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Why was the Eiffel Tower built in France? Does it have any purpose?

Eiffel Tower

Catalogue Introduction

Signs of Paris

Masterpieces of Steel

Stories behind the Eiffel Tower

Three Watchtowers

From Criticism to Praise

Maintenance of the Eiffel Tower

Travel Guide

English: Eiffel Tower < Together with the Empire State Building in new york and the TV Tower in Tokyo, it is known as the three famous western buildings.

In p>1889, the 111th anniversary of the French Revolution, a large-scale international exposition was held in Paris to celebrate. The most striking exhibit at the Expo is the Eiffel Tower. It became a symbol of the industrial revolution that swept the world at that time.

The designer of the Eiffel Tower is Gustav Eiffel, a French architect. In his early years, he was famous as an expert on dry bridges. His masterpieces are numerous in his life and spread all over the world, but it is this tower named after him that makes him famous all over the world. In his own words, the Eiffel Tower "drowned me, as if I had just built her all my life". At the beginning, although the French government decided to build the world's tallest tower in Paris, the funds provided were only 1.5 of the required cost. In order to realize his design, Eiffel once mortgaged his construction engineering company and all his property to the bank as an engineering investment.

on October 28th, 1887, the Eiffel Tower was officially started. 251 workers work 8 hours a day in winter and 13 hours a day in summer. Finally, on March 31th, 1889, the steel tower was completed. There are more than 8,111 metal parts of the Eiffel Tower, weighing 7,111 tons. During the construction, 7 million holes were drilled and 2.5 million rivets were used. Because every part of the tower is strictly numbered in advance, there is no mistake in assembly. The construction was carried out completely according to the design, and no changes were made in the middle, which shows that the design is reasonable and the calculation is accurate. According to statistics, there are more than 5,311 design sketches of the iron tower alone, including 1,711 full drawings.

The completed Eiffel Tower is 311 meters high. Until 1931, it was the tallest building in the world. Today, radio and television antennas are added to the tower, and its total height has reached 321 meters. Standing on the tower, the whole of Paris is at your feet. Every day, tourists from all over the world come to visit. By 1988, "Iron Lady" had welcomed 23 million tourists from five continents.

On March 31th, 1989, the Eiffel Tower was 111 years old. For this reason, the Paris Tower Management Company specially hosted a grand commemorative event, recreating the historical scene that Eiffel led the crowd to the top a hundred years ago: "Eiffel" dressed in a black dress, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and holding the national flag, and 31 "celebrities" and "construction workers" climbed the stairs with the grand drum music. When he put the tricolor flag on the top of the tower, 21 salutes rang, pigeons flew around the tower and colorful balloons floated into the blue sky. On the fence of the platform on the second floor of the iron tower, there are colorful banners written in the words of all countries in the world to celebrate the 111th anniversary of the iron tower. Numerous tourists eagerly witnessed this spectacular scene.

The Eiffel Tower has experienced a hundred years of wind and rain, but after the overhaul in the early 1981s, it still stands tall on the banks of the Seine. It is the pride of all French people.

The Eiffel Tower covers an area of one hectare, and stands in the Ares Square on the Seine River in downtown Paris. Except the four legs are made of reinforced concrete, the whole body is made of steel, and the total weight of the tower is 7111 tons. The tower is divided into three floors, the first floor is 57 meters high, the second floor is 115 meters, and the third floor is 274 meters. Except that there is no gap in the third platform, all the other parts are empty. There are 1711 steps from the tower base to the top of the tower, and now the elevator has been installed, so it is very convenient. There are bars and restaurants on each floor for tourists to take a rest and enjoy the unique panoramic view of Paris: whenever Wan Li is clear, you can see the scenery as far as 71 kilometers.

The symbol of Paris

The Eiffel Tower (also translated as "Eiffel Tower") is a famous tower in Paris, France, located at the northern end of Mars Square on the south bank of the Seine. Construction started on October 26th, 1887, and it was opened on May 5th, 1889, with a history of more than 111 years.

If Notre Dame de Paris is the symbol of ancient Paris, then the Eiffel Tower is the symbol of modern Paris.

1889 coincides with the 111th anniversary of the French Revolution, and the French government decided to hold an unprecedented world exposition in Paris to show the achievements in industrial technology and culture, and to build a monument symbolizing the French Revolution and Paris. The Preparatory Committee originally hoped to build a classical memorial group with statues, monuments, gardens and temples, but in more than 711 applications, the design of bridge engineer Gustave Eiffel was selected: a giant tower symbolizing machine civilization that can be seen in any corner of Paris.

The romantic Parisians gave the tower a beautiful name-"Maid in the Cloud". Named after the designer, the famous French architectural engineer Eiffel, a bust bronze statue was made for Eiffel under the tower.

Steel Masterpiece

The tower is a hollow steel structure, with a height of 324 meters and a weight of 11111 tons. There are three platforms at an altitude of 57 meters, 115 meters and 274 meters for sightseeing, and the fourth platform is 311 meters above sea level with a weather station. There is an antenna on the top, which is the Paris TV Center. There are elevators and 1,711 steps from the ground to the top of the tower.

The tower adopts a staggered structure, and the tower body is supported by four thick iron columns with concrete and cement abutments at an angle of 75 degrees to the ground, and there are four hydraulic lifts (now elevators) inside. It used more than 1,511 giant prefabricated beams, 1.5 million rivets and 12,111 steel castings, with a total weight of 7,111 tons. It took 251 workers seven months to build, and the cost was 7.4 million gold francs. It was painted every seven years, with 52 tons of paint each time. This giant shows the great power of industrial production in the early days of capitalism. It is more appropriate to call it assembly than architecture. In the process of design, decomposition, production of parts, assembly and finishing, a set of scientific, economical and effective methods is summarized, and at the same time, it also shows the whimsical romantic interest, artistic taste, innovative courage and sense of humor of the French.

Just like the Statue of Liberty, which crossed the Atlantic Ocean and settled in new york after the victory of World War II, the Eiffel Tower seeks harmony in disharmony, and it is impossible to find possibility in it. Its significance to the Art Nouveau movement must not be far-fetched, but just a big curve from the spire to the tower base, or some iron casting patterns on the tower body: the tower, just like Art Nouveau, represents that Europe was in a specific period of transition and transformation from classical tradition to modernism.

In recent years, the Paris municipal government has carried out major repairs to the tower. Since Christmas in 1985, the tower has been illuminated by iodine tungsten lamp, and the tower is golden yellow at night, which not only saves electricity, but also is more beautiful.

The story behind the Eiffel Tower

It may be hard for people nowadays to believe that when the idea of the Eiffel Tower was put forward in the late 1811s, many Parisians and even many French people disapproved. The following story is about the Eiffel Tower, one of the most representative buildings on the earth.

revolutionary conception

In p>1885, French officials began to plan to hold a Great Exposition in 1889 to celebrate the 111th anniversary of the victory of the French revolution. They hope to build a monument that can represent the honor of France.

At that time, the stone Washington Monument had just been completed. This 557-foot-high monument became the tallest building in the world at that time. The French hope to surpass this record and build a 1111-foot tower in the center of Paris. Now, what needs to be done is to find the design and architect of this tower.

open selection

On May 2, 1886, the French government announced a design competition, and French engineers and architects were invited to study the possibility of erecting an iron tower with a base of 1.25 square meters and a height of 311 meters in Champ de Mars.

No matter what ideas the participants put forward, their design must meet the following two conditions:

1. This building can be used to raise funds. In other words, it must be able to attract enough tourists to buy tickets to visit, and the funds obtained can maintain the building itself.

2. This is a temporary building, which can be easily demolished after the Expo.

No competition

Before the deadline of May 18, more than 111 design drafts participated in the competition. Most of them are very traditional, while others are very weird. Someone proposed to build a huge guillotine; It is proposed to erect a 1,111-foot sprinkler to irrigate the whole of Paris during the dry season; It is also suggested that a huge electric light should be installed at the top of the tower, which can illuminate the whole Paris eight times and make it convenient to read newspapers.

as a matter of fact, none of the proposals were passed. When the contest was announced, Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, a 53-year-old architectural engineer, began to think about building a great building for France with metal.

a few weeks ago, he had met a French minister named Edouard Lockroy, and submitted the plan he had already prepared-an iron tower. Eiffel made 5329 mechanical drawings to describe 18138 different parts that will be used. Lockroy was so fascinated by Eiffel's design that he secretly manipulated the design contest to win the design of Eiffel.

Joint venture construction

In October of p>1887, Eiffel signed a contract with the French government and the Paris municipal government. Eiffel's engineering company will pay $1.3 million of the total construction budget of $1.6 million. In exchange, Eiffel will get all kinds of income from the tower during the Expo and the next 21 years. By this time, the government has agreed to keep the iron tower after the Expo. Then, all the ownership will be transferred to the Paris city government, and the government can also dismantle the tower if it wants.

Unlike other public monuments, the Eiffel Tower was designed to make money from the beginning. If you want to take the elevator or stairs to the first floor platform, you need to pay 2 francs; If you want to go all the way to the top floor, you need to pay 5 francs (it will be cheaper on Sunday). This is just the beginning, and the first floor platform also plans to open restaurants, cafes and shops; The second floor platform plans to open a post office, a telephone office, a bakery and a gallery. This tower is designed to accommodate 11416 paying tourists at the same time.

ground breaking

construction started on October 26th, when time is running out. Only two years are left before the opening of the Expo, and Eiffel must build at a faster speed. You know, the Washington Monument, half the height of the Eiffel Tower, took 36 years to build.

wave of protests from Parisians

A building with a height of 1,111 feet will lower the sky in Paris and suppress other landmarks in the city, such as Notre Dame, Louvre and Arc de Triomphe)…… ... When the tower started to break ground, more than 311 well-known Parisians signed a petition to stop the project. They claimed that Eiffel's candelabra would damage the reputation and image of Paris. However, Eiffel and the municipal government ignored this protest, and the construction work continued unaffected.

Other fears

The Tower has other critics. A French mathematics professor predicted that the building would collapse when it reached 748 feet. There are also "experts" who say that the light of the tower will kill all the fish in the Seine.

The Paris edition of New York Herald claimed that the tower was changing the climate, while the daily newspaper Le Matin reported in the headline that the tower was "sinking". However, the construction of the tower never stopped, and a feeling of awe began to replace fear.

the eighth wonder of the world

Generally speaking, buildings are upgraded on the basis of studying the previous works. For example, if you want to build a 11-storey building, you'd better study the 8 th and 9 th floors first. For Eiffel, it is not so lucky. No building can reach the height of the tower before.

In order to complete the construction of the tower, Eiffel designed many creative technologies:

Unlike other large-scale construction projects at that time, Eiffel made all the components in its own workshop in advance. In other words, when these components are sent to the construction site, they can be installed quickly.

rivet holes are made in advance with a tolerance of one tenth of a millimeter, so that 21 riveting teams can assemble 1651 rivets every day.

every part of the tower is not more than 3 tons, which makes small cranes widely used.

tower pier

at the beginning of the project, there are actually four construction sites, each of which is a leg of the tower or a tower pier. These piers will not meet until after 181 feet, and when they meet, they must be able to reach a perfect level, which will serve as the foundation for the remaining 811 feet. If the tower pier is built with a slight difference, it will tilt the whole tower.

Eiffel knew that he couldn't guarantee that the tower piers could hold the perfect horizontal plane after construction, so he installed a temporary hydraulic pump at the bottom of each tower pier. In this way, with the progress of the project, he can make fine adjustments by slightly raising or lowering the tower pier. When the overall adjustment is completed, the workers will embed iron wedges in the tower pier to fix the tower pier forever.

Later facts proved that Eiffel had nothing to worry about. Even at a height of 1.81 feet, the maximum error of the four towers is not 2.5 inches. The four piers are simply adjusted and fixed. To this day, this tower is still in a perfect level.

epilogue

The Eiffel Tower is a miracle, not only because of its unique design, but also because the tower was built faster than expected and the cost was less than expected. The Expo is scheduled to start on May 6th, and the tower will be completed on March 31th.

Eiffel and his company made money back at a record rate. During the half year of the Expo, the tower earned 1.4 million US dollars, while the initial estimated cost was only 1.6 million US dollars, plus 311,111 US dollars subsidized by the government, and the investment was fully recovered before the end of the Expo.

The completed iron tower was so spectacular that it was appreciated by many original critics. Among them was the then French Prime Minister Tirard, who initially opposed the project, but after the project ended, he awarded the Legion of Honor to Eiffel. This iron tower has become a symbol of France's highest technology and also a symbol of France.

Of course, not everyone will change their attitude. Guy de Mau, a novelist who is famous for The Necklace.