Everything Everywhere Daily: History, Science, Geography & More - The Eiffel Tower

Episode Date: July 14, 2021

In 1889, a new exhibit was constructed for the Paris World’s Fair. It completely dominated the Paris skyline. Most people considered it an eyesore and an architectural abomination. The only redeeming thing about it in their mind was the fact that it was only temporary and was going to be torn down after the fair was over. But it never was, and today it has become the iconic symbol for the city. Learn more about the Eiffel Tower on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1889, a new exhibit was constructed for the Paris World's Fair, and it completely dominated the Paris skyline. Many people considered it an eyesore and architectural abomination. The only redeeming thing about it in their mind was the fact that it was only supposed to be temporary and eventually was going to be torn down. But it never was, and today it's become the iconic symbol of the city. Learn more about the Eiffel Tower on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. What if your perceptions about the past were wrong? ThruLine is a podcast that takes you back in time to uncover the parts of the story that may have gone unnoticed. It effectively turned day into night.

And how it shaped the world now. Time travel with us every week on the Thurline podcast from NPR. This episode is sponsored by the Travel Photography Academy. If you've listened to enough episodes of this podcast, you'll notice that I often interject places that I've visited. That's because I spent over 10. years of my life traveling around the world almost nonstop. During that time, I went from being a complete novice in photography to winning almost every major travel photography prize in North America. When I learned how to do travel photography, I did do it the hard way. It took years of time

and lots of travel. That's why I created the Travel Photography Academy, so you can learn from me in much less time, spending much less money. It's an online video course which I shot on location in France, Spain, and the United States, and I cover everything you need to improve your travel photography. So, if you want to take your photography to the next level and get better photos on your next trip, visit travel photography academy.com or click on the link in the show notes. In 1889, the city of Paris was preparing for a big celebration. It was the 100-year anniversary of the French Revolution, and the city of Paris was going to put on a big party. Called the 1889 Exposition Universal, the event was eventually going to attract 32 million visitors.

The exposition organizers wanted a signature centerpiece for the fair, so in 1884, they asked for proposals from noted architectural firms. The proposal, which eventually became the Eiffel Tower, came from the architectural firm of one Gustav Eiffel. Eiffel had developed quite a reputation by the 1880s. He had become a master of projects using iron, which had defined the age that he lived in. He designed several buildings for the 187, Paris World's Fair, several iron bridges, as well as the internal iron framework for the Statue of Liberty. The proposal for the 1889 Fair actually didn't originate from Iphel himself. It came from two of his engineers. The idea for the structure came from a tower that was built

for the 1853 World's Fair in New York. The tower was called the Ladding Observatory. It was 350 feet or 96 meters tall and made of wood with iron bracings. The tower for the 1889 Fair was envisioned to be the world's first 300-meter structure. If you remember back to my episode on the progression of the tallest buildings in the world, the Eiffel Tower overwhelmingly became the tallest structure in the world when it was built. Eiffel himself wasn't really enthused about the initial design, but he let the engineers on his staff continue to investigate the project. The initial idea really looked more like a giant oil rig than anything else. The engineers then took the idea to one of the chief architects in the firm, who added a glass pavilion on the first level and decorative arches

at the bottom. The new design captured the attention of Eiffel, and he got behind the project. In 1885, he did a major presentation to the French Society of Civil Engineers on the proposed tower. Of the tower, he said it was, quote, not only the art of the modern engineer, but also the century of industry and science in which we are living, and for which the way was prepared by the great scientific movement of the 18th century, and by the revolution of 1789, to which this monument will be built as an expression of France's gratitude. Unquote. It took about a year for the funding to get arranged, but when it was, the terms of the competition

were changed such that Eiffel was guaranteed to win the assignment. He, of course, did win the contract, and construction of the tower began in 1887. The contract was actually signed with Eiffel personally rather than with his company. He was given 1.5 million francs, which was about a quarter of the estimated cost of the tower. His contract gave him the rights to all revenue from the tower for 20 years, and more on that 20-year time frame in a bit. There was a huge outcry amongst artists and architects in Paris. Some objected to the feasibility of a 300-meter tower. A 200-meter structure had never even been built.

The biggest objection, however, was that it would be a scar on the skyline of Paris. As construction began, a committee of 300 was formed of notable figures in the arts and architecture who criticized the tower. They published a letter titled Artists Against the Eiffel Tower, which was published in the newspaper Le Temps. The letter was scathing. The letter was scathing. They said, quote, we writers, painters, sculptures, architects, and passionate devotees of the hitherto untouched beauty of Paris, protest with all our strength and with all our indignation in the name of the slighted fredge taste against the erection of this useless and monstrous Eiffel Tower. To bring our arguments home, imagine for a moment. moment a giddy, ridiculous tower dominating Paris like a giant black smokestack, crushing under its barbaric bulk Notre Dame, the Tour Saint-Jacques, the Louvre,

the Dome la invalid, the Arc de Triumph, and all our humiliated monuments will disappear in this ghastly dream. And for 20 years, we shall see stretching like a blot of ink the hateful shadow of the hateful column of bolted sheet metal." Unquote. Gustave Eiffel responded by comparing it to the Great Pyramid, saying, quote, my tower will be the tallest edifice ever erected by man. Will it not also be grandiose in its way? And why would something admirable in Egypt become hideous and ridiculous in Paris?

End quote. The objections obviously didn't go anywhere, and the tower was completed in a remarkable two years and two months. The structure is not made out of steel. It's made out of what's called puddle iron. It was the material most commonly used in construction in the late 19th century before it was eventually replaced by steel. The tower is also astonishingly

light for its size, considering it's made out of iron. If you created a cube the height of the Eiffel Tower, the weight of the air inside the cube would almost weigh as much as the tower itself. One of the reasons it was built so quickly is because it was prefabricated. The girders and sections were built off-site and delivered to the construction site already assembled. The Eiffel Tower was inaugurated on March 31st, 1889. However, the public wasn't allowed in the tower until May 15th. It was an immediate hit and it was the highlight of the world's fair. The total number of people who paid entry into the tower during the fair was 1,896,987. Each paid between two to five francs depending on what level they wanted to ascend to.

During the fair, the tower was lit with gas lamps and a giant searchlight was installed at the top. After the fair, as per the terms of the contract, the tower remained the property of Gustav Eiffel. It was open to visitors, there was a restaurant, and Eiffel himself had an office. at the top of the tower. As I mentioned before, the original contract was for 20 years. At the end of 20 years, the tower reverted back to the city of Paris. The original intent was that after 20 years, the tower had paid for itself, and it would be taken down. In fact, easy dismantling was part of the original contract. However, by 1909, things had changed. There was a new thing called radio, and a 300-meter iron tower proved to be invaluable as a radio tower. The tower also proved

to be useful for other things as well. Meteorological observations were made from Eiffel's office at the top of the tower. In 1910, cosmic rays were discovered in the Eiffel Tower. At the beginning of World War I, the Eiffel Tower was used to jam German radio signals. From 1925 to 1934, the French auto company Citareen paid for a giant illuminated sign on the tower, making it the world's largest advertisement at the time. In 1935, it was one of the first television broadcast antennas in the world. During World War II it was closed to visitors, and after the German occupation ended, Hitler left orders that it be destroyed, but the military governor of the city ignored the order.

The tower still has to be completely painted from top to bottom every seven years to prevent rust, which is one of the implications of being built from iron. It has been fully painted 19 times since its construction. Today, the Eiffel Tower is one of the most visited tourist attractions in the world. It gets over 7 million visitors per year, and over a quarter billion people have visited it since it was opened. Even though it's a really touristy thing to do, I recommend visiting the Eiffel Tower if you've never been to Paris. Get it out of the way on day one. Buy your tickets for the elevator in advance, or else you'll spend an hour or two in line. You can also just walk up the tower, which honestly is a far better way to see it, even if it does take a little longer.

If you've been there before, I'd recommend going at night after the tower is closed. The atmosphere there, especially during the summer, is like a party. You'll find people roaming around selling wine by the plastic cup. In hindsight, the committee of 300 couldn't have been more wrong. The Eiffel Tower didn't upstage the other great landmarks in Paris. It now sits alongside them as one of the most iconic structures in the world. The associate producer of Everything Everywhere Daily is Thor Thompson. If you'd like to support the show, please donate over at patreon.com.

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