Calling the Tune? The Involvement of King Henry III in the Design of the Abbey Church at Westminster

Author: Wilson, Christopher

Source: Journal of the British Archaeological Association, Volume 161, 2008 , pp. 59-93(35)

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Abstract:

Henry III's reconstruction of Westminster Abbey from 1245 was the most important undertaking of a ruler whose actions and predilections, including his copious patronage of art, are exceptionally well documented by medieval standards. But despite this uniquely promising conjunction of high importance and abundant source material, the question of how far Henry III might have exerted influence on the physical form taken by his great project has attracted little scholarly attention. Two 'peripheral' features of the building — the galleries and the chamber contrived within the upper part of the west aisle of the south transept — are here interpreted as fulfilling special functional requirements arising from the Abbey's role as the coronation church and from its proximity to the most important English royal residence. But the principal focus of this paper is on those aspects of the church's architectural 'core' which can reasonably be attributed to the king's intervention rather than to his architect's untrammelled choice. The histories of other major 13th-century building projects are of little help in framing this study of a collaboration which seems to have been one of a kind.

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1179/174767008x330536

Publication date: 2008-09-01

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