The Middle Ages for Kids - Chapels, Churches, Cathedrals Illustration

Middle Ages for Kids
Chapels, Churches,
Cathedrals

A Cathedral is a very large and very fancy church. The Catholic Church had a lot of money and saw building large churches as a way to give honor to their god. Remember, religion was the controlling force in everyday lives. Many of these Cathedrals are still around to visit today.

Cathedrals were usually built in the shape of a cross with very high ceilings. But think how hard it must be to light this type building with just candles. As additional honor to their god, art work and stained glass windows were incorporated into most cathedrals.

It took more than 100 years to build a cathedral during the Middle Ages. The people in a town did a lot of the work themselves. When you consider how big and and how beautiful they were, it is truly amazing. Some cathedrals had as many as 100 stone statues, plus magnificent stain glass windows.

A cathedral in the Middle Ages was the center of life in the town. People for miles around would gather at the cathedral for worship, for holidays, and to see the magnificent plays performed on the steps or inside the cathedral.

Stained Glass Windows

Holy Relics

Cathedral Plays

Medieval Mythical Beasts

Interactive Quiz about the Middle Ages (with answers)