MollyS
In April 2015, my son and I went to Paris. My daughter, who’d recently moved there, was busy one cool rainy weekday, so he and I took the train to Chartres, about 60 miles southwest of Paris. The Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres was built between 1020-1220 and has survived at least five fires, the French Revolution, and World War II. In 1939, the stained-glass windows were removed and hidden.
Then in August, 1944, the Allies issued a destruction order, believing the Germans were using the spires as observation posts. During the five-day battle for the town, Colonel Welborn Barton Griffith and his driver went behind enemy lines to the cathedral, reporting that there were no German troops.
The destruction order was withdrawn. Griffith retreated to nearby Lèves and commandeered a tank. He was killed that same day in the returning German rifle and rocket-launcher fire.
He was posthumously awarded the U.S. Distinguished Service Cross, and the Croix de Guerre avec Palm, the Legion of Honor, and the Legion of Merit from the French government. These are my son’s pictures as my small camera was no match for his Nikon.
The cathedral’s South Transept rose window, crafted between 1225–1230, is 34.5 feet in diameter, and is dedicated to Christ. The five windows beneath it feature the Madonna (in the center), flanked by Luke, Matthew, John, and Mark, sitting on the shoulders of Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel.
On The Road – MollyS – Paris to Chartres — The Cathedral’s InteriorPost + Comments (29)