The significance of doorway positions in English medieval parochial churches and chapels
<p>This thesis analyses the positions of church doorways of English medieval parochial churches and chapels in an attempt to show the significance that positioning had for the function and design of these buildings.</p> <p>The thesis shows that in the seventh to tenth centuries, c...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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2021
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| Summary: | <p>This thesis analyses the positions of church doorways of English medieval parochial churches and chapels in an attempt to show the significance that positioning had for the function and design of these buildings.</p>
<p>The thesis shows that in the seventh to tenth centuries, churches tended to have a single nave doorway at the west end of the building. A larger group of English churches built in the eleventh and twelfth centuries shows that the design changed in the eleventh century new buildings tended to have two nave doorways, on the north and south sides of the nave in a laterally opposite position. A final group of churches that were built from the thirteenth century to the end of the Middle Ages indicates that new churches continued the two-doorway trend of the eleventh and twelfth centuries but often had western towers and doorways as well. A final architectural chapter examines chapels, which were different from churches as they had different function and status. The evidence here shows that non-parochial chapels tended to have a single southern doorway while parochial chapels were often built with two nave doorways. </p>
<p>The study next examines the reasons for the changes in the doorway positions. It argues that there are liturgical reasons for the changes both at the turn of the eleventh century and again in the later thirteenth. Gender and clerical segregation are considered in relation to the provision of a second nave doorway in churches and parochial chapels. It is also shown that the widespread idea of the ‘Devil’s Door’ was only developed in the nineteenth century though it had roots in late medieval liturgy. </p>
<p>The study concludes that there is a link between the design and function of parochial churches and chapels with the number and attributes of their doorways.</p>
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