Chartres Cathedral
Chartres Cathedral, formally the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres, stands about 80 kilometres southwest of Paris and is widely regarded as the finest surviving example of French High Gothic architecture. After a fire destroyed the earlier church in 1194, the present cathedral was raised with remarkable speed and largely finished by 1220, giving it an unusual stylistic unity. Its two contrasting spires, one austere and Romanesque, the other flamboyant and later, frame a west front whose Royal Portal is among the masterpieces of medieval sculpture.
The cathedral is most celebrated for its stained glass, with some 176 windows that have survived almost intact since the thirteenth century, bathing the interior in the deep blues and reds known the world over as Chartres blue. Set into the nave floor is a famous labyrinth that pilgrims still walk today, while the church guards its great relic, the Sancta Camisa, said to be a tunic worn by the Virgin Mary.
Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, Chartres remains a major pilgrimage destination and an active cathedral of the diocese. Generations of art historians, architects and the faithful have travelled here to study its sculpture and bask in its luminous glass.
- Annual visitors
- ≈ 1,000,000
- Location
- 48.4478, 1.4878
- Local time
- 00:33 (Europe/Paris)
🕘 Visiting hours
| Mon–Sun | 08:30–19:30 |
Open daily, free entry; last access ~19:15. Restricted circulation during Mass. Open later in July-August.
✨ Saints & blessed venerated here
-
Virgin Mary Saint
Cathedral dedicated to her; houses the Sancta Camisa (Veil of the Virgin) relic and the Notre-Dame de la Belle-Verriere window.
-
Saint Anne Saint
Mother of Mary; depicted on the trumeau of the north transept central portal and in the north rose; her relic head was given to the cathedral.
-
Saint Fulbert Saint
Bishop of Chartres (1006-1028) who rebuilt the cathedral after the 1020 fire; the great crypt bears his name.
-
Saint Lubin Saint
6th-century Bishop of Chartres; has a dedicated crypt chapel with 12th-century fresco and a stained glass window of his life.
-
Saint Nicholas Saint
Depicted in dedicated stained glass windows and sculpture showing scenes from his life.
-
Saint Martin of Tours Saint
Honored in stained glass windows depicting his life.
-
Saint James the Greater Saint
Subject of a famous narrative stained glass window reflecting the pilgrimage tradition.
-
Saint Modesta Saint
Local martyr venerated at Chartres; statue on the north transept porch, linked to the early Christian crypt.
The candle wall
2 candles burning now · 170 places
00:33
Tap an empty holder to light your own candle · €2.00 · hover a flame to see its intention