Mass at Notre Dame de Paris Cathedral: Paris, France
When my family and I visited Paris in 2005, we were fortunate to visit Notre Dame de Paris (“Our Lady of Paris”), perhaps the most famous cathedral in the world. I took this photo after touring the church, just as a Roman Catholic mass was beginning.
To visit the church is to truly step back in time, as its history goes back to the 12th century. Construction on the enormous Gothic-style cathedral began in 1163 under the rule of King Louis VII, and would continue, largely uninterrupted, until its completion in 1345. That’s 182 years of continuous construction.
Some of the most important events in world history took place within these walls. Perhaps the most influential of these occurred on December 2, 1804, the day Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor Napoleon I.
