Nave of the Cistercian abbey church of
Le Thoronet. 12th century. Photograph
courtesy of Whitney S.Stoddard.
ings are rationally conceived according to a basic Cistercian plan that facilitated the
principal activities of worship, contemplative reading, and manual labor.
Other French Cistercian abbeys adapted this plan with regional modifications, as seen,
for example, in the Provençal convents at Sénanque and Le Thoronet dating from the
second half of the 12th century. While these small, austere churches conform to the
Cistercian rule, both have a semicircular apse. Sénanque has a cupola over the crossing,
and the double columns in the cloisters have more elaborate vegetal covering.
The spread of the Cistercian order coincided with the spread of Gothic architecture,
and most French Cistercian building utilizes “simplified Gothic” style, which featured
cross-rib vaulting, more foliate carving, and increased luminosity. Royaumont, founded
by St. Louis in 1228, illustrates these features. Although the church itself does not
survive, its plan is known and the well-preserved conventual buildings show its style.
Instead of the simple apse, it had a two-bay choir with ambulatory and radiating chapels.
The slender proportions of architectural members are typical of the linear features of
Rayonnant Gothic.
As time progressed, the Cistercians also introduced more sculpture and stained glass
into their building programs. Because of their devotion to the Virgin, most convents had
at least one statue representing the Virgin and Child or other Marian themes. Carved altar
frontals, such as the early 14th-century retable from Fontenay with a central Crucifixion
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