Notre-Dame de Paris facts for kids
Notre-Dame de Paris | |
48°51′11″N 2°20′59″E / 48.8530°N 2.3498°E | |
Location | Parvis Notre-Dame – place Jean-Paul-II, Paris |
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Denomination | Roman Catholic |
Quick facts for kids History |
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Status | Damaged by fire |
Architecture | |
Style | French Gothic |
Years built | 1163–1345 |
Groundbreaking | 1163 |
Completed | 1345 |
Specifications | |
Length | 128 m (420 ft) |
Width | 48 m (157 ft) |
Number of towers | 2 |
Tower height | 69 m (226 ft) |
Number of spires | 1 (destroyed by fire) |
Spire height | 91.44 m (300.0 ft) (formerly) |
Bells | 10 |
Administration | |
Archdiocese | Paris |
Notre Dame is a very old cathedral in Paris, France. It is one of France's most famous landmarks and many people visit it each year. The cathedral is on a small island on the River Seine. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paris, one of 23 archdioceses in France. The cathedral was built during two centuries. It is a very good example of Gothic Architecture in France. At the time it was finished, the cathedral was the biggest such building in Western Europe. Between 1844 and 1864, the building was renovated under the direction of Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, who incorporated elements into the design that the medieval building had not possessed before. The two rose windows which ornate the transept are among the biggest in Europe: each has a diameter of 13m.
The bronze plate in the parvis before the cathedral is the origin of all road distances in France calculated from Paris. The national geographic institute in France uses the building as a benchmark. The coordinates and altitude for this point are known precisely.
Victor Hugo wrote a famous story. The story takes place around the cathedral. The English title is 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame', and has also been turned in to a animated movie by Walt Disney but in French it is called 'Notre-Dame de Paris'.
Tradition has it that Notre-Dame’s first stone was laid in 1163 in the presence of Pope Alexander III.
2019 fire
On 15 April 2019, smoke and flames were sighted and the Cathedral was declared to be on fire. The fire burnt for over half a day and caused massive damage. Most works of art in the cathedral could be saved. The French government announced that the damage would be repaired and the cathedral would be rebuilt.
Images for kids
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Cross-section of the double supporting arches and buttresses of the nave, drawn by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc as they would have appeared from 1220 to 1230.
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Henry VI of England's coronation in Notre-Dame as king of France, aged ten, during the Hundred Years' War. His accession to the throne was in accordance with the Treaty of Troyes of 1420.
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Arrival of Napoleon at Notre-Dame Cathedral for his coronation as Emperor of the French on 2 December 1804
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The Cathedral at the beginning of the restoration work, photo from 1847 by Hippolyte Bayard
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Model of the spire and "forest" of wooden roof beams made for Eugène Viollet-le-Duc (1859) (Museum of Historic Monuments, Paris)
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Notre-Dame in May 2012. From top to bottom, nave walls are pierced by clerestory windows, arches to triforium, and arches to side aisles.
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Plan of the cathedral made by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc in the 19th century. Portals and nave to the left, a choir in the center, and apse and ambulatory to the right. The annex to the south is the Sacristy.
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Statue of Thomas the Apostle, with the features of restorer Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, at the base of the spire
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Illustration of the Last Judgment, central portal of west façade
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The serpent tempts Adam and Eve; part of the Last Judgment on the central portal of west façade
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Archangel Michael and Satan weighing souls during the Last Judgment (central portal, west façade)
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Gargoyles were the rainspouts of the Cathedral
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Chimera on the façade
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Allegory of alchemy, central portal
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Notre-Dame's façade showing the Portal of the Virgin, Portal of the Last Judgment, and Portal of St-Anne
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Notre-Dame's high altar with the kneeling statues of Louis XIII and Louis XIV
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South rose window of Notre-Dame de Paris
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Tympanum of the Last Judgment
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Statue of Joan of Arc in Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral interior
See also
In Spanish: Catedral de Notre Dame (París) para niños