Notre Dame de Paris, or simply Cathedral Notre Dame, located on the Ile de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, is a medieval Catholic cathedral.Several characteristics distinguish the cathedral from earlier Romanesque styles. These features include the flying buttress and the use of the rib vault, its massive and colorful rose windows, and its sculptural adornments.The cathedral, one of the best examples of Franco Gothic architecture, is devoted to the Virgin Mary.Notre Dame is especially notable for its musical features, particularly its three piping organs and massive church bells. The gothic cathedral has survived the French Revolution and has undergone major restoration.The Cathedral of Notre Dame is arguably most recognized for its connection to ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’, which has been immortalized in various cartoons and films. This grandiose monument is a flawless example of French gothic architecture that continues to attract people from all over the world.Location Of Notre DameWhere is Notre Dame located exactly? Let’s find out!Cathedral Notre Dame is located at the eastern extremity of the Île de la Cité or the city island.It was erected over the foundations of two previous cathedrals, which were preceded by a Gallo-Roman temple devoted to Jupiter.The cathedral was founded by Maurice de Sully, Bishop of Paris.He conceived the concept of combining the ruins of two former basilicas into a single structure on a grander scale in about 1160.Pope Alexander III lay the foundation stone in 1163.The high altar was dedicated in 1189.By 1250, the choir, western facade, and nave had been finished.During the next 100 years, porches, shrines, and other decorations were added.History Of Notre DameHow did the famous monument come to be as significant as it is today? Find the answer below.A Gallo-Roman chapel dedicated to Jupiter is said to have stood upon that site of Notre Dame prior to the introduction of Christianity in France.The Pillar of the Boatmen, unearthed (1710) beneath the cathedral, provides proof of this.The entrance was about 130 ft (40 m) west of (current) Notre Dame’s west front, and the apse was about where the western facade is now.The cathedral was a smaller version of the later Notre Dame, measuring 230 ft (70 m) long and divided into a nave and four wings by marble columns that were afterward covered in mosaics.The previous church before Notre Dame was a Roman reconstruction of Saint-Étienne, which was deemed to be inadequate for the rising population of Paris despite being extended and refurbished.Until the construction of Jacques-Germain Soufflot in the 18th century, a baptistery, the Church of Saint-John-le-Rond, was positioned on the north side of Notre Dame’s western front.Maurice de Sully, the Bishop of Paris, chose to build a new and considerably larger church in 1160.He dismantled the previous cathedral quickly and sought to repurpose its materials.Sully chose the gothic style for the new church, which had been established in the late 1130s at the Royal Monastery of Saint-Denis.During the French Revolution, the monarchs were not the only component of Notre Dame that was demolished.The cathedral, like many other cathedrals in France, was converted from a Christian venue and recommitted to the new Cult of Reason in the late 18th century.Except for the huge 1681 bourdon known as Emmanuel, all 20 of the bells were taken and smelted to manufacture cannons.In 2013, the four 19th-century bells atop Notre Dame’s towers were melted down and recast as new bronze bells to commemorate the structure’s 850th anniversary.They were created to mimic the ringing of the cathedral’s old 17th-century bells when King Louis XVI reigned.The cathedral had persisted in exhibiting indications of degradation despite the ’90s refurbishment, prompting the nation to propose a fresh reconstruction scheme in the late 2010s.The total cost of the reconstruction was anticipated to be over a million euros that the archbishop sought to pay through national government money and private donations.The cathedral’s spire towers were renovated for six million euros in late 2018 and proceeded into the following year.This necessitated the temporary disposal of copper sculptures from the roof and other ornamental components just shortly before the April 2019 fire.According to later research, the fire started in the cathedral’s attic, and smoke detectors quickly alerted a cathedral staffer.The staffer, instead of calling the fire department, dispatched a cathedral guard to investigate.Instead of going to the right attic, the guard was dispatched to the adjacent sacristy’s attic, where he claimed there was no fire.The guard dialed his supervisor’s number, who did not answer right away.After the error was found some 15 minutes later, the guard’s supervisor instructed him to go to the proper spot.The fire department had yet to be alerted. The fire was already advanced when the guard climbed the 300 stairs to the cathedral attic.On August 10, 2007, Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, a former archbishop of Paris and a Jewish convert to Catholicism, was laid to rest in Notre Dame.The Cathedral of Notre Dame has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in history.Its value to France and the globe was reinforced following the fire that severely damaged it.Considering the cathedral’s history, massive international support and swift promises of financial help for its reconstruction underlined its significance to France and as well as the world.Architects And Architectural Style Of Notre DameLet’s find out exactly what is it that makes this monument an architectural marvel.The building of the Cathedral Notre Dame started from March 24 and went on till April 25, 1163, according to the historian Jean de Saint-Victor.The cornerstone was reportedly laid in the sight of King Louis VII, the crowned King of France, with Pope Alexander III.Saint Genevieve, one of the patron saints of the cathedral chapter, has a beautiful mural on the stained glass windows that the cathedral is known for.The chorus and its two ambulatories were built initially - in the first phase.The choir was finished in 1177, so it was the first thing to be built.The high altar was consecrated on May 19, 1182, by Maurice de Sully and Paris’s Papal legate - Cardinal Henri de Château-Marçay, according to Robert of Torigni.The building of the four parts of the aisle behind the choir and its aisles towards the height of clerestories took place in the second phase, which lasted from 1182-90.It began after the choir was completed but concluded before the last part of the nave was completed.The cathedral’s towers were the final significant structure to be completed.Between 1220-40, the south tower was completed, followed by the north tower between 1235-50.When viewed from the immediate front of the cathedral, the modern north tower seems to be slightly bigger.The north tower’s counterfort, or buttress, is likewise bigger too.The western facade foundations were laid in 1190, and the first crosses were completed in 1191.In 1185, Heraclius of Caesarea, from the still-unfinished cathedral, announced the Third Crusade.During the construction of the Sainte-Chapelle, Louis IX put the relics of Christ’s agony in the cathedral.The relics comprised a nail from the Cross, the Holy Crown of Thorns, and a splinter of the Cross, acquired by him at a great price from the Latin Emperor Baldwin II.After Louis’ death, an undershirt thought to have been connected to him was added to that list of relics.To bring greater light into the center of the cathedral, it was decided to construct transepts at the chorus, where the altar was positioned.The roofs were sturdier and could be taller due to the use of four-part rib vaults instead of six-part rib vaults.Following the death of Bishop Maurice de Sully (1196), his heir, Eudes de Sully, oversaw the construction of the transepts along with the nave’s ongoing work.It was nearly complete when he died in 1208.The western façade had already been fully constructed by this point in the history of the cathedral, though it would not be completed until the mid-1240s.The top gallery of the nave, as well as the two western spire towers, were built between 1225-50.There are gargoyle statues, the animal-headed rain spouts that decorate the cathedral’s sides, they were the gothic creation of Eugene Viollet-le-Duc.Viollet le Duc was the cathedral’s main architect during the 19th-century restoration effort.They were inspired by the description of gargoyles in the imagination of Victor Hugo of Notre Dame de Paris.The development of the flying buttress was a significant invention in the 13th century.The weight of the flying buttress was transported totally outside the building by the vault’s ribs to counter-supports, crowned with stone pinnacles to give them more weight.Because of the buttresses, the walls could be made taller and thinner, with significantly greater rose windows.Based on comprehensive laser scans of the whole building, Andrew Tallon (gothic art historian) claims that the arches were part of the plans.Throughout history, Notre Dame Cathedral has been damaged and deteriorated.It was saved from destruction just after French Revolution by Napoleon, who proclaimed himself Emperor of the People in the cathedral in 1804.In the mid-19th century, the French architect Eugène Emmanuel Viollet le Duc restored Notre Dame to its former glory.There are statues of 28 Biblical Kings in the cathedral, whose heads are mysteriously missing.Some restorations are thought to have been inspired by the success of the history-making book by Victor Hugo named ‘The Hunchback of Notre-Dame’ (1831), which is set in Notre Dame de Paris.Notre Dame fire broke out in the cathedral’s attic during renovation work in 2019, destroying much of the roof.Restoration of the cathedral also had a magnificent statue of Saint Thomas, who closely resembled the countenance of Viollet le Duc.The Ile de la Cité, where Notre Dame de Paris currently sits, was previously known as Lutetia, a Gallo-Roman metropolis.Pieces of a carved altar devoted to Jupiter and other deities were unearthed during an excavation under the choir in 1710, suggesting that the cathedral was erected directly over the remains of an ancient temple.The pagan city beneath the plaza right in front of Notre Dame had further architectural remains discovered in the ’60s and ’70s, many of which date back to this ancient age.Burials Present At Notre DameTime for some facts about the burials at Notre Dame Cathedral.Unlike some of the other European cathedrals, Notre Dame was built without a crypt from the start.Burials in the medieval period were done either directly into the cathedral floor or in above-ground mausoleums, sometimes with tomb effigies.The choir and apse were used to bury high-ranking clergy and certain royals, while the nave and chapels were used to bury lower-ranking clergy and ordinary people.There is no comprehensive documentation of all of the funerals that took place during the period.During a significant repair project in 1699, several of the choir graves were disturbed or covered over.Exhumed remains were reburied alongside the high altar in a shared tomb.If the archbishops had not wished to be buried elsewhere, a modest crypt was prepared in the center of the choir in 1711 and served as a burial vault for them.The first-century Pillar of the Boatmen was uncovered during this dig.Three further crypts were excavated in the Chapel of Saint-Georges in 1758 to be used for the interment of Notre Dame canons.In 1765, a bigger crypt was created beneath the nave for canons, beneficiaries, preachers, cantors, and choristers to be buried.The cathedral floor was redeveloped with black and white marble tiles between 1771-73, covering most of the surviving graves.Many of these tombs were not disturbed even during the French Revolution as a result of this.The choir tomb was enlarged in 1858 to cover the majority of the choir’s length.Many Medieval tombs were rediscovered as part of this effort.In 1863, when a bigger vault was dug out to install a vault heater, the nave crypt was also unearthed, and several more tombs were also situated in the chapel.
Notre Dame de Paris, or simply Cathedral Notre Dame, located on the Ile de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, is a medieval Catholic cathedral.
