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Rollo
The Viking Rollo, first Duke of Normandy, was baptised here in 915
Viking raids beginning in 841 seriously damaged the cathedral complex. Rollo, the Viking leader who became the first Duke of Normandy, was baptised in the Carolingian cathedral in 915 and buried there in 933. His grandson Richard I further enlarged it in 950.
Easter eve
A fire on Easter eve in 1200 burned much of the town and the unfinished church
In 1185 Archbishop Gautier demolished the Romanesque nave and began a Gothic rebuilding. A major fire on Easter eve in 1200 destroyed a large part of the town and seriously damaged the unfinished church. By 1204 the nave was complete enough to receive King Philip II of France, celebrating the annexation of Normandy.
Butter
Butter paid for part of a tower, and the tower took its name
A new tower was begun in 1488 to match the old Saint-Romaine tower. The Pope authorised Cardinal d'Amboise to grant dispensations to consume milk and butter during Lent in exchange for contributions to the tower. It soon took the nickname the Butter Tower, though the money paid only a portion of the cost.
Storms
Lightning, a hurricane and the Calvinists all struck the cathedral
In 1514 the lead-covered wooden spire fell and was replaced within a few months in exactly the same form. In 1562 Calvinists attacked the furniture, tombs, stained-glass windows and statuary. The cathedral was struck by lightning in 1625 and 1642, then damaged by a hurricane in 1683.
The tallest
From 1876 to 1880 it was the tallest building in the world
The cathedral was built and rebuilt over more than eight hundred years. It is famous for its three towers, each in a different style. From 1876 to 1880 it was the tallest building in the world, and it was the subject of a series of impressionist paintings by Claude Monet.
Day 1, morning
Next is Gros-Horloge.
More stories from this trip idea
The words are a retelling of the Wikipedia article Rouen Cathedral, and are shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. They are checked against those articles, and a fact that is not in them is left out.