France is the birthplace of Gothic art: Chartres, Reims, Amiens and Bourges served as models for the whole of medieval Europe. Their stained glass, carved portals and soaring vaults make them unmissable stops, even for those with little interest in religious architecture.
This selection combines the great Gothic cathedrals of the north, the one-of-a-kind brick cathedral of Albi and the Romanesque basilica of Saint-Sernin in Toulouse. Several of them are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Partly built from 1145, and rebuilt in twenty-six years after the fire of 1194, Chartres Cathedral is the monument par excellence of French Gothic art.
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The exceptional handling of the new architectural techniques of the thirteenth century and the harmonious marriage of sculpted decoration with architectural elements have made Reims's Notre-Dame cathedral one of the masterpieces of Gothic art.
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Amiens Cathedral of Notre-Dame, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is the largest Gothic cathedral in France, and is often considered one of the masterpieces of medieval architecture.
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Strasbourg's Notre-Dame cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral built in Strasbourg, representative of Gothic architecture.
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The Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris stands in the city of Paris, at the tip of the Île de la Cité.
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Admirable for its proportions and the unity of its design, Saint-Étienne cathedral in Bourges, built between the late twelfth and late thirteenth centuries, is one of the great masterpieces of Gothic art.
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Albi cathedral is a masterpiece of southern Gothic. It was begun in 1282 by the bishop and inquisitor Bernard de Castanet, who intended to set a vast preaching space against the persistence of the Cathar heresy.
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The primatial cathedral of Notre-Dame de l'Assomption in Rouen is the town's most prestigious monument.
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The cathedral of Saint-Pierre de Beauvais, begun in 1225, is known as having the highest vault of the Gothic age: 48 metres.
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Perched on the hill of Laon, this early-Gothic cathedral impresses with its openwork towers adorned with sculpted oxen, a reminder of the legend of its construction.
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Bayeux's Notre-Dame cathedral, dedicated in 1077 in the presence of William, was one of the most important Romanesque monuments.
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Saint-Étienne cathedral, nicknamed the 'Good Lord's Lantern', is one of the most beautiful monuments in Europe.
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Notre-Dame de Coutances cathedral is a thirteenth-century Gothic cathedral in Coutances, in the Manche département, in Normandy.
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The largest surviving Romanesque church in Europe, built of pink Toulouse brick to house the relics brought back by Compostela pilgrims.
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