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Canterbury Cathedral

The graceful delicacy of the Early Gothic left a lasting impression on England. When the main church of Canterbury burnt down in 1174, the French master builder, Willem of Sens, was entrusted with its reconstruction (Illustrations 1, 2). The eastern part, which was already completed in 1189, is the first work of the early Gothic French style. But the English were not yet ready to entirely embrace and follow it, and instead were content with applying Gothic forms on Norman foundations, or reshaping Romanesque forms in the spirit of the Gothic. They were particularly attracted to the external ornamentation, while the essential building principles became secondary. This provides the decisive reason for the special direction the development of the Gothic took in England. In essence, the Norman-Romanesque building principle and arrangement are retained and the Gothic forms merely serve as ornamentation. The lively consistency, the inner correlation of building principles and decoration are therefore lacking in the works of the Early English. The horizontal line dominates, but it is the vertical, the striving towards Heaven, that corresponds with the essence of the Gothic. The round pillars are surrounded with free standing pillars; the pointed arches taper very narrowly (lancet arch); at first, the rib vaults acquire one extra rib until eventually the star vaulting is introduced. In the ornamentation the slender and delicate are pushed to the utmost, at times even exaggerated. This style spread very quickly across the entire country, which is proof that it coincided with popular demand. But it also resulted in a certain uniformity of all buildings, which stands in contrast to the independent distinctiveness that marks each of the French works.

An example for the stylistic epoch of the Perpendicular Style is the nave of Canterbury Cathedral.

Western Façade, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Chartres, c. 1194-c. 1233.

Western Façade, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Reims, begun in 1211.

Plan of Notre-Dame Cathedral, Reims.

Westminster Abbey

The last great work of Willem of Sens is Westminster Abbey in London (Illustrations 1, 2). When building commenced in 1245, a pronounced Anglo-Gothic method of construction was already established practice. Its characteristic peculiarity was a straight ending choir without ambulatory, which often was extended into a square Lady Chapel. Above the crossing, a massive square tower replaced the ridge turret. Also typical are the two transepts, the arrangement of horizontal and vertical tendencies, as well as the exuberant creation of the vaults, which in the end would indulge in excessive extravagance (net, star and fan vaults with low hanging keystones).

Salisbury Cathedral

Salisbury Cathedral in the English county of Wiltshire, which is situated near the stone circles of Avebury and Stonehenge, can be considered the purest and most significant creation in the Early English style (Illustrations 1, 2). Horizontal and vertical structures harmonise, while the Gothic forms are used merely as finery and not really related to the style’s basic principle. Started in 1220 and completed in about 1258, the cathedral has the highest church tower in England at 123 m. This church tower was only placed on top of the nave in the fourteenth century. However, the master builder overestimated the weight-bearing capacity of the foundations, which made later reinforcements necessary.

The construction of this cathedral was imitated by many major churches, which can be seen mostly in the older sections of their construction: Wells (Illustrations 1, 2, 3, 4), York (only the transepts), Lincoln, Southwell, Beverley, Rochester, and Peterborough, for example.

Lichfield Cathedral

Lichfield Cathedral’s façade, which is completely covered with sculptural decoration and framed by two high spires, appears even more lavish. This and York Minster are the most beautiful examples of English Gothic and served as models for the extravagant or Decorated Style that began in the middle of the thirteenth century and lasted more than a century. As the name suggests, the constructive element is secondary to the decorative element, which covers all parts. However, the English master builders mainly indulged in the creation of the tracery, the lines of which dispersed, as if in soft waves.

Over the entire period of this Decorated Style (1250–1370), rich and imaginative decoration is the main feature of sacred buildings. The tracery becomes finer and hardly any surface remains smooth, or any window without fitted tracery. The vault ribs include more elaborate decorative motifs and join into star or web vaults.

Annunciation and Visitation, jamb figures, right wall of the central door, western façade, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Reims, begun in 1211.

Nave, seen from the West, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Rouen, begun in 1145.

“Portail des libraires”, Notre-Dame Cathedral, Rouen, begun in 1145.

Ely Cathedral

The city of Ely, which is surrounded by flat moors that once separated it from the mainland, is dominated architecturally by its huge and imposing cathedral. This building is one of the most splendid creations of the Decorated Style. This magnificent edifice was begun in 1083 and rises on the ruins of an abbey that was dedicated to St. Etheldreda, but was destroyed by the Normans. In the twelfth century a Benedictine monastery was added to the building. On the night of 22 February 1322, the cathedral’s belfry collapsed. It was replaced by the only octagonal tower in England, the so-called “crown of Ely”, from original plans by Alan of Walsingham. This innovation, as well as the Lady Chapel that was added to the northern transept, represent the zenith of the Decorated Style.

Bristol Cathedral and Wells Cathedral

Also worthy of mention in regards to this style are the choirs of the cathedrals in Bristol and Wells (Illustrations 1, 2, 3, 4). From 1350 to 1520, the effusiveness of the Decorated Style was followed by the stricter geometrical Perpendicular Style with horizontal orientation. This was a completely independent English artistic expression, in some ways an English national style. The Perpendicular Style received its name from the use of vertical mullions for high, wide windows and walls, which gave the impression of a grid. A further feature of this style were the fan vault and, somewhat later, the lancet arches, ogee arches and the relatively flat Tudor arch, which made possible the wider windows that often covered the entire eastern side. The pointed arches were set into rectangular areas.

Gloucester Cathedral

The Perpendicular Style was first applied in the former Benedictine abbey at Gloucester in the fourteenth century (Illustrations 1, 2). The ambulatory shows the square grid that is so characteristic for this style. The eastern window, which is richly equipped with grid-like tracery, is the largest in England. Typical also is the fan vault of the cloister.

Notre-Dame-des-Doms Cathedral and Palace of the Popes, Avignon, 1335–1352.

Plan of Canterbury Cathedral, Canterbury.

Winchester Cathedral

The end of the fourteenth century and the construction of Winchester Cathedral saw a movement that went against the stylistic excess that was so atypical for the English character – and aimed for sobriety. The Perpendicular Style, which was used here for the first time, got its name from the grid-like mullions and members that replaced the tracery, particularly in the windows. Just as characteristic was the use of new arch forms, such as the narrowing ogee arch, which was unknown on the mainland, as well as the specifically English Tudor arch, which is flatter than the ogee arch.

Despite the return to straighter lines in the tracery, the wealth of decoration was not at all diminished; it was merely relegated to smaller rooms, to the chapter halls, which were added to the cathedrals, cloisters and smaller chapels. The most splendid building of this late period of English Gothic is the chapel of Henry VII in the choir at Westminster Abbey in London (1502–1526). Its fantastic vault shows the decorative abilities of the Gothic style at its highest level.

St. Peter Cathedral in Exeter

As so often in medieval buildings, the beautiful architecture of Exeter Cathedral demonstrates a mixture of building styles – a result of long lasting construction (Illustrations 1, 2). While the older towers of Norman style originate in the twelfth century, the western façade, which was built in the fifteenth century, is a typical example of Perpendicular Style. The cathedral was rebuilt between 1270 and 1369 as a Gothic monument with a Lady Chapel and a presbytery at the east end. Of the Norman construction only the two transepts were integrated into the high Gothic church. Particularly interesting is the western façade with an image screen in its lower part.

Gothic Secular Buildings

Many secular Gothic buildings were constructed in England as the population’s wealth increased. Such buildings include the colleges of Oxford and Cambridge; Westminster Hall in London (1393–1399), which was built by an unknown master builder; Winchester Castle (1232–1240), of which only one hall remains, and Hampton Court Palace (as of 1520). Many ortresses and castles also profess the Gothic secular style, as does the Tower of London, which was begun in 1078 and frequently enlarged, and declared a world heritage site of UNESCO in 1988.

Choir, Canterbury Cathedral, Canterbury, 1174–1184.

Nave, seen from the East, Westminster Abbey, London, 1245–1259.

Plan of Westminster Abbey, London.