It was after the terrible fire of 1194 that most of the new cathedral was built. This fire destroyed almost the entire city of Chartres and badly damaged the cathedral. Our knowledge of the severity of this fire comes from the text `Les Miracles de Notre-Dame de Chartres' by Jehan le Marchand, dating back to around 1250. This in turn was transcribed from a Latin text written earlier.
The text tells us that the people of Chartres were devastated by the apparent loss of the precious relic, the [G 29 / Sancta Camisia]. In those times, religion and superstition went hand-in-hand. The loss of such a sacred relic could mean the end of the Virgin's blessing of the people of Chartres. After three days, the relic was retrieved from the [G 10 / crypt] of the cathedral where it had been taken by priests to save it from the fire.
We do not know if this is the truth, but the effect this had on the people of Chartres was immense. It was taken as a sign from Mary that she wanted a new and more elaborate cathedral built, and so the people threw themselves into this work with enthusiasm. From the highest noble to the poorest peasant, people volunteered to drag stones from the quarry at Bercheres to build the new cathedral. The speed with which the entire building was finished, only 26 years save the north porch, was incredible.
