Emmanuel Macron believes that the reopening of the cathedral will mark “a shock of hope”

A little more than five years after the fire that devastated it, in April 2019, Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral revealed to the world its ” glow found », Friday November 29, during a final site visit by the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron. “ The shock of [ré]opening, will be, I want to believe, as strong as that of the fire. But it will be, I believe, a shock of hope”declared the Head of State, eight days before the reopening of the building with great fanfare, Saturday December 7.

“The Notre-Dame blaze was a national wound and you were its remedy through will, through work, through commitment (…) You have achieved what we thought was impossible”declared Mr. Macron to the address of the 2,000 people who worked on the reconstruction of the cathedral, while he spoke from the nave, in the middle of more than a thousand of them. He congratulated them at length for having identified “this challenge”saluting the work of all the trades and the 250 companies which have participated in the work over the past five years, “construction site alchemists who transformed coal into art”. “You showed the world that nothing resists audacity (…) It is an immense pride for the entire nation”he continued, wishing that “endures” the spirit of “fraternity” of the construction site.

During his speech, the president also recalled “the immense outpouring of solidarity” who spoke “across the world” and thanked the hundreds of patrons who, through their donations, made it possible to raise “hundreds of millions of euros”who entirely financed the reconstruction of Notre-Dame. Before paying tribute to the memory of General Jean-Louis Georgelin, former chief of staff of the armed forces who became president of the public establishment of Notre-Dame de Paris in 2019, until his accidental death in the summer of 2023.

His speech came after two hours of wandering around the religious building, broadcast live on several French and international channels. Accompanied by his wife, Brigitte Macron, and the Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, elected officials and representatives of the Catholic faith, Emmanuel Macron marked ten stages in front of the achievements of the titanic site, from the square to the framework , passing through the nave, the transept crossing or even the Saint-Marcel chapel, speaking with some of the craftsmen who worked to rebuild the building.

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“It’s sublime”he exclaimed when discovering the cathedral. “She is much more hospitable with this blonde stone”cleaned of dirt accumulated over decades, he added, assuring speakers that they could “be proud”. “This final site visit is an opportunity to thank them in particular, from wood craftsmen to metal and stone craftsmen, from scaffolders to roofers, from campanists to art restorers, from gilders to masons and sculptors, from carpenters to organ builders, architects, archaeologists, engineers and planners to logistical or administrative functions”Emmanuel Macron said, ahead of this visit.

Broadcast around the world, the fire, which occurred on April 15, 2019 and whose causes have still not been determined, caused a wave of global emotion. The President of the Republic then committed to reopening in five years, arousing some skepticism at the time. “We were told a lot at the beginning that it wouldn't be possible, that it was crazy, that it was arbitrary, that we were going to do it wrong. But, deep down, behind this simple objective, there was an aggregation of all the wills and you did it”he said on Friday, addressing his companions.

The flames had notably ravaged the roof and the frame of this masterpiece of 12th century Gothic art.^e century, which is among the most visited monuments in Europe. The spire of Viollet-le-Duc, which collapsed from a height of 93 meters, was reconstructed identically. In total, according to the Elysée, 843 million euros were raised to restore the building. Around 700 million was spent on the first two phases of consolidation and restoration; the remaining 140 million will be used to restore in particular the facades and roofs of the sacristy from the beginning of 2025.

The public still has to wait a good week to access the cathedral. The Head of State will speak again on Saturday, December 7, before an indoor liturgical ceremony for the official reopening, a prelude to the inaugural mass celebrated on December 8. The head of state has invited a large number of foreign leaders for its reopening, in the hope of making it an international event, but the list of those present is not yet known. To the great regret of the Elysée, Pope Francis preferred to go to Corsica a week later rather than to Paris.