One of the most important differences between French and English Gothic architecture concerns the relationship between the arcade piers and the articulation of the rest of the elevation above. In France there is always some connection between the two by means of vault shafts integrated with the pier or set on its abacus, while in England there is often a clear break between the vault shafts corbeled into the arcade spandrel or set still higher in the elevation and the piers below. The reason for this English departure from French tradition was not the result of misunderstanding or carelessness but rather a deliberate aesthetic decision closely connected with the development of new pier forms difficult to integrate with continuous vault shafts. This inventiveness in pier design was unique to Early English Gothic, and the English masters clearly preferred to emphasize these new and often complex forms by separating them from the rest of the elevation and particularly from any attachments that would have compromised their autonomy. The analysis of this development reveals an essential difference in the architectural thinking of French and English masters, with the former emphasizing the integration and subordination of individual parts in a scheme of overall visual logic and the latter emphasizing the separation of individual parts in elevations that allowed for greater variety and richness in the designs of those parts.

Beverley Minster includes some of the finest and most interesting early Gothic architecture in the north of England, but the building has received surprisingly little scholarly attention. This article analyzes the design of the early-13th-century choir and transepts of Beverley in the context of contemporary buildings and attempts to show that while separate elements of the design have parallels in some of these buildings, they always undergo a significant transformation, either in their individual form or in their relationship to one another in the overall design. The resulting elevation of Beverley combines northern English characteristics such as the clustered pier with the Purbeck marble shafting of Lincoln and southern England. On the other hand, the proportions of the elevation suggest some knowledge of contemporary French buildings, but there are no specific French motifs at Beverley. In spite of the variety of its sources, the Beverley design is coherent and consistent and well illustrates the originality possible within the context of the Early English Gothic style.