Notre-Dame cathedral of Rouen

See also: Notre-Dame

The cathedral of Rouen is the most prestigious monument of the city. It is the seat of the Archidiocèse of Rouen, chief town of the ecclesiastical province of Normandy.

It is a construction of Gothic architecture whose first stones go back to the top Moyen-âge. It with the characteristic, rare in France, to preserve its archi-episcopal palate and surrounding additional constructions dating from the same time. One of its most remarkable elements is its Western frontage, framed of two dissimilar turns: the Saint-Romain tower and the turn of Butter (the latter, built according to the legend with the money of the Indulgence S of Lent, is a true blazing masterpiece of the Gothic ). The blazing stage of the Northern tower (Saint-Romain turn) was destroyed in 1944 by a fire and was recently rebuilt. The Western frontage inspired, at the 19th century of many artists and, more particularly, Claude Monet.

Like the majority of the cathedrals Normans, the Cathédrale has, with cross Transept, a “Turn-lantern”. The arrow of wood which crowned it was destroyed by a fire in 1822. It is now surmounted by an arrow in cast iron, built 1825 with 1876 which culminates with 151 meters height. It is most of France, and it was the most building of the world at the time of its completion.

History

The first attested mention of a bishop with Rouen goes back to the year 314. But this date, one year after the authorization of the Christian worship in the Roman Empire, seems too early to imagine the existence of a religious building. On the other hand, a few ten years later, a sermon of the bishop Victrice gone back to approximately 395/396 implies the presence of a Cathédrale in the Cité and evokes the construction of a Basilique in the vicinity. In 1986, the excavations carried out by the archeologist Jacques Maho made it possible to confirm the existence of this last church. It was a few tens of meters in the north of the current Cathédrale. As much of other metropolitan cities paléochrétiennes, the episcopal Groupe of Rouen was thus composed of at least two churches:
  • a principal building dedicated to Notre-Dame, established at the place of the current cathedral;
  • a church martyriale, perhaps dedicated to Holy Etienne, (today court of Albane);
  • probably a Baptistry between the two.

In 1954, the archeologist Georges Lanfry opened a survey on the level of the last span of the Nef so precisely discovering the antique Notre-Dame church. In fact, it put at the day a later Crypte, Carolingian time. In the light of this discovery, one supposes that Notre-Dame was in this time a building much smaller than today (60 m length?).

The 9th century, one carried out several refittings (episcopal palate, canonic housing, addition of a Westwerk with the church martyriale) but in 841, the fire of Rouen by the Viking S destroyed the Groupe cathédral. The unit seems given in a state in a provisional way while waiting for the return of peace in the area. At the 10th century, Rouen became the capital of the young person Duché of Normandy. Necropolis of the first dukes, the cathedral profited from important work. About 1030, the archbishop Robert the Dane rebuilt the chorus in Romance Style and inserted a Crypte in lower part. Thanks to archaeological excavations carried out about 1938-1939, Georges Lanfry could release the Eastern plan of the church: a Déambulatoire made the turn of the chorus and opened on three apsidal chapels. Another archbishop, Maurille (1055-1067), completed the building site as well as the rebuilding of the Nef. In spite of the construction of the Gothic cathedral then, the Crypt which sheltered surely the Reliques of the Virgin, remains and can be visited.

All in all, one can determine three successive states of the monument :

  • the primitive Basilica:
Recent excavations showed that a first sanctuary with double nave was built on the site of the current cathedral at the end of the 4th century. The basilica was destroyed at the time of the invasions Normans.
  • the Romance cathedral:
Work of the Romance cathedral began towards 1020, under the episcopate of Robert d' Évreux. The central vessel took again the site of the Nef southern of the primitive basilica. There remains currently only a Crypte, corresponding to the foundations of the chorus of the Romance cathedral.
  • the Gothic cathedral

The Gothic cathedral today

The northern tower (Saint-Romain turn) is the oldest part of Gothic construction. Its construction begins in 1145. The tower southern, known as “of Beurre” (either because it was financed by the Indulgence S of Lent, or because its stone is yellowish) is built only starting from 1485. The Nef takes again elements of the Romance cathedral, destroyed by a fire in 1200. The turn-lantern is unfinished and its stone arrow cannot thus be realized. In 1540, an arrow out of wooden, covered with Lead, the cap. After its fire in 1822, an arrow of cast iron, alongside of four Clocheton S in Cuivre is set up by stages throughout the 19th century (project of the architect Jean-Antoine Alavoine).

The archi-episcopal palate of Gothic, contemporary style of the cathedral, saw being held the second lawsuit of Jeanne d' Arc.

In 1944, a Bombardement of Rouen by the Alliés reaches the building seriously. The Nave and the frontage of the Collatéral southern are broken, the Saint-Romain tower is set fire to and one of the four Pilier S supporting the arrow is practically destroyed. It is a miracle which the unit remained upright. The nave will remain upright thanks to the vault Sainte Catherine which retained all its southern part. Principal work of restoration is completed today and the Saint-Romain tower is again capped with sound Toit of slate (flaring at the time of the fire of to the bombardment of April 1944).

At the time of the storm of December 1999, one of the four pinnacles in Cuivre of the arrow due to Ferdinand Marrou fell into the chorus, smashing the Toit RUE and damaging Stalle S.

Interior visit

Some remarkable elements present in the cathedral:
  • a tank of baptistry of the 10th century in the low room of the tower Saint-Romain
  • Some tombs with Lying S in the Déambulatoire of the chorus, that of Richard Lion-hearted which contains his Cœur, that of Rollon which is empty, that of Henri the Young person, brother of Richard Lion-hearted, and that of Guillaume Ier of Normandy, wire of Rollon.
  • the monumental Mausoleum of the cardinal of Amboise, work of Rouland the Russet-red and masterpiece of the sculpture of the beginning of the 16th century.

The representation of the cathedral of Rouen in painting

  • Par Claude Monet:

During the Years 1890, Claude Monet works with several series of paintings representing the same subject. The most known series is perhaps that which represents the Massif Westerner of the cathedral of Rouen. Monet of painted more than thirty different versions carried out, for the first, since 23, place de la Cathédrale and, for the following ones, since 81, rue Grand-Pont. It finishes in fact a certain number of these paintings, later, in its workshop of Giverny.

In 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007, a monumental spectacle, entitled the Cathedral of Rouen, of Monet to the pixels , was carried out by Skertzò by creating lightings on the frontage of the cathedral pointing out the colors of the tables of Monet.

  • Par Roy Lichtenstein :

In 1969, the American painter Roy Lichtenstein carried out a Triptyque on the cathedral: Rouen Cathedral Set V . This fabric carried out with the Oil-base paint and with the acrylic Peinture is divided into three equal parts. Each part represents the frontage seen of skew with bright colors (different for each of the three elements of the triptych) and of large points, similar to a screen, particularly characteristic of the work of the artist.

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