Gothic architecture, with its tall, pointed spires is said to reflect the desire of people of the Middle Ages to grow closer to God, reaching towards heaven and away from the earth. Tall windows allowed sunlight to illuminate the interior, unlike Romanesque architecture, in which windows were small and interiors were dim. A particularly stunning example of Gothic architecture is the Notre Dame in Paris, on which construction began in 1163 during the reign of Louis VII, and was completed about 200 years later in about 1345. The Notre Dame features a beautiful stained-glass “rose window,” another distinguishing characteristic of Gothic churches.
[[Image:West facade Chartres Cathedral.jpg|right]]
The image at right is a drawing of a long side of the Chartres Cathedral, which is only significant medieval church preserved in its original form, as completed and dedicated in A.D. 1260. It stands in the town of Chartres, France, merely 50 miles from Paris. Its long side is a classic example of Gothic architecture, featuring:
*relics (not visible on the drawing)
*labyrinth inside, which is a maze-like walkways designed like that found in Jerusalem
[[Image:West facade Chartres Cathedral.jpg|right]]
Inside, a Gothic cathedral utilizes a high nave (the central or open space of a church), supported by the flying buttresses on the outside, and with three aisles in the interior. In the Chartres Cathedral, one end has five semi-circular radiating chapels.<ref>http://www.sacred-destinations.com/france/chartres-cathedral.htm</ref>