Paris Notre-Dame Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris)

Begun in 1163 by the architect Maurice de Sully and completed in about 1345, Notre Dame ranks as one of France’s finest examples of Gothic architecture. During its long life, besides being a resplendent medieval cathedral, Notre Dame was reportedly set on fire during the Commune of 1871, when the Communards rose against the French government in the wake of their defeat during the Franco-Prussian war and was also used to house livestock. It has also been the site of many historical events, including the crowning of Henry VI of England in 1430 and the marriage of the Catholic Marguerite de Valois to the Huguenot (Protestant) Henri of Navarre in 1572, which sparked the St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre during the French Wars of Religion. Today, the cathedral still awes visitors with its massive rose windows, its 7800-pipe organ, towering spire and splayed flying buttresses.