The term “Gothic style” refers to the style of European architecture, sculpture (and minor arts) which linked medieval Romanesque art with the Early Renaissance. The period is divided into Early Gothic (1150-1250), High Gothic (1250-1375), and International Gothic (1375-1450). Primarily a public form of Christian art, it flourished initially in the Ile de France and surrounding region in the period 1150-1250, and then spread throughout northern Europe.
Its main form of expression was architecture – exemplified by the great Gothic cathedrals of Northern France. For the two main decorative styles, please see Rayonnant Gothic Architecture (c.1200-1350) and the later Flamboyant Gothic Architecture (1375-1500). The finest examples of Gothic design include: Chartres Cathedral (1194-1250); Notre-Dame Cathedral (1163-1345); Sainte Chapelle (1241-48); and Cologne Cathedral (from 1248); as well as the cathedrals of Canterbury, Winchester, Westminster Abbey and Santiago de Compostela. In Gothic design, the planar forms of the previous Romanesque idiom were …