The virginity of the renovated square is such that one would believe oneself in “Eternal Notre-Dame”, the gripping digital journey which explores the cathedral and its history in virtual reality. It is available just a few meters away, under the square. But this chilly Friday morning, under a beautiful blue sky, it is in front of the very real stone vessel that the President of the Republic, accompanied by his wife, advances to greet the authorities present there, Mgr Ulrich, Rachida Dati, Anne Hidalgo Valérie Pécresse, Laurent Nunez, the Paris police prefect… Emmanuel Macron is preparing to reveal to the eyes of the world, in a cleverly produced device for the images, “the shine” promised of the restored and sublimated cathedral. “She is much more hospitable with this blonde stone”slips Emmanuel Macron once returned.
The stroll allows the President of the Republic to tour the emblematic construction sites and associated trades, accompanied by Philippe Jost, the president of the public establishment Rebâtir Notre-Dame de Paris, who introduces each of the stages. After the overall vision of Philippe Villeneuve, chief architect of Historic Monuments, we focus on the vaults, the crossing of the transept, before the frame – Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron go up into the “forest”, without Anne Hidalgo who nevertheless tried to join them, but it was not included in the program – the north enclosure of the choir, the Saint-Marcel chapel, the south ambulatory, the wish of Louis XIII, and the great organ. The Head of State discusses with the heads of the main companies: Jean-Louis Bidet for the Ateliers Perrault (frame of the choir), Henry de Reviers for the vaults (Lefèvre), Julien Le Bras (frame of the crossing)…
“Is he there, Monsignor Ulrich, or have we lost him?” » : the presidential remarks flow, often happy, sometimes a little more risky, too eager to show what he knows, or kindly corrected by a restorer. He is also paid in return for his thanks and compliments: “You imposed a deadline on us which was the right one, we realize it today… We did not sacrifice deadlines or quality”says Philippe Jost, happy to rediscover “the cathedral in its silence”far from the noise of the construction site. Some figures emerge: 20,000 hours of studies, 100,000 hours of cutting, 40,000 hours of installation for the frame of the crossing, details Julien Le Bras. “Thank you for the boost given to heritage”who has “need for consistency”he tells the president: it takes around ten years to master the profession…
Emmanuel Macron is already distilling some elements of the word he will say shortly: “Fatigue, weariness sometimes, were held together by team spirit and the desire to be together”. Philippe Jost also delivers a message that he has never stopped hammering home: “This restoration not only repaired the damage from the fire: it made it possible to give all its luster to the cathedral, well beyond.” The words are chosen, the exchanges well orchestrated, but above all it is the sublime images that will remain.
The President's acceptance speech
Much behind schedule, the President of the Republic finally speaks, in the heart of the nave which seems larger than ever. More than 1,300 companions, artisans, patrons and donors are gathered there, standing. Emmanuel Macron did not go so far as to go to the pulpit: it is on a small platform that he attacks his speech, expressing his “tremendous emotion” to express themselves right where the cathedral was “a field of ruins” five years ago. He salutes the “great shock of hope” from which those involved in the construction site were “the alchemists”. The thanks will be long, there are so many professions and trades to salute! Starting with the firefighters, whose courage is once again highlighted. The donors follow, thanked for their generosity. “I recognize a lot of faces here”notes the president, came “say your love of Notre-Dame, what she represents for the countrys » : “the soul of our country”he insists shortly after.
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It’s about celebrating the success of a challenge that not many people believed in: “You were the antidote to despondency, by the energy with which you tackled the site, by the enthusiasm with which you responded to this challenge. Yes, in April 2019 we decided that it would take five years. […] But deep down, behind this simple objective, there was an aggregation of all the wills and you did it. You have succeeded […] l’impossible. »
Obviously, the one who carried this adventure for four years comes to mind: “A strong personality was needed, a leader, and it was General Georgelin. For all of us, from 2019 to 2023, he was the face and voice of the site. » Accidental death in the mountains in the summer of 2023, “he should have been with us. He would have been proud. He would have greeted you, each by your first and last name, as usual, with that stentorian voice…”
After the sword, the bottle brush: the time has come for appeasement. Even if the moment is not at all spiritual – we will have to wait for the reopening on the 7th and the first mass on the 8th – Emmanuel Macron is engaging in diplomacy with the Church, welcoming a “fruitful cooperation”celebrant “the spirit of dialogue”naming Mgr Aupetit, archbishop of Paris, and Mgr Chauvet, rector of the cathedral at the time of the fire… and their successors, respectively Mgr Ulrich and Mgr Ribadeau-Dumas. By thanking the “organ builders and campanists who gave the cathedral its voice”the Head of State even addressed the Archbishop of Paris to clarify “under your instructions, Monseigneur, on December 7”…
It is mainly addressed to companions: “ You have taken over a chain that preceded you by more than eight centuries. Those of the companions of the Middle Ages. […] You have demonstrated, making this project basically a metaphor for the life of the nation, that every woman, every man is necessary. » The president celebrates the spirit that animated this exceptional project: “Square Jean-XXIII, thanks to all of you, has become a real village. Under the lime trees, we met, we exchanged, we got news from each other with, here too, a form of family which began to exist over all these years. »
All trades are listed – “ ornamentist, foundry worker, artistic ironworker, locksmith, skater, luster maker…” With a word for everyone, to remind them all that they were stakeholders in a project “unheard of” : « Yes, we had never seen such a construction site. You all participated in the construction project of the century. A training site, a model site. »
A celebration of the “family spirit” of the site
Those who did not work on site are also included, “from so many places in France”… Emmanuel Macron returns to the family spirit: “There was a unique spirit of brotherhood and I want to believe, I want it to remain, to continue. You were a big family for five years, with its joys, its proud moments like today, and its pains. I mentioned it with the general, and I haven't forgotten any of it, in particular that of one of his faithful soldiers, if I may say so, you all knew him: Azzedine Hedna, the scaffolder of Notre-Dame.”. At the mention of this notable figure on the construction site, who died suddenly at home on the night of November 8 to 9, the audience finally came to life, saluting his memory with a round of applause.
Emmanuel Macron concludes: “Basically, you showed the world that nothing can resist will, work and this hope. You taught us to look up to see this spire, the spire of Notre-Dame, to look up to rediscover our cathedral from the inside. And for all this, the recognition of our country is immense. » It will also be expressed in a diploma which will be given to “every hand that participated in this project”. After a word for the families, who have sometimes made sacrifices to support a restoration carried out at full speed, the president once again celebrates the promise kept, “an immense pride for the entire nation. […] France is infinitely grateful to you. »
The craftsmen, often grouped in clusters of the same company whose jacket they wear (security, stained glass, cleaning, stone cutters, etc.), rub shoulders in the nave with anonymous donors, patrons and big bosses – we can see Patrick Pouyanné, the CEO of Total. The end of the speech and the launch of “family photos” – twenty in total, one per trade – are punctuated by an ovation. They had their moment – while waiting for their mass on December 15 – and so did the president. He didn't forget anyone, didn't make any mistakes, but we were far from the simple word of thanks promised: contrary to what those around him had announced, it was a real written speech, which lasted a good twenty minutes. For the famous speech on December 7, the Élysée assured that it would be short… Should we doubt it? The main thing is elsewhere: Notre-Dame is ready to be open again, and we have seen it “even more beautiful”.
