Notre-Dame de Paris, witness to the history of France

The construction of Notre-Dame de Paris: 1163, a founding date

The construction of Notre Dame de Paris was initiated during the reign of Louis VII by Bishop Maurice de Sully, bishop of Paris, in 1163, it lasted from 1163 to 1345.

Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris in the Middle Ages

1239: Saint Louis welcomes to Paris the Crown of Thorns, acquired from the last emperor of Byzantium. Led in procession to Notre-Dame, the relic will first be kept at the Sainte-Chapelle, before returning to the cathedral.

1240: Begun in 1200, the western facade, 41 m wide and 69 m high, is nearing completion. Only its south tower remains to be completed. The site, perfectly organized, mobilized hundreds of “workers”.

Before 1400: Chronicler of the first half of the Hundred Years’ War, Jean Froissart immortalized the entry into Paris of Louis II of Anjou. The square towers of Notre-Dame stand out from the surrounding spiers.

Notre-Dame de Paris during modern times

1534: Publication of Gargantua, work by François Rabelais. In his epic, the gluttonous giant takes down the bells of Notre-Dame to hang them on the neck of his mare…

1594: Upon entering Paris on March 22, 1594, Henry IV, crowned in Chartres a few weeks earlier, went to Notre-Dame to pray. This gesture, very symbolic for the former Protestant, also allows him to introduce himself to Parisians.

1780: The baroque Notre-Dame was decorated with large canvases, the Mays, ex-votos in homage to the Virgin. The brotherhood of goldsmiths offered 76: one per year, every May 1, until 1707.

The novel by Victor Hugo, the arrows of Viollet-le-Duc… the 19th century at the heart of the great history of Notre-Dame de Paris

1800: As this engraving shows, the facade of Notre Dame is nothing more than a shadow of itself. The statues were toppled from their niches and the kings in the Gallery destroyed. Chateaubriand is the first to be alarmed by his condition.

1804: On December 2, Napoleon crowned himself emperor and crowned Josephine, in the presence of Pope Pius VII. A display of hangings decorates the nave, emptied during the Revolution, and three floors of galleries.

February 1831: In February, the cathedral and the archbishopric were devastated by a crowd hostile to the monarchy, who hunted down all its signs. The buildings in the foreground have given way to the sacristy and the treasury.

1831: The publication of Notre-Dame of Paris one of Victor Hugo’s masterpieces, triggered a real national mobilization to save the cathedral.

1841: Notre-Dame is the scene of the great ceremonies of the Empire and the Restoration. In May 1841, the Orléans baptized Albert, Count of Paris. Twelve years later, Napoleon III celebrated his marriage to Eugénie there.

1842: A competition is organized to consolidate the cathedral. Eugène Viollet-le-Duc produced more than 400 drawings for the restoration of the building. He, among other things, imagined Notre-Dame with the two spiers which were originally to top the towers… which he was opposed to!

Notre-Dame de Paris during the two world wars

1918: In the spring, the damage caused by long-range German guns made it necessary to protect the porches of Notre-Dame with sandbags. In 1914, a bombing had already damaged the cathedral.

1944: On August 25, General Leclerc obtained the capitulation of the occupying troops of Paris. The next day, after marching down the Champs-Élysées in triumph, De Gaulle and Leclerc (above) reached Notre-Dame for a fervent mass of thanksgiving.

[1945:UndertheamusedgazeofParisiansAmericanGIsgosightseeinginfrontofNotre-DamewherethevictoryflagfliesonMay91945aTe Deum brings together representatives of the Allies.

Notre-Dame de Paris during the 1950s

1950s: Photographer Édouard Boubat fixes a loving couple on the terrace of the cathedral, between the two towers, giving a romantic image of the monument.

1956: There are countless adaptations of Victor Hugo’s novel to the cinema. That of Jean Delannoy is one of the most memorable. It brought together Gina Lollobrigida (Esmeralda), Anthony Guinn (Quasimodo) and Alain Cuny (Frollo)!

Notre-Dame de Paris in the 1960s

The monument attracts artists, painters as well as photographers. Willy Ronis uses it as a setting to capture walkers in spring (above). While Robert Doisneau sees Paris from gargoyle height.

Notre-Dame de Paris in the 1990s

The monument was the subject of several restoration campaigns throughout the 20th century. The latest, from 1991 to 2000, allowed the entire facade to regain its beautiful original champagne color.

Notre-Dame de Paris in the 2000s

2007: On January 26, a considerable crowd, filling the nave and the square, followed the funeral of Abbot Pierre. The founder of Emmaus had requested that his coffin rest directly on the floor of the cathedral.

2008: On September 12, after celebrating Vespers at Notre-Dame, Benedict XVI addresses the young people in the square. His predecessor, John Paul II, honored the cathedral with his presence twice: in 1980 and in 1997.

2019: Fire at Notre-Dame de Paris

A terrible fire ravaged the cathedral on the evening of April 15. The spire collapses, the frame and roof are in ashes. The two “twin towers” ​​of the building and the stained glass windows of the rose windows were spared. A major national collection is launched to anticipate the long reconstruction of the most visited monument in Europe.