A catastrophic fire broke out in the roof space of the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris on Monday evening, leaving people in Paris, France, and the rest of the world in a state of shock as the fire destroyed much of the building's mediaeval roof and its 19th-century spire. As if in answer to the prayers of the thousands of people who had gathered to watch the disaster unfold in central Paris and the many millions more watching the events on television worldwide, the French fire services were eventually able to bring the fire under control late on Monday evening, saving the fabric of the building and its two iconic bell-towers. However, while the damage was not as severe as had originally been feared, with the artworks and other objects in the cathedral's interior saved from the flames, the building has suffered as yet unquantified damage, with estimates for the repairs running into many hundreds of millions of euros. People in Paris and throughout the world were still in shock as the French capital woke up to the aftermath of the previous night's disaster on Tuesday morning, though there was some relief as the news came through that the cathedral's three rose windows, magnificent works of mediaeval stained-glass, had not been badly damaged. The cathedral's enormous 18th-century organ had also survived the fire intact. Speaking outside the cathedral on the Ile de la Cité in central Paris on Monday night as firemen behind him struggled to put out the flames, French President Emmanuel Macron said that everything would be done to restore the cathedral and launched an international fundraising campaign to help rebuild Notre-Dame. Messages of support also came through from the world's political and religious leaders, including from Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed Al-Tayeb. “Our hearts go out to our brothers in France, who deserve our full support,” Al-Tayeb said on his Twitter account. The cause of the fire is not yet known, though it is thought it could be linked to renovation work taking place at the cathedral. An investigation was announced on Tuesday morning, but it could be some time before the results are published. The Cathedral of Notre-Dame, built between 1160 and 1260 CE and extensively restored particularly in the 19th century, is one of France's best-known buildings and a symbol of the French capital. It has made frequent appearances in art and literature, including in French writer Victor Hugo's novel Notre-Dame de Paris, and it was site of the coronation of Napoleon 1 as emperor of France in 1804. It is considered to be an outstanding example of mediaeval French Gothic architecture. Together with the ensemble of buildings that make up the cityscape of central Paris, the Cathedral of Notre-Dame was inscribed on UN cultural organisation UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1991.
