Pilgrimage series: Cathedral has interesting history

Editor's note: Fifteenth in a series on the sacred places and tombs of saints included in The Compass pilgrimage to Rome and Paris that retired Green Bay Bishop Robert Banks will lead May 3-13. (More information on pilgrimage)

By Tony Staley

	Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres What: One of France's best Gothic cathedrals When: Built 1194-1120 Where: Chartres

On the second day back in France, the pilgrims will have the option of touring the Cathedral of Chartres.

The Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres, 55 miles southwest of Paris, is considered one of the best examples of Gothic architecture in France. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.

The site was long considered holy and is believed to have been a Druid place of worship before the first Christian church was built in the fourth century under the Emperor Constantine.

At least five cathedrals, all dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, have been built on the site. One of these earlier cathedrals became an important place of Christian pilgrimage in 876 when Emperor Charles the Bald gave it a tunic Mary was said to have been wearing when Jesus was born.

Fire was always a threat and after it destroyed one cathedral, work started on a Romanesque basilica. But on the night of June 10 and 11, 1194, lightning sparked a fire that destroyed everything but the west towers, the façade between them and the crypt.

The tunic was thought lost until three days later when a group of priests came out of the underground vaults where they had fled with tunic in hand. A visiting cardinal, the pope's ambassador, called it a miracle and a sign from Mary to rebuild the church.

Work began almost immediately. The new cathedral broke new architectural ground with its flying buttresses and the use of four rib vaults in a rectangle, rather than six in a square, which left more room for stained glass windows. It was also the first time trebuchets (a sort of catapult) were converted into cranes for work high above the ground.

Enthusiasm was so great that townspeople volunteered to haul stone five miles from the quarry. Donations came from all over France, but all was not trouble-free. A local countess and some wealthy townspeople incited riots and tax revolts in protest.

Still, the work was completed by 1220, though not all the planned towers were built. King St. Louis IX attended the dedication in 1260. The 425-foot long church covers more than 115,000 square feet. Its two towers are 349 and 377 feet tall.

The church floor plan is in the shape of a cross. Supporting columns lead the eye up to the stained glass windows and high arches. The windows, which are known for their deep blues, splash color onto the floor below.

Of the original 186 stained glass windows, 152 have survived 16th century religious wars, the French Revolution, World Wars I and II and some well-intentioned, but ill-conceived, attempts to restore and protect them from the ravages of age and pollution. During World War II, the windows were stored in the countryside to protect them from German bombs. The cathedral was damaged during the Revolution, but was saved from a plan to destroy it.

The cathedral also is home to a 13th century inlaid floor labyrinth, 131 feet in circumference, whose 964-foot long circular path believers still walk in silent contemplation.

For more than 20 years the French government has been repairing and preserving the cathedral. These efforts are funded in part by non-profit foundations and donors.

(Staley is a retired editor of The Compass.)

Next: Lisieux