Gothic Church Persuasive Essay

With Christianity spreading along the Mediterranean, Christina congregations needed buildings to accommodate large number of converts. Constantine, the first Christina emperor decided to build the Basilica of San Peter on the Vatican Hill in Italy Rome in an area that had been formerly a cemetery where according to the traditions Peter was crucified. The principal portion of the Basilica, the nave was very long. Two aisles ran along the side of the nave making it wider. In the west part of the Basilica, the nave rose in to a clerestory. Attached to the nave was a cross arm, such a resemblance of that of a cross became deeply symbolic for early Christians. Though Basilica of San Peter was derivate from imperial Basilicas, some modifications were incorporated to accommodate the needs of Christians. The entrance of the basilica was from one end, placing the altar at the other end of the basilica in the semicircular apse. The entrance consisted of a propylon preceding to an atrium with colonnades.

Byzantine, Hagia Sophia, Constantinople. One of the most …show more content…
In France alone, eight were built. The cathedral of Amiens replaced an old church that was destroyed by a fire. Many of the characteristics like pointed arches, broken rib vaults, and flying buttresses were incorporated in Notre-Dame de Amiens, reaching the stage called High gothic. Some of the principal changes in Amiens was the size of choir having as many bay units as the nave. The interior of Note-Dame de Amiens consisted of side aisles covered with rib vaults. The piers opened up by the clerestory windows. Another characteristic of Amiens is the network of thin colonnettes in the clerestory piers, emphasizing the vertical reach of the Gothic cathedral. The vaults and the nave contribute to an optical illusion since all the elements of the design reach upwards. By reaching higher walls Amiens was able to infuse more