Notre Dame of Chartres Cathedral in France, a Christian landmark since the Middle Ages, is currently celebrating the first millennium of its foundation. This Marian shrine, whose fame almost equals that of Notre-Dame de Paris, will host a series of religious and artistic celebrations until Aug. 15, 2025.
A vast renovation and embellishment project has been developed in the cathedral’s crypt for this occasion, in collaboration with the French Ministry of Culture. It will feature a new jubilee itinerary, a special pilgrimage focusing on conversion and baptism.
For Father Emmanuel Blondeau, rector of the cathedral for the past eight years, this jubilee, which promises to swell the stream of visitors from around the world, represents a privileged means of offering a powerful experience of Christian faith for all those in search of meaning and purpose.
The Crypt’s Construction
It was the year 1024. Chartres, whose cathedral had been destroyed by fire four years earlier, needed a new structure grand enough to house the relic of the veil of the Virgin Mary, given to the city by Charles the Bald at the end of the ninth century.
Fulbert of Chartres, the bishop of the time, had decided to erect a building of unique proportions for its time, to arouse the fervor of the pilgrim crowds. A letter sent by the bishop to Duke William V of Aquitaine suggests that work on the crypt, which still forms the foundations of today’s Gothic cathedral, was completed between autumn 1024 and summer 1025.
The rest of the cathedral was built between the 12th and 13th centuries. This marked the beginning of centuries of epic history for this emblematic site of the Golden Era of Christianity, establishing it as one of the leading Western Marian pilgrimage destinations of the Middle Ages, through war, bad weather and fire.
If Notre Dame de Chartres was France’s first cathedral to be listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1979, it is primarily because it is considered the most complete and best-preserved of the country’s Gothic cathedrals and has made a major contribution to the export of this architectural art worldwide.
The technical prowess that enabled the monument to unfold 371 feet in height — and to adorn itself with almost 4,000 sculptures and 2,600 square meters of stained glass in barely two centuries — led the famous 19th-century architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc to exclaim: “There’s no cathedral after Chartres!”
In a letter dated 1835, a few years before his spectacular restoration of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, he wrote that in this place he had “really felt what architecture is about; it seemed to me that all my childhood dreams had come true.”
The crypt of Notre Dame de Chartres, also known as the Lower Cathedral, remains the longest in France and among the longest in the world, stretching over 720 feet. It consists of two parallel galleries, along which seven chapels nestle.
“I know few places in the world where for a thousand years we’ve been doing the same thing, that is, giving glory to God and honoring the Virgin Mary,” Father Blondeau told the Register. “The cathedral is a Bible made of stone and glass,” he added, “but it’s up to us to make it speak.”
Turning Visitors Into Pilgrims
The cathedral’s rector hopes to bring about a “pastoral transformation” during this jubilee — which opened on Sept. 8, the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary — with the aim of ensuring that visitors not only enjoy an aesthetic experience, but also benefit from a concrete discovery of the mystery of God. “It’s a question of moving from a place of welcoming to a place of proposition for people,” Father Blondeau continued.
To this end, the diocese has been engaged for several years in a vast restoration and embellishment project extending to the entire building. As for the crypt, it will be the first stage in a jubilee journey on the theme of inner conversion, the passage from shadow to light, from darkness to the joy of heaven, in keeping with the original intent behind the cathedral’s design.
“We want to give meaning back to the chapels, from the crypt to the upper cathedral, from north to south, from shadow to light, from bottom to top, so that visitors are de facto pilgrims,” the rector said.
Following the visit, they will be invited to pass through the pilgrim’s door, a symbol of conversion and inner journey, and thus “to leave sin behind and choose Christ.”
With Pope Francis’ approval, Chartres Bishop Philippe Christory has also granted a plenary indulgence to those who complete the cathedral’s jubilee tour, followed by the sacrament of reconciliation.
The crypt restoration work, carried out under the auspices of the French government, was enhanced by new lighting and the creation of new liturgical furnishings, designed by French artist Augustin Frison-Roche, as well as a stained-glass window depicting a golden dove in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit, made by sculptress Fleur Nabert.
‘We’re In for Another 1,000 Years!’
“Everything has been thought out in such a way as to reach not only already convinced Catholics, but also people in search of beauty who, by entering these places, will be able to let themselves be visited by God,” Father Blondeau said, certain that Providence will do the rest. “As usual, the Virgin Mary will then do her work!”
The rector will most certainly be able to count on the enthusiasm of the crowds, as the cathedral is visited by more than 1.5 million visitors and pilgrims every year, with no fewer than 18,000 admissions during Pentecost 2024. The popularity of the now-famous annual traditional pilgrimage from Paris to Chartres, inspired by the writer Charles Péguy, has led organizers to turn down many registrations over the past two years for safety reasons.
The particular appeal of Chartres Cathedral to young people has also not escaped Father Blondeau, who pointed out that the parish currently has 64 adult catechumens, most of whom are aged between 18 and 35 and some of whom do not even reside in the area.
“It was the cathedral that led them to Christ, through Mary,” he said, recalling various personal experiences, such as his encounter with a young woman who had been bullied at school and who revealed to him that she had always stood firm thanks to her almost-daily visits to Notre Dame of Chartres. Another was that of a non-Catholic man who, in the midst of a separation with his wife, converted after accompanying his colleagues to the cathedral, which provided his soul with a unique experience of inner peace.
In order to properly welcome the many souls in search of God, the jubilee year will be filled with religious celebrations and cultural events. Highlights include a festival of beauty Nov. 22-24, the grand procession for the Immaculate Conception on Dec. 8, and the consecration of children to Notre Dame of Chartres on Jan. 1. The Rosary will be prayed daily in the cathedral, along with times of Eucharistic adoration.
“I don’t think we should try to understand what attracts such young crowds here more than elsewhere, but rather see it as a sign of God’s gratuitousness,” concluded Father Blondeau, for whom this current jubilee is a time of grace that honors the past and invites faith in the future. “Everything that has been invested in enhancing the cathedral’s beauty is a providential sign that we’re in for another 1,000 years!”
