What is the name of the architect of the campanile (bell tower)?

Question

What is the name of the architect of the campanile (bell tower)?

Answer 1

dont worry, campanile is right. in florence giotto made the campanile. he was the guy that made a perfect circle with paper and "pen" only.

Answer 2

If you mean the one in Florence then it's Giotto. There are many campaniles in Italy.

Answer 3

Giotto (in Florence)

Answer 4

sorry to dissapoint you....campa means "live"....to say bell in italian you use the word "campana".

Every church has a "campanile"....about the architect....well in my church was Mr. Ciapponi, i don't know the other 25,000, sorry!

Answer 5

The campanile or bell tower (from the Italian, campa for "bell") is situated at the southwest corner of the Shrine.  Its placement at this corner came via a rather circuitous route.  Designed in 1920 to stand on the southeast corner, it moved to the northeast corner in 1926, and to its current location in 1928.  One of the mitigating factors in its placement, was the location of the Lourdes Chapel, which is on the Crypt Level, west transept, next to Our Mother of Africa Chapel.

Having weathered the Depression, World War II and Korea, the final push to finish the upper church or superstructure of the National Shrine was launched on December 8 of the Marian Year (1953-1954), as part of the centennial celebration of the promulgation of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception.  As the plans and costs for the completion of the superstructure solidified, it was clear that the tower was a luxury that would have to wait.  On Sunday, 31 March 1957 this all changed.  Supreme Knight, Luke E. Hart, pledged the funds from the Knights of Columbus to build the campanile.  Thus the name The Knights' Tower.

The height of tall structures in the District of Columbia is  often compared to that of the Washington Monument, of which it is said  that it is the tallest point in the District; that federal law prohibits any structure to be taller.  This is an urban legend.   While there are height restrictions in the District, the defining factor is not the Washington Monument.   In 1910, the Height of Buildings Act established a range of maximum building heights depending on the width of the street on which a building fronts and whether the street is a business or a residential street.  That legislation is still in effect today.  Since 1910, the District Board of Zoning Adjustment have exercised their authority to set further height limitations in 15 different areas of the District adjacent to public buildings, and to grant exemptions or waivers, particularly for structures such as spires, towers or domes.   In 1954, the architectural firm of Maginnis and Walsh wrote to the District Zoning Commission for an exemption, stating "the erection of this great church to its designed dimensions will be an asset to the neighborhood, the District of Columbia and the Nation."   The appeal was successful and an exemption was granted.

Regarding the tower as an aviation hazard:  the steady blue lamps visible on the exterior of the campanile are not mandatory warning beacons.  True, the architect's original plans and specifications for the campanile called for blinking red beacons at the NE and SW corner of the parapet; and steady red beacons at the lower levels.   After having consulted with the C.A.A. authorities (today the F.A.A.) in connection with the Air Safety Officer for the Washington, D.C. area, it was determined that the campanile did not present a hazard, as there were no specific aircraft patterns in the vicinity of the Shrine.   Consequently,  neither the red blinking beacon nor the steady red lights were required.   Maginnis and Walsh and Kennedy, while agreeing that there was no cause for concern, did not agree with the C.A.A. that the beacons could or should be eliminated entirely.  They accepted the recommendation "that the blinking red and steady red beacon be changed to steady blue lights."

The limestone walls rise to a height of 272 ft.  Above the stone, a pyramid or spire rises 37 ft, and is topped by a 20 ft. gilded cross.  The actual height of the tower (329 ft) makes it taller than the campanile of the Basilica of St. Mark in Venice (325 ft), the Leaning Tower of Pisa (188 ft) and Giotto's Tower in Florence (275 ft), but it does not equal the height of the Washington Monument (555 ft.)  The geographical location of the tower causes it to rise nearly to the height of the Washington Monument.  Unlike other towers or campaniles,  it was determined from the beginning, that the Shrine campanile would house a precision musical instrument.  Thus there is neither an observation platform nor public access to the tower.

From the Day of Dedication in 1959 until 1963, the campanile was without bells.  In 1962, the Knights of Columbus made an additional gift to the National Shrine for the purchase of the carillon.    On the day of the dedication (8 Sept 1963), Archbishop O'Boyle expressed his gratitude in these words ". . . to the members of the Knights of Columbus, in the name of the bishops of the country, I say we are deeply grateful for this wonderful gift.  Long after we are gone, this tower and these bells will be paying honor to God and to his Mother."