Differences Between Gothic And Romanesque Cathedrals example essay topic

The Romanesque style transformed into the Gothic style during the Middle Ages. This happened for many reasons. The Romanesque period was a time of trial and error while the Gothic period was a time of advancements in inventions. Religion was an important factor in the shift between Romanesque and Gothic. The locations of the two types of cathedrals also contributed toward the change between Romanesque and Gothic, as well as the power of the relics and the community to raise funds for the Gothic cathedrals. There are several reasons the architecture of the cathedral changed from Romanesque to Gothic in the Middle Ages.

The Romanesque period lasted from 1000 to 1200 AD. Today's France was the center of Romanesque architecture and the birthplace of one of the most beautiful features of medieval architecture, the ambulatory with radiating chapels. 'Romanesque is the name we give to christian architecture in Western Europe from the end of the Roman Empire to about the close of the twelfth century. It is the architecture of a long period of struggle, suffering, and invention leading to two centuries of glorious achievement.

' There are many reasons that the Romanesque cathedrals were built. They were built not only as a place of worship, but also to house the shrines of the relics brought back from the Holy Land by the Crusades. The remains of saints and martyrs attracted thousands of pilgrims seeking pardon from sins or miraculous cures or wished simply to pay homage to a favorite saint. The Romanesque period was an age of new and experimental architecture. One advancement in construction was the shift to all-stone structure that replaced the timber ceilings that caused many churches to burn down. One experimental architectural style was the use of stone barrel and groin ed vaults in the early Romanesque church.

The stone vaulting let the architects build on a larger scale than before. The Gothic style emerged out of architectural style of the Romanesque cathedrals. The Gothic style started in northern France and spread throughout medieval Europe. The two styles of architecture were similar in many ways but also 'The difference between Gothic and Romanesque architecture is the spiritual approach. In Romanesque, the emphasis was on transcendental and feudalistic systems whereas in the Gothic this approach was humanized and individualized.

The Gothic architecture emphasized upward movement towards god, a feeling that cannot be found in a Romanesque basilica although it might have already pointed arches, a key element of gothic architecture. There is just a different feeling in the Gothic architecture gives and overwhelming feeling of mysticism, the dominant spiritual and philosophical movement. ' The Gothic period was a time of advancements in architecture including the pointed arch, the rib vault, and the flying buttress. Also, stained glass windows were a beautiful way to express their beliefs in an architectural way. The pointed arch was their first invention that removed the awkward look of disproportional arches at the sides of the Romanesque cathedrals. The pointed arch also directed the weight of the vault downward to help support the massive ceilings.

The second advancement of the Gothic architects solved problems of the Romanesque period. The Romanesque cathedrals had thick walls that gave the feeling of confinement, and their massive arches seemed ill proportioned to their small windows, which created little light. The rib vaults allowed the architects to increase the spaciousness and height, reduce the thickness of the supporting walls and arches, and enlarge the area of the windows inside the cathedrals. The flying buttresses were the third and probably most important techniques. To make the vaults safer, the French architects added external buttresses. They were placed on the outside of the cathedrals to give support to the building by taking the weight of the building off the walls and transferred it directly to the ground.

Since the buttresses appeared to be suspended, they were called 'flying' buttresses. The use of stained glass windows in the Gothic cathedrals represented expressions of religious beliefs. 0 have massive stained glass windows, it is necessary to have thin walls. The walls could be thin because of the flying buttresses.

Also, the thin walls could go to a new height while the thicker walls of the Romanesque period could not. The function of the window was not only of beauty, but also to illustrate biblical events so that the people who came to worship in the cathedrals could learn the stories of Jesus and other prophets. 'The glass fragments used in the stained glass windows were referred to as gems, a reflection of a pre-Christian belief that glass us brought to life by the sun's rays. ' The light is what brings the stained glass windows to life by letting the heavenly light into the place of worship. During the middle ages, the catholic religion was very powerful and played an important role in everyone's life. The Gothic Cathedrals were the central place of worship.

They were places where the entire region went for guidance to salvation and religious instruction. To the people of the middle ages, the cathedrals were more than just a building. The cathedrals were a place of devotion, commitment and loyalty to God. One reason for the rise of the Gothic style was that while the Romanesque style cathedrals had increased in the monasteries, the Gothic style flourished in the towns. There, the cathedrals became the centers of attention. The Gothic cathedrals had become the authority over the town.

This helped the Gothic cathedral to rise in many different towns over Europe. Because the Gothic architecture was elaborate and the size of the building was large enough to hold the entire town's population, as a result the cost a lot of money to construct. Using the power of the relics and the to raise funds became another reason for the progression of the Gothic style. To finance the work, the priests or brothers fund raised money that contributed toward the construction of the cathedral.

They spoke about the relics and convinced people to donate money. Another way to finance the work of the cathedral was to reduce taxes to those whos contributions were particularly generous. In addition, a guild could pay for a stained glass window that served two purposes. The first reason being, that it would bring recognition to that particular guild, and second, that it ould help fund the construction of the cathedral.

Money also came from pilgrims who came to see the Holy relics. Another reason for the spread of the Gothic style was the competitiveness of the bishops to build the bigger, taller, and more impressive cathedral. Because of this demand, tha masons had to develop new structural systems to make that kind of size, weight and height possible. They were successful at accomplishing this that not only did the cathedral serve its purpose of providing church services for the people, but also began to symbolize a commanding position in the lives of men and women. In conclusion, the Romanesque period of architecture transformed into the Gothic period of architecture for any reasons. The shift occurred because of the inventions that the Gothic architects created, the locations of the two different styles of architecture, the raising of money for the cathedrals, and the competitiveness between the communities to have better, bigger cathedral. bibliography Brooks, Chris.

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The Gothic Cathedral: Origins of Gothic Architecture and the Medieval Concept of Order. Princeton: Princeton University press, 1988. Cathedrals. Kristen Shank. 5 Dec. 1995. web Architecture in England: The cathedrals. Amy Johansen.

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