British author Ken Follett donates €148,000 to restore French cathedral

After watching Notre-Dame de Paris burn in 2019, the British writer Ken Follett has given €148,000 to a different cathedral in France.

Follett donated the copyright to a non-fiction guide impressed by Notre-Dame to assist renovate the Cathedral of St. Samson at Dol-de-Bretagne in Brittany. 

The author initially wished to donate the funds to the cathedral in Paris. However the Fondation du Patrimoine steered that he give the cash to a different church due to the inflow of donations to rebuild Notre-Dame.

As a substitute, the cash went to the restoration of the Cathedral of St. Samson’s roof, body and stained-glass home windows. 

"I selected the cathedral as a result of it's lovely, and it wants some huge cash for restoration. And personally, it was based by a Welshman, and I'm Welsh," Follett mentioned.

However regardless of this preliminary funding, there's nonetheless a protracted approach to go.

In complete, the renovations on the cathedral will value €2.6 million. The municipality pays €1 million of that invoice.

"It is costly, but it surely have to be finished as a result of these buildings include our historical past, the historical past of Europe," Follett mentioned whereas visiting the church.

Follett is thought for writing the novel ‘The Pillars of the Earth’. Within the guide, artisans labour to create a fictional cathedral within the center ages, very like the one he labored to save lots of at present.

Due to his donation, the author may have a slate engraved together with his title on the cathedral’s roof.

The city of 6,000 residents additionally made him an honorary citizen for his efforts.

"I'm very proud, and really glad to assist a little bit for the repairs of the cathedral of Dol," Follett mentioned.

"We're doing it for us, as a result of it's lovely and we love this church, but in addition for our kids and their kids… We're doing this for the longer term, and we hope that the cathedral will live on for an additional 800 years."

The renovation of the cathedral is predicted to be accomplished by 2023.