The Salisbury (Kingsbridge) Cathedral
“Having faith in God did not mean sitting back and doing nothing. It meant believing you would find success if you did your best honestly and energetically.” In his novel Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follett creates a set of vivid ambitions for the main character of the story, Tom Builder. An architect by trade, Tom sets out to feed his family by taking an ambitious offer from a local religious official: constructing a brand new cathedral in the center of Kingsbridge, England. This task was a challenge. Tom had limited funds, the stress of feeding his family, and only a handful of men, including his son, Alfred, to create what the Catholic Church wanted: a masterpiece.
The purpose of constructing the most magnificent cathedral England would see in an incredibly long time was a combination of early English nationalism and the desire for economic prosperity courtesy of the Catholic Church’s unyielding desire for power. Although Tom Builder is only a character, the piece of architecture he was tasked with creating greatly resonates with me as an architectural masterpiece. I am not a deeply religious person by any means. The beauty of the Salisbury Cathedral, which the Kingsbridge Cathedral in Pillars of the Earth is based off of, is in its design. Take this picture below as an example:
The beauty of this cathedral is in its Gothic design. I have a great appreciation for this type of architecture.
Allow me to travel back to a cold October day. My father had built up my enthusiasm for his Alma Mater, George Washington University. I was just beginning my sophomore year of high school, and in those chilly days I felt that that school was the one for me. I could feel the sense of community in the core of Washington D.C. drooping over me like a warm blanket, engulfing me in its politics, food, and beauty. However, my dad had one more stop planned: Georgetown University, home of some of the greatest Gothic architecture in America.
Georgetown was the first Jesuit University in America. Founded in 1789, the buildings erected on campus stood as a testament to the validity of Jesuit teachings. When I stepped on the campus for the first time in October of 2015, the first thing that popped up in my mind was the word for word cliche teachers and students alike so keenly despise: “I am/he or she is in love with the school.” As my father and I braced against the winds, I absorbed myself in my surroundings. Each building suddenly meant something to me. Never had I felt this way about an individual setting. The town of Georgetown itself is incredible. The university is something else. I sit here writing this piece days before my admissions decision from the university arrives in the mail.
Fast forward from sophomoric Sophomore Sam to Rick Dunbar’s AP Euro Class, September, 2017. I sit next to a friend, preparing notes for our Socratic seminar on Follett’s Pillars of the Earth. Although my group had to discuss character development, I found myself focused more on the symbolism and beauty of the Kingsbridge cathedral. Medieval England was not a place I had been familiarized with prior to reading Follett’s work. Admittedly, I did not expect my fascination to teeter towards a building. Death, war, romance: all are characteristics of an engaging piece of writing. These aspects of Follett’s novel are what made it so engaging. My bias toward Gothic architecture took root in my trip to Georgetown University. It is my belief that there are not enough people that care enough about the world around them. I’d encourage anyone and everyone to look around every once and while and appreciate a place they visit on a frequent basis, whether it be a church, an old house, and more.
