St. Paul's Cathedral in London, England Essay

St Patricks Cathedral was designed by William Wardell, who also designed the Wardell building at Genazzano. St Patrick’s is well-known internationally for its stunning Gothic Architecture and it is one of the greatest buildings erected by the exponents of the Gothic-Revival style.

However, the only feature of the cathedral that is there today but was not added during the original construction was the stained glass windows which were made between 1912 and 1930. Paul Vincent, an English stained glass artist, was responsible for making the stained glass. Then, in 1927 and 1931, the cathedral went under renovations. According to the official website of the Archdiocese of New York, these renovations included a larger sanctuary and the introduction of the great organ. Many years down the road, in 1976, the cathedral was made a National Landmark.

This cathedral is important because it has changed the way that many people look at architecture by looking at new architectural features, structural defeats and architect’s modesty. “In 1194, the master-builder of Chartres outlined new principles which would inspire all the great architects of the 13th century…”—Chartres cathedral had “established several new architectural features never seen before (flying buttresses and the arches used) and pioneered new techniques for construction at high elevations above ground (…war machines… into hoisting cranes).” This would later change some of the

Plato’s “Myth of the Cave” and Carver’s Cathedral provide insight into parallel words. The protagonists in each story are trapped in a world of ignorance because each is comfortable in the dark, and fearful of what knowledge a light might bring. They are reluctant to venture into unfamiliar territory. Fortunately the narrator in the Cathedral is forced by circumstances to take a risk. This risk leads him into new world of insight and understanding.

In doing so, he looks at the relationship between Henry III and the main architect, Master Henry. He looks at the background of Master Henry and the suggestion that he might have been French, but takes great care to refute this claim based the the architectural elements of the cathedral itself. In doing so, he critiques Master Henry’s mastery of the essential elements of the French Gothic style of the period, saying that someone French trained would have a much stronger grasp of the style than what is exhibited in Westminster Abbey. He explains that King Henry III also wouldn’t have been able to attest to the style with any authority because he had never seen a French High Gothic of Rayonnant style cathedral in person himself. Wilson credits the deviations from the French design to the lack of exposure both these men had to the French examples

The shift brought the transformation of thick columns to much thinner and “lighter” columns (Blankenbehler). However, before this architectural movement can begin, Abbot Suger struggled to reconstruct and synthesize the style of the ancient building with his ideas of modern designs. He knew that the freshness of these new designs would bring beauty and spaciousness. He wanted people to be amazed at the transformation of the once small, but soon to be large and wide feel of the basilica. To create the wide feel, Abbot Suger issued the ceiling to have a complicated web of interlocked and pointed vaults. He also chose to have arches with points so that the basilica would not need thick walls to support the arch. Thick walls would make the interior look crowded and small, something Suger did not want. By having the pointed arches, those would take the weight of the ceiling and distribute the weight across rather than being pulled down. This allowed for thin and elegant looking columns, for they were able to support the ceiling because the weight of it was dispersed. He envisioned the structure to have high ceilings, which would be supported with thinner columns (Birth of the Gothic: Abbot Suger and the Ambulatory at St. Denis). Suger also brought in the idea of having tall towers so that the building would look like it was reaching for the heavens. By reaching the heavens, it brought this concept of being closer to God and reassuring the people’s

Christopher Wren’s architecture was greatly influenced by the architecture before him. Medieval and baroque architecture especially. Baroque architecture is tall arches long hallways and grand entrances and rooms. Almost everything is covered in gold and intricate designs. There are often mirrors and windows lining the walls. At the entrance there are usually roman columns. Art and tapestries cover everything as well. Every the entire building is symmetrical making it look visually pleasing. The medieval architecture had tall arches and spires throughout the building. The spires were tall symbolizing to look to God not the world. These attributes among others influenced Wren’s designs. In fact wren said, “The secret of architectural excellence is to translate the proportions of a dachshund into bricks, mortar and marble.” (Geraghty 2).

It is human nature to shy away from social situations that make us uncomfortable. Also, as a people with great pride, we often find it difficult to admit when we have been iniquitous, or to allow ourselves to be open to humbling experiences. Sometimes though, it is not entirely due to intolerance that we allow ourselves to make ill-informed judgments. Raymond Carver was a writer with some insight concerning these very ideas. In his short story, “Cathedral,” Carver uses a nameless narrator and his interactions with a blind man to illustrate how a lack of experience can lead to ignorance and thus prejudice. Through the development of this character,

William S Niven designed in 1886 what will be later called the Thames Cathedral, or St. Albans Church. It was commissioned by the then vicar Rev. Francis Leith Boyd. The construction of the new parish was needed after the railway line contributed to an exponential increase of the population. Its construction was made thanks to an extensive fundraising by the parishioners and the first foundation stone was laid in 1887. Niven designed the Church in the French Gothic style which in those years was a very popular style. All structural details are similar to the Parisian Cathedral, with very few exceptions, like the absence of Gargoyles (Mythological figures used to keep water away from the facade). Similarity we can find in the construction but

Wren creates a project for a radical redevelopment of the city, rejected, however, by the reactionary authorities. At the same time, Wren received the order for the construction his the most monumental structure of the St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and rebuilding burned churches, of which he built more than

I also thought it was interesting to learn that the abbey church of Saint Dennis was the first introduction of Gothic architecture. Another interesting thing that I wanted to point out was, that many of the churches, including the abbey church of Saint Dennis and the Chartres Cathedral, "had lengthy construction histories" (Kleiner 379). But, one church, in particular, had a fairly quick construction time frame. The Laon Cathedral, pictured below, is an example of a church that began construction around 1160 and the construction was quickly completed, by 1200. Besides, Gothic architectural features, the Laon Cathedral also demonstrates some Romanesque features, including, "nave bays with large sexpartite rib vaults" (Kleiner 379). The textbook

All over the world, people still come to admire the beauty of European cathedrals. Many of the cathedrals are fragile due to age, neglect, pollution, and insufficient funds available to restore these historical and magnificent buildings. Nevertheless, visitors to these architectural masterpieces are fascinated by the design and structure of these churches. The cathedral builders using their own ingenuity, expertise, and limited resources were able to defy the laws of gravity and time. (Icher 30)

The Catholic Church began using these new mathematical principles to build their cathedrals. The cathedrals were a challenge to the capabilities of the civilization at that time and inspired competition between the Dioceses to see who could build the most outstanding cathedral. This inspired an explosion in art and technology, and was responsible for creating art in the form of structure. The Cathedrals were also status symbols. Towns and cities would build them to show how successful they were. The more elaborate the Cathedral, the more successful the town or city. This gave rise to the Gothic architectural style, which developed simultaneously across England, France, Germany, and Italy. The countries developed their own distinctive technique of Gothic design, which I shall compare and contrast

Reims Cathedral was built within the Marne department of the Champagne-Ardenne region between the years 1212-1300. However, Reims genesis dates back to 496 AD as a previous cathedral once occupied the land on which the new cathedral was built upon. A fire destroyed the original cathedral structure on May 6th, 1210. 2 years after the fire, it was decided to initiate work on the construction of the new, cathedral that exists to this present day. This second cathedral is in the French gothic style and was designed to be much more capacious in contrast to its fire- destroyed predecessor. ”The nave and aisles of the western arm are broadened out in the eastern arm.” This logic permitted larger crowds to attend coronation ceremonies. The cathedrals predominant function is a place of worship under the denomination of Roman Catholics. An assembly of architects participated in the design over a period of 7 centuries due to adaptations and refinements materialised to its design. Such names consist of Jean d 'Orbais (1175-1231); responsible for the first initial design work of the cathedral, Henri Deneux (1874-1969); who laboured over the architectural restoration of Reims after bombing raids in WW1, Bernard de Soissons (birth date and death date unknown) noted as a participant with Jean in the initial design work of the cathedral. One fundamental aspect explored by studying Reims Cathedral is the quality of natural light and how it is affected by its both artistic and

Although it does resemble Gothic architecture, it does so in a unique way that is characteristic of the architect Antoni Gaudi (The Sagrada Familia). However, Gaudi’s masterpiece does not follow the definition of Gothic style architecture. “This new architecture, based on the precision of geometry, can be effectively adapted to the new graphic and building technologies. As a consequence, the quality of the works in the Sagrada Familia increases clearly as the construction processes technology is improved. This project is therefore advanced for its time and is also very suitable to the technologies of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries” (Aguado et al., 94). Gaudi believes that the inside of La Sagrada Familia should be left strictly for worship and the outside should tell the story of the Catholic faith. The story that Gaudi wishes to portray can be told by the towers, the east entrance, and the west entrance, which all resemble different aspects of the life of Jesus Christ. This is uncharacteristic of Gothic style cathedrals and basilicas because there are usually small chapels inside the church that explain the stories that relate to Catholicism. Gaudi also has a unique style of architecture that uses geometry to create pillars, columns, arches, as well as allow more light to enter his Gothic style building that had never been seen before. His unique take on the Gothic style was