ENGLISH MEDIAEVAL ARCHITECTURE Hugh Braun, F.S.A., .R.I.B.A. I NEl ( )l all hei national treasures, the m< liaeval cathedrals ofEngland are undoubtedlythe most universally prized. The statelinessof incoln, thegrandeurofDurham, the piled I gloriesofEl) - these evoke sensations of wonderand awe in allwhogaze upon them. Even by modern standards, theirscale is enormous, theirheight overpowering. Yet theywere all built more than six hundred yearsago by (raftsmen,without theaidof modern materials, powertools orscientific alculation. ( The methods, techniquesand styles of mediaeval building-from cathedrals to private houses-areclearlyand authorita- tivelydescribed in this superblyillustrated bookbyanauthorwith theexperteyeofan architect. # HistoricalArchitecture-theinternational evolutionofbuildings,from prehistoric wooden andmud-brickconstruction, to the increasingly sophisticatedand ambitiousconstructionsoftheEgyptians, Greeksand Romans # EnglandintheMiddleAges-the flowering ofAnglo-Saxon England, thecomingof the Normansand thereligiousorders, andtheconstructionofcastles, monasteriesand manorhouses # MediaevalBuilders-the 'wrights', the carpenters, thejoinersandthemasons: theirroles, toolsand methods # TheDevelopmentofDesign-lightingand windows, the stylesofbuttresses,parapets andarches # Churches-thedevelopmentof theChristian temple,and theinternal arrangementofchancel, naveandapse # GreaterChurches-abbeys, monasteries andcathedralsand thecomplexmaster- piecesofmediaeval architecture # TheHall-the mostimportantsecular buildingofthe MiddleAges # PrivateHouses-theirevolution from timberstructures to town houses, innsand palaces # MonasticHouses-the Benedictine influence, the remoteCistercian monasteries; practicallyallwere destroyed byHenryVIII-'the greatest architectural tragedyofthiscountry' # Castles- the most durableofmediaeval buildings and only renderedobsoletein the sixteenth centurywith the intro- duction o( cannon Continuedon hack /f<i/> With morethan 250 photographs,line drawingsand plans I -eril•lu'sotvreatrioinl:luSsttroaktieosna:yBCaatsttlleeA;bcboeuyr;tecsoyurStteespyheA.nA. Evans |S|',\ I 'IM W2 4 £16.00 ENGLISH MEDIAEVAL ARCHITECTURE A mason ofWestminster at work in his lodge ENGLISH MEDIAEVAL ARCHITECTURE Hugh Braun F.S.A., F.R.I.B.A. Bracken Books LONDON First published 1951 by Faberand Faber Limited asAnIntroduction toEnglishMediaevalArchitecture This edition published 1985 by Bracken Books adivision ofBestsellerPublications Limited, Brent House, 24 Friern Park, North Finchley, London NT2 9DA © andcopyright Bracken Books 1985. All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form orby any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording orotherwise, without the priorpermission ofthe publishers. ISBN 94649542 4 Printedand bound by R.J. Acford, Chichester, England. Preface to Second Edition 1951, when this book was first published, the professional archaeo- In logist had almost lost interest in the study of mediaeval buildings and was becoming more and more involved in Romano-British and prehistoric sites. The archaeological 'dig' had become a popular way of spendingasummerholiday. The excavation of mediaeval sites was being left for the most part to the Minister of Works in whose care so many great memorials of the Middle Ages are now vested. More recently, however, archaeological departments of universities have begun to transfer their interest away from the prehistoric towards the mediaeval. But although one's knowl- edge of individual buildings such as Cirencester Abbey or Ludgershall Castle has been expanded, few important fresh discoveries of general significance have been added. Exceptions are Mr. Philip Rahtz's work on the Saxon palace at Cheddar and Mr. Martin Biddle's exploration of the badly-robbedfoundationsofthe OldMinsteratWinchester. Literature has benefited by the publication of Margaret Wood's monumental work on The English Mediaeval House (1965) and docu- mentation has been elaborately dealt with in Salzmann's Building in England (1952) and in their contribution to the History of the King's Works by R. A. Brown, H. M. Colvin, and A. J. Taylor. Two valuable papers on mediaeval priests' houses by W. A. Pantin appeared in Volumes I and III of the Journal of the Society for Mediaeval Archaeo- logy, founded in 1957. With the aid of these and other published sources, and by the con- tinuation of his own researches, the author has revised the text of his book and added an appendix in extension of this. In doing so he has been assisted by the commentsofMr. John Harvey. All superior numbers in the text refer to the numbered notes in the Appendix beginningon page 286.