The ecclesiastical architecture of Scotland from the earliest Christian times to the seventeenth century; vol. 2/3

by David MacGibbon; Thomas Ross

PREFACE.

As this Volume contains drawings and descriptions of the examples of the First Pointed and Middle Pointed Periods in Scotland, and, therefore, illustrates the finest of our mediæval edifices, it may be convenient at this stage to consider the position these buildings occupy in relation to the general system of Gothic architecture in other countries. There can scarcely be any question as to the Gothic style having been imported into, and not being native to, this country. We have already seen that the Norman style was gradually introduced from England, and was afterwards superseded by the transition style. The buildings of the first pointed period also show unmistakable indications of their design having been brought from England,[1] while those of the middle pointed period, although clearly allied in style to English examples, exhibit in their details a few signs of other influences. Although many of our Scottish edifices contain much beautiful work, and all are full of interest, it must be admitted that even the best examples of Gothic in this country cannot claim to give full expression to the fundamental principles of the Gothic style as developed in its native home, the Royal Domain of France.

The style being here an exotic, and being carried out rather as imitative than as original, it is naturally to be expected that it should disclose symptoms of departure from the spirit which animated those by whom it was wrought out and developed. And that is, in fact, the case.

Notwithstanding the beauty of many of our larger and finer edifices, such as Holyrood and Melrose Abbeys, and Glasgow, Dunblane, and Elgin Cathedrals, evidence is wanting in the design of these edifices of a full appreciation of the leading principles which inspired and guided the architects of the Ile de France. The Scottish buildings represent the echo rather than the original voice of the genius of Gothic architecture.

The principal aim of the French architects of the latter half of the twelfth century and during the thirteenth century was to produce structures in which the arcuated or vaulted system of building should be developed to its fullest extent. With these architects the vaulted construction of the roof thus became the ruling element in the design, all the other features being wrought out so as to be supplementary to, and indicative of, the principles of the arcuated style. Every detail was designed so as to fulfil its structural function in subordination to that general idea. Thus the ribs of the vaults formed the framework on which the vaulting panels rested, and conveyed the pressures created by the weight of the roof to the points where these pressures were all concentrated on the capitals of the wall shafts. From that point the forces so concentrated were distributed, the vertical pressure being conveyed downwards by the wall shafts to the foundations, and the horizontal thrusts being counterbalanced by buttresses and flying buttresses, which performed their share of the work by carrying these forces obliquely to the ground. These primary features were the skeleton which constituted the main elements of the building. They formed a structure in stable equilibrium, which was independent of the filling in of the walls, with windows, doors, and other details. The latter were but the clothing and ornamentation of the main structural framework, and in the completed style (as at Amiens Cathedral), all superfluous masonry is abolished, and the spaces between the main structural elements are enclosed with screens of tracery. The Gothic structure was thus a composition in complete contrast with the Romanesque or Norman edifices which preceded it. In the latter, although arching and even vaulting were employed, the arched system of construction was in an elementary state, and the inert mass of the walls was chiefly relied on as a counterpoise to the thrusts of the arches.

It was not till the end of the twelfth and during the thirteenth century that the Gothic system had been fully worked out by the French architects. The arcuated principle had then been developed in a complete and logical manner, and had entirely freed itself from the heavy and unnecessary mass of the earlier Romanesque. Nothing was preserved except the lightest framework required for stability, enclosed with screens of tracery filled with stained glass. Every detail of the fully developed Gothic style was designed on the same logical principles as the leading structural features, and gave expression in its design to the function it was required to fulfil,[2] while the whole building was so ornamented as to be in complete harmony with the general idea.[3]

In England the details of the perfected Gothic, especially as regards decorative features, were carried out somewhat in the same spirit as in France, but the leading elements in the general design do not seem to have been so fully understood or carried out. The adherence to wooden roofs—a common and general practice in England—alone shows the difference in the guiding principles which operated in the two countries. The wooden roof is a complete departure from the leading element of the arcuated style. It shows an inclination to fall back on the ancient trabeate or horizontal beam system, from which it had been the great object of the earlier mediæval architects to free their designs. The wooden roof ignores the leading idea of a vaulted fireproof covering, and abandons the principle of the concentration of the roof pressures on particular points, as is the case in groined vaulting. No doubt a wooden roof may be designed so as to throw a greater amount of its pressure on some points than on others, but the principle of the wooden roof is that of the tie beam and the distribution of the weight over the side walls.

The actuating motive of Gothic design in the main feature of the vaulting being thus lost sight of in England, it is not surprising to find it inactive in other directions. The Romanesque element of massive walls, with small windows, is likewise partially adhered to, and in details also the guiding principle of French design is in some respects abandoned. The round form of the abacus—so universally employed in England—may be cited as a characteristic example of departure from the Gothic principle.