In the 10th century the establishment of churches and monasteries led to the development of stone architecture that elaborated vernacular Roman forms, from which the term "Romanesque" is derived. Where available, Roman brick and stone buildings were recycled for their materials. From the tentative beginnings known as the First Romanesque, the style flourished and spread across Europe in a remarkably homogeneous form. Just before 1000 there was a great wave of building stone churches all over Europe. Romanesque buildings have massive stone walls, openings topped by semi-circular arches, small windows, and, particularly in France, arched stone vaults. The large portal with coloured sculpture in high relief became a central feature of façades, especially in France, and the capitals of columns were often carved with narrative scenes of imaginative monsters and animals. According to art historian C. R. Dodwell, "virtually all the churches in the West were decorated with wall-paintings", of which few survive. Simultaneous with the development in church architecture, the distinctive European form of the castle was developed, and became crucial to politics and warfare. COUNT 5
QSN1 In what century was Romanesque architecture first used? ANS1 10th QSN2 What feature of Romanesque architecture was especially prevalent in France? ANS2 arched stone vaults QSN3 Who noted the prevalence of wall-paintings in Western churches of this era? ANS3 C. R. Dodwell QSN4 What non-church architectural structure developed in the 10th century? ANS4 the castle QSN5 Around what year did the great wave of church-building in stone occur? ANS5 1000