Page:A history of architecture on the comparative method for the student, craftsman, and amateur.djvu/276

 2l8 COMPARATIVE ARCHITECTURE. ii. Geological. — In these early times a rough use of the material at hand characterizes the style in each country, and will be referred to under the same. iii. Climate. — Local styles were favoured by the ^•ariations of climate north and south of the Alps, as referred to in each country. iv. Religion. — The Christian Church, which was the civilizing and educating agency of the period, was striving to extend its boundaries in Northern Europe, and the erection of a church was often the foundation of a city. The monastic communities, with the encouragement and aid of Charlemagne, came into existence. The papacy had been rising to great power and influence, and, directed with skill, it rivalled or controlled such civil government as existed. The Pragmatic Sanction (a.d. 554) had already conferred authority on the Bishops over the provincial and municipal governments, thus increasing the power of the Church, with which now often rested the nomination of public functionaries and judges. As East and West drifted apart their architecture developed on opposite lines, but architecture of Western Europe due to Eastern influence is classed as Byzantine. The different countries looked to Rome until each developed its own style. Religious enthusiasm and zeal prevailed, and was manifested in magnificent edifices, and in creed warfare, so that when the Turks overran Palestine, the loss of the Holy Places resulted in the long warfare known as the Crusades (1096-1270) between the Christians of the West and the Mahometans of the East. Until the middle of the twelfth century science, letters, art and enlightenment generally were the monopoly of religious bodies, and pupils of monks afterwards became the designers of many of the great Gothic Cathedrals. The feudal rank of bishops and abbots made them in some sense military chiefs, occasionally taking the field in person. Schools attached to certain monasteries discharged to some extent the functions of universities, as those at S. Gall, Tours, and Rheims, and the aid thus rendered by monastic institutions to archi- tecture was therefore important. Down to the thirteenth century, architecture was practised largely by the clergy and came to be regarded as a sacred science, as stated by Albert Lenoir in " I'Architecture Monastique." Dr. Jessop's " Daily Life of an English Monastery " is interesting as showing the life led by the monks, and may be studied with advantage. (For a description of the typical plan of a monastery see page 276.) Among the chief monastic orders were the following: — ■ (i.) The Benedictine order, founded in the South of Italy in the sixth century by S. Benedict, by whose decree architecture, painting, mosaic and all branches of art were taught. All the