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| Eiffel Tower |
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| Eiffel Tower at night |
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| Eiffel Tower, a close view |
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| Gustav Eiffel (1832-1923) |
Just like The statue of Liberty is the prominent symbol of U.S., the Eiffel Tower represents Paris and the odd coincidence is that both these constructions were designed by the same famous Engineer , Gustav Eiffel. This tower is seen on the left bank of the river seine at the far end of the Champ de Mars ( a green plain where many couples stand and take photographs of the tower). This tower with 1665 steps and 1063 feet in height remained as the tallest man-made structure till 1930 when Chrysler Building was constructed in New York. In 1957 by the addition of the aerial top, it surpassed the height of the Chrysler Building by 17 feet. This iron-latticed tower in Champ de Mars was designed by Gustav Eiffel, a French Civil Engineer, in 1889 as an entrance to Exposition Universelle (World Fair), an exhibition organised to commemorate the 100-year anniversary of the fall of the Bastille and the launch of the French Revolution.
In Gustav Eiffel's words, this pylon of four lattice girders standing apart at base and coming together at the top, is a kind of tribute and expression of gratitude to symbolize the art of modern engineering, the scientific spirit of eighteenth century (age of industry and science) and the noble ideals of 1789 French Revolution. Two senior engineers, Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier along with the architect of Companie des Establissements Eiffel worked together to produce this grand architectural masterpiece. Though the estimated cost was 6.5 million Francs, Eiffel got only 1.5 million Francs from the President, Jules Grevy. Eiffel spent from his own resources and collected money from donors and visiting tourists during the next twenty years to make up the requisite amount.
At the beginning there was much opposition from people while the construction work was going on. A committee of three hundred artists voiced their protest saying that this tower looked like "a gigantic black smoke stack crushing under its barbaric bulk Notre Dame, the Tour Saint-Jacques, the Louvre, the dome of the Invalides, the Arc de Triomphe ; all of our humiliated monuments will disappear in this ghastly dream." But Eiffel boldly defended his stance and compared his dream-structure with the great Egyptian Pyramids. The famous writer, Guillaume Apollinaire, made a nationalist poem in the shape of a tower to express his feelings about the war against Germany.
The construction work started on 28th January, 1887 and was completed on 15th March, 1889 at a cost of nearly 77,99,401 Franks. Nearly 18,038 pieces were joined by 2.5 million rivets. Eiffel after climbing 1710 steps hoisted the French flag on 31st March, 1889. Lifts were installed on 26th May, 1989. Each car held 65 passengers. The tower was lit by hundreds of gas lamps and two search lights were mounted on a circular rail to illuminate and highlight the features of the tower. Eiffel was given a permit for 20 years to maintain the tower up to 1909. Afterwards it was decided to dismantle the tower . But as the tower proved valuable for communication purposes, it was allowed to remain.
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| The Private Lab of Eiffel on top of the tower |
Eiffel made use of his apartment at the top level of the tower to carry out his meteorological observations, and also to perform experiments on the impact of air resistance on falling objects. addition. He set up a laboratory to conduct experiments in astronomy, meteorology, aerodynamics and physiology. In 1900 modifications were made by providing lifts and giving more space for visitors on the second level. In 1910 Father Theodore discovered the cosmic rays while doing experiments to measure the radiant energy at the top and bottom of the Tower. In 1914 a radio transmitter located on the tower jammed the Germans' communication and hindered their advance into Paris and thus helped in procuring victory of Allied Forces at the First Battle of Marne. On May 2, 1929 a bust of Gustav Eiffel was unveiled at the base of the North leg of the Tower. In 1940 the lift cables were cut upon the German Occupation of Paris, and the lifts were not repaired until 1946. In 1964 the Eiffel Tower was declared as a historical monument. In 1982 the original lifts between second and third levels were replaced after 97 years of their service. In 1986 the motive power was shifted from the water-driven hydraulic system to a new electrically driven oil-filled hydraulic system. On 31st December, 1999 the Eiffel Tower was illuminated beautifully with 20,000 flashing bulbs and high-power search lights and with beacons sending out beams of red, white and blue light. On 6th December, 2014 a glass floor was installed on the first floor to create the illusion for tourists of walking in the air and providing a view of the landscape below through transparent floor. Still efforts are made to make this tower more enthralling and attractive to all tourists coming from various parts of the world. Every seven years sixty tons of paints in three shades are used to make this tower look glossy and shining.
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| Skytree Tower, Tokyo |
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| T.V. Tower at Kiev |
The Eiffel Tower stands not only as an archetype of engineering skill but also as a communication Tower to broadcast both radio and T.V.signals.Today more than one hundred antennae on the tower beam radio and T.V. broadcasts around the world.
Variations in temperature alter the height of this tower up to six inches. Throughout the world nearly thirty replicas of this fabulous tower are seen. The Tokyo Tower in Japan was built with same dimensions. Models of smaller size are Black Pool Tower in London and the tower in Paris Las Vegas Hotel at Nevada in U.S. The Eiffel Tower in Paris measures 1063 feet in height with antenna at the top, and without antenna, its height is 984 feet. The Kiev Tower built in Ukraine in 1973 measuring 1263 feet in height is the tallest lattice tower in the world. The Tokyo Sky-tree Tower built in 2011 measuring about 2080 feet in height is the tallest tower in the world. But no other tower captures our attention so much as the Eiffel Tower with its romantic associations and scenic surroundings. More than seven million tourists come to see this marvelous Tower which symbolizes Liberty, Scientific innovation, Sacrifice and universal love. This Tower is affectionately called "The Iron Lady" (La dame De fer).
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22nd June, 2016 Somaseshu Gutala
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