Editing Architecture of England (section)

===Anglo-Saxon architecture===
{{Main|Anglo-Saxon architecture}}
[[Image:EarlsBartonChurch.JPG|thumb|left|200px|[[All Saints' Church, Earls Barton]]]]

Architecture of the [[Anglo-Saxon]] period exists only in the form of churches, the only structures commonly built in stone apart from fortifications. The earliest examples date from the 7th century, notably at [[Church of St Peter-on-the-Wall, Bradwell-on-Sea|Bradwell-on-Sea]] and [[Escomb Church|Escomb]], but the majority from the 10th and 11th centuries. Due to the systematic destruction and replacement of English [[cathedrals]] and [[monasteries]] by the [[Normans]], no major Anglo-Saxon churches survive; the largest extant example is at [[All Saints' Church, Brixworth|Brixworth]].

The main material is [[ashlar]] masonry, sometimes accompanied by details in reused Roman brick. Anglo-Saxon churches are typically high and narrow and consist of a [[nave]] and a narrower [[chancel]]; these are often accompanied by a west tower. Some feature ''[[porticus]]'' (projecting chambers) to the west or to the north and south, creating a cruciform plan. Characteristic features include [[Quoin (architecture)|quoins]] in "long-and-short work" (alternating vertical and horizontal blocks) and small windows with rounded or triangular tops, deeply splayed or in groups of two or three divided by squat columns. The most common form of external decoration is [[lesene]] strips (thin vertical or horizontal strips of projecting stone), typically combined with [[blind arcade|blind arcading]]. Notable examples of this exist at [[All Saints' Church, Earls Barton|Earls Barton]], [[St Laurence's Church, Bradford-on-Avon|Bradford-on-Avon]] and [[St Peter's Church, Barton-upon-Humber|Barton-upon-Humber]].