Byzantine

This style takes its name from the Byzantine Empire, the eastern half of the Roman Empire which continued for a thousand years after the western half had fallen to the Barbarians. Established in what is modern-day Turkey, the Emperor Constantine moved his capital from Rome to Byzantium in 306 CE and renamed it Constantinople. It remained the capital of the Byzantine Empire until it was reconquered by the Turks in 1453. (The name Constantinople was changed to Istanbul in 1919.)

Byzantine architecture is sumptuous and heady, as befits its Oriental origins. It makes use of luxurious materials, like marble and mosaic, as well as rich colours. One of its characteristic motifs is the use of the round dome over a square base. Concave triangular supports known as squinches enable the dome to fit over the square plan. This was used at Sacré-Coeur. Another example of a Byzantine style building is the St-Alexandre-Nevsky Cathedral.

Gothic

Also known as the Perpendicular style, the French not only invented Gothic but also created the most beautiful sub-genre of it, known as Rayonnant. It was developed in the early 12th century at the Basilique St-Denis just north of Paris. The Abbot Suger wanted to enlarge his church and had parts of it rebuilt in a new and innovative style.

This was based on the desire to allow

as much light to enter the building as

possible. By replacing the heavy masonry

walls of the church with slender columns,

it allowed for much larger windows. Other

structural innovations, such as the pointed arch

and the flying buttress, also reduced the need

for massive walls.

These structural and decorative innovations

helped to create the first Gothic building, and the

Basilique St-Denis is regarded as the prototype of the

Rayonnant style. Its interior is free of columns, while its

large windows help to create a sensation of airiness and

lightness, something that characterised this stunning new

style and which was quickly copied throughout Europe. The

Sainte-Chapelle is another excellent example of this style.

By about the 16th century the Gothic style was dying out,
the rediscovery of Classical architecture during the Renaissance

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