A little history of Notre-Dame cathedral in Verdun
And also
The tops
In the beginning
In the 5th century, bishop Pulchrone raised the primitive church. Destroyed by Normans in 740, by duke Boson in 917, then by count of Bar Renaud in 1135, it was re-raised in 1139 and dedicated in 1147 by pope Eugene III.
The architect was a German called Garin, who built the cathedral based on church of Mainz's plans.
In the 13th century, they added a sacristy known as Sorbonne (like the famous Parisian school), for the religious gatherings.
Architect Pierre Perrat (he worked on cathedrals of Toul and Metz's building sites) vaulted the nave in 1380 and replaced the Romanesque choir.
The reconstruction
But on a night in April 1755, a lighting struck a bell-tower and it began to burn. Lead from the roof started to melt and flow out in the streets... A violent wind poked the fire, so almost all the district burnt!
They immediately re-raised the cathedral.
The 4 bell-towers were replaced by the two current square towers. Protestants said, when they besieged the city in 1562, that the cathedral looked like a turn round sideboard they wanted to put the right way round!