West facade of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Reims, Reims, France, 2021
A prominent example of High Gothic architecture, Reims Cathedral was built to replace an earlier church destroyed by fire in 1210. Although a little damaged during the French Revolution, the present cathedral saw extensive restoration in the 19th century. However, it was severely damaged during World War I and the church was again restored in the 20th century.
Since the 1905 law on the separation of church and state, the cathedral has been owned by the French state, while the Catholic church has an agreement for its exclusive use. The French state pays for its restoration and upkeep.
The West facade, the entry to the cathedral, particularly glorifies royalty. Most of it was completed at the same time, giving it an unusual unity of style. It is harmonic and balanced, with two towers of equal height and three portals entering into the nave. The porches of the portals, with archivolts containing many sculptures, protrude from the main wall. The two bell towers were originally planned to have spires making them three times taller than the nave, but these were never built. Since 1027 all but seven of France's future kings were crowned at Reims Cathedral.
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