Stephane de Sakutin / AFP | Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris on April 16, 2019, in the aftermath of a fire that caused its spire to crash to the ground. Amid the outpouring of support for one of Europe's most iconic monuments, France’s billionaires and businesses have lined up to pledge their support to help rebuild Notre-Dame, with the total so far at nearly 700 million euros. Advertising Read more President Emmanuel Macron has vowed the medieval monument will be restored after its spire and roof collapsed Monday night in a violent blaze thought to be linked to renovation work. "I say to you very solemnly this evening: this cathedral will be rebuilt by us all together. ... We will rebuild Notre Dame because that is what the French expect, because that is what our history deserves, because it is our destiny," Macron said on Monday evening. French luxury group Kering, whose brands include Yves Saint Laurent and Gucci, kicked off the donations late Monday with a promise of 100 million euros ($113 million). Kering chief Francois-Henri Pinault said the intricate lattice woodwork supporting the roof that was lost in the blaze had to be replicated. "We have to do it," he told BBC radio. That pledge was followed on Tuesday by a 200-million-euro pledge from Kering's rival LVMH and the family of its founder Bernard Arnault. The great and the good of France French oil giant Total said it would contribute 100 million euros, and the L'Oreal cosmetics group and its founding Bettencourt family pledged 200 million euros. Other high-profile French donors included the investor Marc Ladreit de Lacharriere with 10 million euros, and construction magnates Martin and Olivier Bouygues, also donated 10 million euros. Among other firms, the Credit Agricole bank gave 5 million euros, while US private equity investor Henry Kravis has promised $10 million. Corporate contributions are expected to climb, with blue-chip firms like Vinci, Michelin and BNP Paribas also saying they are looking at how best to help Notre-Dame. Air France has already said it will offer free flights to experts brought in to help with Notre-Dame's renovation. And French insurer Groupama said it would supply the estimated 1,300 huge oak beams needed to re-create the roof support. Public sector coordination Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo on Tuesday proposed organising an international donor conference to coordinate the pledges to restore the French Gothic architectural masterpiece. The UN’s cultural agency UNESCO has also promised to stand "at France's side" to restore the site, which it declared a world heritage site in 1991. Donations pour in The Centre des monuments nationaux, the French government body that manages historic buildings owned by the state launched an online fundraising campaignon Tuesday. The Fondation du Patrimoine, an independent French heritage organisation, launched a "national fundraising campaign" on Tuesday for the reconstruction of Notre-Dame, Anne Le Breton, deputy mayor of the French capital's 4th arrondissement (district), told AFP. "Those wishing to contribute to the reconstruction of Notre-Dame can from noon on Tuesday, April 16 make donations via the website www.fondation-patrimoine.org. No fees will be charged." Le Breton added. The foundation’s website had been so inundated with requests that as of Monday evening it was possible to make donations via another site, National Collection for Notre-Dame of Paris. International and domestic support Pledges were also pouring in from anonymous donors to groups including the privately run French Heritage Foundation, which said it has already secured pledges totalling 3.3 million euros. On a more modest scale, a fund set up on the Leetchi fundraising platform had topped 26,000 euros by Tuesday afternoon. France 2 television said it will broadcast a special classical music concert Wednesday night as part of the fundraising effort. And the French Council of the Muslim Faith also called on French Muslims to help save "an architectural masterpiece that is the honour of our country". Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said the city would unlock 50 million euros, while the government of the greater Paris region promised 10 million. (FRANCE 24 with AFP) Daily newsletterReceive essential international news every morning Subscribe<doc-sep>LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The fire that devastated Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris on Monday prompted fund-raising appeals in the United States, as people horrified by the blaze began making commitments to restore a global landmark even before the flames were extinguished. Firefighters douse flames from the burning Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France April 15, 2019. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier The New York-based French Heritage Society and the Go Fund Me crowdsourcing platform were among the first to offer help for a cathedral that is a must-see destination for visitors to Paris from all over the world. French President Emmanuel Macron said an international campaign would be launched to raise funds for the rebuilding of Notre-Dame Cathedral. [nP6N21F04Z] The French Heritage Society, an American non-profit group dedicated to preserving French architectural and cultural treasures, launched a web page on Monday to raise money for the cathedral’s restoration. “Notre-Dame is obviously an architectural marvel and most certainly a monument that should be restored,” Jennifer Herlein, the executive director of the society, said by phone. Herlein could not immediately say how much her organization had raised for Notre-Dame on Monday. Eventually, the funds raised will go directly to the cathedral, she said. The organization, which was founded in 1982, gave two grants last year totaling more than $430,000 for restoration projects at France’s national library, she said. 50 CAMPAIGNS At the website GoFundMe, more than 50 campaigns related to the cathedral fire had been launched globally on Monday, John Coventry, a spokesman for Go Fund Me, said by email. “In the coming hours we’ll be working with the authorities to find the best way of making sure funds get to the place where they will do the most good,” Coventry said. Some of the Go Fund Me campaigns had not listed any money raised by late Monday, and several joke campaigns were created through Go Fund Me to help Quasimodo, the fictional character in Victor Hugo’s 19th century novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame.” “I think the challenge will be whether or not people who give the money agree with those who are doing the rebuilding about how the cathedral should be rebuilt,” said Lisa Bitel, a professor of religion and history at the University of Southern California. “This is a national monument in France and they will not spare money to rebuild,” Bitel said. “I don’t think the Americans will get much of a say in how to do it.” Notre-Dame Cathedral has looked to international donors for past renovation efforts. In 2017, Michel Picaud, president of Friends of Notre-Dame De Paris, told the New York Times his group planned to organize gala dinners, concerts and other events to raise funds in France and the United States for restoration work at the cathedral.<doc-sep>
Donations to help rebuild Notre Dame cathedral hit the $700 million mark midday Tuesday - with two of France's rival billionaires pledging the bulk of the cash. Just 24 hours earlier, the world watched in horror as 500 firefighters battled the blaze in Paris for nearly five hours. The extensive fire caused the cathedral's delicate spire to collapse and burn through the roof of the 12th-century building. NOTRE DAME GOLDEN ALTER CROSS SEEN GLOWING AS IMAGES EMERGE FROM INSIDE SHOWING FIRE-RAVAGED CATHEDRAL Nations around the world expressed solidarity with France and offered their support for the recovery. French President Emmanuel Macron announced an international fundraising campaign even as the fire still burned. “Notre-Dame is our history, our literature, part of our psyche, the place of all our great events, our epidemics, our wars, our liberations, the epicenter of our lives,” he said. Macron added: “Let’s be proud, because we built this cathedral more than 800 years ago, we’ve built it and, throughout the centuries, let it grow and improved it. So I solemnly say tonight: we will rebuild it together." Since his comments, donations have flooded in to help rebuild the historic landmark. NOTRE DAME CATHEDRALS MOST ICONIC MOMENTS IN FILM Bernard Arnault, who heads LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton in France, said his family and the luxury-goods company it controls would donate $226 million to help with reconstruction costs. LVMH also offered up an army of "creative, architectural and financial specialists" to help with rebuilding. French luxury magnate François-Henri Pinault said his family would dedicate about $113 million to the effort. Pinaut heads Kering, a group of luxury brands including Gucci and Alexander McQueen. "Faced with such a tragedy, everyone wants to revive this jewel of our heritage as quickly as possible.” Pinault said. L'Oreal said the company, the Bettencourt Meyers family and the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation, would donate $226 million, while Patrick Pouyanné, chairman of French oil giant Total, tweeted his company would donate $113 million dollars. Other big-money donors included Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière, head of French investment firm Fimalac, who offered $11.3 million and American philanthropist Henry Kravis who also pledged $11.3 million. Financial consulting firm Capgemini said it would donate $1.1 million while JCDecaux offered $11.3 million. Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted the company would donate to helping rebuild Notre Dame though he did not include a dollar amount. "We are heartbroken for the French people and those around the world for whom Notre Dame is a symbol of hope," he said. "Relived that everyone is safe. Apple will be donating to the rebuilding efforts to help restore Notre Dame's precious heritage for future generations." On a smaller scale, the blaze prompted several fundraising efforts in the U.S. - some a little more successful than others. The website Friends of Notre Dame - which was set up in 2016 to receive donations to help with renovation costs - crashed after a flood of contributions came in. CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP At the website GoFundMe.com, more than 50 campaigns related to the fire launched Monday, John Coventry, a spokesman for Go Fund Me told Reuters. “In the coming hours we’ll be working with the authorities to find the best way of making sure funds get to the place where they will do the most good,” Coventry said.