was built by a monk, and about the same time the Bishop of Paris began the eastern end of the Church of Notre Dame in Paris, but many interruptions and great delays prevented the completion of the church for two centuries. Cotemporary with these structures were the eastern end of the Cathedral of Lyons, and the great Church of St. Nicholas at Amiens. The thirteenth however, century, was the brightest period of ecclesiastical architecture in France. As has been truly said by the author of the "Ecclesiastical Antiquities of France," when describing the buildings of this period: "Everything seemed to conspire in the circumstances of the nation and of the world to produce an interval favorable for the cultivation of the arts; and genius and talents were not wanting to make use of the happy opportunity. The thirteenth century found the French artists a numerous and protected body, in possession of a new and beautiful style of building; the religious enthusiasm of VOL. IX.-7 CATHEDRAL OF REGENSBURG. CATHEDRAL OF BURGOS. the times, formed by the spirit of the Crusades, was at its height, and the throne of France was filled by monarchs equally distinguished by their piety and magnificence. The dissensions between the barons and their sovereign which agitated England during the greater part of this century, increased the power, and ensured the tranquility of France. Thus were external circumstances no less favorable to the prevailing taste, and its triumph was proportionably brilliant. The most sumptuous churches which now adorn the French cities are the work of this age; and while their extraordinary beauty renders them interesting objects of curiosity, the accurate knowledge we are able to acquire of their dates and the names of their architects is singularly important to the illustration of our own antiquities and the general history of Gothic Architecture." During this century churches were built in great numbers in France, and chief among them was the great Cathedral at Rheims which by some enthusiastic critics has been pronounced the finest Gothic church in exist ence. As early as A.D. 1330, the decline of Pointed Architecture had commenced in France and for two hundred years there were few indications of genius presented among the architects of the country. The invasion of France by English armies that penetrated the heart of the country, the divisions and strifes of the nobles, the defeats of the monarchs, the want of means, the great depression of industry and the insecurity that prevailed on every side will account for the stagnation and decline of art which marked the history of France in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. As the peasantry were drafted from the soil, the citizens in towns were burdened with taxes, and whole districts were laid waste, and as the sovereigns were compelled to use their finances on fortifications instead of objects of taste and art, it is no wonder that architecture then declined. It has been stated in these papers that French and English churches have features in common; but in certain respects they are characteristically PRINCIPAL FRONT OF THE CATHEDRAL OF NOTRE DAME, PARIS. In the northern part of France cathedrals have almost universally an octagonal or semicircular apse at the east end, whereas in English churches the east end is generally finished by a regular gable, having as in York, Lincoln, Carlisle, Gloucester and elsewhere, a magnificent eastern window; and in Ely, the Cathedral at Glasgow, the Temple Church in London, the Abbey Church, Romsey, and similar buildings, a flat gable with early pointed windows of the period when they were built. With a few excep- the Abbey at Bath and similar gow, the steeple rising grandly out of the mass of the central tower, carries the eye upwards and forms a lofty crown to the whole edifice. Some of the French cathedrals have double aisles on CATHEDRAL AT AMIENS. churches the lofty massive central towers give each side of the nave, and this presents the apcharacter to these edifices. Winchester and West-pearance of greater breadth and spaciousness; but minster Abbey, notwithstanding their great length, suffer from the low dumpy form of the central towers, which do not satisfy the eye; while at Salisbury, Lichfield, Chichester, Norwich, Glas while some of the French churches are wider, they are usually shorter than the English cathedrals. In one important feature the French excel the English churches. They are much loftier, and height is an essential element of beauty in all the | Decorated, the tracery in the heads of French winperiods of the Pointed style; so also the circular or wheel windows over the western portals and in the transepts of French churches are usually CATHEDRAL AT RHEIMS. larger and much more elaborate than similar openings in English structures. Changes of style took place in France in the same order as in England, and during the period of the English dows assumed the forms known as the Flamboyant, the lines flowing into each other and then opening out again, and thus resembling the appearance of a flame. Chief among the great French churches are the Cathedrals of Amiens, Rheims and Rouen, and they all deserve the attention and study of amateurs. Amiens, on the way from Boulogne to Paris is, quite accessible to American and English travellers. It bears a similar relation to other French churches that Salisbury does to later English churches. That is, it was built all in one style and in a comparatively small number of years, being begun in A.D. 1220 and entirely finished in the same century. Externally it is far from being attractive, for it presents the appearance of a great huge square mass but little broken by the low turrets and spire, while the roof is about two hundred feet high; owing to the manner in which private houses enclose it, a good external view can only be had on the south side. On the west three enormous portals greatly enriched lead to the interior, and three porches are constructed on the south side, the principal one being at the end of the transept. The sculptures on these porches and on the western façade cover the walls, which are ex ceedingly elaborate, with niches, statues and pinnacles, the flying buttresses being very conspicuous and profusely ornamented with carving. An idea of the character of the roof may be |