Chartres is famous worldwide for itscathedral. Mostly constructed between 1193 and 1250, thisGothic cathedral is in an exceptional state of preservation. The majority of the original stained glass windows survive intact, while the architecture has seen only minor changes since the early 13th century.[6] Part of the old town, including most of the library associated with theSchool of Chartres, was destroyed byAllied bombs in 1944.
Chartres was one of the principal towns inGaul of theCarnutes, aCeltic tribe. In theGallo-Roman period, it was calledAutricum, name derived from the riverAutura (Eure), and afterwardscivitas Carnutum, "city of the Carnutes", from which Chartres got its name. The city was raided and burned down by theNorsemen in 858, and once again besieged, this time unsuccessfully, by them in 911.[7]
Duringthe Middle Ages, it was the most important town of theBeauce. It gave its name to a county which was held by the counts ofBlois, and the counts ofChampagne, and afterwards by theHouse of Châtillon, a member of which sold it to theCrown in 1286.[7]
In 1417, during theHundred Years' War, Chartres fell into the hands of the English, from whom it was recovered in 1432. In 1528, it was raised to the rank of a duchy byFrancis I.[7]
In 1568, during the secondwar of Religion, Chartres was unsuccessfullybesieged by theHuguenot leader, thePrince of Condé. It was finally taken by the royal troops ofHenry IV on 19 April 1591. On Sunday, 27 February 1594, the cathedral of Chartres was the site of the coronation of Henry IV after he converted to the Catholic faith, the only king of France whosecoronation ceremony was not performed inReims.
During the 1870–1871Franco-Prussian War, Chartres was seized by the Germans on 2 October 1870, and continued during the rest of the war to be an important centre of operations.[7]
DuringWorld War II, the city suffered heavy damage by bombing and during the battle of Chartres in August 1944, but itscathedral was spared by an American Army officer who challenged the order to destroy it.[8] On 16 August 1944, ColonelWelborn Barton Griffith, Jr. questioned the necessity of destroying the cathedral and volunteered to go behind enemy lines to find out whether the Germans were using it as an observation post. With his driver, Griffith proceeded to the cathedral and, after searching it all the way up itsbell tower, confirmed to headquarters that it was empty of Germans. The order to destroy the cathedral was withdrawn.
Colonel Griffith was killed in action later on that day in the town ofLèves, 3.5 kilometres (2.2 miles) north of Chartres.[8][9] For his heroic action both at Chartres and Lèves, Colonel Griffith posthumously received several decorations awarded by the president of the United States and the U.S. military, and also from the French government.[10]
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Chartres is built on a hill on the left bank of the riverEure. Its renowned medievalcathedral is at the top of the hill, and its two spires are visible from miles away across the flat surrounding lands. To the southeast stretches the fertile plain ofBeauce, the "granary of France", in which Chartres is the commercial centre.[7]
It was built on the site of the former Chartres cathedral ofRomanesque architecture, which was destroyed by fire in 1194 (that former cathedral had been built on the ruins of an ancient Celtic temple, later replaced by a Roman temple). Begun in 1205, the construction ofNotre-Dame de Chartres was completed 66 years later.
Thestained glass windows of the cathedral were financed byguilds of merchants and craftsmen, and by wealthy noblemen, whose names appear at the bottom.
It is not known how the famous and unique blue,bleu de Chartres, of the glass was created, and it has been impossible to replicate it. The French authorMichel Pastoureau says that it could also be calledbleu de Saint-Denis.[16]
TheÉglise Saint-Pierre de Chartres was the church of theBenedictineAbbaye Saint-Père-en-Vallée, founded in the 7th century by queenBalthild. At time of its construction, the abbey was outside the walls of the city. It contains fine stained glass and, formerly, twelve representations of the apostles in enamel, created about 1547 byLéonard Limosin,[7] which now can be seen in the fine arts museum.
Other noteworthy churches of Chartres areSaint-Aignan (13th, 16th and 17th centuries), andSaint-Martin-au-Val (12th century), inside the Saint-Brice hospital.[7]
Musée des Beaux-Arts, Fine arts museum, housed in the former episcopal palace adjacent to the cathedral.
Le Centre international du vitrail, a workshop-museum and cultural center devoted tostained glass art, located 50 metres (160 feet) from the cathedral.
Conservatoire du machinisme et des pratiques agricoles, an agricultural museum.
The Eure river running through ChartresTheHôtel de Ville
The river Eure, which at this point divides into three branches, is crossed by several bridges, some of them ancient, and is fringed in places by remains of the old fortifications, of which thePorte Guillaume (14th century), a gateway flanked by towers, was the most complete specimen, until destroyed by the retreatingGerman army in the night of 15 to 16 August 1944. The steep, narrow streets of the old town contrast with the wide, shady boulevards which encircle it and separate it from the suburbs. The "parc André-Gagnon" or "Clos St. Jean", a pleasant park, lies to the north-west, and squares and open spaces are numerous.[7]
Part of theHôtel de Ville (City Hall) is a building dating from the 17th century, calledHôtel Montescot.[17] TheMaison Canoniale dating back to the 13th century, and several medieval and Renaissance houses, are of interest.[7]
Chartres is one of the most importantmarket towns in the region ofBeauce (known as "the granary of France").
Historically,game pies and other delicacies of Chartres were well known, and the industries also included flour-milling, brewing, distilling, iron-founding, leather manufacture, perfumes, dyeing, stained glass, billiard requisites and hosiery.[7]
Since 1976 the fashion and perfumes companyPuig has had a production plant in this commune.[18]
Chartres is home to two semi-professional association football clubs;FC Chartres, who play in the French sixth division, andHB Chartres, who play in the seventh tier.
Chartres has a table tennis club which is playing in the Pro A (French First division) and in theEuropean Champions League. The club won theETTU Cup on the season 2010 – 2011 and it finished at the second position in the French First division.
Chartres has the second most importantsquash club in France.
There is also ahandball club and it is playing in the French second division.
Public and religious schooling from kindergarten through high school and vocational schools is given in mixed (boys and girls) establishments. The two main high schools are theLycée Jehan de Beauce and theLycée Marceau, named after two important personages of the history of Chartres:Jehan de Beauce was a 16th-century architect who rebuilt the northern steeple of the cathedral after it had been destroyed by lightning in July 1506, andMarceau, a native of city, who was a general during the French Revolution of 1789.
Chartres has been a site of Catholic pilgrimages since the Middle Ages. The poetCharles Péguy (1873–1914) revived the pilgrimage route between Paris and Chartres beforeWorld War I. After the war, some students carried on the pilgrimage in his memory. Since 1982, the associationNotre-Dame de Chrétienté,[19] with offices inVersailles, organizes the annual 100 km (62 mi) pilgrimage on foot fromNotre-Dame de Paris toNotre-Dame de Chartres. About 15,000 pilgrims, from France and countries outside France, participate every year.
^abMilitaryTimes.com."MilitaryTimes Hall of Valor".Welborn Barton Griffith, Jr. Military Times, a Gannett Company.Archived from the original on 18 January 2012. Retrieved10 May 2011. Note: The Distinguished Service Cross was awarded posthumously for saving the cathedral.
