Revived more than once as a public and domestic architectural style, the Gothic has also inspired literary genres, art, music, fashion and, at the close of the twentieth century, a synthetic design- and lifestyle known as "Goth."

The Gothic was first and foremost an ecclesiastical style, and symbolized
the triumph of the Catholic church over paganism in Europe.  At a time when most people's homes were the humblest possible turf or wattle-and-daub cottages, churches sported arches, pinnacles, vaults, stained glass, and elaborate sculpture.

Medieval builders discovered new ways to support the weight of a soaring cathedral: piers and buttresses, ribbed vaulting, and structurally integrated arches took the building's load off of its walls.  The resulting thinner walls could contain large expanses of glass -- leaded, stained, decorated with stone ribbing called tracery.

Now churches, which during the Romanesque period had been massive, gloomy affairs, were flooded with light and air.  Lavishly carved cathedral spires climbed ever higher, expressing the medieval belief in the essential divinity of earthly creation.

In the fourteenth century, war, famine and plague put an end to this extremely labor and resource-intensive building style.  During the Renaissance, increased attention was given to domestic architecture and Neoclassical style reigned supreme.  In the early nineteenth century, after centuries of variation on Neoclassical themes, Western scholars and artists developed a new interest in the Middle Ages.  This Romantic backlash against rationalism eventually produced the architectural movement known as the Gothic Revival. 

In Europe and North America from about 1840 to 1870, historically accurate Neo-Gothic churches, government buildings, colleges, and eventually private homes were built.  These grand stone houses sported quatrefoil or pointed windows with decorative tracery, leaded glass, and even gargoyles, pinnacles and battlements.  In America, where timber was cheap, a style called "Carpenter Gothic" developed, characterized by an abundance of elaborate wooden gingerbread trim.

In designing your own Gothic castle, start with architectural detail:
pointed or ogee arches, tracery, exposed wooden beams, leaded or stained glass windows in complex trefoil or rose designs.  But even if you're beginning with a modern interior rather than a scaled-down reproduction of Reims Cathedral, you can still create an imposing and mystical Gothic environment with furniture, surface detail, color and accents.
 

Elements of Style

Flooring should be stone -- large flagstones are best -- or dark wood. Colors should be rich, dark and dramatic: purple, black, ruby, gold, forest green, ochre.  Decorative painting on the walls -- scenic murals, trompe-l'oeil architectural features, or stenciled heraldic designs -- can add medieval drama to a dining room or entryway.

Wall hangings are essential, tapestries if possible.  If not, you can cheat with dark red velvet curtains, silver tasseled tie-backs, brocade throw pillows, a midnight blue velvet duvet cover.  Stained glass, of course, is quintessentially Gothic.  Pewter, wrought iron, and lots of candles are the indispensable Gothic accents.  For a truly ecclesiastical look,  create your own niche altar with candles and devotional statues.

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