The Flamboyant arch, known as such because it resembles the shape of a flame, was a commonly used feature in Gothic architecture. It is made from four original points, where each large arc turns upward into a smaller arc, all meeting at one sharp point.

The Lancet arch is the simplest of all Gothic arches. It is simply composed of a vertically long opening with a pointed tip. Although the Flamboyant, Equilateral, and Depressed arches follow a similar pattern, they all have more complicated designs than the simple Lancet arch, which really is just a long opening ended with a point.

Although arches are decorative and tend to be elongated in nature, the towers and spires of Gothic buildings add real height, and contributed to those buildings having been called the skyscrapers of their time.

Although different types of arches were often included in ribbed vaults as a decorative measure, the actual architectural element of ribbed vaults was developed to support the weight of the ceiling, and allow for larger and higher windows to be built, which had the effect of brightening the buildings a great deal.

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The flying buttress is both decorative and architecturally essential for Gothic-style buildings. It is used to support the walls of the building by resisting the force of the sides under the weight of the ceiling. As such, the walls do not need to be as thick, and there is more material that can be used for decorative measures, rather than reinforcement. The flying buttress came to be used heavily during the Gothic period, and is nearly an essential piece of any large building built between the 12th and the 16th centuries, and beyond.

When Chartres Cathedral was first built between 1194 and 1250 it was a highly representative example of the Gothic architectural form then in vogue in Western Europe. As such, it included a stained glass rose window above its entryway, flying buttresses along its side, and a wide variety of statues depicting theologically important figures such as saints or Biblical characters. Today, an obvious anachronism exists in the form of a Flamboyant steeple rising to a striking point on one tower, which comes from the early sixteenth century and looks out of place on the more rigid and ornate Gothic building

The choir of a church is the area reserved for singers and clergy; sometimes it is also called a chancel. The choir is usually located in the east end of the church, between the main altar and the apse. It is separated from the nave so that the members of the clergy could remain separate from the rest of the congregation.

This is Notre Dame de Paris, the chief cathedral and one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, France. Notre Dame was the seat of the Archbishops of Paris.

Beginning in the twelfth century in Europe, Gothic architecture dominated the building of churches across the continent, with its massive facades, extreme buliding heights, and ornate stone work. This style was used both in new churches like Rouen Cathedral and Lincoln Cathedral, and also in the rebuilding and renovation of structures, as with both Westminster Abbey and Notre Dame Cathedral. This was not the only church style, however, as the Greek churches developed their own massive church architectural style, exemplified by the Hagia Sofia in Constantinople (present day Istanbul).

This is the Florence Cathedral, a Catholic entity. This can been seen in a number of ways. The dome is particularly telling, as is the facade, which features a rose window. Both of these things are characteristics of catholic churches, which were being built in grander and grander style at the height of the gothic and Renaissance movements. Take special note of how the church looms over the neighboring buildings; at the time of its building, the Catholic church was the strongest entity in the land, and the buildings reflected that.