Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral

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.

Notre Dame’s beautiful and scenic campus features not only it’s most recognized campus landmarks – the Golden Dome, Touchdown Jesus, and the Grotto. It is also home to our state-of-the-art facilities including our libraries, athletic facilities, residential halls, laboratories, and more.

Its names had origin from the fact – A man of lively imagination, Father Sorin named his fledgling school in honor of Our Lady in his native tongue, “L’Université de Notre Dame du Lac” (The University of Our Lady of the Lake). On January 15, 1844, the University was thus officially chartered by the Indiana legislature.

Notre Dame is French and could be translated as “Our Lady”. It is the equivalent of “Our Lord”, in French “Notre Seigneur” to call the Virgin Mary. As French is a latin language, it comes from Domina (adult female) and Noster/Nostra (Our). This name was found in French texts written by Wace around 1130-1140

What started the fire at Notre Dame?
On 15 April 2019, just before 18:20 CEST, a structural fire broke out in the roof space of Notre-Dame de Paris, a medieval Catholic cathedral in Paris, France. By the time the fire was extinguished, the cathedral’s wooden spire (flèche) had collapsed, most of the wooden roof had been destroyed, and the cathedral’s upper walls were severely damaged. Extensive damage to the interior was prevented by the vaulted stone ceiling, which largely contained the burning roof as it collapsed. Many works of art and religious relics were moved to safety, but others suffered smoke damage, and some of the exterior art was damaged or destroyed.

Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral Set on fire

By September, the determination of the exact origin of the fire started was expected to take a great deal more time and work. By 15 April 2020, investigators believed the fire “to have been started by either a cigarette or a short circuit in the electrical system“.

Five years after Notre-Dame fire, no culprit has been found as cathedral’s long-awaited reopening nears. Chief Paris prosecutor at the time of the initial investigation, Remy Heitz, said at the time he believed an accidental cause such as an electrical fault or smoldering cigarette butt was most likely.

The reopening of the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral on the weekend of December 7 and 8, 2024, five years after a fire on April 15, 2019, devastated the building, promises to be a grand event and a high-security affair.

You can find more about it on their official website https://www.notredamedeparis.fr/en/

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