Notre-Dame de Paris, 850 years of history consumed by fire
4 days ago, I opened Twitter to check the news, as usual, to find Breaking news with the red bells everywhere, I was shocked when I found this photo of Notre-Dame de Paris burning with a title: “Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is on fire”.For sure, I’m not French, and I’ve never had the chance to visit the monument(I wish )and it’s not the first time a monument was devastated, ISIS has destroyed many historical Mosques and monuments from the Ommeyads’ period, but Notre-Dame de Paris is a bit different from all other monuments ,it’s not a simple historical site that attracts 13 million tourists annually, it’s more than that ,it lived 850 years of mutations in France politics , Notre-dame de Paris observed the collapse and the emerging of new emperors, kings and the two World Wars. When Napoleon Bonaparte the modest man from Corsica decided to be the emperor of France it was in the same cathedral. Notre-dame de Paris is The Crown of kings and emperors, the Beloved of Victor Hugo, it’s the beating heart of Paris and France. If the heart was burned to aches, what remains more in the identity?
The beginning
In the very center of Paris(when Paris was a small town), on the île de la cité (City Island), the Gothic masterpiece of Notre-Dame De Paris (Our Lady of Paris) was built. A dedicated monument from the Bishop of Paris Maurice de Sully to “Our lady Mary the verge” .the construction of the cathedral was ordered in 1160 , the foundation stone was laid in 1163, the Cathedral will be fully completed until 1345 (Maurice de Sully died in 1196 while the cathedral was still being built).
The Cathedral is more known of its Gothic French Architecture, its bells, and organs.
in fact, Notre-Dame knew many extensions and changes all over history due to the destructions.
Huge bells have been added :
But also Organs and Pipes in the 18th and 19th century :
The Cathedral is not the only one to be named “Notre-Dame”, in fact, Catholics and Orthodox love to name their cathedrals after Mary, in France in Strasbourg you can find Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, in Marseille Notre-Dame de la Garde and in Moskou Notre Dame de Kazan. But the Paris’ Cathedral got more fame due to its unique place at the center of Paris Capital of the French monarchy, the French empire and the Republic of France. Notre-Dame de Paris witnessed revolutions and different regimes and that what makes it very unique.
Destructions Over the Years
It’s not the first time the cathedral was devastated, German Nazis destroyed parts of the Cathedral during the occupation of France, all over years Notre-Dame escaped the faith of being destructed miraculously. after the revolution started, the rebels started a campaign all over France against churches and cathedrals by mocking the popes and the cathedral’s symbols, and of course Notre-Dame will not escape this time , 28 statues of Juda and Israel Kings were beheaded by error( the rebels thought that it was statues of Capetian kings), in 1977 some of the beheaded statues were rediscovered in a hotel, today they are exposed in the musée de Cluny.
Lair of Power
Vive Napoléon ! Vive l’Empereur !
Long life Napoleon! Long life the emperor ! with such words Napoleon Bonaparte proclaimed himself the emperor of France on 02 December 1804 in Paris, for this special event Napoleon chose an unprecedented place, instead of choosing the cathedral of Reims where all the kings from the house of Capetians used to be proclaimed , he surprisingly chose the cathedral of “Notre-Dame de Paris” declaring by that he isn’t like the ordinary greedy kings from the Capetian house , Napoleon is seeking for glory, he is the emperor of the people chosen by the people , Napoleon closed by that a page from history “Napoleon the counselor “,and opened a new one “ Napoleon the Emperor” , the painting of Jacques Louis-David “ Le Sacre de Napoléon “ which shows Napoleon crowning his wife Josephine as the empress of France added an imperial touch to the cathedral, such actions gave more attention to the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, from now if the cathedral of Reims is the cathedral of kings, well, the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris is the lair of Emperors .
Cathedral of the Republic
Notre-Dame de Paris witnessed many ceremonies of military victories and obsequies of notorious generals and men in the history of France during the III, IV and V republics, but since the famous law of separation of church and state 1905 funerals and ceremonies of proclamations of presidents stopped.
Notre-Dame de Paris will know the beginning of a new era in France, after the liberation of France from the German Nazis in 1944 , Charles de Gaulle will organize a ceremony in the same cathedral in the name of all generals and soldiers that died for France during the WW II ,Notre-Dame will witness the start point of Charles de Gaulle the president and its end .
The 12th November 1970, the whole world witnessed the funerals of Charles de Gaulle, in the cathedral of Notre-Dame presidents and kings from all over the globe assisted to the obsequies in an unprecedented event that knew the following of 300 Million people in the streaming live.
20 years later, another emblematic person will have the honor to have funerals in the same holy place. “Tonton Mitterrand” (Uncle Mitterrand as French love to name him) died in the 11th January 1996, 1300 person among them presidents, kings, and members of his family were there.
“Notre-Dame de Paris” the novel
The French Novelist, poet, and romantic Victor Hugo was so fascinated by Notre-Dame de Paris , but he wasn’t happy with the actual situation of the cathedral, it was completely neglected, in the eyes of Hugo something needed to change, he started by a pamphlet titled «Sur la destruction des monuments in France » (in the destruction of monuments in France ) and he criticized the role of the state.
Victor Hugo, “Guerre aux démolisseurs”, Revue des deux mondes
Victor Hugo didn’t stop there, In 1831, he will add his famous novel “ Notre-Dame de Paris” where the Historical site has been incarnated in a character in the novel , the latter will know an immense success, the message of Victor Hugo has touched the cultural and patriotic side of each french and politician , the state will make its move , and the Restoration of the monument will start in 1843 and it will take 20 years to be finished .
After the spiritual and political touch, Victor Hugo added a cultural taste to the cathedral, he touched the heart of all France by underlying the importance of Notre-Dame de Paris , it’s not a simple historical site to visit , it’s the patrimony of France, patrimony of a civilization, it’s the Cathedral of emperors, kings, president, and Cathedral of Christianity and people , it’s “the beating heart of France” as he liked to describe it.
And today, the same Cathedral may again enter the history, when it will be rebuilt by richest families of France searching to attach their names to the Holy Notre-Dame de Paris. the reconstruction of Notre-Dame de Paris could even be a turning point that Emanuel Macron the hated Jupiterian president in the eyes of Les Gilets Jaunes may exploit to appear as the saviour of the patrimony of France , and gain a second chance in the presidential elections of 2022 , Could Notre-Dame de Paris witness another time the triumph of a new man? Who knows what the future holds for us…
