1066-1200--Aside from a smattering of ancient sights--pre-classical stone circles as at Stonehenge and Avebury and Roman ruins such as the Bath spa and Hadrian's Wall--the oldest surviving architectural style in England dates to when the 1066 Norman conquest brought the Romanesque era to Britain, where it flourished as the Norman style.
Churches in this style were large, with a wide nave and aisles to accommodate the masses who came to hear Mass and worship at the altars of various saints. But to support the weight of all that masonry, the walls had to be thick and solid (meaning they could be pierced only by few and small windows) resting on huge piers, giving Norman churches a dark, somber, mysterious, and often oppressive feeling.
Identifiable Features
Rounded arches. These load-bearing architectural devices allowed the architects to open up wide naves and spaces, channeling all the weight of the stone walls and ceiling across the curve of the arch and down into the ground via the columns or pilasters.
Thick walls.
Infrequent and small windows.
Huge piers. These load-bearing, vertical features resemble square stacks of masonry.
Chevrons. These zigzagging decorations often surround a doorway or wrap around a column.
Best Examples
White Tower, London (1078). William the Conqueror's first building in Britain, White Tower is the central keep of the Tower of London. The fortress-thick walls and rounded archways are textbook Norman.
Durham Cathedral (1093-1488). The layout is Norman, save for the proto-Gothic, pointy rib vaulting along the nave. The massive piers are incised with chevrons.
Ely Cathedral (1083-1189). The nave and south transept are perfectly Norman, though much of the rest of the interior is as Gothic as the exterior.
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