The Eiffel Tower, an iconic symbol of France, was constructed as the centrepiece for the 1889 Exposition Universelle (World’s Fair) held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution.
Designed by the engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower’s construction began in January 1887 and was completed in March 1889. Standing at 324 meters, the Eiffel Tower was the tallest man-made structure in the world until the completion of the Chrysler Building in New York City in 1930.
The tower’s innovative design, using wrought iron, was initially met with skepticism and criticism from many prominent artists and intellectuals in Paris, who deemed it an eyesore. However, it has since become one of the most recognizable and beloved landmarks in the world.
The construction of the Eiffel Tower involved over 18,000 individual iron parts, which were precisely fabricated in Eiffel’s factory in the outskirts of Paris and then assembled on-site by a team of around 300 workers.
The assembly process required meticulous planning and coordination, with the pieces held together by 2.5 million rivets. Despite the challenging nature of the project and the height at which the workers had to operate, the construction was remarkably efficient and completed in just over two years, a testament to the ingenuity and engineering prowess of Gustave Eiffel and his team.
Today, the Eiffel Tower attracts millions of visitors annually, serving as a testament to human creativity and the transformative power of engineering.
