Notre Dame fire a disaster for Western civilisation

At times like this, you can only draw breath and hope that the worst will not happen. The cathedral of Notre Dame, Our Lady of Paris, is not only one of the two best-known and most-loved symbols of the French capital, it is also an important element of French and European memory.

The loss of Notre Dame would be catastrophic. As far as was known late last night, the fire that erupted in the core of the building in the late evening, bringing down the 750-tonne spire, La Fleche, is unlikely to pose a mortal threat. The main parts of the church will survive. But the damage done to the fabric and its treasures will be devastating. The roof, which was under restoration, has collapsed. Priceless works of art and centuries-old stained glass were imperilled. Walls, already crumbling, are sure to have been weakened.

This is the third tragedy to have hit a world heritage site this century after the demolition of the temples of Palmyra in Syria by the Islamic State in 2017 and the earlier destruction by the Taliban of the Bamiyan buddhas in Afghanistan.

It is as if the world’s religious heritage is under assault and we are powerless to prevent it.

Last night, all of France was watching as flames enveloped the church on the Île de la Cité that has stood at the very heart of France for the best part of a thousand years. They were helpless. The Archbishop of Paris, Michel Aupetit, called on his priests to ring the bells of their churches as an invitation to prayer. But no prayers that were uttered up could halt the inferno.

When St Paul’s Cathedral was photographed miraculously intact, after one of the worst nights of the Blitz, Londoners took it as an omen that their spirit could not be broken and that right would ultimately prevail. In the same way, Parisians, remembering the terrorist attacks of 2015 that claimed hundreds of lives, will be looking this morning at the smouldering edifice that is Notre Dame, willing to see in it a message of hope, not despair. Had the cathedral collapsed, the morale of Paris, and of all France, might well have collapsed with it. Should it continue to stand, bloodied but unbowed, the sense is likely to be one of relief, almost of defiance.

Inevitably, as the fire raged, politicians joined the first-responders. President Macron was on the scene within the hour, clearly moved. There can be no doubt that he was deeply shocked and dismayed by the blaze and the unparalleled blow it represents to his country’s national patrimony. The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, equally distraught, could do no more than promise that everything that could be done would be done. Some events go beyond words and beyond even the best of intentions.

The same can be said of the blame that must necessarily be apportioned. Was the archdiocese of Paris careless in its stewardship of Notre Dame? The church had appealed for funds to repair stonework much of which had stood since the thirtheenth century. But should those responsible have declared a state of emergency?  Were the contractors working on upper-level renovations at fault? What materials had been left lying around? How much wood was incorporated into the scaffolding that encased much of the building’s uppermost structure? Or was what happened, either beyond all reason or else as a message from on high, an act of God?

Over the course of the next few days and weeks, as the extent of the calamity becomes clear, there will be much talk of the nation’s resolve. Nothing, we will be told, will stand in the way of a full restoration of Notre Dame to its perennial glory. And all those making the promises will be entirely sincere. The national church will be rebuilt. No expense will be spared, no stone left unturned. It will be a matter of unalloyed pride, and no elected representative of the people, including even those who felt that Robespierre was right to ban religion, will dare raise their voice against the enterprise.

But for now, and for the next few days, Paris and France will feel little but an overwhelming sense of loss. So should we all. For Notre Dame is part of all our history.

Firefighters dealing with the blaze, which continued throughout the night, have said that the main structure of the cathedral, including the incomparable West Front, with its north and south towers, is not in danger of collapse. The spire – a nineteenth century replacement of an earlier adornment – has gone and it is hard not to believe that much of the stained glass will have been blown out. The emergency services were in action within minutes of the first alert and gave an assurance that the most valuable artworks had been removed before they could either catch fire or be inundated with water. That said, the price in broader cultural terms and in France’s sense of itself will be immense.

As Macron put it, dressed in black as if for a funeral, Notre Dame is a part of France’s history, its literature and its imagination, watching over events down the centuries and a centrepiece of the Liberation. He immediately announced a national subscription to pay for the rebuilding that will take years, even decades, to complete. In the name of Western civilisation, Britons should give generously.