
The fund to renovate the fire-ravaged Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris today reached the one billion euro mark as President Emmanuel Macron said the cathedral would be rebuilt in five years.

Just two days after an inferno destroyed the spire of the ancient place of worship, organisers of a restoration appeal said the incredible figure was growing all the time.

Stephane Bern, the TV personality who helped launch the appeal by saying Notre Dame was 'a close friend who almost disappeared' said on Wednesday morning: 'The billion-euro mark of donations was reached during the day.'

Macron said in a televised address on Tuesday night that the cathedral would be rebuilt 'even more beautifully' within the next few years as he urged the French nation to 'come together'.

Macron spoke to the French nation in a TV address on Tuesday evening to reassure people that the cathedral would be rebuilt within five years

France's richest man Bernard Arnault (pictured with his wife Hélène in 2014), made an donation of 200 million euros (£172million) – doubling that of Francois-Henri Pinault

French multinational companies are among those who have pledged money to restore the medieval cathedral, which was engulfed by flames on Monday following a likely accident in its loft.

L'Oreal promised 200 million euros (£172.7m) on Tuesday, while the LVMH luxury goods group run by Bernard Arnault, the richest man in France, has pledged the same.

Multi-billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault and oil company Total have also pledged 100 million euros (£87m) each.

Other high-profile French donors included the investor Marc Ladreit de Lacharriere with 10 million euros, and construction magnates Martin and Olivier Bouygues, also with 10 million euros.

Among other firms, the Credit Agricole bank gave five million euros, while US private equity investor Henry Kravis has promised $10 (€8.8) million.

Corporate contributions are expected to climb, with blue-chip firms like Vinci, Michelin and BNP Paribas also saying they were weighing how to participate.

Air France said it would offer free flights to experts brought in to help with Notre-Dame's renovation.

Such vast amounts of money mean it is almost certain that Macron's claim the cathedral will be restored to its former glory 'within five years' looks extremely likely.

'We will rebuild Notre Dame even more beautifully and I want it to be completed in five years, we can do it,' Macron said in a television address to the nation.

'It is up to us to change this disaster into an opportunity to come together, having deeply reflected on what we have been and what we have to be and become better than we are. It is up to us to find the thread of our national project,' he said.

But he also warned: 'Let us not fall into the trap of haste.'

Macron said that the dramatic fire had brought out the best in a country that has been riven with divisions.

The sun rising over Notre Dame Cathedral on Wednesday morning as donations towards its renovation soared to one billion euros

Francois-Henri Pinault, married to actress Salma Hayak (pictured together in 2015), was the first to make a donation towards the rebuild of the cathedral

Another speedy donor to the fund to restore Notre Dame was the Bettencourt family (pictured left Jean-Pierre Meyers and his wife Francoise Bettencourt Meyers), who part-own L'Oreal - they've stumped up 200 million euros (£172million). Mark (pictured right with his wife Melissa) and Oliver Bouygues, who own construction, media and telecom companies, have donated 10 million euros

'What we saw last night in Paris was our capacity to mobilise and to unite,' the 41-year-old leader said in the solemn address from his office in the presidential palace.

France had over the course of its history seen many towns, ports and churches go up in flames, he said.

'Each time we rebuilt them,' he said, adding that the cathedral inferno had shown that 'our history never stops and that we will always have trials to overcome.'

Mr Macron's aim to complete the restoration within such a short timeframe was at odds with some experts' estimates that the project would take decades.

It came as the iconic rooster weathervane that topped the spire of Notre Dame before it was destroyed by fire has been found in the rubble.

In what is being described as 'an absolute miracle', France's Ministry of Culture confirmed that 'the rooster has been saved'.

'It's dented but can be restored,' said a spokesman. 'The fear was that it had been burnt and melted in the fire.'

Shocked crowds watched the rooster fall to the ground on Monday evening as a fire engulfed the cathedral and destroyed its wooden and lead spire.

Firefighters tackle the blaze on Monday evening as flames and smoke rise from the Notre Dame cathedral as it burns in Paris

Macron said he would be looking to rebuild the church 'even more beautifully than it was before' and urged the nation to come together over the disaster

There was particularly fear for the rooster, because it contains religious relics including one of the 70 thorns of the Holy crown of Jesus Christ, and remnants linked to Saint Denis, the Christian martyr and former bishop of Paris, and Saint Genevieve, the patron saint of the French capital.

According to cathedral guides, the rooster had acted as 'spiritual lightening rod' to protect the Notre Dame faithful.

Jacques Chanut, the president of the French Building Federation, shared a picture of the damaged rooster on Twitter.

'Fire at Notre Dame – the Culture Ministry announces that the rooster on the spire of the cathedral has been found.'