Architecture, Early and Medieval

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Architecture, Early and Medieval

The study of Irish architecture in the medieval period divides naturally into two broad phases. The earlier period began with the conversion of Ireland to Christianity in about 400 c.e. and ended in the twelfth century, when the impact of new styles from Europe and western England became commonplace. After the Anglo-Norman invasion in 1169, the pace of change accelerated largely because of English influence. The initial prosperity of the Anglo-Norman colony led to a steady increase in the building of churches, monasteries, and castles, which was only halted by the economic decline of the later thirteenth century and the calamities of the fourteenth. What emerged subsequently was a distinctive style in ecclesiastical and military architecture, modest in scale but unusual in character, which lingered until the seventeenth century in places.

The Early Period

No architecture survives from the missionary period of the fifth and early sixth centuries, but we can infer that dedicated places of Christian worship were constructed and that these were probably of wood. Contemporary domestic architecture favored round wooden houses, but churches were probably rectangular. The earliest extended description of an Irish church occurs in the life of Saint Brigit of Kildare, written in the late seventh century. It describes a large church catering to a double monastery of males and females, divided longitudinally, with what appears to have been a kind of chancel screen hung with images. Flanking the altar were the tombs of Saint Brigit and Bishop Conlaed, over which were suspended crowns. Some idea of the appearance of a complete timber church can be gleaned from the Temptation page of the Book of Kells, where the Temple of Jerusalem is shown in the manner of an Irish church with a shingled roof and gabled finials. Miniature versions of churches form the finials of high crosses and are clearly also the models for the portable metalwork reliquaries known as house-shaped shrines.

There are hints that some churches may have been made of stone as early as the seventh century—the place name Duleek in County Meath means "stone church." Churches of wood continued to be built into the twelfth century and probably later. Along the Atlantic seaboard, especially in areas where timber for building was scarce, churches and monastic sites were often constructed of drystone masonry. Many have survived in a remarkable state of preservation. Simple corbelled "beehive" huts, such as those found on the island monastery of Skellig Michael, Co. Kerry, were adapted from secular dwellings. Their simplicity makes them difficult to date. Simple rectangular churches with a profile like that of an upturned boat, such as Gallarus Oratory in County Kerry, have been noted on a number of sites. Rectangular in plan, with inward-curving walls, they represent an adaptation of the corbelling principle of beehive huts to a rectangular form. In structural terms this was not an entirely successful marriage, as the long sides had a tendency to sag inwards and collapse. A range of dates from about the seventh to the twelfth centuries has been proposed for them. At Church Island, Co. Kerry, excavation showed that there a stone church had succeeded an earlier timber structure.

As far as we can tell, the building of larger churches in mortared stone began in Ireland in the later eighth century. A reference to a stone church at Armagh is the first clear indication of the new fashion. In the absence of documentation, radiocarbon dating has demonstrated the construction of a number of churches over the following four centuries. They were at first simple structures and were typically about one-third longer than they were wide. Construction was of dressed (shaped to fit by hammering) large stones, closely jointed—usually somewhat irregular in shape—and sometimes giving the impression of being exceptionally massive. Doorways (at the west end) were normally of trabeate form—that is, a single massive lintel-stone spanned the entrance. They were occasionally enriched with a simple cross motif or a low-relief carved architrave. Roofs were of slate or shingle, but gradually the classic Irish stone roof evolved. At first this was a simple gabled structure with the weight of the roof propped by trusses. Later, under Romanesque influence, the roofs were created with lofts or voids to reduce weight and were supported on barrel vaults, such as at Saint Columb's House at Kells, Co. Meath. Other distinctive features included antae, a term that denotes projection of the sidewalls beyond the gables. These are thought to have mimicked the corner posts of wooden structures. In some churches it seems that the antae were carried up the gable to meet at the apex. In others the antae stopped at the beginning of the roof-slope and may have been intended to support bargeboards, which met and crossed at the apex. A common feature, which survives on some churches, was a gable finial, which mimicked in carved stone the crossing of the boards.

By the tenth century Irish kings and churchmen were commissioning substantial stone churches, perhaps as part of a consolidation process, following the wars of the early Viking age. The cathedral at Clonmacnoise was one such church: It was probably constructed in the early tenth century at the behest of King Flann Sinna. The great church at Clonfert, Co. Galway, was another. At Inish Cealtra an important church was erected by Brian Boru around the year 1000 c.e.

The round tower, one of the most dramatic inventions of Irish architecture, appeared in the tenth century. These tall, tapering towers, built usually on slight foundations, often rose to a height of 100 feet or more. With their conical caps and windows more or less aligned on the cardinal points, they have been variously identified as watchtowers and refuges. They are suited to be neither. The Irish word for the tower was cloigtech, bell-house, and clearly they copied continental campanile. They may have had secondary uses as refuges and storehouses, but history suggests that they were death traps in times of crisis. Round towers were significant statements about the status of important churches, and with their great height they served as a dramatic advertisement of religious foundations—hardly a wise thing if refuge was their predominant purpose. Doorways are often elevated—for sound structural reasons, given the shallow foundations—and frequently of trabeate form. Later examples have arched doorways. One built around 1200 c.e. at Ardmore, Co. Waterford, was constructed of finely cut ashlar masonry. A small number of churches had a diminutive round tower incorporated as a steeple; a good example is Saint Kevin's Kitchen at Glendalough.

Irish Romanesque

Scholarship now emphasizes a twofold division in the Irish Romanesque. The first part is marked by the appearance of the barrel vault, which survives on a number of unadorned Irish churches. A good example is Saint Columb's House at Kells, a structure probably built originally around the ninth or tenth century and then later substantially modified. The churches of the second phase are those which, from the twelfth century onwards, were decorated in the Romanesque style. The only really true Romanesque church in Ireland is Cormac's Chapel at Cashel, built with a porch and twin towers of finely cut ashlar: It carries a rich variety of Romanesque ornament. It is roofed in stone in the Irish manner. The chapel, consecrated in 1134, was built under the influence of western English style, symbolizing in stone the changes in church governance that the reformers of the twelfth century were promoting. Elsewhere, Romanesque decorative features were added to traditional Irish architecture; some influence from French sources has also been detected. The spread of the style has been associated with the organization of regular dioceses. Many older churches were modified by the addition of chancels, and many others were being built anew with integrated chancels. A fashion for south doors rather than the traditional western opening can also be detected at this time. These tendencies may well signal liturgical change that is otherwise undocumented.

Irish churches were often located within a circular or subcircular bank that defined the sacred enclosure. This is not unique, for enclosed monasteries were a feature of Merovingian Gaul and parts of western Britain. As late as the twelfth century larger Irish foundations tended to build clusters of smaller churches rather than single large ones. This had its roots in early traditions of church layout and contributed to the appearance of what were in a real sense spiritual cities in a largely townless landscape. A harbinger of change was the introduction of the Cistercian Order, which established its first Irish house at Mellifont in 1142 on the regular continental model.

Gothic Architecture

The Anglo-Norman invasion in 1169 brought with it a new style of architecture. The magnates of the conquest supported the foundation of many Cistercian and Augustinian monasteries. Built on a unified plan in the gothic style, they were very influential. The most ambitious buildings, however, were the two cathedrals of Dublin, Christ Church and Saint Patrick's, both begun in the early thirteenth century in the early English style. With their mural galleries and ribbed vaults they were fine and substantial buildings. Other ambitious constructions (for example, Tuam Cathedral in County Galway and Athasssel Abbey in County Tipperary) were never completed. Other cathedrals were more modest—most Irish dioceses were small and perhaps unable to afford great architecture. The decline of the Anglo-Norman colony retarded the development of architecture in Ireland, and when building resumed in the fifteenth century, a simplified gothic emerged which was inward-looking and rather plain and conservative. The greatest monuments of this time were the friaries, many of them in the west and surviving largely intact if unroofed. Their distinctive slender towers rising at the junction of choir and nave are their most striking feature. Fine examples are preserved at Rosserk and Rosserily, Co. Mayo, and Muckross, Co. Kerry.

The construction of massive donjons (keeps) within curtain walls with defensive towers is characteristic of the later twelfth and early thirteenth centuries; especially fine examples are Trim and Carrickfergus castles. Royal castles placed the stamp of government on the towns of the colony. Wood and earthen motte-and-bailey castles were also constructed together in the countryside while lesser stone buildings appeared in towns. The tribulations of the early fourteenth century brought the construction of massive fortifications to an abrupt halt. From the late fourteenth century, castle architecture was dominated by the construction of more modest freestanding towers, often surrounded by a wall but less elaborate than those of earlier times. The fourteenth century saw the emergence of the tower house; about two thousand were erected in Ireland. These were usually modest rectangular towers—essentially fortified houses. Now seen usually in isolation, most were originally enclosed by bawns (walled courtyards). Some of these had modest towers. In Ulster both tower houses and more comfortable, but still defended houses of Scottish influence were constructed during plantation in the early seventeenth century. Although the widespread use of artillery made them obsolete, tower houses were constructed in Ireland as late as the seventeenth century; one example, at Derryhivenny, Co. Galway, was built in 1643.