English Architecture part 1

The history of the English architecture is specific and differs from the history of architecture on the continent. Stylistic periods can not be easily distinguished and their duration is different.

The dominant style was Gothic, which ran continuously from the twelfth to the nineteenth century in various forms and under different names. The term Neo-Gothic is therefore unclear in application to the architecture of the England, because in a sense, it represents an actual continuation of the Gothic style. Among the gothic revival connections to meieval Gothic occur frequently, for example, in the buildings of the Parliament and Big Ben (XIX century), which are a copy of the Perpendicular Gothic style (occurring since the mid-fourteenth century).

Architecture - what does it really mean?

Architecture (gr. αρχιτεκτονική architectonics) is the science and art of design, construction and performance of buildings and other structures. Architecture is also involved in organizing the space used by men. Only a person with appropriate training in the field of architecture has the right to perform building projects.

A broader definition includes the proposed architecture on all scales. The way the layout of cities and human settlements and integrating them into the existing system of nature and dealing with the urban infrastructure, rural areas, landscape architecture and spatial planning. Design elements of the building and its equipment in a small-scale deals with the furniture design course, interior design and set design akin to him. Science dealing with the design of structural elements of the building, their size and mutual location is called civil engineering.

Geography of Nicaragua

The east coast of Nicaragua is a coastal lagoon and tThe coastal plains are called the Mosquito Coast. Further to the west stretch the highlands, which cros over several mountain ranges. The highest of them, with the peak of the Cordillera Isabelia Mogotón, reaches the height of 2438 m above sea level. The tectonic trench along the coast, stretches a row of 40 volcanoes, of which the highest is El Viejo - 1780 m. The most famous volcano is Momotombo (1258 m) on Lake Managua, which is considered a symbol of Nicaragua. Another interesting volcano is the Concepción (1258 m), which rises on the island of Ometepe in the middle of Lake Nicaragua.

Nicaragua has a hot and humid equatorial climate, with average monthly temperatures above 25 ° C. At the higher altitude areas of central Nicaragua, temperatures average 10 ° C lower. East coast of the Caribbean take a lot more precipitation (2000-6000 mm) than the western Pacific coast (1500 mm). Therefore the east cast is covered by rainforest and the west by savanna.

The post-Columbian Nicaragua

The coast of Nicaragua was discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1502 and it soon became a Spanish ccolony. In 1524, a Spanish conqueror Francisco Hernández de Córdoba founded the cities of Granada and Leon. In the seventeenth and eighteenth century, Nicaragua was often attacked by pirates who were located on the the east coast.

In 1811, Granada gave birth to the first Nicaraguan independence movement. This led to the independence of the country in 1821, although Nicaragua became an internationally recognized independent republic on the 25 June 1850.

Nicaragua was a strategically important area, hence the numerous interventions of world powers: the British in the mid-nineteenth century and the U.S. in the early twentieth century. Destabilisation of the country deepened since the early days of the republic with the conflict between conservative groups (the owners of coffee plantations and sugar cane) and liberals (artisans and small landowners).

Architecture in Granada, Nicaragua

I first became fascinated by architecture on my first trip to Granda in Nicaragua. Nicaragua is an amazingly beautiful country in North America and I always look forward to travelling there. But there is something very special about Granada. It's colonial architecture and magical athmosphere is truly unforgettable. Grananda was founded in 1524 and it the oldest colonial city in both Americas. It's colonial feel makes me believe I'm in one of the 'magical realism' novels! The Spanish colonial heritage can be seen not only in the architecture but also in the layout of the city.

Some of my favourite sites in Granda include Plaza de la Independencia, with it's landmark red-roofed buildings and Iglesia de Guadalupe with the most romantic fountain. There are also many beutiful and historic churches in Granda, some of my favourites are: San Francisco Church and Museum, Guadalupe Church, La Merced Church, Souls Chapel and Xalteva Church.