Gargoyles, Buttresses, and Tunnels, oh my! The influence of
Gothic Architecture on Strawberry Hill and the Castle of Otranto
Gothic architecture is a type of style used as long ago as 1096, and it lasted until around
the year 1500, when the Renaissance created all new styles in architecture and design. However,
due to its majestic style and the presence of many remaining gothic structures, it remained as an
influencing style even through to today. Due to, perhaps, the time period in which gothic
architecture was used, it has inspired many a setting for tales of mystery or horror, including
what is considered to be the first gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto. The author of this novel,
Horace Walpole, was so taken by the aesthetics of the gothic architecture that he didn’t limit its
use to his novel, but also used it in building his home, Strawberry Hill.
Gothic architecture has many features which define it as ‘gothic’. Scholars in the area say
that gothic style architecture “evolved from within Romanesque church architecture when
diagonal ribs were added to the groin-vault” (Frankl 1). A rib is an arch within a vault, which is
the arched edifice making up the ceiling in gothic structures. This, however, is only one facet of
what makes up Gothic architecture. However, many of the other facets will be covered in
comparisons between what is traditional architecture, and the setting for The Castle of Otranto
and in the real-life home of Horace Walpole, Strawberry Hill. Gothic architecture is commonly
split into separate time periods.
At first, there was a transition from the previous styles of architecture into Gothic
architecture, commonly called the First Generation (Frankl V). The earliest known date of the
first Gothic rib-vaults is 1093, in the choir aisles of Durham Cathedral (Frankl 15). Before this,
churches had groin-vaults, or flat ceilings. It is widely believed that if the churches did not have
the Gothic rib-vaults, then these architectural structures would not have existed anywhere else.
This period of time lasted until around 1120.
Next came the Early Gothic Period, which lasted until about 1194. This time period is
characterized by the spread of Gothic architecture, as well as the creation of many new Gothic
structures and systems. One of the churches updated during this period, the Carolingian church at
St. Denis, updated to the new Gothic style out of necessity, as their entrance was too small, and
their relics could not be easily viewed on days of feasting (Frankl 34). Many of the Gothic
structures, such as the buttresses and the rib-vaults, made the overall structure stronger and more
capable of holding up structures placed above them. It was during this period that flying
buttresses, towers, facades, gables, and tabernacles were first used.
The next time period is the High Gothic Style, which lasted from 1194-1300. This is
when most of the rest of the stereotypically Gothic structures began to be used. These include the
higher piers, more advanced and intense gargoyles, more highly stylized windows, and sharp
profiles (Frankl V). Like the structures in the Early period that came from necessities in the
church, many of these structures had to do with creating grander and more impressive structures
(Frankl 88).
The final period of time is the Late Gothic Period, which lasted until the Renaissance
style began to take over in the 1500’s. This time period is highly debated, as some scholars claim
that it is not, in fact, a part of the Gothic style, and is actually part of the Renaissance (Frankl
214). The advancements during this time period have more to do with making the previously
created structures even more decorative. For instance, arches began to be designed as looking
like the branches of trees as opposed to looking like boring old arches (Frankl 192).
During the years in which Horace Walpole was building his home, Strawberry Hill, and
writing The Castle of Otranto, more and more people were becoming aware of the history of
Gothic architecture. Books were written fully describing how the structures were built and what
made something ‘Gothic’. Additionally, during this time, people believed that “The Gothic style
was said to possess a picturesque quality, a quality of infinity, a vegetal quality, a romantic
quality” (Frankl 219). It was this romanticism and public knowledge of the Gothic style which
led Walpole to want to use this style for his own home. He used the buildings built between 1330
and 1550 as inspiration for the decorative Gothic style, the “gloomph” of Strawberry Hill
(Chalcraft 9). He used the buildings in King’s College in Cambridge, Westminster Abbey, and
St. Paul’s Cathedral (Chalcraft 9). He viewed buildings of this nature as creating a “memory of
dark interiors made exciting through the history of the events which had taken place within their
walls” (Chalcraft 9).
It took almost fifty years to complete Strawberry Hill, and Walpole created a “Committee
of Taste” to help him make the decisions on what to put into the home (Chalcraft 9, 13). It was
built to look as much like Gothic buildings as possible, including the floor plan, the exterior, and
the chapel in the woods. The building featured towers, the arched windows of Gothic
architecture, a wall, and was all built in the same materials and homes from Gothic England
(Chalcraft 21). The rooms were all designed and decorated to look like rooms pulled straight out
of the Middle Ages, the period when Gothic architecture was used. Walpole even made sure that
the decorations themselves were Medieval type decorations.
The setting for The Castle of Otranto is not that different from Walpole’s own Strawberry
Hill. It is set in a castle with towers, hidden passageways, buttresses, and a chapel close enough
to be easily accessible from the castle. Walpole spent a lot of time ensuring that the castle looked
like it could really have existed, due to his desire to make people believe that the store had truly
happened in Otranto (Walpole 5).
The influences behind the setting for the Castle of Otranto and Strawberry Hill were a
result of the rising popularity and knowledge of Gothic architecture during Walpole’s life, as
well as the view of Gothic architecture as being something romantic and timeless. Walpole
wanted this aesthetic both in his own home, due to his love of buildings such as Westminster
Abbey, and in his book, due to the dark and foreboding feeling which comes from being within a
piece of Gothic architecture.
Bibliography
Chalcraft, Anna, and Judith Viscardi. Strawberry Hill: Horace Walpole's Gothic Castle. London: Frances
Lincoln, 2007. Print.
Frankl, Paul. Gothic Architecture. Baltimore: Penguin, 1963. Print.
Walpole, Horace. The Castle of Otranto. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1996. Print.