Surviving Romanesque architecture in Britain was largely built by the Normans, but both Anglo-Saxon and Norman architecture in Britain hold echoes of the Roman tradition.

The arcading on the window at the Anglo-Saxon tower at Earls Barton has a Roman influence.

Musée de Cluny, Paris

Jamb-shafts

Norman Romanesque developed its own distinctive style, influenced by Norman precursors such as these jamb-shafts I saw in the Cluny in Paris.

Durham Cathedral

A first pilgrimage

In Britain, Romanesque architecture dates broadly from the late 11th century to the late 12th century, approximately 1066–1190. Durham Cathedral is a beautiful example of the Romanesque style of architecture and was one of the first buildings I sought out when starting out on my career.

St Mary's, Iffley

Chevron

One common feature found throughout is chevron, or zigzag, decoration as here at St Mary's in Iffley.

St John the Baptist, Burford

And here at St John the Baptist in Burford.

A Romanesque vocabulary

Orders, shafts & creatures

Romanesque architecture is also defined by its thick masonry walls and massive piers, round-headed arches—as opposed to pointed Gothic arches—deeply recessed doorways with stepped orders and shafts, and lively geometric decoration incorporating foliage, animals, monsters and biblical figures.

St Mary and St David's, Kilpeck

A place between

St Mary, Iffley

Beakheads

Norman architecture in Britain is also known for its distinctive beakheads—small, creature-like heads that appear to bite down upon the mouldings around doors and windows.

St Mary, Lastingham

Beneath the church

The Normans’ Scandinavian ancestry—their name derives from “Norsemen”—may help explain the unmistakably Nordic character of some Norman ornament.

The crypt at St Mary, Lastingham.