Construction of Notre-Dame de Paris Begins

Timeline

1. 1163Île de la Cité, Paris · ParisBishop Maurice de Sully of Paris decided to demolish the old Romanesque cathedral and build a larger new church on the same site on the Île de la Cité. A foundation ceremony was held in 1163, employing the newly emerging Gothic building techniques of the time.
2. 1163–1170Notre-Dame de Paris construction site · ParisIn the years following the start of construction, the team of craftsmen completed the foundations and early vault structures of the nave and transepts, exploring Gothic innovations such as ribbed vaults and flying buttresses, laying the groundwork for later raising the west façade and constructing the rose windows.