Prince William and US President-elect Donald Trump shared a warm and firm handshake at the historic re-opening of the Notre Dame in Paris tonight.
The Prince of Wales attended the grand reopening event along with various global leaders, such as French President Emmanuel Macron and Trump.
The hirsute Prince wore a long formal dark navy coat whilst being welcomed by French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte ahead of the historic ceremony of the cathedral in Paris tonight.
Inside the 861-year-old cathedral – ahead of what is its first opening since being devastated by an inferno in 2019 – shared a brief exchange whilst as Trump placed his hand on the Prince’s shoulder.
Prince William is also expected to meet Trump following the ceremony tonight to discuss the US and UK’s ‘special relationship’.
William has travelled to France by request of the Government for the event celebrating the £600m restoration of the landmark cathedral following a devastating fire in 2019.
Elsewhere inside the grandiose place of worship, a roaring applause erupted when Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky entered the building filled with 40 world leaders as well as several celebrities.
The beginning of the landmark ceremony was confirmed with the ringing of the cathedral’s iconic and largest bell – the bourdon – which was created in 1683 and named Emmanuel by its godfather Louis XIV.
The bell, which was heard ringing at an F sharp note is believed to be one of the most beautiful in Europe, weighing at 13 tons and was the only bell to evade being destroyed following the French Revolution.
Before the bells chimes rang throughout Paris, US President-elect Donald Trump also made his way to the ceremony, shortly after being welcomed by the Macron at The Élysée Presidential Palace.
While in Paris, the Prince of Wales will hold meetings with both Trump and America’s first lady Jill Biden who will also be in attendance, Kensington Palace has said.
Although Prince William was expected to meet the current US First Lady before the historic ceremony, he will instead reconvene with her at the ceremony.
Instead of a private chat like the one that had been arranged, the two will speak on the side-lines of the event, Kensington Palace have said.
Their meeting had been impacted due to delays with the Prince’s travel because of Storm Darragh, according to the Palace.
It comes shortly after President Emmanual Macron said it was a ‘great honour’ to host Donald Trump at the Élysée ahead of the ceremony at the Notre Dame.
The pair were pictured embracing and shaking hands in what is the president-elect’s first international trip since his landslide victory last month.
The US president-elect said the pair would be discussing a world that’s gone ‘a little crazy’ in their meeting, where Ukraine’s Zelenksy will also attend, before the three head to the Notre Dame for the historic ceremony.
Zelenksy was seen firmly shaking the hand of the Élysée’s director of protocol Frederic Billet before entering trilateral talks with the once and future US president as well as Macron.
The surprise meeting is of significant importance, as there are fears Trump, who previously bragged he could end the Russo-Ukraine conflict in less than 24, could try and force them to accept peace terms favourable to Russia.
Post-talks the three world leaders were seen posing alongside one another, with Macron putting a thumbs up to the camera. before heading to the 861-year-old cathedral for its official reopening since 2019.
Zelensky has since confrimed that the trilateral talks between the three world leaders were ‘good and productive’.
He wrote on X: ‘We all want this war to end as soon as possible and in a just way. We spoke about our people, the situation on the ground, and a just peace.’
Images shared to social media revealed that Macron and Trump will be sitting side by side at the historic event, whilst Zelensky will be nearby to their right.
World leaders, dignitaries, and worshippers will gather this evening to mark the occasion, led by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich.
Due to poor weather, the entire opening ceremony for 1,500 guests will be held inside the cathedral itself, the French presidential palace and Paris diocese said.
By Saturday morning, organisers said 50mph gusts of wind and heavy downpours would disrupt the evening ceremony.
Notre Dame’s rector, Rev. Olivier Ribadeau Dumas, says the cathedral is ‘more than just a French monument’ and a beloved treasure of world’s cultural heritage.
‘The cathedral is a magnificent symbol of unity,’ the rector said. ‘A sign of hope, because what seemed impossible has become possible.’
Saturday’s events will blend solemn religious tradition with cultural grandeur, starting with Ulrich symbolically reopening Notre Dame’s grand wooden doors.
Tapping them three times with a staff crafted from charred wood salvaged from the cathedral’s fire-ravaged roof, he will declare the cathedral open for worship once more.
Psalms, prayers, and hymns will fill the cavernous space as the cathedral’s thunderous organ, silenced since the fire, is reawakened.
The 8,000-pipe instrument, painstakingly restored and cleaned of toxic lead dust, will respond to the archbishop’s invocation, with four organists performing an improvised interplay of melodies.
More than 20 French government security agents have been helping ensure Trump’s safety alongside the Secret Service, according to French national police. A special French police van was providing anti-drone protection for Trump’s convoy.
Security was tighter than usual outside the US Embassy and other sites around Paris for the Notre Dame reopening, where dozens of international VIPs were expected.
There are 6,000 police officers, gendarmes and military personnel, which includes riot police and mobile gendarmerie squad and several special unites, the Telegraph reports.
There is a heavy police presence around the Notre Dame as well as on the Ile de la Cité with several access points on the riverside by the cathedral blocked.
An anti-terrorist perimeter will extend across the area as well as a section of the Left Bank quays for the entirety of the weekend.
Macron, who has had an up-and-down relationship with Trump, has made a point of cultivating a relationship with the President-elect since he defeated Kamala Harris in the US election last month.
But his office nonetheless played down the significance of the invitation, saying that other politicians who do not currently hold office had been invited as well.
The iconic cathedral is formally reopening its doors today following an ambitious five-year project to restore a monument that took nearly two centuries to build.
Later in the evening, a star-studded concert will take centre stage inside the cathedral and pay tribute to its resurrection and to those who laboured to restore it, offering a universal message of harmony.
Pianist Lang Lang, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and soprano Pretty Yende are among the world-famous artists slated to perform.
A spectacular outside concert possibly featuring ‘surprise superstars’ like Paul McCartney and Pharrell Williams was pulled due to the poor weather, however.
Instead, recordings completed inside the Cathedral on Friday night will be shown.
Like the Olympics, images from the Notre Dame ceremony will be beamed to millions of people watching all over the world.
On Sunday, Ulrich will lead the inaugural Mass and consecrate the cathedral’s new altar, designed by contemporary artist Guillaume Bardet to replace the one crushed beneath the flaming spire in the blaze.
Ulrich will knock on main front door of Notre Dame with a wooden staff at 8.15pm.
Psalm 121 will then be sung three times inside the Cathedral, and then the doors of the Cathedral will swing open.
Another Mass will take place on Sunday evening, when 2,500 people are expected.
All tickets went within 25 minutes of being offered to Catholics online.
Nearly 170 bishops from France and abroad will attend, alongside priests from all 113 parishes of the Paris diocese.
Paris police prefect Laurence Nuñez said 6000 police and gendarmes were on the streets,.
These included members of the SAS-style GIGN, the National Gendarmerie Intervention Group, who will provide everything from rooftop snipers to helicopter-borne rapid intervention teams.
Mobile weapons systems in the area include Crotale New Generation short-range air defence units.
Groups such as Al-Qaeda and Isis, who have brought terror to the streets of Paris over the past decade, have threatened the Notre Dame opening, meaning ‘the terrorist threat is at its highest,’ said Mr Nunez.
The reopening of Notre Dame comes at a time of profound global unrest, with wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East.
For Catholics, Notre Dame’s rector said the cathedral ‘carries the enveloping presence of the Virgin Mary, a maternal and embracing presence.’
‘It is a magnificent symbol of unity, a sign of hope,’ Dumas said.
The range of dignitaries coming to Paris from Africa to the Mideast and the U.S. underline the cathedral’s significance as a symbol of shared heritage and peace.
The celebration is expected to give a much-needed boost to embattled Macron, whose prime minister resigned this week, plunging the nation’s political scene into more turmoil.
The French president, who has called Notre Dame’s reopening ‘a jolt of hope,’ will address the gathering. He had hoped the occasion would briefly silence his critics and showcase France’s unity and resilience under his leadership.
The ambitious five-year restoration timeline, announced just a day after the 2019 fire, had seemed improbable to many.
Macron’s presidency faces its gravest crisis after the government’s collapse this week in a historic no-confidence vote that toppled Prime Minister Michel Barnier.
The vote followed months of political gridlock after snap elections. Calls are now growing louder from opposition forces for Macron to resign.
But he vowed in an address to the nation on Thursday to remain in office until the end of his term in 2027, and said he’ll name a new prime minister within days.
As France struggles with economic woes and mounting social unrest, Notre Dame’s rebirth celebrations form a stark contrast to the crisis.
Security will be tight all through the weekend, echoing measures taken during the Paris Olympics earlier this year.
The Île de la Cité – the small island in the River Seine that is home to Notre Dame – will be closed to tourists and non-residents, with access restricted to invitees and those who live on the island.
Public viewing areas along the Seine’s southern bank will accommodate 40,000 spectators, who can follow the celebrations on large screens.
The archbishop’s reopening of the cathedral doors will be followed by a liturgical service and the reawakening of the grand organ, ending with the celebratory concert that will honor Notre Dame’s cultural and spiritual significance.
For many, Notre Dame’s rebirth is not just a French achievement but a global one – after the reopening, the cathedral is set to welcome 15 million visitors annually, up from 12 million before the fire.
Following the 2019 fire, nearly $1 billion in donations quickly poured in from around the world, testifying to Notre Dame’s universal appeal.
