Romanesque Architecture Architectural History ACT 322 Doris Kemp

Topics Carolingian Pre-Romanesque Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Romanesque Architecture Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque After the move of the seat of the Roman Empire to Constantinople, the Greco-Roman culture went into collapse Latin was displaced as the common language Disintegration of Roman law Cessation of urban life A major decline in monumental art and architecture

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque Charlemagne King of the Franks who vowed to restore the Roman culture to its height Crowned Holy Roman Emperor by the Roman pope on Christmas Day, 800 A.D. Carolingian Renaissance Latin for Charles the Great (Charlemagne) Renewal of the Latin language, literature, art, and architecture Birth of Pre-Romanesque architecture

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque Architecture looked back to Rome in its glory days The style was never recaptured despite the effort Structures were reinterpretations of antiquity, forward-looking and innovative Non-Roman qualities of abstraction, fragmentation, and volumetric energy

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Traits of Carolingian Pre-Romanesque structures: Strongly defined spatial units Chains of modular construction fragmentation

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Palatine Chapel c. 796 – 805 Located at Charlemagne's palace at Aachen Domed Double-shelled Two-storied octagon plan Monumental façade

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Palatine Chapel Reminiscent of early Christian and Byzantine Architecture Was a rebuilt version of S. Vitale One of the most impressive of late antique Roman structures Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures St. Riquier Transformed the fundamental concept of the early Christian basilica More complex, composed of many independent group formations Powerful vertical massings at both ends

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Gatehouse/Torhalle Located in Lorsch, Germany c. 767 – 774 Saddle-roofed central block flanked by twin vertical stair towers Features a chapel originally dedicated to St. Michael Resembles Roman triumphal arches Two-storied facades Richly ornamented

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Germigny-des-Pres Located on the Loire River c. 806 Reflects the influences of both Byzantium and Islam Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures Photo: Sullivan

Carolingian Pre-Romanesque: Structures The main aspects of the standard monastery were conceived during the Carolingian period St. Gall plan Ideal architectural plan of a traditional monastery Was never built Plan included: A small city featuring a medical center and a cemetery U-shaped corridor to provide orderly traffic flow

Romanesque Architecture Charlemagne’s death in 814 led to a dark century for Europe due ton invaders Slavic, Magyar, Arab pirates, and Vikings When the invasions ceased economic conditions improved Cultural revival and religious enthusiasm brought about a wave of church-building

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Imperial Romanesque (Germany) Antithetical tendencies Conservative and nostalgic Looked back fondly to the works of Charlemagne Inventive and progressive Drew on early Christian, imperial Roman, and Byzantine models

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Munster Cathedral Located in Essen, Germany Late 10th century Retrospective, loosely based on St. Riquier and St. Gall Freedom in design and energy that contrast with the perfectionist spirit of the cathedral’s Byzantine models and the determination of Charlemagne's architecture

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Photo: Sullivan

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy St. Michael’s Cathedral Located at Hildesheim, Germany More contemporary style than at Munster Square schematic c. 1001 - 1033 Photo: Sullivan

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Imperial Cathedral of Speyer Located in Speyer, Germany c. 1030 – 1060 Built by Emperor Konrad II Impressive wall articulation Crucial for the development of Romanesque architecture Wall shaped into powerful multilayer configuration

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Photo: Sullivan

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Norman Romanesque In the early tenth century the Vikings settled in Normandy, France Buildings in Normandy were crucial to the development in France

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Mont-Saint-Michael Medieval shrine in Normandy, France Norman counterpart to the Speyer Cathedral in Germany Photo: Sullivan

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Abbey Church of Notre Dame de Jumieges Notable for the immense height of its crossing tower Facade was derived from Carolingian westwork tradition Central structure was set forward between twin bases of square towers that rise as octagons above lines of the roof Set precedence for the twin-towered facades that dominated the exteriors of the major French Gothic cathedrals

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Photo: Sullivan

Romanesque Architecture: Early Romanesque in Germany and Normandy Photo: Sullivan

References Sullivan, Mary; http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/ http://www.brynmawr.edu/Acads/Cities/wld/wdpt1.html Trachtenburg/Hyman; Architecture: From Prehistory to Postmodernity Wodehouse/Moffett; A History of Western Architecture

Romanesque Architecture Architectural History ACT 322 Doris Kemp