French President Emmanuel Macron speaks as Prime Minister Edouard Philippe and Archbishop of Paris, Michel Aupetit, stand near the Notre Dame Cathedral where a fire burns in Paris, France, April 15, 2019. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer/Pool

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron pledged to rebuild Notre-Dame cathedral on Monday after a blaze devastated large parts of the gothic gem on Monday.

“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,” Macron told reporters in front of the still burning Paris landmark.

“Notre-Dame is burning, and I know the sadness, and this tremor felt by so many fellow French people. But tonight, I’d like to speak of hope too,” he said, announcing the launch of an fundraising campaign.

“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,” he added.