"...And The Winner Is..."

The jury has been out now for a week (actually, the "jury" has been sleeping for a week since flying home)...and the winners of the Miss French Gothic Cathedral are declared to be as follows:

Third runner-up:  The Cathedral Of Sainte-Etienne de Bourges -- Although I was unable to take very good pictures of this cathedral due to its somewhat dark interior, the sheer size of that very open interior was, as the kids say, truly awesome, and the stained glass was absolutely the most beautiful of any I saw.  











 

Second runner-up:  The Cathedral Of Notre Dame de Chartres -- The grandmother of most other French Gothic cathedrals, as her form and beauty became the archetype of many who followed in her footsteps.  She isn't as graceful as some, but she bears an ineffable grandeur as well as charm.  She is undergoing a major restoration and cleaning now, and if on completion the rest of her looks as beautiful as the finished dome over the altar, she would give the winner a run for the money in the next contest.

First runner-up and Miss Congeniality:  Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris -- Not the largest, tallest nor the most elaborate, but absolutely the warmest and most welcoming, architecturally and liturgically, of all fifteen churches I visited.  In addition to the perfect symmetry of the church, it has as an added benefit perfectly glorious music.  As their website states: "Since earliest times, music has been an integral part of the life of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. While the pointed arches of the new gothic style rose up to the heavens to form the chancel, the new Notre Dame Choir School, with its magnificent polyphony, was born. The voices of the choristers responded in virtuosity to that of the builders. Since that time, the musical tradition at Notre Dame has been upheld to the highest degree and each generation in turn, has added a stone to the prestigious edifice, which is that of the Cathedral’s musical history.".. I can attest to the quality of that music which fills the entire Cathedral at every service.  The Cathedral is also home to the Archbishop of Paris.  Let me assure you, once you have attended Mass presided by the Archbishop, with the choir, in the setting of Notre Dame, you have REALLY attended Mass.

And so, the official Miss Gothic Cathedral is....The Cathedral Of Our Lady Of Rouen!

My daughter-in-law also visited Rouen and doesn't agree with my choice.  I'm not sure I can explain my preference, except that this one cathedral contains all the elements that knock my Gothic-loving socks off:  the enormous height of the chancel; massive stone piers that both anchor the church to the earth and raise the roof towards heaven; graceful columns partially encircling the altar to make it a more dramatic focal point than is usually seen in churches of this period, facades filled with statues of saints that, on close inspection, are fine carvings of very human figures; glorious stained glass but a very bright interior, keeping none of the glory of the church hidden.  Although this cathedral has been severely damaged throughout the centuries, nearly destroyed in World War II, its integrity as a true Gothic cathedral has not been compromised by well-meaning but clumsy and ineffective "restoration" or "updating" as, for instance, at  Amiens.

The final cathedral that I visited is nestled in Champagne-Ardenne country in the city of Reims (pronounced, God knows why, as "Rahns").  As the Basilica of St. Denis in Paris is the royal necropolis, Notre Dame de Reims has been the site of the coronations of nearly all French royalty from Louis VIII in 1223 to Charles X in 1825.  It was in this massive cathedral that St. Joan of Arc brought Charles VII in 1429 to be crowned.  Reims has been almost leveled and gutted in wars over the centuries and it, like Rouen, is undergoing a major restoration at this time.  It boasts well over 2000 statues on the exterior facades and carved from the walls of the interior, but these are not life-size statues -- they are at least one and one-half times larger, maybe closer to two, than life -- including its famous "Smiling Angel" at the North Portal.

The cathedral was modeled after Chartres but much of its upper stained glass was removed in the 13th century and so this church is lighter as well as taller, more linear and far larger.  Although the exterior shows its age it is exquisite in its complexity, but the interior is so massive I couldn't begin to photograph it, even in the limited manner that I've captured the other cathedrals.  Subjectively, I found Reims almost too big, overpowering, nearly oppressive in its bulk, even though the height of the nave is proportional and elegant.  I think it was my least favorite cathedral -- maybe I was frustrated because it just wouldn't pose for my camera.  Maybe Ann, with her better camera, lens and photographic eye, has better photos of Reims.  I haven't yet gone through her 1250 pictures to see...