First glimpse inside restored Notre-Dame five years after fire destroyed Paris cathedral

By StephenRigley

The restored interior of Notre Dame Cathedral has been unveiled for the first time after more than five years of reconstruction work.

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The rebuilt soaring ceilings and cream stonework erased sombre memories of a devastating fire in 2019.

Today, President French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting the site to see the restored interiors for himself before the Gothic cathedral reopens for its first worship next month.

The televised visit is set to usher a series of events leading up to the reopening of the cathedral - the reconstruction of which has been hailed as a symbol of national unity and French pride.

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The President's visit kicks off a series of events ushering in the reopening of the 12th-century Gothic masterpiece.

Mr Macron will return on December 7 to deliver an address and attend the consecration of the new altar during a solemn Mass the following day.

In a statement before the visit, Mr Macron said Notre Dame was: "Even more beautiful than before, in the renewed radiance of the blonde stones and the colour of the chapels.

He added that the "building site of the century" was a "challenge that many considered insane".

Construction of Notre-Dame began in 1163 and was largely completed by 1260, with adaptations made in the following centuries.

Rising up from the Ile de la Cite, it has stood as a symbol of the city of Paris and French Christianity ever since. But in April 2019, a fire broke out inside the cathedral's roof space.

By the time it was extinguished, the cathedral's wooden spire had collapsed, most of the wooden roof had been destroyed, and the cathedral's upper walls were severely damaged.

Parisians openly wept as they saw fire rip through the landmark, and the grieving only grew when the extent of the devastation became clear.

Eight months later and Notre-Dame was unable to hold its annual Christmas Mass - for the first time since 1803.

The cathedral has been shrouded in scaffolding for the last five years.

Investigators looked into the cause of the fire, but found no evidence of a deliberate act. It is still unclear why the fire started,

French authorities believe an electrical fault or a burning cigarette may have been the cause.