History of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

The Eiffel Tower, the symbol of Paris, has a complicated history. At first it was categorically rejected, then accustomed, and now it is impossible to imagine the capital of France without this amazing structure.

Location

The famous symbol of Paris, giving the city a familiar view of the world, is located on the Champs de Mars, a former military parade ground, which is turned into a beautiful park. It is divided into alleys, decorated with small ponds and flower beds. Opposite the tower is the Jena Bridge. Elegant openwork design is visible from many points in Paris, although Eifel initially did not plan this. The tower had to fulfill one function - to become an unusual entrance to the World Exhibition.

Approval of the design and design purpose

The history of the Eiffel Tower began at the end of the XIX century. In 1889, the capital of France was to host the World Exhibition. This event was of great importance for the country. It was timed to coincide with the centenary of the capture of the Bastille and was to last for 6 months.

One of the objectives of the exhibition is the demonstration of technical novelties, so the creators of the pavilions competed, whose project will most likely reflect the future. The entrance to the exhibition was to serve as an arch. The architects were given the task to prepare the project of the building, which will demonstrate the technical strength of the country and the achievement of engineering thought.

The proposal for participation in the competition from the Paris administration was received by all engineering and design bureaus of the city, including Gustave Eiffel. He had no ready-made solutions, and he decided to look for something suitable in the projects that were postponed. There he found the sketch of the tower, created by Maurice Keschlen, his collaborator. With the help of Emil Nugier, the design of the structure was finalized and submitted to the Eiffel Competition. The prudent engineer first received a patent together with the project's creators, and then bought it from Keshlen and Nugie. Thus, the exclusive ownership of the tower drawings passed to Gustave Eiffel.

The contest was offered many interesting and ambiguous projects, and the history of the Eiffel Tower could never begin. The engineer made changes to the design in order to give it more decorativeness, and from four remaining contenders at the end of the competition, the commission selected him.

The Eiffel Tower is the year of construction and the stages of construction

The construction of a giant structure began on January 28, 1887. It lasted for two years, two months and five days. For those times it was an unprecedented speed. It was explained by the highest precision of the drawings, in which the size of more than 18 thousand parts of the structure was scrupulously specified. In addition, to maximize the pace of work, Eifel used the prefabricated parts of the tower. Two and a half million rivets were used to connect all the details of the structure. In pre-prepared parts, rivet holes have already been drilled, and most of them have been installed, which greatly accelerated the assembly.

Eiffel provided that none of the beams prepared in advance and other parts of the structure did not weigh more than 3 tons - so it was easier to lift them with cranes. When the height of the tower overgrew the size of the lifting devices, the mobile cranes constructed by the architect specially designed for this purpose came to the aid, which moved along the rails created for future elevators.

The most difficult for Gustave Eiffel was not the work at the top, at 300-meter height, and the erection of the first platform of the tower. Sand-filled metal cylinders held the weight of four inclined supports. Gradually releasing the sand, they could be installed in the correct position. When this was done, the first platform was installed strictly horizontally.

The cost of building the tower was almost 8 million francs. Construction costs could be recouped during the exhibition (6 months).

Weight and size of the structure

How many meters did the Eiffel Tower first have in height? It was 300 meters and was much larger than the statue of Freedom (93 meters along with a granite pedestal) striking in its dimensions.

And how many meters does the Eiffel Tower have now? After installing a new antenna, it was 24 meters higher. The total weight of the tower is 10 thousand tons. With each painting the weight of the building is increased by another 60 tons.

The fate of the tower after the exhibition and the attitude of Parisians towards it

Under the contract concluded with the Eiffel, the tower had to be dismantled 20 years after the erection. Its success was deafening - during the exhibition's work more than two million people wanted to look at the ingenious structure that had no equal in the world. During the year, it was possible to recoup most of the construction costs. But the admiration of visitors to the exhibition was not shared by the creative intelligentsia of Paris. The Eiffel Tower (France did not know the more controversial opinion of any other structure) evoked resentment and annoyance among artists and writers. They considered it ugly, like a factory pipe, and feared that it would violate the unique look of Paris, formed over the centuries.

The history of the Eiffel Tower could have ended with its dismantling, had it not been for the coming era of radio. Radio aerials were installed on the building, and the building acquired a significant strategic value. The demolition of the tower now could not be a question. In 1906, a radio station was placed in the Eiffel Tower, and in 1957 a television antenna appeared on its top.

Description of the Eiffel Tower and the reasons for its design

The lower floor of the structure is a pyramid. It is formed by four inclined supports. On them rests the first square (65 meters in diameter) platform of the tower. The supports are connected by arched open vaults. Above the four supports is the second platform. The next four pillars of the tower begin to intertwine and merge into a huge column. On it is the third platform. Above it there is a lighthouse and a small platform a little more than a meter across.

On the first floor, according to the architect's idea, there was a restaurant. On the second there was another restaurant and tanks with machine oil for servicing elevators. The third site was given to laboratories (astronomical and meteorological).

For the unusual shape of the tower, Eifel was criticized in his time. In fact, the ingenious engineer and architect understood perfectly well that for such a high structure the main danger is a strong wind. The design and shape of the tower are designed to withstand large wind loads.

Eiffel Tower: interesting about the famous symbol of Paris

Adolf Hitler during the occupation of France by German troops visited Paris and expressed a desire to climb the Eiffel Tower. But right before his arrival, the elevator drive was seriously damaged, and it was not possible to repair it in military conditions. The leader of Germany could not climb the tower. After the liberation of the French capital, the elevator earned in a few hours.

The architect of the Eiffel Tower was very concerned about security issues, since the work was done at a very high altitude. Throughout the history of construction, none of the workers died - this is a real achievement for those years.

With the Eiffel Tower are connected and unpleasant events - in 2009 she was awarded the third most popular among suicides.

In order to repaint the tower, it takes a year and a half work and 60 tons of paint.

On the day the tower consumes as much electricity as a small village in a hundred houses.

The famous symbol of Paris has its own patented color - "brown Eiffel". It is as close as possible to the present bronze shade of the structures of the structure.

In the world there are more than 300 copies of the famous tower. Several of them are located in Russia: in Moscow, Krasnoyarsk, Perm, Voronezh and Irkutsk.

The Eiffel Tower in Culture

The famous building has often become an object of interest for artists, poets, writers and filmmakers.

The history of the Eiffel Tower is fixed in documentary sources, and its possible future has been repeatedly shown in apocalyptic tapes. One of the most interesting films is the documentary film "The Future of the Planet: Life After People". It shows that without maintenance the Eiffel Tower will not be able to withstand its main enemies for a long time: rust and wind. Approximately in 150-300 years, its upper part at the level of the third platform will collapse and fall.

But most often the Eiffel Tower can be seen on the canvases of artists. Jean Bero, known for his genre works depicting the daily life of Paris, created a painting "Near the Eiffel Tower", in which the Parisian is surprised to see the huge structure. A lot of works dedicated to the creation of the Eiffel Marc Chagall.

Conclusion

One of the most recognizable buildings in the world is the Eiffel Tower. France is rightly proud of this amazing symbol of Paris. The view that opens from the top of the tower to the city is magnificent.

You can admire them any day - Gustave Eiffel's brilliant creation is open to visitors and on weekends.