CLAIRETS, Orne. Abbaye. This edifice, now in ruins, was erected at the commencement of the XIII century by the counts of Perche, according to Benoist. LAVERDINES, Cher. Église. Some of the piers of this ruined edifice of the XIII century still stand. MOTTEVILLE-LES-DEUX-CLOCHERS, Seine-Inférieure. Église. The choir is the only portion of the edifice that still retains something of its character of the XIII century. NEUVRE-LYRE, Eure. Église. The tower is of the XIII century. (Benoist.) PRÉAUX, Calvados. St. Séver. This church of the XIII and XIV centuries contains some good details. (De Caumont.) BOURGUEBUS, Calvados. Église is said to be early Gothic in style. BREUIL, Calvados. Église. The main body of the church is of the XIII century, but the porch before the main portal is flamboyant. (Benoist III, 70.) BROURAY, Calvados. Eglise is of the XIII and XIV centuries. (Benoist.) CROULTES, Orne. Prieuré. The conventual buildings of the XIV century. are still intact, but are of small importance. (De la Balle.) ÉCARDENVILLE-LA-CAMPAGNE, Eure. Eglise. The rectangular nave of the XIII century was much altered in the XVI century and in modern times. The tower has been destroyed. (De la Balle.) MARTIGNY, Calvados. Église seems to date from the second half of the XII century. LE-PLESSIS STE.-OPPORTUNE, Eure. Église. The square tower is of the first half of the XIII century. (De la Balle.) ROCQUES, Calvados. Église. The most ancient portions are of the XIII century, the porch is of the XVI century. ST.-LAURENT-SUR-MER, Calvados. Eglise of the XIII century is a very simple structure. (Benoist.) ST.-VICTOR-ABBAYE, Seine-Inférieure. Abbaye. Some fragments of the important church of the XIII century have been embedded in the present edifice, and the ancient chapter-house of the XII century is also extant. The latter is square in plan. (Benoist.) AUBRI, Orne. Église is in ruins. BRETTEVILLE, Calvados. Notre Dame seems to date from the XIII and XV centuries. (Benoist II, 31.) BELLÊME, Orne. Prieuré St. Martin. The slate spire and a few other fragments of XIII century architecture survive. (Benoist.) HAUTE-CHAPELLE, Orne. Église contains fragments of XIII century architecture embedded in the modern edifice. (Benoist.) MORTAGNE, Orne. Église de l'Hôpital contains fine Gothic windows filled with the original glass. (Benoist.) NEUILLY-LE-MALHERBE, Calvados. Eglise of little interest, dates perhaps from the XIII century. (De Caumont.) NOIRLAC, Cher. Abbaye. The church is said to be well preserved. ST.-RÉMY-DU-PLAIN, Sarthe. Eglise is of the XIV and XVI centuries. SORENG, Somme. Église dates from several different epochs. (Darsy.) VERRON, Sarthe. Église is a much ruined and very forlorn edifice. nave is supplied with three chapels. (De la Bouillerie.) VIELLES, Eure. ruined tower survive. The Église. Of this desecrated edifice the three aisles and a BARLIEU, Cher. Église has been almost entirely modernized. (De Kersers VII, 244.) LA POUPELIÈRE, Orne. Chapelle du Château dates perhaps from the early years of the XIV century. (De la Balle.) SEPT-VENTS, Calvados. Prieuré contains interesting details. (Benoist.) VALMERAY, Calvados. Église. Only the tower survives. (Benoist III, 33.) AUDRIEU, Calvados. Chapelle is of the XIII or XIV century. (Benoist.) CREVECOEUR, Orne. Chapelle. LUGNY-CHAMPAGNE, Cher. Eglise. The polygonal apse and the singleaisle nave have been recently vaulted and otherwise much modernized. (De Kersers VI, 307.) QUESNAY, Calvados. Église is an example of the style of the early Gothic period. (Benoist.) TOURY, Eure-et-Loire. Église is of the XIII century. LA CHALLERIE, Orne. Chapelle. The two windows are pointed. (Benoist.) COUDRES, Eure. Prieuré. This chapel is still in tolerable preservation. COULOMBS, Calvados. Église contains some fragments of XIII century architecture. (Benoist.) IVRY-LA-BATAILLE, Eure. Abbaye. Of the ancient church there survives only a single portal whose jambs and voussoirs are adorned with statues of saints and of angels. (De la Balle.) LAUNAY, Calvados. Eglise is of the XIII century. (Benoist.) PERRIÈRES, Calvados. Église is in part of the XIII century. (Benoist.) PIERREFITTE, Calvados. Eglise is of the XIII century. LES PONTS, Manche. Église is of various different epochs. STE.-HONORINE-DU-FAY, Calvados. Eglise. The nave is of the XIII century, the choir is modern. (De Caumont.) TORTEVAL, Calvados. Prieuré. Picturesque ruins of the chapel still survive. (Benoist.) VARAVILLE, Calvados. Église. Some portions are of the XIII century. BAGNOLLES-LES-BAINS, Orne. Chapelle de Lignoux is of unknown date. COUTERNE, Orne. Eglise is of no interest. (De la Balle.) ÉTERVILLE, Calvados. Église is for the most part modern, but contains some fragments of XIII century architecture. (De Caumont.) FRENOUVILLE, Calvados. Église is early Gothic in style, it is said. GUERBIGNY, Somme. Eglise is of the XIII century. MONTS, Calvados. Eglise is of the XIII century. MOUTIERS-EN-AUGE, Calvados. Two Churches. RAYMOND, Cher. Église. Portions of the walls are of the XIII century. (De Kersers IV, 134.) ROUVILLE, Calvados. Abbaye is completely ruined. ST.-JEAN-DU-CORAIL, Manche. Eglise has triangular transepts. (Be noist.) VACOGNES, Calvados. Église is perhaps of the XIII century. (De Cau mont.) MAIZET, Calvados. Église. A portion of the nave and the choir are of the XIII century. (De Caumont.) MONDRAINVILLE, Calvados. Eglise is said to be of the XIII century. (Benoist.) Other monuments in whole or in part of the Gothic period exist at, AUMÂTRE, Somme; BLOUTIÈRE, Manche; BREUVILLE, Manche; CHÂLIS, Oise; CHICHEBOVILLE, Calvados; COMMEAUX, Orne; CONDÉ-SUR-ITON, Eure; DEMOUVILLE, Calvados; DRAGEY, Manche; FOURNEAUX, Calvados; FRANCHEVILLE, Eure; FRETTEMEULE, Somme; HARCELAINE, Somme; JUVIGNI-SOUS-ANDAINE, Orne; MARTINVILLE, Calvados; MESNIL-GLAISE, Orne; MOIDREZ, Manche; MONTAUEL, Manche; MONTHIÈRES, Somme; MORTEAUX, Calvados; OUILLY-LE-BASSET, Calvados; RÉMALARD, Orne; ST.-ANTOINE-DE-ROCHEFORT, Sarthe; ST. CLAIR, Seine-Inférieure; ST.-JEAN-DE-LA-HAISE, Manche; STE.-MARGUERITEDE-L'AUTEL, Eure; ST.-OUEN-D'ATHEZ, Eure; TEURTEVILLE-BOCAGE, Manche; TILLY, Eure; TRANSLAY, Somme; TREPEREL, Calvados; VERGIES, Somme; VILLEDIEU-LES-BAILLEUL, Orne; WITAIN-ÉGLISE, Somme. CHAPTER X TH THE FLAMBOYANT STYLE HE origins of the flamboyant style are lost in obscurity. Born in the darkest hour of the Hundred Years' War a period so absorbed in its own material miseries that it has but seldom recorded such fitful architectural activity as existed and singularly neglected by archaeologists always preoccupied with the problems of an earlier age, the last phase of medieval art has left but few traces of its beginnings. Furthermore, paradoxical as it may seem, flamboyant architecture came into being at a moment when building activity in France especially in those northern and western portions exposed to constant desolation in the course of the wars was almost totally suspended. We know that architecture entered upon the last half of the XIV century Gothic, that it emerged flamboyant; but of the process of transformation it is possible to gather but singularly few details. Such facts as are known, are furnished chiefly by the abbey church of St. Satur, an authentically dated monument of 1361-67 and practically the only important extant example of the style of the last half of the XIV century. St. Satur (Ill. 235) is Gothic, not flamboyant; but it is Gothic of the last phase, already well started on the primrose path which the new style was destined to follow. The window tracery is still geometrical, but is evidently on the verge of assuming flowing forms. In the system the engaged colonnettes so characteristic of the style of the XIII century remain, but so increased in number and diminished in size, that they seem to possess a new character, while the pier spaces between, formerly smooth and cylindrical, are now covered with mouldings which show unmistakable tendencies to become prismatic and continuous. The capitals, instead of belonging to the whole pier, are bestowed separately on the colonnettes alone. Since each colonnette was similarly supplied with its own separate base, and since these bases were of considerable projection, the builders of St. Satur conceived these separate bases as interpenetrating, portions of two bases occupying the same place at the same time. The principle of the flamboyant interpenetrating moulding had come into being, and it was obviously only a short step to supply also the mouldings of the pier with separate bases, or otherwise to complicate the motive by a hundred possible variations. As the vault ribs of St. Satur are of the same size and section as the shafts on which they are carried, the vaulting capitals have consequently no structural function, and those later designs in which capitals are omitted altogether seem clearly foreshadowed. But with all these tendencies pointing in one direction, St. Satur still lacks the distinctive features of the flamboyant style. The ogee arch does not appear; the tracery is not flowing; the mouldings are not completely prismatic. 2 How, where, and when, these features so distinctive of the flamboyant style were introduced into French architecture, it is difficult to say. Prismatic mouldings, which seem to be in the process of evolution at St. Satur, may well have been developed independently in France, but the recent researches of M. Enlart have established the probability that the ogee arch1 and flowing tracery were imported from England. The case, however, is not altogether clear, for examples of the ogee arch occur in the porch of St. Urbain of Troyes a monument that, notwithstanding its advanced style, was begun in 1260, so that these arches, if they indeed belong to the original construction, must have been executed before the year 1300. But while the ogee arches of St. Urbain remained solitary and isolated examples, this feature became a common and distinctive 1 An ogee arch is one whose archivolt is a line of double curvature. 2 Flowing tracery is formed of mullions which assume “flame-like” lines of double curvature, instead of the geometric forms of earlier times. The above passage was written at the time of the very commencement of the controversy that has since raged on this subject. After having read the rebuttal of M. St. Paul, the reply of `M. Enlart and the surrebuttal of M. St. Paul I find, however, nothing in the above account which I wish to change. |