Fortress-Churches of Languedoc
Architecture, Religion and Conflict in the High Middle Ages

Traces the relationship between religious and military realms in medieval Europe by examining fortress-churches.

Sheila Bonde (Author)

9780521052023, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 25 January 2008

292 pages, 121 b/w illus.
28 x 21 x 1.9 cm, 0.666 kg

Fortress-Churches of Languedoc traces the changing relationship between military and religious realms as expressed in architecture across medieval Europe. The scholarship of medieval architecture has traditionally imposed a division between military and ecclesiastical structures. Often, however, medieval churches were provided with fortified enclosures, crenellations, iron-barred doors and other elements of defence, demonstrating the strong link between Church and state, and the military and religious realms. In her study of fortress-churches, Sheila Bonde focuses on three twelfth-century monuments in southern France - Maguelone, Agde and Saint-Pon-de-Thomière, which are among the earliest examples of the type. She analyses her archaeological surveys of these structures, and also re-examines their documentation, which is here presented both in the original Latin and in English translations. The book also explores the larger context of fortification and authority in twelfth-century Languedoc and examines the dynamics of architectural exchange and innovation in the Mediterranean at a moment of critical historical importance.

List of illustrations
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Ecclesiastical fortification in the Middle Ages
2. The larger context: Languedoc in the twelfth century
3. The buildings and the documents: Maguelone, Agde and Saint-Pons-de-Thomières
4. The manning and operation of fortress-churches
5. The architectural context: sources and parallels
Conclusion
Appendixes
Tables
Abbreviations
Notes
Illustration credits
Index.

Subject Areas: Religious buildings [AMN]