Las catedrales góticas son los mayores monumentos de la Cristiandad, lugares mágicos que cautivan a la humanidad desde hace siglos. Guillermo de Sans, nacido en 1130 en el gremio de constructores y artesanos, se convierte en maestro de obra de la ópera prima del gótico, la abadía de Saint Denís.
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00The Gothic cathedrals are the greatest monuments of Christianity.
00:06They are creations of a distant past.
00:09Magical places that have been captivating humanity for centuries.
00:13What is the secret?
00:22Buildings that rise to the sky,
00:24for which several generations of people would move mountains.
00:28Literally, only with the strength of his arms.
00:32Little Guillermo would start an extraordinary career in his trade
00:37and would be the creator of the first Gothic cathedral,
00:40thanks to which he would become the most famous architect of his time.
00:46Guillermo's projection is reflected in the most important constructions of the time.
00:50He was the one who introduced Gothic in England.
00:53His ambition makes him challenge the limits of what is possible.
00:58And the impossible.
01:05Tens of thousands of people work tirelessly to raise this new architectural style.
01:10A group of men who dedicate all their knowledge and energy,
01:13sacrificing their health and even their lives,
01:16to make their dream come true.
01:18Build heaven on earth.
01:22In the French city of Sartre, a miracle occurs and a magical color is born.
01:26One of the great secrets of Gothic.
01:32The master of the largest construction project in Europe is a man with a firm goal.
01:37To erect the largest church in the world,
01:40despite the fact that there are hidden forces at stake.
01:43This is the story of the giants of Gothic.
01:51We do not know anything about his childhood.
01:53Even his date of birth, which is calculated around 1130,
01:57is nothing more than an approximation.
01:59There is no doubt that Guillermo de Sans
02:02did not belong to a poor family,
02:04but most likely he was the son of a craftsman,
02:06builder or respected bricklayer.
02:15It could have grown precisely in the place
02:18in which the history of architecture was going to take the next giant step.
02:22In Saint-Denis, north of Paris.
02:30This is where Guillermo, surrounded by artisans and artists
02:33who participated in an extraordinary project,
02:36met the man who would be the first
02:38to make his dream of heaven on earth come true.
02:42The abbot of the Benedictine monastery of Saint-Denis, Suillet.
02:47Suillet was regent of France for a few years
02:49and one of the most influential clerics in the country.
02:52A man with many ideas and the means to make them come true.
02:56He would be the pioneer of a new architectural style.
03:00Gothic.
03:09Saint-Denis, 1137.
03:11It is a market day and the whole town goes from one side to the other
03:14mixing with foreigners, pilgrims and soldiers
03:17who return from the Crusades from Jerusalem,
03:20where the knights of the West are fighting
03:22to recover the tomb of Jesus Christ.
03:26There are also numerous artisans and pawns
03:28who come from all corners of France
03:30in response to the call of the abbot Suillet
03:32who wants to build a new church for the Benedictine abbey.
03:36Merchandise from the Far East.
03:38Exotic and unique prints and colors.
03:41Tales of travelers who visited fabulous places.
03:44Strange creatures and a continuous summer.
03:47That was the world of Guillermo.
03:51Near Paris is the largest city on the continent.
03:54Guillermo, son of an aristocrat,
03:56was born in the city of Saint-Denis.
03:59He was born in the city of Saint-Denis
04:01and lived in the city of Saint-Denis.
04:04Guillermo, son of an accomplished craftsman,
04:06is surrounded by men who, here in Saint-Denis,
04:09are about to erect an extraordinary building.
04:12Something never seen before.
04:15And perhaps because of this agitation,
04:17Guillermo had to face a facet of life
04:20that he had not known before.
04:22Hunger, misery and poverty of the time of the Crusades.
04:30Years before, in the autumn of 1095,
04:33Pope Urban II had called all cardinals
04:36and representatives of his church
04:38to meet in Clermont, France.
04:41More than 180 cardinals, bishops and abbots
04:44from all over the West come to his call.
04:48Representatives of the Eastern Catholic Churches
04:51also arrive from distant Byzantium.
04:55Urban takes advantage of the meeting
04:57to propose that a Christian crusade be initiated in Jerusalem
05:00to recover the tomb of Jesus,
05:02the greatest sacred symbol of Christianity
05:04that had fallen into the hands of the Saracens.
05:15The Pope was used to getting everything he proposed,
05:19and this time it was not going to be an exception.
05:28His call extends like the gunpowder.
05:30Other synods are organized in Tours and Rouen
05:32and a gigantic war machine is launched
05:35to the orders of French and Norman nobles.
05:45The Pope offers the Crusaders the remission of their sins.
05:50With the motto that they followed the will of God,
05:52those who participated in the campaigns of the Holy Land
05:55were promised eternal glory in heaven.
05:59Tens of thousands of men join the march to the East.
06:14In June 1099, the army of the Crusaders arrives in Jerusalem.
06:18It is said that the walls of the city are indestructible,
06:21but succumb to the attack of the huge catapults.
06:24The Saracens are not a rival
06:26to the European soldiers and their armors.
06:28The winners establish the Crusader states in the Holy Land
06:32that would last for about 200 years.
06:35And despite all the armed conflicts,
06:38in these Latin states of the East
06:40there will be an intense cultural exchange
06:42between Christians, Muslims and Jews,
06:44both in the field of science,
06:46especially in the field of mathematics and medicine,
06:49as in the field of literature.
06:52The Muslims had already made the Christians
06:55translate classical philosophy into Arabic.
06:58And at that time, the Christians made the Arabs
07:01translate Greek philosophy,
07:03especially Aristotle, into Latin,
07:05which gave them a completely new perspective
07:08and a completely new foundation for science.
07:13That was the most radical change.
07:16Pierre is an orphan child.
07:19There are thousands of Crusaders
07:21who never return from the Holy Land
07:23and many people die in the thirties.
07:25The streets of towns and cities are full of orphans,
07:28children who are left alone in the world.
07:34But for the little ones, like Guillermo and Pierre,
07:37the differences in class hardly count
07:39when there are more important things at stake,
07:41such as a better education,
07:43like a piece of cake.
07:53Before everything changed,
07:55the churches were like this, Romanesque.
07:59Castles of God, colossal and imposing,
08:02but in shabby shapes.
08:05The double church of Svar-Reindorf, near Cologne,
08:08is one of the most important churches in the world.
08:12In its frescoes are narrated stories of the Bible.
08:15A house of God of great solidity and very close,
08:18since it is built on a human scale.
08:20And like the Castles of the Knights,
08:22the Romanesque churches were painted in vivid colors.
08:30The Romanesque built thick walls.
08:32The Romanesque built thick walls.
08:34The Romanesque built thick walls.
08:36The Romanesque built thick walls.
08:38The Romanesque built thick walls.
08:40The Romanesque is characterized by its thick walls,
08:43strong enough to support a cannon vault.
08:46But then the Gothic came and said,
08:49let's do a structural job.
08:51Let's look at the direction in which the push lines move,
08:55and we are going to absorb them with an architectural structure,
08:58with the arbotantes and the arches,
09:01so that we do not need the walls.
09:05It is not about getting rid of the walls by whim,
09:08or to do something architecturally risky,
09:11but to adopt a new perspective,
09:13and open yourself to the idea of a new Jerusalem.
09:19In the Apocalypse of St. John, or Book of Revelation,
09:22a city with crystal streets and gold descends from heaven.
09:26It has twelve doors and an altar in the center.
09:30It is the heavenly city.
09:32And in the Middle Ages, that was the end of life,
09:36the other life, the life after death.
09:41And we can reproduce it on earth,
09:44recreate the new Jerusalem before reaching it.
09:52I am the light of the world,
09:54says Jesus in the New Testament.
09:57For him, the light is synonymous with the presence of God.
10:01The abbot not only provides funding
10:03for the new church of the Abbey of St. Denis,
10:06but also intervenes decisively in its planning.
10:15The noble work shines, writes his Jeh, on the church.
10:19But that this work that shines with nobility illuminates the minds,
10:23so that following true lights, they reach the true light,
10:26where Christ is the true door.
10:32The light floods the room, without obstacles,
10:35up to the altar, the center of the liturgy.
10:38The windows exceed the dimensions known so far,
10:42thanks to the new structural principle.
10:46What supports the weight of the ceiling are no longer the walls,
10:49but a system of pillars and struts strategically placed,
10:53known as vaults.
10:55A structure that is sustained by itself
10:58and does not need the thick walls of the Romanesque,
11:01and leaves a lot of space to accommodate large windows.
11:09The glass walls, the pointed arches,
11:12the vaults of ojiva,
11:14the fastidious pillars and the counterforts were already known.
11:17But in the choir of St. Denis,
11:19all these techniques came together
11:21as if musical instruments,
11:23interpreting a concert,
11:25to produce something totally new,
11:28Gothic architecture.
11:32Once, while admiring the ornaments of the house of God,
11:36the colorful beauty of the stones,
11:39I was distracted by mundane concerns.
11:42I thought I was in a place beyond the earth,
11:45rising to a higher sphere.
11:49These are the words of the Suje himself.
11:53As the sun rises,
11:55the light becomes brighter
11:57and the colors are more intense.
12:00Gothic architects were aware of this,
12:03and that is why they used the glass walls.
12:06The colored crystals are dyed crystals,
12:09and by passing the light through them,
12:12a miracle occurs.
12:15The same that will occur at the end of time,
12:18when the magnificent power and glory of God
12:21shine throughout the world.
12:24Even my corrupt body and in decomposition,
12:27will shine with golden reflections of divine glory.
12:33The whole world will shine for the glory of God.
12:37That is why we are building a symbol of what will come.
12:42That is the idea of Gothic.
12:45Of the master of works of Saint Denis,
12:48we do not know the name,
12:50but we do know that he was much more than an architect.
12:55He was the supervisor of the work,
12:57the engineer of structures
12:59and the inventor of some construction machines.
13:02A universal genius.
13:06And that is not learned in a couple of years.
13:10It is something to which you have to dedicate half your life.
13:13Probably being in contact with the work
13:15from the most tender childhood,
13:17thanks to his father,
13:18as will happen with Guillermo.
13:25In the 12th century,
13:26there is no consolidated construction technology.
13:31Each building has its own needs
13:33that must be addressed on the go.
13:36The construction of the church of the abbey of Saint Denis has just begun.
13:40They still have to test the port crane,
13:43a newly designed engineer and without security systems.
13:46The good operation of the machinery, which weighs tons,
13:49only depends on the experience and expertise of those who design it
13:52and the care and attention of the men who handle it.
13:56THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CATHEDRAL
14:08The construction of a cathedral involves literally moving mountains.
14:13It is necessary to travel great distances
14:15carrying hundreds of thousands of blocks of stone.
14:19Each weighs more than 100 kilos
14:20and more than two men are needed to lift them.
14:22Pilgrims are recruited to do the work in the service of the Lord.
14:27Collaborating in the construction of the church
14:29involves the reduction of punishment for sins,
14:31of the time that one will spend in the flames of purgatory.
14:39The children are always present in the bustle of the work.
14:43To Pierre, the quarry offers him the possibility of getting some food
14:46and maybe even some coins.
14:48It is better than begging or stealing
14:50and being under the constant threat of being caught with their hands in the dough.
14:54To build a cathedral, more labor is required
14:56than to lift any other type of building of the time.
15:00Alone in the quarry of Saint-Denis,
15:02there are more than 250 people working,
15:04most of them day laborers without any preparation,
15:07the poorest of the poor.
15:09And among them there are also women and children.
15:12They all depend on the cathedral to make a living.
15:16The construction of a Gothic cathedral
15:18is a great investment for the economy of the region.
15:22It creates employment and promotes technical advances.
15:26More than 50 quarries work at the orders of the master of the work,
15:30carving and polishing the stone blocks,
15:32before and after the construction of the cathedral.
15:36The construction of a Gothic cathedral
15:38is a great investment for the economy of the region.
15:41More than 50 quarries work at the orders of the master of the work,
15:44carving and polishing the stone blocks,
15:46before and after the construction of the cathedral.
15:52Quarries are paid for every block they carve.
16:01And in the middle of all this activity, two children.
16:05Lost in their own world,
16:07between the pronounced vertical walls,
16:09the huge rocks and the gigantic transport cranes,
16:12in a place extremely dangerous for them.
16:18But in reality, that apparent disorder is organized with precision.
16:22The master of the work and the head of the quarries
16:25know where each stone will go.
16:27The blocks are marked to know where to place them later.
16:39Pierre and Guillermo are the smallest pieces
16:42of this gigantic gear,
16:44in which workers strive to the maximum
16:46and often risk their lives.
16:53The pyramids, which we still do not know how they were built,
16:57had the purpose of keeping alive the pharaoh who was buried in them.
17:04Humanity has reached unimaginable heights
17:07trying to make fun of death.
17:09To the north of Germany, there are megalithic tombs
17:12with stones 3, 5 or 10 meters long and 2 meters thick,
17:16creating formations of 100 meters in length.
17:20We are not able to understand how they did it,
17:23but they did it to try to overcome death.
17:27And New Jerusalem is the refuge,
17:30the place where we will survive.
17:32That is the engine that drives the construction of these churches.
17:37That is what the pharaoh is behind.
17:52Paying with the same currency is the principle
17:55that prevails in the Middle Ages to impose a punishment.
17:58The law of eye for eye, tooth for tooth,
18:01but also to reward an action.
18:03Pierre saves Guillermo's life
18:05and gives him the opportunity to rise socially.
18:08From now on, the child without a home
18:10will be the inseparable companion of Guillermo.
18:20Life expectancy then was below 30 years.
18:25It is a world of young people.
18:27Those who live longer have the possibility to go down in history
18:30if they rule for long periods, like Charlemagne.
18:34Since most people die young,
18:36children are immediately incorporated to work.
18:39There was a time when it was thought
18:41that children were treated as adults,
18:43but that is not the case.
18:46We have found many toys of the time.
18:49Wooden horses, windmills,
18:51sleighs and children's games.
18:53They were aware of childhood,
18:55which ended around 7 years old.
18:57From that moment, children were incorporated
18:59to the work processes.
19:01Durero worked in the workshop from the age of 7.
19:03I lived in a rural area
19:05where it was normal for children to work.
19:07When my father was working,
19:09I was in charge of bringing the hammer and things like that
19:12so that he did not waste time on that.
19:14We did that kind of thing.
19:19A short childhood in a short life.
19:23But Guillermo and Pierre are privileged.
19:26By being part of the construction of the cathedral,
19:28they belong to an elite with a lot of future.
19:31Under the tutelage of Guillermo's father,
19:33the head of the canteros and the master of the work,
19:36they are also destined to become canteros.
19:43At the age of 12, they enter solemnly
19:45in the guild of construction
19:47with the idea that they become officials
19:49of one of the most respected jobs of the time.
19:53They have already acquired a lot of knowledge
19:55and are starting another stage.
19:59Now they belong to the collective
20:01that works the wonders of the construction of cathedrals.
20:05We do not know what exactly happened
20:07the day of their incorporation to the guild
20:09or the rite they passed.
20:11But like all that kind of rites,
20:13it would be secret, solemn
20:15and that would probably make them
20:17a little afraid of the boys.
20:20From then on in their minds
20:22two things would be recorded.
20:24That day and the law of silence of the guild
20:27with people other than him.
20:37The idea that there were associations
20:39closed guilds is correct
20:41and wrong at the same time.
20:45It is true that in the Middle Ages
20:47there were organizations of the different trades.
20:50A baker could not explain to someone
20:52who did not belong to the guild how to make bread.
20:56Likewise, a singer could not teach
20:59someone outside the trade to work the stone.
21:04It was about protecting the trade.
21:07And all trades had associations,
21:10even on a supraregional scale.
21:13But among its members
21:15it was a very open community.
21:18At that time, Sendeniz is not a cathedral
21:20nor the seat of the bishopric,
21:22but only the church of the abbey of Sendeniz.
21:26But the abbot is the ecclesiastical figure
21:28with the greatest influence in the country.
21:30And that is reflected in his church.
21:33The people call him the father of the nation.
21:37Reorganizes state finances
21:39and promotes agriculture, trade and industry.
21:42During the participation of King Louis VII
21:44in the Second Crusade,
21:46he assumed the regency of the country
21:48and Sendeniz became the symbol
21:50of a reinforced monarchy in France.
21:56Suye died in 1151,
21:58unable to see finished
22:00the most beautiful of his works.
22:03Sendeniz is something like the church
22:05of the Holy Grail for the French monarchy.
22:10The kings of France have been buried
22:12in their crypts and in their churches.
22:15And the monastery of Sendeniz
22:17is the largest in the country.
22:20The monastery is the largest
22:22in the country.
22:25It is the largest monastery
22:27in the world.
22:29The kings of France have been buried
22:31in their crypts and chapels
22:33since the 7th century.
22:43But it would be useless to look for
22:45the tomb of the man who built
22:47the last home of several generations
22:49of monarchs.
22:51During the French Revolution,
22:53a furious crowd destroyed the royal tombs
22:55and scattered the mortal remains
22:57among which were those
22:59of Suye himself.
23:01Luis XVI and Maria Antonieta.
23:03Behind where his effigies rise
23:05was where the tomb of the great Abad was erected.
23:09With the construction of the church of his abode
23:11an architectural revolution began
23:13which was an extraordinary triumphal advance.
23:27During the next three generations
23:29around Paris began the construction
23:31of more than twenty large churches.
23:33It is a golden age,
23:35without wars or plagues
23:37and with good harvests.
23:39In France there are more than 15 million inhabitants
23:41and tens of thousands of them
23:43work on the jewels of Gothic architecture.
23:47An army of tireless and anonymous workers.
23:49Almost none will go down in history.
23:53From the year 1000
23:55the population doubles.
23:57There are enough people to start
23:59the construction of new cities.
24:01Agricultural techniques improve
24:03and increase the harvests.
24:05As there are excesses of food,
24:07not all the population has to work
24:09for their subsistence,
24:11so they can dedicate themselves to other tasks.
24:13Schools are established
24:15to which children can attend
24:17and in which there are people
24:19who teach.
24:21Artists can earn a living
24:23from their subsistence.
24:25This division of labor
24:27favors development.
24:35Time passes.
24:37It's been 15 years since Piaz and Guillermo
24:39met.
24:41Circumstances have made friends
24:43grow up in equal conditions.
24:45They have dedicated these 15 years
24:47to learn everything that the craftsmen
24:49of Saint-Denis have transmitted to them.
24:51Guillermo and his friend Piaz
24:53have become experienced craftsmen,
24:55officers of facts and rights.
24:57Now they are young people
24:59with initiative who,
25:01like the rest of the generations of craftsmen,
25:03undertake several trips.
25:13There is no historical data
25:15about the trips that Guillermo was able to make,
25:17but it was something very common at the time.
25:19In winter,
25:21the construction of Saint-Denis
25:23had to stop, like all.
25:25The mortar freezes
25:27and the joints of the walls crack,
25:29so during autumn and winter
25:31the officers of works
25:33are dedicated to travel.
25:35They travel well-dressed,
25:37usually in large groups.
25:39In the Middle Ages,
25:41traveling was not a pleasure,
25:43but an extenuating torture.
25:45The group goes to Saints,
25:47building the first Gothic cathedral.
25:49The title of cathedral
25:51is only granted to the churches
25:53of the bishops.
25:55Saint-Denis is just an abbey,
25:57but Saints is the seat of a bishop.
25:59The city is
26:01130 kilometers away.
26:03Currently,
26:05two hours by car.
26:07800 years ago,
26:09four days on foot.
26:11Saint-Esteban de Saints
26:13was the seat of the bishop of
26:15Henri Sanglier,
26:17a good friend of his
26:19who shared his enthusiasm
26:21for the new architectural style.
26:23Sanglier was one of the
26:25princes of the church
26:27with greater power and wealth.
26:37On the contrary,
26:39we do not know the name
26:41of the master of work of Saints.
26:43It would not be a young man,
26:45since a project as ambitious
26:47as this requires a man with experience.
26:49Being a master of work
26:51is a position of great responsibility.
26:53Work is done as long as it takes.
26:55In the work,
26:57the days are long
26:59and the nights are short.
27:01For Guillermo Ypier,
27:03the master of work of Saints
27:05is the most suitable person
27:07to become an architect.
27:11Go from knowing a trade
27:13to being in charge of several.
27:19The man who directs
27:21the construction of Saints,
27:23supervising the work of more than 500 men,
27:25is delighted to meet
27:27the two new craftsmen
27:29who will release him from work
27:31and could become his successors.
27:33It is a crucial meeting
27:35for both young people.
27:49The construction of a cathedral
27:51does not consist
27:53simply in placing one stone on another.
27:55The most important thing
27:57for a future master of work
27:59is to know how to calculate
28:01the forces exerted by the different components.
28:03In those days,
28:05there was no knowledge
28:07of structural engineering
28:09or mathematical formulas.
28:11The only thing these pioneers
28:13of Gothic could do
28:15was from trial and error
28:17and the previous knowledge
28:19of an experienced master of work.
28:21The measure of all things
28:23is the general plan
28:25of the building on a scale.
28:27A general architectural description.
28:29Regardless of how complex
28:31the project is,
28:33the plan is relatively simple.
28:35It has been engraved in clay
28:37and then cooked
28:39so that all craftsmen
28:41consult it.
28:43It shows the location,
28:45position, quantity, dimensions
28:47and, above all,
28:49the proportion of all elements.
28:57Gothic cathedrals
28:59are not complex structures.
29:01The pillars, the vaults
29:03and the stone pillars
29:05are a structure that stands alone.
29:07The stability of that skeleton
29:09is the biggest challenge
29:11for the builders.
29:13Unlike the buildings of the Romanesque,
29:15those of the Gothic
29:17are characterized by filigree
29:19and lightness,
29:21with pillars that support
29:23an enormous force.
29:25If they were not well directed,
29:27they would look like the legs
29:29of a table with too much weight on top.
29:31So you have to divert them
29:33by means of the boulders
29:35and counterforts
29:37that have their own foundations
29:39throughout the whole construction.
29:41Its function is to collect the pressure.
29:43They are fundamental structural elements,
29:45not a mere ornament.
29:47If cracks appear,
29:49the boulders must be reinforced.
29:51These stone bridges,
29:53full of filigree,
29:55are typical of French Gothic cathedrals.
30:01Almost all elements of the building
30:03support the pushes.
30:05Any error or miscalculation
30:07would have catastrophic results.
30:09It is the summer of 1156 in Sainte-Anne.
30:11Jeanne, the wife of Pierre,
30:13makes her early morning visit to the work.
30:15In the construction work,
30:17the most experienced artisans
30:19in the region work.
30:21Blacksmiths, carpenters,
30:23stoneworkers, carpenters,
30:25sculptors.
30:27To these more than 100,000
30:29workers,
30:31the work is carried out
30:33in a very simple way.
30:35The work is carried out
30:37in a very simple way.
30:39To these more than 150 expert workers,
30:41hundreds of people come together
30:43who collaborate as a non-specialized
30:45hand of work.
30:53During the last four years,
30:55Guillermo has earned the trust
30:57of the master of work,
30:59who is already one year old
31:01and has become his right hand,
31:03with Pierre as head of the quarries.
31:05The main occupation of both
31:07is the structural integrity of the building.
31:09Its ambition is to build
31:11increasingly tall and slender structures,
31:13to make the pillars
31:15and pillars as thin
31:17as possible.
31:19But where is the limit?
31:21These pioneers do not have
31:23previous knowledge with which to work.
31:25They are based on intuitions.
31:27Probably most of those
31:29who worked on the work
31:31thought that the structure
31:33was too high.
31:35In a city of about 10,000
31:37inhabitants like Sanz,
31:39it is not easy to find
31:41enough experienced
31:43hand of work capable
31:45of doing the necessary work.
31:47In addition to the artisans,
31:49you need a hand of work
31:51of 300 men, women and children
31:53to be trained.
31:57As the daughter of a craftsman,
31:59Jeanne is familiarized
32:01with many of the trades
32:03of construction.
32:05She knows how to mix the mortar,
32:07a job that often occupies
32:09women because there are not
32:11enough men and any help
32:13is appreciated.
32:15The number of people
32:17who gather in the work
32:19is equivalent to the population
32:21of a large medieval city
32:23and all share the interest
32:25to make the dream of
32:27their bishop come true.
32:29Even the youngest
32:31collaborate in this great company.
32:43Never before in the history
32:45of the city had so many people
32:47and so much building material
32:49been concentrated in one place.
32:51Just to build the scaffolding
32:53of the choir of the cathedral
32:55a whole forest has to be cut.
33:03Guillermo is the driver
33:05and the brain of the construction.
33:07The responsibility of the project
33:09is all his.
33:11So far no serious accident
33:13has occurred in the work
33:15and Guillermo does everything
33:17possible to keep it that way.
33:19The scaffolding
33:21that they have just raised
33:23is slightly thinner than expected.
33:25Will it bear the lateral pushes?
33:43Until the 19th century
33:45no structural calculations
33:47were made,
33:49so at that time
33:51they learned about the march.
33:53As it is natural,
33:55they wanted the buildings
33:57to be higher and more slender,
33:59so with each construction
34:01they defied the limits to the maximum
34:03until something went wrong.
34:05Now we only know
34:07the buildings that remained standing.
34:09Obviously we can not see
34:11those that collapsed.
34:13There were masters of work
34:15who did what was possible
34:17and taught others
34:19how far you could get
34:21or when you had to try another way.
34:23They used the method
34:25of trial and error.
34:27A boulder has collapsed.
34:29The tons of stone
34:31that have fallen from a height
34:33of almost 20 meters
34:35have destroyed the scaffolding.
34:37A avalanche of wood and stone
34:39wrapped in a cloud of dust has been triggered.
34:45Pierre and one of the workers
34:47are injured.
34:49Pierre has broken a leg,
34:51but there have been no serious injuries.
34:53Guillermo has made a mistake
34:55that could have had
34:57fatal consequences.
35:05I have access
35:07to many documents
35:09about the construction processes
35:11in the medieval era
35:13and I have never found
35:15any story
35:17in which someone's death is narrated.
35:19The workers were too valuable
35:21and the masters of work
35:23appreciated a lot
35:25the fact of having them.
35:27They could not afford
35:29to fall off the scaffolding.
35:31So the working conditions
35:33were the best
35:35they could offer.
35:37There was a case
35:39in which a singer was injured
35:41and they paid a woman
35:43to attend him.
35:45So we know
35:47that there were accidents,
35:49but not too often.
35:57Guillermo does not have
35:59any previous model
36:01on which to base his work.
36:03The Gothic architectural style
36:05is too recent for that.
36:07What he creates in Sans is unique,
36:09it could be considered
36:11that Sans is his first Gothic opera.
36:13It is an innovative design,
36:15pioneering,
36:17the result of teamwork,
36:19deep debates,
36:21assumptions founded
36:23and experiments
36:25with satisfactory results.
36:29The knowledge of the first
36:31masters of the work
36:33spreads as the craftsmen
36:35travel to other places.
36:37Guillermo himself brings
36:39his ideas to Canterbury,
36:41in England,
36:43and develops them even more.
36:45Other masters of the work
36:47are spreading the concept
36:49even further,
36:51until the ideas that
36:53originated in the French city
36:55of Sans have a decisive influence
36:57on the design of the cathedral
36:59of Our Lady of Lausanne
37:01in the distant lands of Switzerland.
37:03The choir, which was built
37:05on the site of the cathedral,
37:07is the most important
37:09in the history of the city.
37:13What is amazing
37:15and worthy of admiration
37:17is that this generation
37:19of masters of the work
37:21of the High Middle Ages
37:23spread internationally
37:25and was tremendously interconnected.
37:29In the span of a few years
37:31a technique or a form
37:33that would have developed
37:35in the heart of France
37:37was already known in the east
37:39of the German Empire.
37:41So, far from being
37:43a closed community,
37:45that of the canteros in particular
37:47was moving very fluidly
37:49throughout Europe.
37:51This was due to how
37:53the work was organized
37:55in the construction sites,
37:57in which the knowledge
37:59was quickly disseminated
38:01and passed on.
38:07It is undoubtable
38:09that Guillermo himself
38:11also moves from one work
38:13to another, expanding
38:15his knowledge and experience.
38:17There are several Gothic churches
38:19in the region called
38:21Isle de France,
38:23which encompasses
38:25several departments
38:27around Paris.
38:29The future masters of the work
38:31move from one construction
38:33to another, learning new
38:35techniques and methods of work
38:37or in search of better wages.
38:39The movement of the workforce
38:41drives progress.
38:43The workers share
38:45their knowledge and experiences,
38:47comment on the setbacks
38:49they have suffered
38:51and exchange ideas
38:53with other artisan experts.
38:55These trips of the officials
38:57and the workers
38:59are not the only ones
39:01who move.
39:03It is the time of the Crusades,
39:05the moment of greatest agitation
39:07of the Middle Ages,
39:09and the pilgrims
39:11of the twelfth century
39:13also cross with them.
39:15Pilgrimage is the movement
39:17of masses of the medieval
39:19par excellence.
39:21The most important places
39:23of pilgrimage of the time
39:25are the tomb of St. Peter in Rome
39:27and the remains of the Apostle
39:29Santiago in Santiago de Compostela.
39:31From Poland to Santiago de Compostela,
39:33for example,
39:35there are 3,000 kilometers.
39:37Three months of travel
39:39on winding roads,
39:41crossing forests and enduring
39:43the inclemencies of time.
39:45Many die of exhaustion
39:47or illness during the journey
39:49or at the hands of the jumpers
39:51bet on the roads,
39:53which are a constant danger
39:55for travelers.
39:57In any case,
39:59pilgrims run the risk
40:01because they hold the hope
40:03to be miraculously cured
40:05or for fear of the storms of hell.
40:07In the time of the Gothic,
40:09everyone shared the same devotion
40:11and faith in God.
40:13If we think that
40:15in the cases of serious crimes,
40:17instead of condemning to death
40:19the culprits,
40:21the authorities of the cities
40:23sent them to pilgrimage,
40:25we can get the idea.
40:27Pilgrimages
40:29replaced executions.
40:31They were a second chance
40:33in life.
40:35Go to Santiago
40:37and bring the certificate of pilgrim
40:39to Cologne. It's easy to understand.
40:41There is a chronicle
40:43from around 1100
40:45that tells that a farmer
40:47got into a trance and had a vision
40:49of how someone killed
40:51a child in his village.
40:53But they did not sentence
40:55the murderer to death,
40:57but told him to go
40:59to Santiago de Compostela.
41:01And that's what he did.
41:03It is understandable.
41:05He did it to save his life.
41:11To venerate the saints
41:13the most precious materials are used.
41:15Precious stones, gold and silver.
41:17The links of the chain
41:19with which San Pedro was tied
41:21are one of the many relics
41:23that pilgrims come to see,
41:25and even the remains of the saints.
41:27The reliquary of the martyr
41:29San Gregorio de Spoleto
41:31is a bust of real size
41:33that contains part of his bones.
41:41Relics are the most valuable
41:43objects of the time.
41:45Wars are started in his name
41:47and robberies and murders are committed.
41:51In the Middle Ages,
41:53it was considered that whoever
41:55approached the relics
41:57was also closer to God.
42:01When one touches the tomb
42:03of a martyr,
42:05he is touching the soul of the saint
42:07in heaven, which is obviously
42:09in the presence of God.
42:11The tomb of the martyr
42:13If one studies the Baroque,
42:15or visits the Bavarian churches,
42:17he will see that heaven is shown
42:19before his eyes, God the Father
42:21at the top, Jesus on the cross,
42:23Mary under him, and finally
42:25the local patron saint.
42:27When you touch the tomb,
42:29you are in contact with the soul of the saint
42:31who will intercede for you before God.
42:33That is the veneration
42:35of the relics.
42:43Colonia, 1164
42:45Reinaldo de Dassel,
42:47Imperial Chancellor of Italy
42:49and Archbishop of Colonia,
42:51who was more of a soldier
42:53than a man of the Church,
42:55is willing to give to the city
42:57with the most precious good
42:59of its history, the remains
43:01mortals of the Magi.
43:03They are a sign of gratitude
43:05of Emperor Federico Barbaroja
43:07to the city for his loyalty.
43:09These mortal remains
43:11are one of the most important relics
43:13of the time,
43:15a treasure of invaluable value,
43:17since according to the accounts
43:19of the birth of Jesus,
43:21the Magi were the first to go
43:23to worship the newborn.
43:25For centuries they will take
43:27millions of pilgrims to Colonia,
43:29and 100 years later
43:31a cathedral will be built
43:33expressly to welcome them.
43:35But there is still a lot left for that.
43:41Around the same time,
43:43Guillermo faces a difficult reunion.
43:47The old master of work of Sanz
43:49is no longer more than a shadow of what he was.
43:53It is not a historical moment,
43:55but something quite usual then.
43:57The master of work is one of the most prosperous citizens
43:59of the city,
44:01and the drop is the disease of the rich.
44:03United to the incessant work
44:05in cold places,
44:07bearing the wind and the passage of the seasons
44:09many masters of work die
44:11shortly after turning 50.
44:15From now on, Guillermo,
44:17or as he will finally be known
44:19Guillermo de Sanz,
44:21will be the undisputed master
44:23of the project of the cathedral.
44:29In 1168,
44:31after almost a quarter of a century
44:33of building work,
44:35the choir of the cathedral is completed,
44:37and Guillermo de Sanz becomes
44:39the first Gothic cathedral.
44:41Guillermo is the architect
44:43who has given it its definitive form.
44:45His fame as one of the pioneers
44:47of the Gothic style will extend
44:49far beyond the borders of France.
44:53The choir that we can see today
44:55is the result of the work of many generations
44:57of masters of work.
44:59To be able to observe the work of Guillermo de Sanz,
45:01we have to go to the north side of the cathedral.
45:07This is the old church of the cathedral,
45:09unaltered for almost 900 years,
45:11work of Guillermo.
45:19Currently, the interior of the cathedral
45:21is very different from how it was
45:23in the time of Guillermo.
45:25The ship and the transept are a journey
45:27for 300 years of history of architecture.
45:33Sanz, the first Gothic cathedral,
45:35combines all the stages
45:37of this architectural style.
45:39The choir shows the characteristics
45:41of the Proto-Gothic,
45:43the pillars of the Classic Gothic,
45:45and the transept and the ship
45:47of the Flaming Gothic.
45:49More than 10 generations of masters of work,
45:51artisans and workers,
45:53both men and women,
45:55gave shape to this cathedral.
45:59And this pioneering building
46:01has had a huge influence
46:03among which it should be noted
46:05one of the most spectacular
46:07and important in the world.
46:13The Cathedral of Canterbury,
46:15in the southeast of England.
46:17Guillermo has not passed the history
46:19of medieval masters of work
46:21for his work in Sanz.
46:23It was here that he planned
46:25and conceived everything,
46:27and his figure has survived
46:29throughout the centuries,
46:31Guillermo de Sanz
46:33is one of the few masters of work
46:35whose existence is documented
46:37in the annals of history.
46:43Now it is surprising to us,
46:45but what is the reason
46:47that we do not know the names
46:49of most of the architects
46:51of the great cathedrals?
46:53We do not know
46:55who was the architect of Chartres,
46:57only that he came
46:59from the north of France,
47:01and that he was one
47:03of the many masters of work
47:05who were relevant
47:07in the work over the years
47:09that lasted the construction.
47:13It must be understood
47:15that in the thirteenth century
47:17there was no interest
47:19for notoriety,
47:21which is a modern concept in reality.
47:23At that time,
47:25the main goal
47:27was to fulfill the work
47:29that had been assigned to you
47:31in the name of the glory of God.
47:35Among the experienced craftsmen
47:37came one from Sanz
47:39named Guillermo.
47:41It was he who was chosen
47:43for the job,
47:45rejecting others
47:47due to his good reputation.
47:49These are the words
47:51of the chronicler of Guillermo's life,
47:53A fire had destroyed
47:55part of the Cathedral of Canterbury,
47:57and the Cabildo Cathedralicio
47:59invites Guillermo to England.
48:01The year 1175 runs.
48:03Faced with the impossibility
48:05of finding the right material
48:07in the south of England,
48:09Guillermo orders heavy blocks
48:11of stone to be brought
48:13from Caen in France
48:15to raise the monumental cathedral
48:17he intends to build.
48:19For a master of French work
48:21like Guillermo de Sanz,
48:23being chosen to build
48:25the first Gothic cathedral
48:27of England is a real challenge.
48:29In Canterbury,
48:31Guillermo acts as an engineer
48:33and inventor,
48:35since he himself designs
48:37all the machinery,
48:39such as the cranes and the cabristantes.
48:41The work advances at an unusual rate.
48:43In 1178,
48:45in just three years,
48:47the wall surrounding the choir
48:49is finished.
48:55The construction,
48:57led by the great French architect,
48:59seemed to have received
49:01a blessing from God.
49:03But the joy of the first triumphs
49:05was about to be overwhelmed.
49:11A scaffolding was built
49:13to raise the cruise,
49:15which joins the central ship.
49:17Guillermo has raised the wooden structure
49:19of a dizzying height
49:21dozens of times in recent months,
49:23something common in the work
49:25of the masters of the work.
49:27The walls of the choir
49:29have almost reached 30 meters high.
49:37Guillermo periodically checks
49:39the straightness of the walls
49:41with a plumbing.
49:43Given the speed with which
49:45the works advance,
49:47the work of the bricklayers
49:49and carpenters is precise.
49:51But a negligence
49:53can mean the perdition of Guillermo.
49:59It falls from a height
50:01of 30 meters.
50:03Will this be the end
50:05of the great architect
50:07and his ambitious project?
50:09We will see the story
50:11of the creation of a new generation
50:13of masters of the work.
50:15The testimony of a witness
50:17of the catastrophe.
50:19The tragedy of the destructive power
50:21of the flames against an unbreakable faith
50:23in the possibility of a miracle.
50:25The heroic materialization
50:27of a brilliant idea
50:29thanks to the determination
50:31and strength of the people.
50:37The Cathedral of Sard
50:39has a unique color
50:41whose secret only a man knows.
50:45The rediscovery of a formula
50:47that was believed to be lost.
50:53And the story of a young man
50:55who, after studying
50:57the European cathedrals,
50:59will design one of the most important churches
51:01of Christianity.
51:03Gerhard von Rille
51:05makes a fantasy come true.
51:07A building that rises to the sky
51:09and will house the most precious relics
51:11of the time.
51:19He and his work
51:21are another of the giants of Gothic.
51:37www.gothic.com
51:39www.gothic.com