Charlemagne Window - Chartres Cathedral

The Charlemagne Window, Chartres Cathedral

early 1200s

Back to Paradoxplace Chartres Cathedral Windows Page

Back to Paradoxplace Chartres Cathedral Page

Unlike English medieval narrative windows, French ones start at the bottom

Charlemagne Window - Chartres Cathedral

Photos of the middle panels to come

Constantine dreams of Charlemagne

Constantine dreams of Charlemagne and other details from the bottom panel group.

The Charlemagne Window reads across from Left to Right from the bottom to top. The donors of the window - the Furriers, Charlemagne (747 - 814 (67)) talks to two bishops about a letter they have brought from Constantine (272 - 337 (65)), Constantine dreams of Charlemagne sitting armoured-up on a horse, Charlemagne meets up with Constantine outside the gates of Constantinople, fights the Saracen round shields and regains Jerusalem, is thanked by Constantine with gifts of relics including the Sancta Camisia (still in Chartres), and presents the relics to the Church of Aix-la-Chapelle.