Ask anyone what comes first to their mind when they think about Paris. Of course, everyone will answer that the Eiffel Tower. This is one of the most famous architectural structures in the world, which has already become a trend today. This is an unchanging symbol of fashionable France.
Here you will learn interesting facts about the Eiffel Tower, all the most unusual and memorable things associated with this famous landmark.
- Let's start with the banal - with numbers. Today the height of the Eiffel Tower is 324 meters. However, it was originally 300.65 meters. Additional almost 24 meters appeared due to the installation of a modern antenna at the peak.
- The tower broadcasts 4 radio channels and 6 television channels.
- In 1889 the tower was completed and opened in honor of the centenary French Revolution. In the same year, it became an arch that was used as an entrance to the World's Fair. It was planned that after 20 years the structure would be dismantled. However, then the tower was the most tall building in the world and has attracted significant external attention. They decided not to demolish it.
- It took more than two years to build the tower.
- Every year this attraction is visited by 7 million people. To publish tickets for such a number of tourists, more than 2 tons of paper are required. A ticket to the very top costs 17 euros, to the second tier - 11 euros.
- The structure is the most popular paid attraction in the world, and also the most photographed in the world.
- Once every seven years, the paint on the tower is refreshed - the old one is removed, covered with an anti-corrosion layer, and a new one is painted. The color is darker at the bottom and lighter towards the peak. A total of three shades are used. The color is called Eiffel brown.
- The Eiffel Tower tops the list of attractions that disappoint tourists. The main complaint is that there are too many visitors.
- The cost of the tower is estimated at more than 400 million euros. The location of the structure, profitability and other indicators are taken into account.
- Interesting Facts about the Eiffel Tower are also present around its name. So, this structure could be called the Boenickhausen Tower, since this was the name of the ancestors of one of its creators, Gustave Eiffel. However, it was rightly decided that the German Bönickhausen sounds bad for gentle France, so it was decided to take the name after Eiffel’s surname. Gustave himself called it a banal three-hundred-meter tower.
- Gustave Eiffel's ancestors were immigrants from a German village near the Eifel Mountains.
- The tower is wind-resistant thanks to its unique, recognizable shape. Its top deviated by 12 cm during the strongest hurricane of 180 km/h. But it is easily susceptible to overheating - when exposed to sunlight, the metal heats up, expands and the peak deviates by 18 cm.
- There are also some piquant interesting facts about the Eiffel Tower. Sylvain Yetman-Eiffel, who is one of Gustave Eiffel's descendants, states that he was conceived in the tower, as his parents spent their first years there wedding night. However, this is not reliable; perhaps the architect’s great-great-grandson was conceived on another night and in another place.
- The writer Guy de Maupassant considered the Eiffel Tower a Parisian monstrosity and dined at a restaurant right in it, because this is the only place in the city from where the tower itself is not visible.
- In 1940, Paris was taken by the Nazis. The French broke the elevator in the tower, and the invaders were unable to restore it and climb up to erect their flag there. Hitler even ordered the tower to be destroyed because of this, but the order was not carried out. Until the end of the war, the building remained unoccupied.
- The death jump from the French 300-meter steel mademoiselle ranks third in the world as a method of suicide. This is more than 17 cases per 1,000 people. Despite various restrictions and protective structures, cases of suicide do occur, and the last one was in 2012. And there was even one Lucky case, when a woman, who decided to take her own life, jumped from the tower and landed directly on the roof of a car, remained alive, and later got married to the owner of the damaged car.
Engineer Gustav Eiffel, I couldn’t imagine that it would last more than a hundred years. Initially, this project was designed for 20 years and was built exclusively as an exhibit for the next World Exhibition. Eiffel Tower was built for the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1889, the date of which coincided with the centenary of the French Revolution. Of the numerous projects submitted to the competition, the project won Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, who was responsible for the construction of the Eiffel Tower.
Fact No. 2.
At the time of its official opening (1889), the tower became the tallest building in the world. The height of the tower is 324 meters. Only 41 years later did he challenge this title Chrysler skyscraper.
Fact No. 3.
The Eiffel Tower was built from the highest quality puddling iron. 9,441 tons of wrought iron were used in the construction of the Eiffel Tower. To create the Eiffel Tower, it was necessary to combine total 18038 pieces of wrought iron.
Fact No. 4.
During construction, despite the enormous height, only one worker fell to his death.
Fact No. 5.
Since its construction, buckles have been regularly made from the tower, and in 2010 a world record was set - Ty Chris took a mind-blowing roller skate jump straight from the second floor of the Eiffel Tower.
Fact No. 6.
In 1912, an inventor came up with an amazing invention, a parachute coat, and decided to try it out. To do this, he climbed to third observation deck tower, jumped down and died.
Fact No. 7.
Despite the achievements technical progress, The Eiffel Tower is still painted using regular brushes. Surprisingly, it is a fact - the tower is painted in 3 shades of bronze (from dark at the bottom to light at the top), but due to the perspective, the illusion of its monotony arises. The paint is renewed every 7 years.
Fact No. 8.
The Eiffel Tower has restaurants located on the first and second platforms. The restaurant on the first platform is located at an altitude of 95 m, overlooking the Seine River. The restaurant on the second platform is called “Jules Verne” and prior reservation is required to visit it.
Fact No. 9.
During the war, before surrendering Paris to the German occupiers, the French broke the elevator at the Eiffel Tower. This was done so that the invaders could not admire the view of the fallen city. However, this annoying fact did not stop the enemies, but personally considered it necessary to climb to the top of the tower on foot.
Fact No. 10.
Many smaller copies of the tower have been built around the world. Their own small Eiffel Towers have , Copenhagen, Gaungzhou, Slobozia, Varna, Vietnam and other cities of the world.
Fact No. 11.
From 1925 to 1934, all four sides of the tower were covered with company advertising boards Citroën. At that time, it was the largest outdoor advertising.
Fact No. 12.
The creator of the tower, Gustav Eiffel, imprinted on its body the names of seventy-two prominent compatriot scientists.
Fact No. 13.
In 1920, fraudster Victor Lustig managed to sell the Eiffel Tower not to some rich man, but to a company that bought scrap metal. However, this is not the only fraud of Victor Lustig. By the way, his surname is translated from German as “cheerful.”
Fact No. 14.
The Eiffel Tower now officially belongs to the city and is transferred under a renewable contract to a limited liability company called “Society for the Exploitation of the Eiffel Tower” (“Societe d'exploitation de la Tour Eiffel”)., but in the first 83 years of its existence it was sold more than twenty times, twice for scrap.
Interesting fact in addition.
Alexander Gustav Eiffel- the same man who created in 1885 internal structure Statue of Liberty.
Today is the birthday of Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, the same Frenchman whose name is given to the most famous building in the world, the Eiffel Tower. We collected facts about the legendary Parisian design precisely for this date, the 185th anniversary of the engineer Eiffel (he was born in Dijon on December 15, 1832).
The Iron Lady of Paris: Eiffel Tower – facts
Eiffel didn't design it
And here is the first interesting fact about the Eiffel Tower: Gustave Eiffel did not design it! This was done by an employee of his bureau, Maurice Keuchlin. When a competition was announced for the best architectural structure for the 1889 World Exhibition, Eiffel found Koechlin's drawings and brought the project to fruition with the help of another subordinate, Emile Nutier. But after receiving a joint patent for the tower, Alexandre Gustave Eiffel bought their shares, so the design is his brainchild.
The design defeated more than a hundred competitors
Eiffel's design (or rather, his bureau) won a competition with more than a hundred participants; construction began at the end of January 1887. It was planned that the tower would stand in Paris for 20 years, after which it would be demolished. But she survived, and we’ll talk about that too – later!
At first they didn't like her
Another fact: Parisians did not like the Eiffel Tower at first. As soon as the Eiffel project was unveiled, 300 metropolitan celebrities signed a petition in which they protested against the construction of the monolith, calling the tower “useless and monstrous,” “staggering stupidity” and “an odious column of metal.” Even when the monument was ready, the writer Guy De Maupassant urged his fellow citizens to have lunch every day in the cafe directly under the tower - this is the only place in Paris where the structure is not visible.
She held the height record for 41 years.
After its construction (March 15, 1889), the Eiffel Tower became the most high structure in the world with an altitude of 984 feet (324 meters). She held this record for 41 years, until the Chrysler Building (1046 feet) opened in New York in 1930. In 1957, the tower got its revenge: a 67-foot antenna was added to it, making it no more than 6 feet taller than the Chrysler skyscraper. However, by that time the Empire State Building had already been built, which “wiped the nose” of everyone back in 1931.
She grows in the sunlight
Amazing fact: The Eiffel Tower grows in sunlight. When the metal is heated by the sun, it expands, making the religious structure 6 inches taller.
It was repainted 18 times
The tower was not born with this beautiful bronze “tan”. It was repainted 18 times, approximately every seven years. So during this time, the Parisian giantess has been red-brown, chestnut, and yellow-ochre. Another such “cosmetic procedure” requires about 60 tons of paint, plus 5 acres of mesh and 50 kilometers of strong cords. All this paint is not just for show, but also to protect the metal from oxidation.
Engineer Eiffel's secret apartment
Do you know this fact about the Eiffel Tower? Eiffel set up a secret apartment for himself in it! Alexandre Gustave's cozy home was located on the third level of the tower (at an altitude of 1,000 feet) and was furnished with rustic wooden furniture. The apartment also included a grand piano and advanced laboratory equipment. Eiffel invited celebrities to visit, including Thomas Edison. Today you can go there on a tour and look at the furnishings and wax figures of the engineer’s guests.
She helped win World War I
Why did the tower survive? Instead of dismantling it in 1909, the Parisian authorities decided to preserve the structure, since “war clouds” had gathered over Europe, and the height of the tower was excellent for radiotelegraph operation. It turns out that Eiffel's pride helped him win the First world war: A wireless telegraph transmitter was jamming German messages. A communications center was also set up here to listen to enemy transmissions and the work of dispatchers.
She outwitted Hitler
And the Eiffel Tower - interesting fact - stood up to Hitler and his army. When Germany occupied Paris, the city authorities cut off the elevator routes on the tower, so the Reich would have a very hard time if the Nazis wanted to hang a flag on it. After incredible efforts, the swastika was erected, but it turned out to be so bulky that the wind soon knocked it down. As the Allies approached Paris, Hitler ordered General Dietrich von Choltitz to demolish the tower along with the rest of the city. Fortunately, von Choltitz refused: he did not raise his hand to destroy the architectural relic.
She was sold and married
During the existence of the Eiffel Tower - fun fact– it was sold several times. Moreover, the legendary swindler Victor Lustig managed to do this twice: he assured two separate investors that the tower would soon be demolished, and “sold” it as scrap metal for a tidy sum. And in 2007, another funny thing happened: American Erica LaBrie held a marriage ceremony... with a tower and changed her name to Erica Eiffel. After her unconventional romance was not appreciated, Erica found solace in a new “relationship” with the Berlin Wall.
So, at the end of the last century, one Parisian reporter with good humor described the Eiffel Tower, proudly towering over the French capital. This tallest “lady” of Paris could tell many stories about herself and her city. It was built on the principle of a children's construction set: from ready-made parts. True, this “toy” took 15 thousand individual metal elements and two and a half million rivets! The Parisians, who were still moving around the city in horse-drawn omnibuses, took their breath away from such technical scope.
More than 200 million people have visited the Eiffel Tower since it was built in 1889. Here are other interesting facts about the Eiffel Tower
Alexander Gustav Eiffel
1. The Eiffel Tower was hated
Let's start with the fact that the Eiffel Tower might not exist. When the French engineer Gustav Eiffel first decided to build it in 1887, his idea was met with a fair amount of criticism. Many famous cultural figures those times, they even signed a document that said: “During next years we will have to look at the disgusting shadow of the hated column of iron and screws, which will stretch over the city like an ink blot.”
A gilded bust of Gustave Eiffel is installed at the northern leg of the tower with a simple inscription: "Eiffel: 1832 - 1923."
The creator of the tower often spoke humorously about his creation: “I should feel jealous of the tower. After all, she is much more famous than me.”
300 cultural figures - including Guy de Maupassant, Alexandre Dumas fils, Charles Gounod, Lecomte de Lisle, the architect of the Paris Opera Charles Garnier and many others - wrote a famous protest against the disfigurement of Paris by the Eiffel Tower.
One of the biggest haters of the Eiffel Tower was the writer Guy de Maupassant, who often dined in the tower's restaurant, since it was the only place in Paris from which this “disgusting” building could not be seen.
2. She shouldn't have stayed
The Eiffel Tower was originally built in 1889 as a temporary structure to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. It was the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair and was intended to demonstrate the superiority of French technology and engineering.
The 1889 Universal Exhibition was held in Paris from May 6 to October 31 and was timed to coincide with the centenary of the storming of the Bastille. France, Ile-de-France, Paris
The tower was going to be dismantled in 20 years. However, the most tall building in the world of those times attracted a lot of attention and the Eiffel Tower remained.
3. An insurmountable obstacle for Hitler
During World War II, before Hitler entered Paris in 1940, the French damaged the elevator drive, which could not be repaired due to the war. Nazi soldiers were unable to reach the top of the tower to hang their flags. People began to say that "Hitler conquered France, but could not conquer the Eiffel Tower."
4. Colorful tower
The Eiffel Tower is painted with three different shades colors. The darkest one is used at the base of the tower, and the darkest bright color at the top. It is coated with 60 tons of paint every 7 years in order to protect it from corrosion.
5. Engraved names
Gustav Eiffel engraved the names of 72 of the most prominent French engineers, scientists and mathematicians of the time who participated in the creation of the Eiffel Tower. At the beginning of the 20th century, the names were painted over, but were restored again in 1986-1987 by Soci?t? Nouvelle d'exploitation de la Tour Eiffel.
6. The highest place for advertising
From 1925 to 1935, an illuminated Citro?n sign adorned three of the four sides of the tower. This was the largest advertising campaign and the most high place for advertising in the world at that time.
7. Stable tower
This huge tower is practically not affected by the wind. Even with the most strong wind The top of the Eiffel Tower tilts only 15 cm. Due to the height of this structure and the gusty winds, the chances of accidents during the construction of the Eiffel Tower were very high, but in reality only one person was injured.
8. One of the most popular places for suicides
Suicides committed at the Eiffel Tower are quite common. France has one of the highest suicide rates in the world: 17.5 suicides per 1,000 people. Taking your own life with a 300-meter iron tower became the third most popular method of suicide in France after poisoning and hanging.
Since the Eiffel Tower was built, about 400 people have jumped from there. Of these 400 people, only two survived; the man was blown onto a rafter beam. One of the most curious cases involved a woman who jumped from the Eiffel Tower, landed on the roof of a car, and then married the owner of the car.
9. Sold twice
In 1925, the swindler Victor Lustig managed to sell famous tower for scrap metal, twice. He convinced two different people to help finance the tower since the city could no longer support it. Lustig even insisted on a bribe so that the client could win the city's prestigious bidding competition. After he received the money, the swindler disappeared, and a few years later he tried to repeat the same trick, but was unsuccessful.
Tower details.
10. “The highlight of the program.”
In the mid-19th century, Swiss professor Hermann von Mayer studied the bony structure of the head of the femur where it curves and enters the joint at an angle. Being covered with a network of miniature bones with a strict geometric structure, it does not break under the weight of the body, since these bones redistribute the load. 20 years later, inspired by this research, Gustav Eiffel's engineers came up with the design of the famous tower.
Since then, the expression “highlight of the program” has entered the language.
12. The Eiffel Tower was reconstructed for the third time
In 2014, the third reconstruction of the Eiffel Tower was completed. One of key tasks reconstruction was the adaptation of the tower to the needs of people with disabilities disabilities. After the reconstruction, the quality of receiving visitors has noticeably improved compared to recent decades. By the way, in the same year the Eiffel Tower celebrated the 125th anniversary of its opening.
During the latest reconstruction, glass floors were installed and pavilions made of transparent environmentally friendly material were installed. Protective glass barriers appeared as fencing for the stairs. In addition, seven huge screens were installed in the tower, which now show its history.
Photo moatti-riviere.com.
Distinctive feature The reconstruction project was the introduction of environmentally friendly technologies. To meet the electricity needs, they installed on the tower solar panels and wind generators. The sewerage system also provides for partial use of rainwater.
The renovation project was developed by Moatti-Rivière. The work to implement it took about two years and investments amounting to 30 million euros.
The Eiffel Tower continues to be improved and updated even now. In particular, work continues on the reconstruction of sanitary areas.
Since the primary task for an object of this type is high quality services for visitors and tourists, as well as the environmental friendliness of the materials used, Roca products were chosen to update the toilets of the Eiffel Tower.
The toilets in the Eiffel Pavilion are equipped with equipment white, contrasting with the red walls in the interior. In Ferrié Pavilion, on the contrary, the plumbing equipment is made in red and looks exceptional against the absolutely identical red background of the premises. As designed by architect Alan Moatti, the shade of the sanitary ware had to be perfectly matched to the Venetian red color chosen for the main style of the project and used in the walls of the toilet rooms, as well as other elements of the tower. Therefore, Roca specially produced sinks, toilets and urinals in a special red color. In the future, they plan to install the same equipment on the second floor of the tower.
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Ferrie Pavilion. The plumbing dissolves into the Venetian red of the walls - the main color of the project. |
Glass floors created during the latest renovation |
After reconstruction, people with disabilities will have access to the first floor. New pavilions were built taking into account all building codes recent years: The buildings are powered by solar, wind and hydraulic energy, and LED energy-saving lamps are used for lighting.
13. Lighting.
Now this tower illuminates Paris from all sides. Lighting was first connected in 1889 on the day of its opening. At that time, lighting consisted of ten thousand gas lamps, several searchlights and a lighthouse, the light of which consisted of the three colors of the country's national flag. Later in 1900 there were electric lamps. The current golden lighting was turned on on December 31, 1985.
In a light haze
14. Replicas of the Eiffel Tower
Small copies of the Eiffel Tower can be seen in many parts of the world: in Las Vegas in the USA, in the city of Shenzhen in Guangdong Province in China, the city of Slobozia in Romania, in Copenhagen in Denmark, in Varna in Bulgaria, the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan and other cities.
General form hotel "Paris" in Las Vegas
Miniature Park Window to the World in Shenzhen
A replica of the Eiffel Tower in the Qianducheng residential area in Hangzhou, China.
Replicas of the Eiffel Tower around the world
The Eiffel Tower is one of the most recognizable buildings. It is therefore not surprising that there are more than 30 replicas of the famous design around the world.
India: A street cleaner sweeps the street near a replica of the Eiffel Tower. There is heavy fog this early morning in the Indian city of Chandigarh.
France: A worker puts the finishing touches on a sculpture of the Eiffel Tower made from lemons and oranges during the Lemon Festival in Menton, southern France.
France: Shoppers at the Christmas market along the Champs Elysees in Paris. On the left is a copy of the Eiffel Tower
Australia: Guinness World Record holder Brian Berg looks at his version of the Eiffel Tower made from decks of cards in downtown Sydney June 18, 2013. Berg built the "Eiffel Tower" from 75,000 cards in 120 hours. As the organizers say, it was part of the public propaganda campaign
China: An illuminated replica of the Eiffel Tower on the outskirts of Hangzhou, Zhejiang province
USA: Michel Bach of France carries a 12-kilogram replica of the Eiffel Tower while running across the Pulaski Bridge from Brooklyn, New York to Queens during the New York City Marathon. On the background Empire State Building
Honduras: A replica of the Eiffel Tower located in Plaza Los Dolores in Tegucigalpa. The French Embassy in Honduras donated a 6-meter replica of the tower to the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa in honor of the 22nd anniversary of French independence. According to embassy officials, this is the first copy of the Eiffel Tower in Latin America and 18 in the world.
Russia: A horse-drawn cart passes a 50-meter replica of the Eiffel Tower in the village of Paris, located 59 km southeast of Siberian city Magnitogorsk The village has been named after the French capital since its founding in the 19th century by Russian Cossacks who returned from Paris after defeating Napoleon's army. The tower was built by a local communications company to house its equipment and attract tourists.
Colombia: A replica of the Paris Eiffel Tower lights up during Christmas at the Puente de Bocaya in Tunya
France. People view a replica of the Eiffel Tower, built from red bistro chairs to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the company that makes the chairs, Fermob.
Lebanon: French Defense Minister Michel Alliot-Marie (foreground right) walks past a replica of the Eiffel Tower during his visit to the headquarters of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) on the southern Lebanese border in Naqoura
USA: In this photo provided by Paramount's Royal Isles, Stevie Hopkins of Baynum Painting opens a bucket of paint to paint the 101-meter-tall Eiffel Tower in Kings Island, Ohio.
The Eiffel Tower, without exaggeration, is the main symbol of Paris. There are so many interesting facts and events associated with the Eiffel Tower that it’s time to create a separate article. That's what we did.
In 1889, France celebrated 100 years since the Revolution. On this occasion, they decided to organize a World Exhibition in Paris. A few years before significant event The city placed a request to create and improve the entrance to the exhibition. Many designers and architects took part in the competition, but it was Gustave Eiffel who won, whose work, in the opinion of the jury, personified technical advances the whole country.
By the time construction of the tower began, Gustave Eiffel was already a famous architect, having participated in the creation of such masterpieces as the Garabi Viaduct - which for a long time was considered the tallest railway bridge in the world and the Statue of Liberty.
Gustave Eiffel's company received final approval and patent for the design and construction of the structure on September 18, 1884, and construction of the tower began on May 1, 1886 - two years before the exhibition.
Chronology of the construction of the Eiffel Tower Over the course of 2 years, 2 months and 5 days, 300 workers erected the tower. Throughout their time, they used about 18,000 individual metal parts, 2.5 million cells and 40 tons of paint.
The parameters of the tower itself are interesting. When measuring the height of the tower in March 1889, its height was 300 meters. But when similar measurements were carried out in winter, the height of the tower was 15 cm less. It turned out that the metal structures of the tower shrink when exposed to cold. And Gustave Eiffel designed the tower in such a way that even with the strongest gusts of wind, it deviates no more than 15 cm.
During the 1889 World's Fair, about 2 million people visited the Eiffel Tower, spending a significant amount of money on tour tickets to the tower. This is what allowed the 1889 exhibition to become one of the few that made a profit.
The Eiffel Tower was originally planned to be dismantled in 1909, but engineers discovered that it made an excellent site for a telegraph antenna, which was successfully used during the First World War.
For 41 years, the Eiffel Tower retained the title of the highest man-made structure in the world.
In the 1930s, the Eiffel Tower was used as an advertising platform for the French automobile company Citroën.
Every seven years, the Eiffel Tower is “renovated” by painting its structures.
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