dismay. One could adamantly argue that if the Gothic master builders
had adopted the mentality of Ruskin, the High and Late Gothic would never even have
been achieved. Gothic would have merely been a piteous adherence to increasingly
hunched Romanesque revivals. The position of Viollet-Le-Duc as restorer of Gothic
seems to put non-experimentation in an a-historical light. Furthermore, Pevsner uses this
contrast as a tongue-in-cheek indicator of English versus French mentality.
Catherine Cooke writes on Russian perspectives of Viollet-Le-Duc, as noted from
the “L’Arte russe” impact on 1877 Russian society. Cooke explains further how Viollet-
Le-Duc’s written concepts influenced 19th century Russian architecture and Later highly
machinic Constructivism. (60)
M.F. Hearn, in his writing on Viollet-Le-Duc discusses an “anticipation of
Modernism”, the achievement of “style,” and the application of “new architectural
principles.” Hearn adds that Viollet-Le-Duc wrote on and was interested in the
preparation as well as the delivery of materials to any site, therefore foreseeing
Prefabrication and Quality Control. Hearn interestingly displays Viollet-Le-Duc’s
drawings of “Bat Details,” advocating the study of pre-existing organic functions. Hearn
writes more about the advocating of new materials and industrial processes, such as those
related to “Locomotives” and “Steam ships,” seemingly hated by John Ruskin. Hearn
also mentions that Le Corbusier later adopted this philosophy, “half a century later.”
Also displayed by Viollet-Le-Duc is a human skeleton set against a chimpanzee skeleton,
possibly comparing the Gothic to the Romanesque. Hearn also adds that Viollet-Le-Duc
was by no means the first Architect to advocate the use of iron in buildings or bridges.
Viollet Le Duc seemed to greatly admire the buildings that were over looked by critics as
being “utilitarian” and overtly “straightforward.” (235) Hearn was the only writer read
which drew an analogy between Viollet-Le-Duc and Le Corbusier, as I am sure that there
are many more. Robert Mark also adds that Viollet-Le-Duc was in charge of restorations
of Amiens, Chartres, Reims, and Notre Dame. Mark also credits Viollet-Le-Duc with the
belief that truthful response to Structural Mechanics is the only way to “create true
style.” (11)

Contemporary Experiments and Contributions of Robert Mark

and Colleagues
The research of Robert Mark serves as a contemporary link between the late 20th
Century and the age of Gothic architecture. Beginning around 1967, Robert Mark and
other investigators studied and learned many interesting facts related to Gothic design,
proving the ingenuity required to design in such an aspiring manner with only
compressive resistance, and not tension.
In “Wind Loading on Gothic Structure,” Mark produces charts showing wind
loading of St. Ouen as well as Amiens Cathedrals, derived from climatic information, as
well as displayed deflection of plastic sections. In “Chartres Cathedral: A
Reinterpretation of Its Structure,” many very interesting points are made. Mark sets out
to determine when the flyers were made, and what they do specifically. It is mentioned
that in the Early Gothic churches, “buttressing” under roofs was normally “too low to be
effective.” Mark finally decides that at Chartres, being the “first true skeleton structure,”
large windows were not made possible by the large windows, in fact the large windows
made the “buttresses essential.” (5) Mark also adds that Bourges was “more advanced…
than Chartres,” and that “Chartres…was far less revolutionary than some have
claimed.” (6) In other articles, Mark displays the evolutionary iterative process involved
with the first flying buttresses at Notre Dame, which have existed in three distinct phases,
and mentions that water and ice are frequent reasons for the structural failures of many
masonry structures, as well as foundation settlement.
With respect to the “Gothic Enigma,” Mark mentions that the Gothic was built by
arguably the first unionized labor, as a product of medieval trade and circulation of liquid
Capital. Mark makes a connection between the High Gothic as a product of Urbanization
similar to that of “Chicago and New York… seven centuries later.” (3) From viewing
photographs of various cathedrals in the books researched for this paper, it is often very
difficult to see exactly the difference in scale that different churches possess. However,
on page 5, Mark shows sections of Sainte-Foy at Conques (ca 1050), Laon (ca 1160), and
Reims (1211). It is amazing how the side aisle of Reims is almost as large as the nave of
St. Foy. Mark further adds that in the Middle Ages, Sandstone, Limestone (2-28,000psi
compression capacity), and Granite were used to an immense degree. Mark goes into
photoelastic modeling, which is a method discovered during WWII by engineers desiring
more efficient aircraft and nuclear power related components. The photoelastic method
allows for a sheet of plastic modeled after the transverse section of a gothic cathedral to
experience tensile deflection and display areas of increased tensile and compressive
stresses, at normal or elevated temperatures. The photo elastic method places a
translucent sheet of plastic between two layers of parallel lined surfaces. The lines of the
near sheet are perpendicular to the lines of the far sheet. The entire assembly is placed
between the viewer and the light source. The movement of the plastic sheet displays
deformations. Mark also produced experiments similar to those of Antonio Gaudi, who,
by testing compressive forces, inverted them to tensile forces, by hanging the plastic
section upside down, and connecting weighted strings to stress points. The weighted
strings were also used to simulate wind forces horizontally, by attaching weighted strings
to certain points and again, elevating the temperature of the plastic section. Mark displays
color photographs of photoelastic plastic sections of the cathedrals of Bourges, Amiens,
Chartres, Beauvais, and Palma, Majorca. Some of the photographs display effects of
wind loading, some display dead loading. What is amazing is how the disruptions appear
vigorous at the narrow portions, yet smooth and calm in the massive sections. (52-55)
These images are similar in appearance to the color coding of 3d models tested and
displayed in engineering software like CATIA, or PROENGINEER.
In conclusion, it was determined that the points of most Gothic cathedrals that are
most likely to fail are at six different types of regions. Those regions are at “Pier
Extensions, Pier Extension-Flying Buttress Junction, Pier Buttresses, Flying Buttresses,
Passage Openings, Intersection of Pier and Pier Extension.”(119-122) Mark finishes with
a discussion on Structural Rationalism in Modern architecture. Ideas from Pugin’s “True
Principles,” related to “Convenience, Construction, and Propriety.” Pierre Luigi Nervi
derived many concepts from Viollet-Le-Duc

Conclusion
AWN Pugin, in “Contrasts” discusses in chapter five the state of religious
buildings in 1836. Pugin laments the “general change and destruction” experienced by
the religious buildings of his day. He explains how in the earlier times, the church doors
were open all the time, to let anyone enter, because the people of that time were prepared
to respect the architecture, unlike a normal contemporary tourist. Pugin claims that
churches have closed doors most times of the day, because visitors would most likely
vandalize them. Pugin also criticizes the current building methods of the time, saying that
Architects and artists have a minimal role in the design of buildings based solely on
“allowing a trifling sum to the room occupied for each sitting.” (49) Pugin condemns
society for its neglect of buildings in an age of luxury and spending.
Hans Hofstatter in “Living Architecture” explains how at the end of the middle
ages Islamic forces had moved out of Spain. Hofstatter explains that Cistercian,
Carthusian, and Premonstratensian monastic orders re-converted Spain and Portugal to
Christianity. The cathedrals of Toledo, Palma Majorca, and Batalha all exhibited Gothic
characteristics, sometimes mixed with Islamic and Indian traits, resulting in an
“Emmanueline” style, (138) referencing King Emmanuel I. (ruling 1495-1521)
In retrospect, it is obvious that Gothic architecture has inspired varied responses
form different intellects in Europe and abroad. It has been made clear by all authors
mentioned that Gothic was clearly the harmonious new version of all things Romanesque.
It could be argued as well, that, in addition to influencing the research of Robert Mark
and architecture of Pierre Luigi Nervi and Minoru Yamasaki and countless Neo-
Gothicists, the Gothic can also be seen as influencing greatly the work of Antonio Gaudi
and Santiago Calatrava. What is so impressive about the Gothic, as has hopefully been
displayed by this text, is that not only did the Gothic prove once and for all the
possibilities of merely compressive stone masonry, but also the ability and propensity for
architecture to achieve an unprecedented lightness and translucency.

Bibliography
Books

Adams, Henry. Mont-Saint-Michel and Chartres

Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin Co. 1905

Bond, Francis. Gothic Architecture in England.

London, New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1906

Bony, Jean. French Gothic Architecture of the 12th & 13th Centuries.
Berkely, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press, 1983

Branner, Robert. Gothic Architecture.

New York: George Braziller, 1961

Fitchen, John. The Construction of Gothic Cathedrals.

Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1961

Frankl, Paul. Gothic Architecture.

Baltimore, Maryland: Penguin Books, 1962

Grodecki, Lewis. Gothic Architecture.

New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1976

Hearn, M.F. (editor) The Architectural Theory of Viollet-Le-Duc: Readings and

Commentary. Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1990

Hofstatter, Hans H. Living Architecture: Gothic.

New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1970

Huss, George Martin. M. Eugene-Emmanuel Viollet-Le-Duc:

Rational Building. New York / London, Macmillan & Co. 1895

Jackson, Sir Thomas Graham. Gothic Architecture in France, England, and Italy,
Volume 2. New York: Hacker Art Books, 1975

Jantzen, Hanz. High Gothic; The Classic Cathedrals of Chartres, Reims, & Amiens,
(translated from the German by James Palmes). Hamburg: Rowohlt Taschenbuch
Verlag GMBH, 1957
Jotischky & Hull. The Penguin Historical Atlas of The Medieval World.
London: Penguin Press, 2005

Mark, Robert. Experiments in Gothic Structure.

Cambridge/London: MIT Press, 1982

Parker, John Henry. An Introduction to the Study of Gothic Architecture.

West Yorkshire, England: EP Publishing Ltd, 1978

Pugin, A.W.N. Contrasts.

New York: Humanities Press, 1969

(Various) Architectural Design Profile. Eugene Emmanuel Viollet-Le-Duc,

1814-1819. London: Academy Editions, 1980

Journal Articles
Borg, Alan & Mark, Robert. “Chartres Cathedral: A Reinterpretation of its Structure.”
The Art Bulletin, Vol. 55, No. 3. (Sep., 1973), pp 367-372.

Clark, William W. & Mark, Robert. “The First Flying Buttresses: A New Reconstruction
of the Nave of Notre-Dame de Paris.”
The Art Bulletin, Vol. 66, No. 1. (Mar., 1984), pp. 47-65.

Huang, Yun Sheng, & Mark, Robert, & Wellman, Avery M. “Westminster Hall’s
Hammer-Beam Roof: A Technological Reconstruction.”
APT Bulletin, Vol. 20, No. 1. (1988), pp. 8-16.

Mark, Robert, & Jonash, Ronald S. “Wind Loading on Gothic Structure.”

The Journal of Architectural Historians, Vol. 29, No. 3. (Oct., 1970), pp. 222-230.

Mark, Robert & Prentke, Richard Alan. “Model Analysis of Gothic Structure.”
The Journal of Architectural Historians, Vol. 27, No. 1. (Mar., 1968), pp. 44-48.

Rauch, Thomas M. Jr., & Mark, Robert. “Model Study of Buttressing the Piers in
Chartres Cathedral.”
Gesta, Vol. 6. (Jan., 1967), pp. 21-24.

Taylor, William, & Mark, Robert. “The Technology of Transition: Sexpartite to

Quadripartite Vaulting in High Gothic Architecture.”
The Art Bulletin, Vol. 64, No. 4. (Dec., 1982), pp. 579-587.

Wolfe, Maury I., & Mark, Robert. “The Collapse of the Vaults of Beauvias
Cathedral in 1284.”
Speculum, Vol. 51, No. 3. (Jul., 1976), pp. 462-476.