Chartres Cathedral

The medieval Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartes is a Latin Rite Catholic cathedral located in Chartes, which is about 50 miles southwest of Paris. It is considered one of the finest examples of the French High Gothic style. The current cathedral, the forth that has occupied the space since the 4th century, was constructed between 1193 and 1250. It has been preseved exceptionally. The majority of the original stained glass windows survive intact, and only minor changes have occured since the early 13th century. The exterior of Chartes is dominated by heavy flying buttresses which allow the architects to increase the size of the windows significantly. The west end has two contrasting spires.