i will be in france this summer and would like to visit some gothic cathedrals other than notre dame, ste chapelle and chartres. i have heard that amiens and beauvais are interesting. comments?

The Basilica of St Denis should be tops on your list.

Rouen, Amiens, Troyes, Reims are all worth a visit. I find St. Denis less representative of what I would call French Gothic.

I forgot to add Sens to the mix:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...7622755059630/

Who knows (or cares) what people on the internet think is representative of French Gothic, or how much they know about Rayonnant style, Lancet gothic, Flamboyant Gothic or High Gothic, but it would really strange to express an interest in seeing something beyond Ste Chappele to further your knowledge of gothic cathedrals, and not go to St Denis, the best example of the style of French Gothic from which Ste Chappelle also draws its inspiration.

"Who knows (or cares) what people on the internet think is representative of French Gothic..."

I'm guessing that people who ask for comments about French Gothic cathedrals on internet message boards care what people on the internet think about it. They are probably also interested in the opposing opinions of other people on the internet.

Youngtom--have you seen the recently aired PBS Nova show "Building the Great Cathedrals"? It's a fascinating look at the history of gothic architecture, and details the building of cathedrals in Amiens, Beauvais and others. If you missed it, you can watch it online at PBS. It's worth a look!

Expressing an opinion without using the personal pronoun does not necessarily make it less personal.

The was an excellent show on PBS about the construction of Gothic Cathedrals.

Beauvais, Chartres, Rouen, Amiens, St Denis, Notre Dame.

Nikki,

Unfortunately, you may be right!

I don't know the age or education level of the original poster. He or she may indeed have posted on the internet believing that people more knowledgeable than he or she would provide informed guidance.

My response was intended to clue in the OP that some opinions are not to be taken seriously.

It is amusing -- to say the least -- that Michael has developed a wholly private opinion of what constitutes French Gothic that excludes the basilica of St Denis.

I'm glad he subsequently came back to suggest to the OP that he take a look at a PBS documentary on the subject.

Not excluded, just less representative.

Less representative? To whom?

(Oh. You.)

http://france-for-visitors.com/paris...-st-denis.html

Look, Michael, I read your post. You only talked about yourself. You put in all the qualifiers. I can't stop the OP from arranging his or her trip around your opinion that to "you", St Denis is "less representative" of what you "would call" french gothic -- but I can at least try.

Another suggestion to seek out the recent show about gothic cathedrals (or maybe this is what inspired the post?) My DH and I have no interest in churches, and we found the show fascinating.

You can state your opinion without making false claims about my post. As for "best" (your word), if Wikipedia is correct

"In the 12th century the Abbot Suger rebuilt portions of the abbey church using innovative structural and decorative features that were drawn from a number of other sources. In doing so, he is said to have created the first truly Gothic building.[1] The basilica's 13th century nave is also the prototype for the Rayonnant Gothic style, and provided an architectural model for cathedrals and abbeys of northern France, England and other countries."

one can claim that subsequent cathedrals improved on the original design, and are more representative of what one perceives as French gothic (Chartres and Notre-Dame come to mind).

Oh,grow up! How can people who are useful sources of information engage in childish conflicts over nothing?

No answer on this forum (or almost any other) is comprehensive for the question asked, and all answers to questions of value ("the best" or "the most characteristic") can only represent the opinion of the responder.

I can tell you how to drive from Santa Fe to Georgia O'Keeffe's house in Abiquiu, but I can't tell you if you should. Only if I would.

Ackislander, if there was a "like" button on here, I'd give your comment a big thumbs up. Well said!

If you have limited time, I would put Amiens very high on your list.

It might be a personal opinion; but Amiens boasts a couple of superlatives and is indeed one of the finest examples of French high gothic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amiens_Cathedral

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Laon.

Here's a list. I loved all the churches in POitiers

http://www.sacred-destinations.com/f...nce-cathedrals