How many bells are there in notre dame cathedral

On April 15th , the spire and the oak room collapsed after a spectacular fire that destroyed a large part of Notre Dame. This catastrophic fire burned for several hours and it took more than firemen to contain the blaze.

A very sad day for France. However, Notre Dame is not dead and a plan to renovate our national symbol has already been announced by the French government.

Well, as you probably saw tragedy struck Notre-Dame cathedral April 15th, when a massive fire broke out just after 6PM. While the exact cause of the fire is still unknown, the firefighters and authorities estimate it was an accident. What we do know, is that during the time the cathedral caught fire, it was under construction with massive scaffoldings encasing the spire and posterior.

Parisian firefighters took the risk of a potential fire here very seriously, and had weekly training drills in case of such an event. Thankfully they were very well prepared and managed to save most of the cathedral. Sadly, there was quite a bit of damage, as the fire blazed for several hours before being extinguished.

But luckily, despite the damage to the rooftop and spire, the majority of the Cathedral including the 13th century stained glass windows as well as the stone towers, remained intact. Milliped, via Wikimedia Commons. If millions of visitors walk through its portals every year, only a few take the time to care about the details. So what exactly is the Notre-Dame and why is it the most popular cathedrals in the world? Besides being the most famous Gothic cathedral of the Middle Ages, it is most notable for its size and architectural style.

Its beginnings took place more than years ago, in the heart of a much smaller Paris. Some really interesting historical events took place at the Cathedral Notre Dame. For one, Henry VI was coronated as king of France inside the cathedral in , and in Napoleon was crowned emperor.

Another interesting yet creepy background fact- the spire that collapsed is creepier than many would think. It actually contained teeth, bones, and hair of the patron saints of Paris- St.

Denis and St. The relics were placed there to protect the Notre Dame. Fire struck during the 13th century…. Now onto the list of interesting facts.

Here are ten interesting facts about this religious and architectural masterpiece in Paris. The Cathedral is the most visited monument in Paris. France is the most visited country in the world. Surprisingly enough, its most visited monument is not the Eiffel Tower.

If Disneyland Paris is the number one tourist destination in France, the Notre-Dame Cathedral is the most visited monument within the Paris city limits.

More than 13 million visitors pass through the grand gate of Notre-Dame every year. This means the Cathedral welcomes around 35 thousand visitors a day! If you wish to avoid the crowds, I recommend you arrive early at Notre-Dame. The gates open at AM but most visitors arrive a bit later, so take advantage of the early hours to visit the grandiose monument without thousands of people around.

Standing here since the 12 th century, the Gothic masterpiece seems to have been here forever. This island division, with one half dedicated to justice and ruling and the other one dedicated to religion — survived through times. During the Middle-Ages, the Roman Palace was replaced by the Royal Palace — which later became the Palace of Justice and the Conciergerie — and the altars were replaced by successive catholic churches.

Like often with churches, the bells of Notre-Dame bear names. But what is more interesting is the tumultuous lives of these bells. If Quasimodo, the famous hunchback created by Victor Hugo to ring the bells of the great Cathedral was an invention, the two-to-three ton pieces of bronze have had a life on their own. The bells we now hear are no longer the ones installed upon completion of the Cathedral, six-hundred years ago. Indeed, after the French Revolution, in , most bells were taken down from Notre-Dame and melted to make cannon balls.

New bells were only installed during the mid th century and contributed to a recognizable chime which sounded in the skies of the French Capital for years. In , to celebrate the th anniversary of Notre-Dame, the bells were replaced in a much mediatized ceremony and the chimes renewed. A typical element of Gothic art, chimeras and gargoyles are well represented on the walls of Notre-Dame.

Gargoyles are hollow statues located at strategic locations to ensure water drainage. Chimeras are purely decorative. On the towers of Notre-Dame, famous chimeras allow tourists to take well known perspective pictures with the tower chimeras in the foreground and Paris in the background. Paris famous panorama from the Gallery of Chimeras — Source: Pixabay. People often think that these chimeras are representative of the medieval style of the Cathedral.

However, the decorative chimeras of the towers panorama are not medieval at all! In , Napoleon III ordered four new bells cast to put in the north tower. However, these four bells were not well-tuned. Still, they rang the hours of the day and the Angelus until It tolled after Sept. When St. While the Emmanuel bell is considered a jewel of sound, the other bells were not. This is why, in , they were removed and nine new bells were cast for the th anniversary of the Paris cathedral.

The new bells were hung in place and rung for the first time on Palm Sunday As usually happens with church bells, each bell of Notre Dame was blessed before being put into service. Radio 4's Sunday morning service. A look at the ethical and religious issues of the week. Regular broadcast of Christian worship and music. Ethical and religious discussion that examines some of the larger questions of life. Home Episodes Clips. Main content.

Hear the Bells of Notre Dame.