Notre-Dame foundation stone laid

March 24, 1163

Pope Alexander III, in exile from Rome, laid the cornerstone of the new Paris cathedral in person. The crowds around the old bishop's palace on the Seine's island watched masons begin a project none of them would live to see finished. The papal blessing lent the cathedral a prestige that attracted donations from across France, helping fund the ambitious double-aisled nave that would make Notre-Dame one of the largest churches in Christendom.