This week’s world monument is the infamous Eiffel Tower located in the Champ de Mars in Paris. Even though this monument is over exposed and most people know everything there is to know about it, I hope this post will shed light on some new facts.
The Eiffel Tower or as the French call it La Dame de Fer, “the Iron Lady”, was designed and built by the French engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, whom also designed the inside structure of the Statue of Liberty, and three other who assisted him, the engineers Maurice, Koechlin, Emile Nougier and architect Stephen Sauvestre. The tower was erected to serve as the entrance and centrepiece to the world’s fair. It also commemorated the 100-year anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on July 14th, 1789 and the start of the French Revolution. This monument was built during the Age of Capital, a time when Europe was thriving economically and society was advancing at a rapid rate. Similarly, science and engineering had developed enormously; the construction of such a magnificent work of architecture was a way to celebrate the advancements and achievements of this period. Eiffel’s company however faced wide skepticism when they were building the tower but the project was carried through regardless of the outspoken concerns. Some Parisians thought the tower to be distasteful, useless and monstrous and environmentalists raised concerns about the tower obstructing the flight of birds. In 1909, the twenty-year lease they had for the standing of the tower had expired and it was almost torn down but it was saved due to its antenna, which was used for telegraphic purposes at the time. This was very important because the telegraph was probably one of the most significant inventions from the age of capital, one that made it possibly for the world to become interconnected. In 1910 the tower became part of the International Time Service, it was used for radio and television broadcasting.
The Eiffel Tower is a very large structure made of latticed wrought iron, which Eiffel chose over steel because it was a lot cheaper since steel was still a fairly new invention and thus very expensive, even though the total cost of building the tower was quite high and of 7,799,401.31 French gold francs. Eiffel also wanted to prove that he could make a structure that was very strong while still being lighter. The tower is 300 meters or 984 feet tall without the antenna, with it the height is of 324 meters or 1063 feet and it weighs 7000 tons. The large structure consists of various parts, a base composed of a platform resting on four separate pillars, called pylons or bents, another piece of pylons and a smaller platform, the tower itself where the electric cables are and the antenna. The Eiffel Tower was the tallest structure in the world until the Chrysler Building was built in 1930, the antenna was then added which gave the tower an additional 24 meters but shortly after the Empire State Building was inaugurated.
The Eiffel Tower today, is considered a symbol of Romance and one of the symbols of the city of Paris. It continues to serve a large role in television and radio broadcasting and is considered an architectural wonder. The tower attracts on average 6.9 million people each year, the most popular paid tourist attraction in the world. The basements of the east and western pillars have the 1899 gargantuan machinery that powers the lifts. The first floor has an observatory, souvenir shops, and a restaurant called Altitude 95, a post office with special Eiffel tower stamps and a panoramic gallery displaying the monuments of Paris. The second level allows people to obtain a fantastic view of the city, the platform has telescopes, more shops, a display of how the machinery of the lifts functions and the Jules Verne Restaurant, which is extremely expensive. The third platform has naturally the best view, it has panoramic maps and a champagne bar. The floor also has Gustafe Eiffel’s office, which has been restored to its original condition and features wax reproductions of Eiffel and his daughter welcoming the inventor Thomas Edison, who gives the engineer a gramophone as a gift.
I have personally been to the Eiffel Tower once, when I visited Paris with my Swiss school back in 2009. I was absolutely mind blown by the size and greatness of it, it is truly a symbol of all the great achievements and advancement of the age of capital. It is impressive to see how Eiffel and his team came up with such an astonishing and beautiful design that on its own is breath taking, the engineering behind its construction is even more captivating. The view from the Eiffel Tower is also one of the greatest things I have ever seen, it is especially beautiful later in the day when the sun begins to set.
I never knew that the French called it La Dame de Fer instead of the Eiffel Tower, that is very interesting. I also was unaware that the architect who designed the inside of the Statue of Liberty also designed the Eiffel Tower. I remember reading once that the tower was made for the World Fair and that there was some concern when initially building it, but I didn’t know that they almost tore it down. It’s pretty cool that the only thing that saved it was the telegraph antenna since the now tower has become one of the most iconic and visited attractions in the world .
This is interesting because I’ve always wondered what sparked the construction of a seemingly-useless structure. Turns out it was the result of a world’s fair! Which brings up an interesting question: how many great historic artifacts would we not have had they not had all of those fairs in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries? (Side note: the Wanamaker Organ I talked about in my post this week was also built originally for the 1904 world’s fair in St. Louis.) It’s interesting that you brought up the controversy surrounding this structure. I once heard that because it was so tall, people would eat lunch on the steps of the tower because it was the only place in the city that it couldn’t be seen. Now that’s real dedication to hate something!