Rayonnant

French architects turned their attention from building cathedrals of greater size and height towards bringing greater light into the cathedral interiors and adding more extensive decoration. The architects made the vertical columns and supports thinner, made extensive use of pinnacles and mouldings. They combined the triforium gallery and the clerestory into single space and filled it with stained glass. They made extensive use of mouldings and bar tracery to decorate the exteriors and interiors. Among the most prominent features of the Rayonnant style were the enormous rose windows installed in the transepts and facades, made possible by the use of bar tracery. The design of the windows gave the name Rayonnant ("Radiant") to the style. The style was developed in the major reconstruction of the Abbey of Saint-Denis (1231) The first major church built in the new style was Amiens Cathedral (1220–1271). Later examples include Sainte-Chapelle, the royal chapel of King Louis IX of France (1248); the new north and south transepts of Notre Dame de Paris (1250–1270), and the church of Saint-Urbain de Troyes (1262).