Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed in the late 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesquestyle of architecture. Popular features of these revival buildings are round arches, semi-circular arches on windows, and belt courses. Unlike the classical Romanesque style, however, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to feature more simplified arches and windows than their historic counterparts. The style was quite popular for courthouses and university campuses in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, perhaps the best-known of these being the University of California, Los Angeles. The style was widely used for churches, and occasionally for synagogues such as the Congregation Emanu-El of New York on Fifth Avenue built in 1929.
By far the most prominent and influential American architect working in a free "Romanesque" manner is Henry Hobson Richardson. In the United States the style derived from examples set by him are termed "Richardsonian Romanesque".
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