Notre Dame de Paris

France is such an incredible country, filled with a rich history that is still visible in many of the standing structures. Gothic architecture is very popular in France, which embodies rose colored windows of stain glass, intricate spires, and grand cathedrals protected by guardians known as gargoyles. One of the most notorious places in Paris is Notre Dame, most definitely of the Gothic style.

Interestingly, Notre Dame de Paris is more than 700 years old. In fact, Notre Dame de Paris is the most recent of all holy houses to occupy the ancient ground. In the early years, Celts held services on the island in the seine. There, they built a temple to Jupiter. Then at the time of the early Christians, St. Etienne, a basilica, was constructed. However, a Romanesque churched soon replaced the basilica, standing until 1163 where it remains today.

The cathedral was erected in three separate stages, with all being completed in 1250. At this time, Paris was the center of political power so no expense was spared in the building the church, which was to reflect the capital city’s newfound prestige. Of course, it was essential that the early Gothic architecture be a part of the cathedral. The goal of the builders was to create a cathedral that would outshine Noyon and Sens and with the support of King Louie VII, it did.

In fact, most believe that if King Louis VII had not provided his influence and support, the Abbot Suger would have never had the vision to reconstruct Saint-Denis. It was 20 years later when the construction of the cathedral in Paris began. At this time, the King provided generous contributions, eager to strengthen the country’s belief of Christendom. As far as the building of Notre Dame de Paris, the material used came from neighboring quarries. However, to transport the material was expensive so to help cut costs, blocks were made at the quarry site so the completion of the stone elements was completed at the mason’s lodge, which was connected to the cathedral.

At the time Notre Dame de Paris was constructed, builders were known as master masons. What we know is that the expertise and quality of work was exceptional, all oversaw by a bishop named Maurice. In fact, this bishop had incredible visions regarding the completion, pushing the envelope of styles known at that time. He wanted the size of the vaults to surpass all others. We do know that during this era, triangular ribs were used with subtle transverse arches, which was a technique that resulted in an open interior without any visual interruption of support beams, quite impressive even by today’s building standards.

Sadly, Maurice passed away in 1196 without the entire cathedral being completed. Over the following 50 years, all the remaining sections were finished. Maurice’s predecessor, Eudes was a very, wealthy nobleman who provided great financial contribution. He enlarged many of the designs, which took another 25 years to finish and then another 25 years for the twin towers to be completed. It still took 50 years for the cathedral to be 100% complete, which remained unchanged to the 17th century.

Although it seemed as though Notre Dame de Paris was through, Gothic took on a negative connotation, which meant the cathedral had to be changed to the more current Baroque style. That meant another 15 years of reconstruction before the cathedral’s interior was finally whitewashed. Sadly, prior to the French Revolution, the cathedral was damaged, stripping away all traces of religion and no monarchy order. For years following, Notre Dame de Paris was used primarily for secular purposes.

However, during the Romantic Movement that hit France in the 19th century, a genuine restoration of Notre Dame de Paris took place. New life was breathed into this ancient cathedral, making it once again a grand site. Notre Dame de Paris survived both World War I and World War II, with only slight damage. Today, this cathedral is carefully maintained under a special program and considered one of the most beautiful, artistic structures in all of Europe.


Last Updated: 10/19/2006 3:14:00 PM

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