Chartres Cathedral


	Chartres Cathedral

Chartres Cathedral, France
begun 1145
burned in 1194 except for the west front
rebuilt 1205-1220

^MAS The town of Chartres had been a center for the cult of the Virgin throughout the Middle Ages. It possessed a statue of Mary that St Luke had reportedly carved, as well as the "sacred Tunic," supposedly worn by the Virgin at the time of the birth of Christ. The people of Chartres believed that this sacred relic acted as their protector. When the first "early Gothic" cathedral (as well as much of the town) burned in 1194, the rebuilding was considered futile, since the townspeople believed that their protector had been deserted them. However, a representative of the Pope persuaded the citizens to rebuild. Now it is one of most famous cathedrals in France, defined as an exemplar of the "High Gothic" style. The facade, executed earlier (before the fire), is early Gothic.

^MAS

Because Chartres cathedral, except for the west front, had burned in 1194, the architect was able to rebuild the nave using the new idea of external buttressing. The buttresses along the nave wall, between the windows, are decorative as well, with the two arches linked by a design like spokes on a wheel; the pier buttresses have niches for sculpture. In Gothic cathedrals much attention is devoted to effects not readily seen from the ground. After all, the cathedrals are built for the glory of God, who would note these efforts. In addition, medieval theologians often compared the church to the city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem. Thus, it was important to embellish the cathedrals in every imaginable way.

The architect of Chartres realized the consequences of using flying buttresses. Compare the elevations of Chartres and St. Etienne, a Romanesque church. At Chartres the second floor gallery is eliminated since it is no longer needed to bear the thrust of the vaults; thus the roofs of the aisles could be placed immediately over the aisles instead of one story higher. This, then, gives greater space for windows.

Now contrast the interior nave wall of Chartres and the earlier Romanesque nave. Not only is the ceiling higher, but with the elimination of the second floor gallery, windows could be lowered. And since walls were relieved of bearing weight (now accomplished by buttressing), windows could be enlarged. In addition, the nave wall at Caen seems more solid, even though it has openings; a Gothic nave wall is not only pierced but seems weightless. In place of the second story gallery, the High Gothic architects added a triforium, the continuous ribbon of masonry between the nave arcade and the windows. This also gives a stronger horizontal emphasis to Gothic cathedrals compared to Romanesque churches which have a sense of segmentation; that is, each bay is an isolated unit in Romanesque churches. This ribbon leads the eye to the altar, which may reflect changes in devotional practice and a stronger interest among the laity in observing the Mass at the altar.

By 1220 the vaults of Chartres Cathedral had been completed. The cathedral is 422 long and its vaults soar 120 feet above the pavement. Imagine the energy, expense, and man-hours it would have taken to erect this huge a structure in such a short time-span -- and without power tools!
The height of the nave is accentuated by the springing of the vaulting (four-part vaulting) from below the clerestory; the ribs of the vaulting join together on the nave wall in a decorative bundle.

Stained glass is a medium associated with Gothic art, even though glass windows had been designed earlier. The windows at Chartres are a special treasure since 152 of the original 186 windows still exist. And they were clearly considered special when the cathedral was constructed; the windows were endowed individually and the whole population acted as benefactors for these works of art--not only nobility and clergy but members of the various medieval craft guilds, whose activities are recorded in the lower parts of the stained glass. The mysticism of light plays an important role in medieval theology. Hugh of St. Victor wrote: "Stained-glass windows are the Holy Scriptures...and since their brilliance lets the splendor of the True Light pass into the church, they enlighten those inside" (quoted in Gardner's Art through the Ages, 441).

All images marked ^MAS were photographed on location by Mary Ann Sullivan. All other images were scanned from other sources or downloaded from the World Wide Web; they are posted on this password-protected site for educational purposes, at Bluffton College only, under the "fair use" clause of U.S. copyright law.

Page maintained by Gerald W. Schlabach, gws@bluffton.edu. Last updated: 5 November 1997.

	Chartres Cathedral, France begun 1145 burned in 1194 except for the west front rebuilt 1205-1220
^MAS	The town of Chartres had been a center for the cult of the Virgin throughout the Middle Ages. It possessed a statue of Mary that St Luke had reportedly carved, as well as the "sacred Tunic," supposedly worn by the Virgin at the time of the birth of Christ. The people of Chartres believed that this sacred relic acted as their protector. When the first "early Gothic" cathedral (as well as much of the town) burned in 1194, the rebuilding was considered futile, since the townspeople believed that their protector had been deserted them. However, a representative of the Pope persuaded the citizens to rebuild. Now it is one of most famous cathedrals in France, defined as an exemplar of the "High Gothic" style. The facade, executed earlier (before the fire), is early Gothic.
^MAS	Because Chartres cathedral, except for the west front, had burned in 1194, the architect was able to rebuild the nave using the new idea of external buttressing. The buttresses along the nave wall, between the windows, are decorative as well, with the two arches linked by a design like spokes on a wheel; the pier buttresses have niches for sculpture. In Gothic cathedrals much attention is devoted to effects not readily seen from the ground. After all, the cathedrals are built for the glory of God, who would note these efforts. In addition, medieval theologians often compared the church to the city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem. Thus, it was important to embellish the cathedrals in every imaginable way.
	The architect of Chartres realized the consequences of using flying buttresses. Compare the elevations of Chartres and St. Etienne, a Romanesque church. At Chartres the second floor gallery is eliminated since it is no longer needed to bear the thrust of the vaults; thus the roofs of the aisles could be placed immediately over the aisles instead of one story higher. This, then, gives greater space for windows.
	Now contrast the interior nave wall of Chartres and the earlier Romanesque nave. Not only is the ceiling higher, but with the elimination of the second floor gallery, windows could be lowered. And since walls were relieved of bearing weight (now accomplished by buttressing), windows could be enlarged. In addition, the nave wall at Caen seems more solid, even though it has openings; a Gothic nave wall is not only pierced but seems weightless. In place of the second story gallery, the High Gothic architects added a triforium, the continuous ribbon of masonry between the nave arcade and the windows. This also gives a stronger horizontal emphasis to Gothic cathedrals compared to Romanesque churches which have a sense of segmentation; that is, each bay is an isolated unit in Romanesque churches. This ribbon leads the eye to the altar, which may reflect changes in devotional practice and a stronger interest among the laity in observing the Mass at the altar.
	By 1220 the vaults of Chartres Cathedral had been completed. The cathedral is 422 long and its vaults soar 120 feet above the pavement. Imagine the energy, expense, and man-hours it would have taken to erect this huge a structure in such a short time-span -- and without power tools! The height of the nave is accentuated by the springing of the vaulting (four-part vaulting) from below the clerestory; the ribs of the vaulting join together on the nave wall in a decorative bundle.
	Stained glass is a medium associated with Gothic art, even though glass windows had been designed earlier. The windows at Chartres are a special treasure since 152 of the original 186 windows still exist. And they were clearly considered special when the cathedral was constructed; the windows were endowed individually and the whole population acted as benefactors for these works of art--not only nobility and clergy but members of the various medieval craft guilds, whose activities are recorded in the lower parts of the stained glass. The mysticism of light plays an important role in medieval theology. Hugh of St. Victor wrote: "Stained-glass windows are the Holy Scriptures...and since their brilliance lets the splendor of the True Light pass into the church, they enlighten those inside" (quoted in Gardner's Art through the Ages, 441).