GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE

IN FRANCE

The distinctive characteristic of French cathedrals, and those in

Germany and Belgium that were strongly influenced by them,
is their height and their impression of verticality.
They are compact, with slight or no projection of the transepts
and subsidiary chapels.
The west fronts have three portals surmounted by a rose
window, and two large towers.
The east end is polygonal with ambulatory and sometimes a
chevette of radiating chapels.
In the south of France, many of the major churches are without
transepts and some are without aisles

Plans were short, wide, and high. Length about four times the
width.