Fulbert of Chartres (c. 960–1028)

Fulbert of Chartres (c. 960–1028), bishop of Chartres from 1006–1028, was a beloved schoolmaster, a promoter of the cult of Mary, and a deft episcopal politician who helped in the consolidation of northern France. Educated at Reims under Gerbert, he helped make Chartres one of France’s earliest noteworthy cathedral schools. After the cathedral burned in 1020, he began a campaign to rebuild it that included a huge crypt intended to promote pilgrimage to the ‘chemise of Mary’, an alleged relic of the birth of Christ. Fulbert’s Latinity is attested by surviving letters, sermons, and other works.