Editing St. Peter's Basilica (section)

===Addition of nave and facade===
[[File:StPetersplan OttoLeuger1904.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.25|Michelangelo's plan extended with Maderno's nave and narthex]]
On 18 February 1606, under [[Pope Paul V]], the dismantling of the remaining parts of the Constantinian basilica began.<ref name=JL-M/> The marble cross that had been set at the top of the pediment by [[Pope Sylvester I|Pope Sylvester]] and [[Constantine the Great]] was lowered to the ground. The timbers were salvaged for the roof of the [[Borghese Palace]] and two rare black [[marble]] columns, the largest of their kind, were carefully stored and later used in the [[narthex]]. The tombs of various popes were opened, treasures removed and plans made for re-interment in the new basilica.<ref name=JL-M/> The Pope had appointed [[Carlo Maderno]] in 1602. He was a nephew of [[Domenico Fontana]] and had demonstrated himself as a dynamic architect. Maderno's idea was to ring Michelangelo's building with chapels, but the Pope was hesitant about deviating from the master's plan, even though he had been dead for forty years. The ''Fabbrica'' or building [[committee]], a group drawn from various nationalities and generally despised by the [[Curia]] who viewed the basilica as belonging to Rome rather than Christendom, were in a quandary as to how the building should proceed. One of the matters that influenced their thinking was the [[Counter-Reformation]] which increasingly associated a [[Greek cross|Greek Cross]] plan with paganism and saw the [[Latin cross|Latin Cross]] as truly symbolic of Christianity.<ref name=JL-M/> The central plan also did not have a "dominant orientation toward the east."<ref name="Pile">{{Harvnb|Pile|2005|p=131}}</ref>

Another influence on the thinking of both the Fabbrica and the Curia was a certain guilt at the demolition of the ancient building. The ground on which it and its various associated chapels, [[Vestry|vestries]] and [[Sacristy|sacristies]] had stood for so long was hallowed. The only solution was to build a nave that encompassed the whole space. In 1607 a committee of ten architects was called together, and a decision was made to extend Michelangelo's building into a nave. Maderno's plans for both the nave and the [[facade]] were accepted.

The building of the nave began on 7 May 1607, and proceeded at a great rate, with an army of 700 labourers being employed. The following year, the façade was begun, in December 1614 the final touches were added to the [[stucco]] decoration of the vault and early in 1615 the partition wall between the two sections was pulled down. All the rubble was carted away, and the nave was ready for use by [[Palm Sunday]].{{sfn|Lees-Milne|1967|ps=, "[http://www.stpetersbasilica.info/Docs/JLM/SaintPeters-9.htm#nave Maderno's Nave]"}}

==== Maderno's facade ====
[[File:Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano September 2015-1a.jpg|thumb|Maderno's façade, with the statues of Saint Peter (left) and Saint Paul (right) flanking the entrance stairs|alt=Ornate building in the early morning with a giant order of columns beneath a Latin inscription, fourteen statues on the roofline, and large dome on top.]]

The facade designed by Maderno, is {{convert|114.69|m|ft}} wide and {{convert|45.55|m|ft}} high and is built of [[travertine]] stone, with a giant order of Corinthian columns and a central pediment rising in front of a tall [[Attic style|attic]] surmounted by thirteen statues: [[Christ]] flanked by eleven of the [[Twelve Apostles|Apostles]] (except Saint Peter, whose statue is left of the stairs) and [[John the Baptist]].{{NoteTag|[[:File:San Pietro in Vaticano 001.JPG|Another view of the façade statues]]. From left to right: ① Thaddeus, ② Matthew, ③ Philip, ④ Thomas, ⑤ James the Elder, ⑥ [[John the Baptist]] (technically a 'precursor' and not an apostle); ⑦ Christ (centre, the only one with a halo); ⑧ Andrew, ⑨ [[John the Apostle]], ⑩ James the Younger, ⑪ Bartholomew, ⑫ [[Simon the Zealot|Simon]] and ⑬ Matthias. ({{cite web |url=http://www.saintpetersbasilica.org/Exterior/Facade/Facade.htm |title=Unofficial architecture site |website=saintpetersbasilica.org |access-date = 1 June 2011}})}} The inscription below the [[cornice]] on the {{convert|1|m|ft}} tall [[frieze]] reads:

{{blockquote|IN HONOREM PRINCIPIS APOST PAVLVS V BVRGHESIVS ROMANVS PONT MAX AN MDCXII PONT VII<br />(In honour of the [[Apostle Peter|Prince of Apostles]], [[Pope Paul V|Paul V]] Borghese, a Roman, Supreme Pontiff, in the year 1612, the seventh of his pontificate)}}

(Paul V (Camillo Borghese), born in Rome but of a Sienese family, liked to emphasize his "Romanness".)

The facade is often cited as the least satisfactory part of the design of St. Peter's. The reasons for this, according to James Lees-Milne, are that it was not given enough consideration by the Pope and committee because of the desire to get the building completed quickly, coupled with the fact that Maderno was hesitant to deviate from the pattern set by Michelangelo at the other end of the building. Lees-Milne describes the problems of the façade as being too broad for its height, too cramped in its details and too heavy in the [[attic]] story. The breadth is caused by modifying the plan to have towers on either side. These towers were never executed above the line of the facade because it was discovered that the ground was not sufficiently stable to bear the weight. One effect of the facade and lengthened nave is to screen the view of the dome, so that the building, from the front, has no vertical feature, except from a distance.<ref name="JL-M" /> 

====Bernini's Towers====
[[Pope Urban VIII|Pope Urban]] had long been a critic of Bernini's predecessor, Carlo Maderno. His disapproval of the architect's work stemmed largely from  Maderno's design for the longitudinal nave of St. Peters, which was widely condemned for obscuring Michelangelo's dome. When the Pope gave the commission to Bernini he therefore requested that a new design for the facade's bell towers to be submitted for consideration. Baldinucci describes Bernini's tower as consisting of "two orders of columns and pilasters, the first order being [[Corinthian order|Corinthian]]" and "a third or attic story formed of pilasters and two columns on either side of the open archway in the center".

Pope Urban desired the towers to be completed by a very specific date: 29 June 1641, the feast day dedicated to [[Feast of Saints Peter and Paul|Saints Peter and Paul]]. To this end an order was issued which stated that "all work should take a second seat to that of the campanile". The south tower was completed on time even in spite of these issues, but records show that in the wake of the unveiling the Pope was not content with what he saw and he ordered the top level of Bernini's tower removed so that the structure could be made even grander. The tower continued to grow, and as the construction began to settle, the first cracks started to appear followed by Urban's infamous public admonishment of his architect.

In 1642 all work on both towers came to a halt. Bernini had to pay the cost for the demolition; eventually the idea of completing the bell towers was abandoned.

[[File:San Pietro in Vaticano 4.jpg|thumb|left|upright|The narthex|alt=Photo shows view of vestibule with three huge doorways leading to the church's interior. The doors are framed by columns and have pediments. The floor is of inlaid marble. The nearest doorway is closed by two huge ancient bronze doors. A group listens to a tour guide while one woman examines the doors.]]

====Narthex and portals====
Behind the façade of St. Peter's stretches a long portico or "[[narthex]]" such as was occasionally found in Italian churches. This is the part of Maderno's design with which he was most satisfied. Its long barrel vault is decorated with ornate stucco and gilt, and successfully illuminated by small windows between pendentives, while the ornate marble floor is beamed with light reflected in from the piazza. At each end of the narthex is a theatrical space framed by ionic columns and within each is set a statue, an [[Equestrian statue of Charlemagne (Cornacchini)|equestrian statue of Charlemagne]] (18th century) by [[Agostino Cornacchini|Cornacchini]] in the south end and ''[[The Vision of Constantine (Bernini)|The Vision of Constantine]]'' (1670) by [[Bernini]] in the north end.

Five portals, of which three are framed by huge salvaged antique columns, lead into the basilica. The central portal has a [[bronze]] door created by [[Filarete|Antonio Averulino]] c.&nbsp;1440 for the old basilica<ref>{{cite book |last=Decker |first=Heinrich |title=The Renaissance in Italy: Architecture • Sculpture • Frescoes |year=1969 |orig-year=1967 |publisher=The Viking Press |location=New York |page=279}}</ref> and somewhat enlarged to fit the new space.

====Maderno's nave====
[[File:St-peters-basilica-interior-pannini-1731.jpg|thumb|Maderno's nave, looking towards the chancel, as painted by [[Giovanni Paolo Pannini]], 1731|alt=A painting of the interior of the vast building with arcades, and a coffered ceiling]]

To the single bay of Michelangelo's Greek Cross, Maderno added a further three bays. He made the dimensions slightly different from Michelangelo's bay, thus defining where the two architectural works meet. Maderno also tilted the axis of the nave slightly. This was not by accident, as suggested by his critics. An ancient [[List of obelisks in Rome|Egyptian obelisk]] had been erected in the square outside, but had not been quite aligned with Michelangelo's building, so Maderno compensated, in order that it should, at least, align with the Basilica's façade.<ref name=JL-M/>

The nave has huge paired [[pilaster]]s, in keeping with Michelangelo's work. The size of the interior is so "stupendously large" that it is hard to get a sense of scale within the building.<ref name=JL-M/>{{NoteTag|The word "stupendous" is used by a number of writers trying to adequately describe the enormity of the interior. These include James Lees-Milne and Banister Fletcher.}} The four [[cherub]]s who flutter against the first piers of the nave, carrying between them two [[holy water]] basins, appear of quite normal cherubic size, until approached. Then it becomes apparent that each one is over 2 metres high and that real children cannot reach the basins unless they scramble up the marble draperies. The aisles each have two smaller [[chapel]]s and a larger rectangular chapel, the Chapel of the Sacrament and the Choir Chapel. These are lavishly decorated with marble, stucco, [[Gilding|gilt]], [[sculpture]] and [[mosaic]]. Remarkably, all of the large altarpieces, with the exception of the Holy Trinity by Pietro da Cortona in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel, have been reproduced in mosaic.  Two precious paintings from the old basilica, Our Lady of Perpetual Help and Our Lady of the Column are still being used as altarpieces.

Maderno's last work at St. Peter's was to design a crypt-like space or "Confessio" under the dome, where the [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|cardinals]] and other privileged persons could descend in order to be nearer to the burial place of the apostle. Its marble steps are remnants of the old basilica and around its [[Baluster|balustrade]] are 95 bronze lamps.