Bishop Robert Grosseteste and Lincoln Cathedral is an in-depth investigation of Grosseteste's relationship to the medieval cathedral at Lincoln and the surrounding city. This book will contribute to the understanding of Gothic architecture in early 13th-century England - most specifically.

Bishop Robert Grosseteste and Lincoln Cathedral is an in-depth investigation of Grosseteste's relationship to the medieval cathedral at Lincoln and the surrounding city. This book will contribute to the understanding of Gothic architecture in early thirteenth century England - most specifically, how forms and spaces were conceived in relation to the cultural, religious and political life of the period. The architecture and topography of Lincoln Cathedral are examined in their cultural contexts, in relation to scholastic philosophy, science and cosmology, and medieval ideas about light and geometry, as highlighted in the writings of Robert Grosseteste - Bishop of Lincoln Cathedral (1235-53). At the same time the architecture of the cathedral is considered in relation to the roles of the clergy and masons; the policies of the bishop; matters of governance, worship and education; ecclesiastical hierarchy, church liturgy, politics and processionals. The book explores Grosseteste's ideas in the broader context of medieval and Renaissance cosmologies, optics/perspective, natural philosophy and experimental science, and considers historical precedents in regard to religious, political and symbolic influences on church building. The contributors to this volume make an important contribution to our current understanding of the relation between architecture, theology, politics and society during the Middle Ages, and how religious spaces were conceived and experienced.

'A welcome addition to a growing constellation of titles in architectural humanities. This coedited volume of studies offers thought-provoking insights into the architectonic significance of Grosseteste's intellectual oeuvre in its scholastic mediaeval context. It also advances novel theoretical directives in analyzing the architecture of Lincoln Cathedral under Grosseteste's Bishopric in its English Gothic milieu.' Nader El-Bizri, American University of Beirut, Lebanon '... a piece of very fine scholarship and an accessible interdisciplinary engagement with a variety of ideas and sources. Thanks to its format of well-organized subheadings, and its numerous explanatory diagrams and photographs, the reader can follow a clear path from the esoteric scientific theories of the early thirteenth century to the particular structures they produced. ... Given the fame and proximity of the man and the building, it is only natural that there should be a volume comparing them and measuring their interaction. It is fortunate that such a volume has been composed in such a careful and effective way.' Hortulus