Monasteries of Western Europe: The Architecture of the Orders

After tracing the beginning of monasticism in the West, the narrative details in turn the architecture of St Gall, Cluny, the Cisterians, the Cathusians, the Mendicant orders, and the abbey buildings and complexes of the baroque period.

The conclusion covers the monastic revival of recent times and Le Corbusier's La Tourette. An appendix gives the original religious rules which dictated the form of monasteries.