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Example research essay topic: Thames And Hudson Chartres Cathedral - 1,709 words

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... furrier making a cloak with some assistants (Fig. 8); lastly on the bottom 'petal' of the miracles of Mary window, two butchers cut meat for a customer (Fig. 9) Secular glass windows showing the trade of the donors were also complimented by the use of some secular sculptures on the outside of the cathedral. Sculptures at the cathedral included not only religious images, but also images of kings and queens. The sculptures on the west facade depict Christ's ascension into heaven, episode from his life, saints, apostles, Christ in the lap of Mary and other religious scenes. (See Fig. 10) Below the religious figures are statues of kings and queens, which is the reason why this entrance is known as the 'royal' portal. While these figures are based on figures from the Old Testament, they were also regarded as images of current kings and queens when they were constructed. The symbolism of showing royalty displayed slightly lower than the religious sculptures, but still very close, implies the relationship between the kings and God.

It is a way of displaying the authority of royalty, showing them so close to figures of Christ, it gives the impression they have been ordained and put in place by God. Sculptures of the Seven Liberal Arts appeared in the archivolt of the right bay of the Royal Portal, which represented the school at Chartres. (See Kleiner et al 2001: 491) Chartres cathedral functioned as an important cathedral school. Charlemagne wanted a system of education for the French people in the ninth century, and since it was difficult and costly for new schools to be built, it was easier to use already existing infrastructure. So he ordered that both cathedrals and monasteries maintain schools and so religious schooling became very important in France. Cathedral schools eventually took over from monastic schools as the main places of education. In the 11 th century the education system was controlled by the clergy in cathedrals such as Chartres.

The cathedral itself symbolized the school. "It was the cathedral's function to disseminate teachings and give visual expression to the learning of the schools. " (Duby 1991: 190) Many French cathedral schools had specialties, and Chartres was most renowned for the study of logic. The new logic taught in Chartres was regarded by many as being even ahead of Paris, as "the young man... should he want to experiment in the exciting new science of logic, he went to Chartres. " (Chamberlin 1967: 113) Classes at the school did not have separate age groups in different classes, so children were brought into the same classes as much older people. One person who was educated at Chartres was John of Salisbury, an English philosopher and writer, who had his classical training there. (See Evans 1957: 124) Chartres cathedral was used as a place of pilgrimage by many people from France, England and elsewhere. The small town of Chartres attracted many visitors as the church was "in the twelfth century was primarily a pilgrim Church" (James 1982: 70) Many people came from all over France to see the important relic, because of the popular cult of the Virgin. "There were innumerable pilgrimages within France itself: to Chartres, to see the Tunic of the Virgin. " (Evans 1957: 77) People from the surrounding countryside were also attracted to the cathedral because of its immense size and it became a source of civic pride. Different French towns competed against each other to have larger cathedrals, and the people of Chartres would have been very proud of their cathedral, for when it was built it was the tallest in France.

The wealthy and powerful also visited Chartres, with three popes visiting the cathedral in the 12 th century, and many French kings visited such as Henri III, who visited about twenty times, and Henri IV, who was consecrated in Chartres cathedral. (See Microsoft Encarta 2003) The fairs that were held in the surrounding area of the cathedral were attended by many of the pilgrims, for they coincided with the feast days of the Virgin Mary. The fairs were attended by many of the pilgrims who came to see the cloak of the Virgin, whose pilgrimages were "easy and happy... and they tended to degenerate into attendance at fairs in pilgrimage places. " (Evans 1957: 78) A medieval fair was the most important event of the year as far as most people of the town would have been concerned, for it was the main time at which to exchange goods with people from other towns. The fairs at Chartres were held just outside the cathedral, the property made up of streets and squares which belonged to the church that was immediately adjacent to the cathedral. There were four great fairs which coincided with the main feast days of the Virgin; the Purification; the Annunciation; the Assumption and the Nativity. "There is no great feast without its fair, no fair without its feast: one calls for the other. " (Von Simpson 1988: 165) Small images of the Sacred Tunic or of Our Lady were popular items at these fairs. The main attraction at these fairs was the cloak of the Virgin, so the life of the town was dependent upon them. "The prosperity of the town's fair rested on the church's fame for attracting pilgrims. " (Baldwin 1971: 101) Tourists from afar used the cathedral grounds for non-religious purposes, as did the people of the town.

There were many activities of town life that occurred in and around the cathedral which made it a civic building, not just a religious one. "Located at the very heart of town life, the cathedral often had the character of a civic building, and a variety of activities took place both within and in front of it. " (web archest/Course% 20 stuff/Medieval / medieval . htm) Notre Dame de Chartres functioned sometimes as a marketplace, with the different portals of the basilica selling different items; textiles at the northern end; fuel, vegetables and meat at the southern one. Sometimes the clergy would try, in vain, to stop the life of the markets from entering into the cathedral. Wine sellers were forbidden to sell wine in the crypt, but were allowed to do business in the nave of the church and avoid the taxes which they would have to pay if they sold it outside.

Workers of various professions gathered in the cathedral seeking jobs, such as carpenters and masons. Food was even allowed to be sold in the cathedral. Once when a disease called ergotism that caused many victims in the town, the north side of the crypt became a hospital to care for the sick. (See Coldstream 2002: 194) The cathedral was sometimes used as a place where workers would work out to improve their fitness. (See Branner 1969: 69) It once even functioned as a place to punish the rioters of 1210, who were led naked through the town and whipped in front of the altar. (See web 1210 chartres. html) Chartres cathedral was the most important building in the town of Chartres. It was the centre of the economy, the most famous landmark and the centre of almost every activity which is provided by civic buildings in towns today. Evidence of the secular uses of the cathedral is shown in some of the renowned decorations of stained glass windows and sculptures.

The main markets held in the town occurred at the fairs held on holy days of the Virgin Mary, which drew pilgrims from all over Europe. The cathedral was built and funded by the entire populace and not just the religious community; everyone from the Queen of France to the peasants in the fields contributing to the massive effort. The patrons of the cathedral were not just the people attending mass; the cathedral was also a school, hospital, fairground, trade centre, marketplace, meeting hall, art gallery, sanctuary, shelter and tourist attraction; it was the heart as well as the soul of the town. Bibliography Baldwin, J. 1971, The Scholastic Culture of the Middle Ages 1000 - 1300, DC Heath & Co. , Lexington, Massachusetts USA Branner, R. 1969, Chartres Cathedral, WW Norton & Company inc, NY USA Bull, M. 2002, The Short Oxford History of France: France in the Central Middle Ages 900 - 1200, Oxford University Press, Oxford UK Chamberlin, E. R. 1967, Life in Medieval France, William Clowes & Sons Ltd, London UK Coldstream, N. 2002, Oxford History of Art: Medieval Architecture, Oxford UK Duby, G. 1991, France in the Middle Ages 987 - 1460, Basil Blackwell Ltd, Oxford UK. Dunlop, I. 1982, The Cathedrals Crusade: The Rise of the Gothic Style in France, Hamish Hamilton Ltd, London UK Erlande-Brandenburg 1997, The Cathedral Builders of the Middle Ages, Thames and Hudson, London UK Evans, J. 1957, Life in Medieval France, Phaidon Press, London UK Hallam, M. 2001, Capetian France 987 - 1328, Pearson Education Everard, J.

Ltd, Essex, UK House, E. 1976, Chartres Cathedral, Imprimeries Loos, Saint-Die France James, J 1982, Chartres: The Masons who built a legend, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London UK Kaye, N. 1959, Gothic Cathedrals of France, Nicholas Kaye Ltd, London UK Kleiner, F. 2001, Gardeners Art Through the Ages, 11 th edition, Harcourt Mamiya, C. College Publishers, Orlando USA Taney, R. Miller, M. 1975, Chartres Cathedral: The Stained Glass and Sculpture, Garrod and Loft house International Ltd, Caterham and Crawley UK Rodin, A. 1965, Cathedrals of France, Beacon Press, Boston USA Scott, R. 2003, The Gothic Enterprise: A guide to Understanding the Medieval Cathedral, University of California Press, Los Angeles USA Tilley, A. 1922, Medieval France A Companion to French Studies, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge UK Von Simpson, O. 1988, The Gothic Cathedral: Origins of Gothic Architecture and the Medieval concept of Order, Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey USA Wilson, C. 1990, The Gothic Cathedral: The Architecture of the Great Church 1130 - 1530, Thames and Hudson, Singapore web accessed 13 / 04 / 04 Classical Architectural History Lesson, subheading "The New Cathedrals" Halsall, P. 1988, web accessed 13 / 04 / 04 Halsall, P. 1988 web accessed 13 / 04 / 04 Ingersoll, R. 1995, Rice University Cities and History web accessed 13 / 04 / 04


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