The Grand Cathedrals of the Middle Ages

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The Grand Cathedrals of the Middle Ages

• Melanie Lukas

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Outline

• Cathedrals
• Purpose
• Origin
• Impact
• Transition
• Romanesque architecture
• Gothic architecture
• Expansion
• Conclusion
• Immense wealth
• Pride in architectural glory
• Cathedrals today

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What is a cathedral?

• Church where residential bishop has his official
  seat or throne
• First built in towns as opposed to villages to
  accommodate the growing number of worshippers
• In every city it was a religious, intellectual,
  economic, charitable and artistic center

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The Origin

• c.980 the abbey of Cluny in Burgundy, France
  renovated their church, adding on extra chapels
• Others followed this example and extended their
  aisles to allow room for more chapels

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Purposes of the Cathedral

• Cathedrals became the essences of their cities
• Cathedral was open to everybody
• the Bible of the poor
• Source of entertainment
• Plays put on there
• Sculptures and artwork were an attraction

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The Impact

• Some men criticized the cathedral as a waste of
  energy and money
• Said the immense amount of money could have been
  used to fight poverty
• However, construction of the cathedrals brought
  job opportunities to the public
• Stonecutters, masons, carpenters, blacksmiths
  etc.

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The Expansion of the Cathedral

• Bishops grew in political and cultural
  importance, the cathedrals grew in stature
• Increase in population and prosperity, cities
  proclaimed their wealth through height and
  magnificence of their cathedrals
• Romanesque period (11th and 12th centuries) to
  the Gothic age (13th through 15th centuries) the
  cathedral was in state of evolution

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Romanesque Cathedrals

• The classic style influenced by the Romans in
  which cathedrals were first built
• Characteristics of the architecture
• The triple vault
• Rounded arches
• Massive pillars
• Small windows
• Simple, carved decoration

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The Speyer Cathedral in Germany A typical
Romanesque cathedral
The rounded arch
Small windows
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Transition to Gothic Cathedrals

• Transition spurred by introduction of 3
  architectural developments
• The flying buttress
• Arched masonry designed to transmit the thrust of
  a vault to a wall or an outer support
• The pointed arch
• Curved, self supporting structure used to span
  openings and to support a wall
• The rib or cross rib vault
• Arched masonry ceiling supported by skeleton of
  intersecting arched ribs

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Gothic Cathedrals (cont.)
3
4
A flying buttress
The Amiens Cathedral is an example of the pointed
arch and use of cross ribbing
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• The Chartres Cathedral in France
• An example of gothic architecture

Cathedrals became taller, broader, and large
stained glass windows appeared
The environment was more airy, colorful and light
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Grandeur of Architecture Escalates

• Decline of power in secular authorities,
  cathedrals expanded in height and width to
  symbolize power of the church
• Cathedrals began to be centered around money and
  competition
• Wealth and pride vs. faith
• The most significant building in Middle Age
  cities
• Main reason to visit a city/spend money
• Many cathedrals remained unfinished or collapsed
• The Beauvais Cathedral
• spire crashes in 1573

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Source of Revenue

• Money wealth surrounded the cathedral
• Cathedral district business flourished
• Cathedral became a source of revenue for the
  church
• A lot of money given to the construction from
  trade and donations
• Donators were promised a shorter amount of time
  suffering in purgatory

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Conclusion

• The magnificent cathedrals are often viewed as a
  reflection of the arrogant pride of the bishops
  who built them
• Considered by some a waste of energy and money
• However, they are architectural masterpieces that
  are as awe inspiring today as they were in the
  Middle Ages

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Notre Dame de Paris
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Beauvais Cathedral
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Bourges Cathedral
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Canterbury Cathedral
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Westminster Abbey
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The National Cathedral, Washington DC
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Picture Citations

• 1(front page) Salisbury Cathedral Twin Agent.
  (April 24, 2006.) http//www.twinagent.co.uk/image
  s/Logos-Images/salisbury/Salisbury-Cathedral.jpg
• 2 Speyer Cathedral Neagly, Linda. Rice
  University. (April 24, 2006). http//www.owlnet.ri
  ce.edu/hart205//Cathedrals/Exterior/speyer.ex.cho
  ir.jpeg
• 3 Flying Buttress Merriam Webster Online.
  (April 24, 2006). http//www.m-w.com/mw/art/flying
  bu.gif
• 4Amiens Cathedral Larmann, Ralph. University
  of Evansville. (April 25, 2006).
  http//faculty.evansville.edu/rl29/art105/sp04/art
  105-10.html
• 5 4 Amiens Cathedral Larmann, Ralph.
  University of Evansville. (April 25, 2006).
  http//faculty.evansville.edu/rl29/art105/sp04/art
  105-10.html
• 6 Notre Dame Marie Stuart Society. (May 2,
  2006). http//www.mariestuart.co.uk/France/NotreD
  ame.htm
• 7 Beauvais Cathedral The Catholic University
  of America Arts and Sciences. May 2, 2006).
  http//artssciences.cua.edu/gl/images/safran_slide
  s/Medieval_Art/13thCentury/BeauvaisCathedral.jpg
• 8 Bourges Cathedral Howe, Jeffrey. Boston
  College. (May 2, 2006). http//www.bc.edu/bc_org/a
  vp/cas/fnart/arch/gothic/bourges/bourges01.jpg
• 9Canterbury (May 2, 2006). http//p.vtourist.c
  om/1901620-CATHEDRAL-Canterbury.jpg
• 10 West Front of Westminster Abbey Westminster
  Abbey. (May 2, 2006). http//www.westminster-abbey
  .org/tour/martyrs/intro.htm
• 11Amerika, Washington (National Cathedral)
  (May 2, 2006). http//www.gargoyles.hobbysite.info
  /images/amerika,20washington,20national20cathed
  ral.jpg

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Bibliography

• Buttress. The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.
  2002. www.encyclopedia.com 4 Mar. 2006
  http//www.encyclopedia.com/html/b/buttress.asp
• Cathedral. Encyclopedia Britannica. 2006.
  Encyclopedia Britannica Online School Edition. 7
  Feb. 2006 http//schooleb.com/eb/article-9020803.
• Gies, Frances and Joseph. Cathedral, Forge and
  Waterwheel. New York Harper Collins Publishers,
  1994.
• Gothic Architecture World History Ancient
  Medieval. 2006. ABC-CLIO. 7 Feb. 2006
  http//www.ancienthistory.abc-clio.com
• Icher, Francois, Building the Great Cathedrals.
  Henry A. Adams, Inc. Publishers, 1998.
• Jacobs, Jay, ed. The Horizon Book of Great
  Cathedrals. New York American Heritage
  Publishing Co., 1968. With an introduction by Zoe
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• Simson, Otto von. The Gothic Cathedral. 3rd ed.
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