PARIS, April 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — French President Emmanuel Macron bestowed awards on around 100 craftspeople and officials who helped restore Notre Dame to its former glory after a fire nearly destroyed the beloved Paris cathedral six years ago.
The ceremony at the Elysee Palace took place from early Tuesday evening, around the same time the devastating fire broke out at the Gothic masterpiece on April 15, 2019.
Macron bestowed the awards in the presence of Prime Minister Francois Bayrou and government members including Culture Minister Rachida Dati.
Jean-Claude Gallet, who presided over the Paris fire brigade during the disaster, was also in attendance.
“You have achieved what was thought impossible,” Macron told restoration workers and officials after he toured the cathedral last November, days before the cathedral re-opened to the public on Dec 7.
Macron once again spoke of France’s “pride” over the operation’s success, according to his team, which said an average of 30,000 people a day now visited the restored cathedral.
Macron also honoured Philippe Jost, who headed the public organisation tasked with restoring the cathedral and was elevated to the rank of “commander” of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest national award.
Jost succeeded Jean-Louis Georgelin, the general who had been put in charge of overseeing the restoration but who died in 2023.
Georgelin was conferred with the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, the highest rank of the award established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802.
The architects Remi Fromont and Philippe Villeneuve were also decorated.
Alongside them, nearly 100 civil servants, entrepreneurs and craftspeople were awarded the Legion of Honour or the National Order of Merit, another top award established by Charles de Gaulle.
They represented around 2,000 people who took part in the restoration of the cathedral.
They come from “all the trades” and include carpenters, ironworkers, scaffolders, rope access workers, organ restorers and stained glass artisans, the French presidency said.
Aymeric Albert, who was made a knight of the Legion of Honour, combed the forests of France to select oak trees needed to rebuild the spire, the nave and the choir.
The massive restoration project was financed thanks to nearly 850 million euros in donations from all over the world. — NNN-AGENCIES
