From 12th century, large churches were built in France. They were known as cathedrals. These belonged to monasteries. Various groups of people contributed a lot to their construction in the form of labor, material and money. Along with it, the rich merchants also spent money by making donations to churches. Cathedrals took many years in their completion. After their completion, they became the centers of pilgrimage. Small towns also grew a lot. The specialty of the design of cathedrals was that the voice of priest could be clearly heard within the hall where a number of people gathered. Their voice could be heard even from a far off distance.
For windows stained glass was used. During the day, the sunlight would make them radiant for people inside the cathedral, and after sunset the light candles would make them visible to people outside. The stained glass windows narrated the stories in the Bible through pictures, which even the illiterate people could read.
