Macron to preside over Notre-Dame's reopening five years after blaze

RFI

13 November 2024 at 8:50 am·1-min read

French President Emmanuel Macron at the reconstruction site inside Notre-Dame Cathedral in April, 2022.

French President Emmanuel Macron will play a central role in the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral on 7 December – five years after a fire devastated the iconic landmark. In line with France’s church-state separation, Macron will deliver a speech from the forecourt.

Macron, who made a five-year restoration pledge shortly after the 2019 blaze, will also attend the first public mass in the newly restored cathedral the following day.

In preparation for the reopening, the head of state will make a final visit to the construction site on 29 November, his seventh tour since the fire, to personally thank the artisans who have worked on the extensive project.

His remarks will highlight what the Élysée Palace has described as a “French success story”, placing the Notre-Dame restoration alongside other national achievements like the Paris Olympics.

France mulls charging tourists to enter Notre-Dame cathedral

Speech delivered outside

Initially, the president’s address was planned for inside the cathedral. However, the decision to have him speak outside respects France’s strict secular laws separating church and state, said an Élysée spokesperson.

Macron would take the opportunity to underscore “France’s resilience” in restoring a symbol of French heritage, the spokesperson added.

On 8 December, Macron will join worshippers at the first mass in Notre-Dame since the fire. Led by Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich, the mass will consecrate the cathedral’s altar and interior.

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Speech delivered outside

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