Origins and Spread of Romanesque & Gothic Style in France, Germany & Northern Europe. 2

The Styles of Medieval Art & Architecture.

As Michael Camille explained in his Gothic Art, the history of Gothic architecture is frequently described by phases.¹ The first forays in the Gothic occur around Paris from about 1140 to 1200 (when the Romanesque was still the prevailing style in the rest of Europe) and is usually termed “Early Gothic.” A good example of this is the Benedictine Abbey of Vezelay which was affiliated with the Abbey of Cluny- from which we get the name “Cluniac” style- and is typical of the austere, Cistercian churches of the period which were meant to be symbolic of the avowal of poverty and asceticism in accordance with the teachings of St Bernard of Clairvaux, head of the Cluny community.² The next phase is known as the “High Gothic” which deals with buildings erected from about 1200-1260, which would include Chartres and Rheims. The walls of Chartres contain a number of styles of sculpture ranging from an antique style to something more austere- see below. In painting, book illustration (which is the main kind) the influence of Byzantine art is seen.³ The next “more mannered” phase is called Rayonnant which also began around Paris and from about 1260 to 1300 “exploited more linear, transparent effects.” It takes its name from the radiating patterns of great rose windows, a distinguishing feature of this style. The last phase of Gothic is known as the Flamboyant style of the later fifteenth- century. This style meaning “flaming” with its ornate tracery is also found on secular buildings such as the above Palais de Justice Rouen (1499-1508).

1Michael Camille, Gothic Architecture, 36.

2Paul Crossley, Introduction to Frankl, Gothic Architecture, 22.

3For a manageable introduction to the development of architecture, sculpture and painting during the Gothic overall, see Andrew Martindale’s Gothic Art, (Thames and Hudson, 1967).