Notre-Dame stands on the Île de la Cité, where a Seine crossing made the island a centre of medieval Paris. Begun in 1163, the cathedral took about two centuries to build and changed through later restorations.
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Notre-Dame’s towers and flying buttresses rise from the Île de la Cité, a crossing point that drew worshippers, merchants, and travelers into medieval Paris. Bishop Maurice de Sully began the cathedral project in 1163, and construction continued for roughly two centuries.
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UpgradeQuick facts
- Construction began in 1163 under Bishop Maurice de Sully.
- The cathedral’s construction spanned roughly two centuries.
- Viollet-le-Duc led a nineteenth-century restoration that included a new spire and chimeras.
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