Chartres Cathedral
Chartres crossing and transept
When the builders were done with the nave, they built the great big columns of the crossing. Like the columns of the nave, the crossing columns went almost uninterrupted all the way up, to draw your eyes upward. They were made to look like a lot of little columns, so they would seem more light and delicate than they really were. Then they built the transept. At each end of the transept they built big doors, and over the doors a fancy round stained glass window called a rose window (because the stone ribs inside the window look like a flower).
Finally, the builders began work on the apse. Because Chartres was a pilgrimage church, a lot of people would want to walk around the back of the apse to pray in all the little chapels back there. So the builders put in double aisles back there, to make room for more people.
Chartres apse
When all of the stonework was done, the craftsmen finished the details. They carved statues and stories all over the outside of the cathedral, and they put fancy stained glass in the windows.
When the people of Chartres finished building their cathedral, in 1220 AD, the king of France, Louis IX, came to the opening ceremony. Afterwards, they used it for all kinds of things, not just praying. Four times a year, they held big fairs there, with the cloth-sellers in the north transept, and people selling vegetables, wood, and meat in the south transept. In the nave, merchants sold wine, and carpenters and masons came to the cathedral to look for work. When there was a plague, people used the cathedral for a hospital, and teachers taught school in the cathedral too.
First page about Chartres cathedral
To find out more about Chartres cathedral, check out this book from Amazon.com or from your library:
Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction, by David Macaulay (1981). Beautiful drawings and clear text explain exactly how medieval craftsmen built a cathedral, from foundation to the stained glass windows. For kids.
Main cathedrals page
Romanesque architecture page
Gothic architecture page
Castles page
Back to medieval architecture
Medieval gifts and books
Main medieval page
Kidipede - History for Kids home page
