The major motivators of art and architecture in the middle ages were those organizations with the most money to spare – the early church and the royal families.

In terms of architecture, the early church was trying to separate itself from what was known as the religious building – the temples of old Greece and Rome. These buildings had to have a path for processional entry and exit, an alter for mass could be celebrated, a space to separate the clergy from the congregation, and they had to be indoors – perhaps in response to the early secrecy surrounding Christianity.

Early Churches were reminiscent of the early basilicas – with columns running the length of the building, forming the barriers. But it was not the early churches of Rome that are the most advanced architecturally; it was, instead, the Byzantine churches. It was in these churches that you see the first use of pendentive domes –a highly sophisticated answer to the problem of placing a circular dome on a square or rectangular room by using concave triangles in the supports. Once the pendentive dome was established, Byzantine architects realized they could easily put an additional, protruding dome on top.

Another feature of these Byzantine churches was the addition of the ambulatory. This allowed the increase of those on pilgrimages to flow around the edges of the church, viewing each of the church’s relics, without disturbing masses for the regular congregation.

From about 500-700 C.E. the western world made very little advancement, especially in architecture. Rome had fallen and Europe wasn’t sure which direction to take. It took the vision of Charles the Great, also known as Charlemagne, who realized that the idea of the Roman Empire did not die as that empire fell. Instead, he envisioned a way back to Rome – not the way it had been at the fall, but in a newer, better form. He focused on his military conquests, but he also demanded a revival of Roman culture – including its architecture. It wasn’t the pure Roman form; instead it mixed a contemporary idea with the historic Roman ideal.

The Pre-Romanesque style demanded by Charlemagne lead into the Romanesque period throughout Europe. This period was, much like the Pre-Romanesque of Charlemagne’s time, looking forward, and, in a completely opposite tendency, also looking longingly towards earlier times. The Romanesque style took many forms, but one of the most well known examples is the Campanile, or bell tower, at Pisa, affectionately nicknamed the “Leaning Tower.”

After a century of this return to all things Roman, we move into another famous form – the Gothic style. The Gothic style is named after the Goths, who were blamed by Renaissance writers for Rome’s downfall, and for plunging the Western world into the “Dark Ages.” The term went through several iterations, but it eventually came to be defined by its architecture – mysterious, primal, based on the wild images of barbarian tribes – highly structural, highly visual, and highly symbolic.

There are many key elements of Gothic architecture. The rib vault, which is similar to a barrel vault, but is characterized by not only the transverse arches, but by diagonal arches, and is considered symbolic of the body’s ribs. The flying buttress, or arched supports seen on the sides of very tall gothic walls are another element. The final, and perhaps the most identifiable element, is the pointed arch. This not only helps to equalize the forces in the arch, but it also is visually lighter since it points the eye upwards.

The first coherent examples of Gothic architecture are found near Paris, the cathedral Notre Dame de Paris being one of them, though the style spread quickly. The facades of these cathedrals are highly unique and decorative, including copious amounts of extremely detailed stained glass.

As the Gothic style progressed, we see even more decoration. The rib vault becomes more than just single lines – they now flow across the ceilings in intricate patterns.

It is very easy to see how these beautiful, yet highly mysterious, buildings have captured imaginations for centuries.