English Gothic architecture Exeter Cathedral is built in this style, as is the crossing of Ely Cathedral, (including the famous octagonal lantern, built between 1322 and 1328 to replace the fallen central tower), three west bays of the choir and the Lady Chapel. In Scotland, Melrose Abbey was a noteworthy example, though much of it is now in ruins. The Perpendicular Gothic period (or simply Perpendicular) is the third historical division of English Gothic architecture, and is so-called because it is characterised by an emphasis on vertical lines. An alternative name, the Rectilinear, was suggested by Edmund Sharpe, and is preferred by some
Old St Paul's Cathedral the spire, and was probably more beautiful both inside and out than that of any other English cathedral." According to the architectural historian John Harvey, the octagonal chapter house, built about 1332 by William Ramsey, was the earliest example of Perpendicular Gothic. This is confirmed by Alec Clifton-Taylor, who notes that the chapter house and St Stephen's chapel at Westminster Abbey predate the early Perpendicular work at Gloucester Cathedral by several years. The foundations of the chapter house were recently made visible in the redeveloped south churchyard of the new cathedral. The finished cathedral of the Middle Ages was renowned