Travelling to Beauvais tuesday

We packed up the trailer tent for the last time. We have been very impressed with it. I don't think I have ever slept on such a comfortable bed away from home. The camping here in France has been quite different to our experiences at home as we seldom stay in camping grounds there. It would seem that many more people camp for their holidays over here and it is a great way to be among the locals.

Geoff in our 'boudoir'

The team's last camping breakfast.

Geoff making sure that the Electrical cable is not going to break again.

Mike drove for about three hours without a break. What a machine! We stopped at Chartres for lunch and a visit to the cathedral.

We walked through the medieval part of the town to get to the cathedral.

 

Chartres was occupied by the Romans and was burned by the Normans in 858, and unsuccessfully besieged by them in 911. They are excavating some remains of old walls and bastions but I am not sure which period these are from.

During the Middle Ages it was the chief town of Beauce, and gave its name to a countship which was held by the counts of Blois and Champagne and afterwards by the house of Châtillon, a member of which in 1286 sold it to the crown. It was raised to the rank of a duchy in 1528 by Francis I. After the time of Louis XIV the title of duke of Chartres was hereditary in the family of Orléans.

In 1417 it fell into the hands of the English, from whom it was recovered in 1432. It became seat of a Duchy in 1528. During the Wars of Religion, it was attacked unsuccessfully by the Protestants in 1568, and was taken in 1591 by Henry IV, who was crowned there three years afterwards.

In the Franco-Prussian War it was seized by the Germans on 2 October 1870, and continued during the rest of the Campaign to be an important centre of operations.

The city suffered heavy damage by bombing in the course of World War II, but the Cathedral of Chartres was spared by an American Army officer who challenged the order to destroy it.

Chartres Cathedral is a medieval Church, It is considered to be one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The current cathedral, mostly constructed between 1194 and 1250, is the last of at least five which have occupied the site since the town became a bishopric in the 4th century.

The cathedral is in an exceptional state of preservation. The majority of the original stained glass windows survive intact, while the architecture has seen only minor changes since the early 13th century.

Mike and Dott were very disappointed that the cathedral is being so radically restored. While the newly restored parts are quite beautiful I think they may be right that something has been lost when compared to the old parts. Even so, the sculptures and sheer size of the building are quite awesome.

We then travelled another 3 hours and got stuck in Peak hour traffic on the outskirts of Paris. We crossed the Seine and finally made it into Beauvais. After a lovely tea we retired to bed.