chartres. the church at chartres was burned down several times between the 8th century and the 12th. each time, the people of chartres willed its rebuilding. the craftsmen, sculptors, glaziers, masons, and construction workers flooded in from far and wide. but the people of chartres themselves provided the basis, in the money raised by selling the produce of their labors. they also provided the emotional commitment, and sometimes that could reach fever pitch, as in 1145. in 1194, the church was again burned down, leaving only the great west gate, the western towers, and the ancient crypt. miraculously, their most sacred relic, the tunic of the virgin mary, survived intact in the crypt, to the joy of the people. even more miraculously, the entire church was rebuilt in 27 years. that is the church that we can still see today. what the cathedral meant to the people who lived in these streets in the 13th century is very different from what it means today. then the cathedral was the center of spirit

chartres.he church at chartres was burned down several times between the 8th century and the 12th. each time, the people of chartres willed its rebuilding. the craftsmen, sculptors, glaziers, masons, and construction workers flooded in from far and wide. but the people of chartres themselves provided the basis, in the money raised by selling the produce of their labors. they also provided the emotional commitment, and sometimes that could reach fever pitch,