France, meanwhile, was not yet a united nation. The kings of the House of Capet held only the so-called Ile de France or Royal Demesne, extending from Paris to Orleans, and were surrounded on all sides by independent Duchies and Countships, with which they were constantly at war. The Duchy of Normandy had been established to the north by Rollo and in 1066 his descendant, William, conquered England. These distinctions of territory help to explain the variations of the Romanesque architecture, as it grew up, respectively, in Northern Italy, the Rhine Provinces, Ile de France, Southern France, Normandy, and Norman England. [Illustration: PISA CATHEDRAL, CAMPANILE AND BAPTISTRY PP. 244, 247] [Illustration: INTERIOR OF PISA CATHEDRAL SHOWING A GLIMPSE OF THE NECK OF THE DOME SUPPORTED ON CORNER ARCHES, THAT TAKE THE PLACE OF PENDENTIVES. P. 246] [Illustration: S. AMBROGIO, MILAN EARLY EXAMPLE OF RIB-VAULTING. P.240] [Illustration: S. MICHELE, PAVIA SHOWING RUDIMENTARY DIVISION OF WEST FRONT AND USE OF ARCADING. P. 251] [Illustration: THE CERTOSA, OR CHURCH OF THE CARTHUSIAN ORDER, PAVIA ROMANESQUE WITH RENAISSANCE LANTERN AND WEST FAÇADE. P. 313] [Illustration: CHURCH OF VÉZELAY, FRANCE EARLY EXAMPLE OF GROIN-VAULTING REPLACING BARREL-VAULTING. P. 253] [Illustration: CHURCH OF ABBAYE-AUX-DAMES, CAEN EARLY EXAMPLE OF CLERESTORY AND OF SEXPARTITE VAULTING. P. 254] [Illustration: REMAINS OF THE CHURCH OF CLUNY ABBEY WHICH IN THE TWELFTH CENTURY WAS THE INTELLECTUAL CENTER OF EUROPE. PP. 236, 253] [Illustration: DOORWAY OF SALAMANCA CATHEDRAL SHOWING PART OF THE BEAUTIFUL DOME OVER THE CROSSING. P. 260] [Illustration: CHURCH OF THE APOSTLES, COLOGNE NOTE THE ARCADING EMBELLISHMENTS AND GROUPING OF THE TOWERS. P. 259] [Illustration: ANGLO-SAXON TOWER EARL’S BARTON, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. P. 255] [Illustration: IFFLEY CHURCH, NEAR OXFORD P. 257] [Illustration: ST. JOHN’S CHAPEL, TOWER OF LONDON P. 255] [Illustration: NAVE OF DURHAM CATHEDRAL NOTE THE GIRTH OF PIERS AND CHEVRON ORNAMENT. VAULTING, EARLIEST EXAMPLE IN ENGLAND, COMPLETED 1133. P. 256] [Illustration: PETERBOROUGH CATHEDRAL P. 256] [Illustration: ENGLISH ROMANESQUE DETAIL BILLET MOULDING CHEVRON MOULDING BALL-FLOWER MOULDING EASTON HAMPSHIRE TOWER WINDOW, BUCKNELL, OXON CASSINGTON, OXON LATE NORMAN. ST. JOHN’S DEVIZES STEETLEY DERBYSHIRE GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL EARLY NORMAN ARCH. WESTMINSTER HALL] CHAPTER VI EARLY MEDIÆVAL OR ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE Romanesque is the term applied to the architectural style of the early Middle Ages which prevailed from 1000 to 1200. It manifests considerable variety, according to locality, but at the same time a distinct character common to all branches, in that it embodied a return to certain Roman principles of construction, modified more or less by early Christian and Byzantine methods. It represents a stage in the evolution of Gothic architecture.