The towers belonging to the style described in the arti- cle Saxon AiicniTECTUiiK (q. v.) are square and massive, not of lofty proportions, and a|)parently never were ]iro- vided with stone staircases. Some of them are consid- erably ornamented, as at the churches of Barnack and Earl's Barton, Northamptonshire; and others are very plain, as at St. Michael's, Oxford, and St. Benet's, Cam- bridge: the tovver of the Church of Sompting, Sussex, which belongs to this style, terminates with a gable on each of the four sides, and is surmounted by a wooden spire; but whether or not this was the original form may be doubted.
In some parts of Great Britain circular church-towers are to be found. These have sometimes been assumed to be of very high anli(juity, but the character of their architecture shows that they commonly belong to the Norman and Early English styles. They are built of rough flints, generally of coarse workmanship, with very little ornament of any kind, and tiiat little, for the most ])art, about the upper story: one of the best examples is that of Little Saxham Churcli, Suffolk. Plain round towers in the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk are of all periods : the only materials readily accessible being flints, and these not admitting of s(iuare corners, the towers were built round, and this practice is con- tinued even to the present day.
Nornian towers are generally sipiare, and of rather low propor- tions, seldom rising much more than their own breadth above the roofoft he church, and sometimes not so much. They gener- ally have broad flat buttresses at the an- gles, and are usual- ly ])rovided with a stone staircase car- ried up in a project- ing turret attached to one of the an- gles ; this is very commonly rectangu- Little Sasluun Chuich, Sufiolk.
TOW Ell
505
TOWERS
lar externally, but the form is not unfrequently changed towards the top, especially it" the turret is carried up the whole height of the tower: occasionally i)olygonal Norman towers are to be met with, as at I'^ly Cathe- ch-al. In Normandy a few examples of village church- towers of this style exist, which are capped with py- ramidal stone rools, like low square spires, but in gen- eral tiie roofs and para|)ets are additions of later date. j\Iany Norman towers are very considerably ornamented, tlie upper stories being usually the richest, while others are very plain, (iood specimens remain at St. Alban's Abbey ; the cathedrals of Norwich, Exeter, and Winches- ter; Tewkesbury Abbey ; Southwell Minster; thechurch- es of St. I'eter, Northampton; St. Clement, Sandwicli; IfHy, Oxfordshire; Stewkley, Buckinghamshire, etc.
In Earlij EHijlish towers much greater variety of de- sign and proportion is found than in those of prior date. The (irevailing plan is square, but some examples are octagonal, and occasionally tiie upper i)art of a square tower is changed to an octagon. Projecting stair-tur- rets are almost universal, though they are frequently so much masked by buttresses as to be in great measure concealed. Many towers in this style are of lofty pro- portions, while others are low and massive. The best ex- amples are generally more or less ornamented, and some
Middltton Stonej 0\f)id>-hnp en 1220
are very highly enriched. The belfry windows are often large and deeply recessed, with numerous bold mould- ings in the jambs, and sometimes appear to have been originally left (piite open. Considerable variety of out- line is produced by the diflferent arrangement, sizes, and forms of the buttresses at the angles of towers in this as well as in the later styles of Gothic architecture, and sometimes, instead of buttresses, small turrets are used, which rise from the ground and generally terminate in jiinnacles. Many towers of this date are finished at the top with parapets, some of them with pinnacles at the angles, a few with two gables, called pack-saddle roofs (as Brookthorpe, Northamptonshire), and many are surmounted with spires, which, although perliaps in the majority of cases they are of later date than the towers, appear to have been originally contemplated. Exam- ples remain at the cathedrals of Oxford and Peterbor- ough: the churches of St. Mary. Stamford; Ketton and Kyhall, Rutland ; Lodtiington and Paundes, Northamp- tonshire; Middleton Stoney, Oxfordshire, etc.
In the Decorated and Perpendiculdr stvles towers (lifter very considerably both in proportions and amount of enrichment, and considerable diversity of outline and effect is produced by varying the arrangement and form of tiie subordinate parts, such as windows, buttresses,
Brookthorpe, Kovthaniptonshire, cir. 1260.
pinnacles, etc. ; but in general composi- tion tliey do not dit- fer very materially from Early English towers. Many are very lofty, and oth- ers of low propor- tions ; some highlv enriched, and some perfectly plain ; a large, and probably the greater, nuudur are crowned with |)arapets, usually with a pinnacle at each corner, and sometimes with one or two oth- ers, commonly t>f rather smaller si/e, on each of the sides , many, also, terminate with spires, or, espe- cially in the Perpen- dicular style, with lanterns. Decorated towers remain at Lui- coln Cathedral: thciL churches of IleckiUj,- I ton and Cayttiori)e, Lincolnshire ; New- ark, Nottingham- shire ; Fined on, Northamplonshire; St. Mary's, Oxford, etc. Perpen- dicular towers are very numerous in all parts of the kingdom, especially in Somersetshire. Among such as are Joest deserving of attention may be mentioned those at Canterbury, York, and Gloucester cathedrals; and the churches at Boston and Louth. Lincol nsh ire ; Kettering, Northamp- tonshire ; Cirencester, (iloucestershire ; Great !Mal vern, Worcestershire ; and that at St. Mary Magdalen College, Ox- ford.— Parker, Gloss, of A rchitect. s. v.