The Eiffel Tower

It is hard to imagine Paris without the Eiffel Tower. Yet, when it was first being built, it came with widespread opposition, and was only supposed to be a temporary structure for the Exposition Universelle (World's Fair) of 1889, to mark the centennial of the French Revolution. It was supposed to be taken down fairly shortly thereafter.

            It was controversial, and many people absolutely hated the idea of it, at least initially. It looked like a monstrosity to them, like a skeletal building that would mar the skyline of Paris, being visible from all over the city. Situated on the beautiful and historic Champ de Mars, a lot of people figured it would ruin the area, and stick out as an all too obvious, unavoidable eyesore.

            Yet, Gustave Eiffel, the architect behind the tower, and the man for whom it would be named, was very persuasive, not to mention, very knowledgeable and talented. He knew not only how to make it, but how to make it withstand the test of time, making it very wind resistant, as well as with a beautiful style. It also was designed in such a way that the weight of it put minimal pressure on the ground below, which is predominately clay, and quite near the banks of the River Seine.

There are parallels to the history of France and the celebration of the Revolution at this time, a celebration that was predictably snubbed by royal families all over the world, because it honored an event that had brought an end, albeit temporary, to the monarchical system in France. The French Revolution remains controversial today, having only been recently replaced as the most written about subject in history by World War II and the Holocaust. Many people still view it in heroic terms, while others view it negatively, with it's bloodshed and attacks on the monarchical system, as well as on religion in general. Being credited on some level with initiating democracy, communism, and even fascism, the Revolution is credited with both positive and negative trends and, among many respected historians, this epic event is seen as the event that ushered in the modern era. There was the world as it was before the Revolution, and then there is the world since. Nary a revolution occurred between then and the Iranian Revolution in the 1970's that was not influenced in some way by the French Revolution.

Yet, many still only saw the Revolution as a blight on human history. It removed the shackles of a very oppressive feudal system of absolute monarchy, a system that likely could not have lasted long, and was itself a source of shame and injustice. Still, the Revolution was often dismissed as needlessly bloody and violent, and many still resented the attack against religion (some of the Jacobin leaders even tried to introduce a new calendar that scrapped the traditional, religiously based calendar always in use up until then, and which remains in use to the present day).

So not only was the celebration of the 100^th anniversary controversial on those grounds, but the celebration was an attempt by the Republic to promote democracy and faith in science and technological progress. The Eiffel Tower in particular was supposed to represent the capabilities of science. It was to be the tallest manmade structure in the world, and the only one, other than the Washington Monument that had formerly held that lofty title, that was not religious in theme. All of the other truly tall structures of the time, from the Great Pyramid to the great cathedrals of Europe, including the cathedral in Cologne as well as the one in Rouen, and St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, were testaments to religion.  

The Eiffel Tower was not only to surpass these by far, but it was to promote the power of science to help humankind progress. To this end, Gustave Eiffel himself made sure that the tower would be very useful for science, opening it up to all manner of scientific experiments and uses, in hopes of it becoming indispensible to the city. He did not want to see his tower torn down, after all. He wanted it to stand permanently, as a testament to science.

It was built in two years, two months, and two days, and was erected without a single fatality. It was also completed without our modern tools, and it was built in style. Despite it being made of metal, there are gentle curves and arches, and the skeletal structure, far from being a monstrosity that destroys the Parisian landscape, actually greatly enhances it, serves to make it more beautiful. Many of the same people that were opposed to it initially became converts, including one musician, Charles Gounod, who later had a concert up in the tower, and called it  the "Concert in the Clouds". .

Today, the tower is repainted once every seven years, with the three levels being painted slightly different colors, the bottom being the darkest, the top being the lightest – although the shift is very subtle. It was initially 300 meters (986 feet) high, but with the new antenna that has since been put up, it presently is 324 meters (1,063 feet) tall, barely overtaking the Chrysler Building that had initially overtaken it for the title of world's tallest manmade structure.

I personally used to have a fascination with skyscrapers and tall, manmade structures. I still have somewhat of a fascination for them, although nowadays, it is more towards those that actually have style and an element of beauty to them. The Eiffel Tower would certainly qualify, as would the Chrysler Building, and the Empire State Building. There may be others beyond that, but there seems to have been a focus on simply being able to boast the tallest manmade structure in the world, for the sake of boasting. That seems to be the case when Dubai erected it's tower of well over 2,000 feet (which stands mostly empty), and the ones being designed in China presently, as well as some other areas in the world. Here in the United States, which used to be the leader of skyscrapers that ranked among the tallest in the world, enthusiasm cooled considerably, and understandably, following the attacks on September 11^th.

It should be noted here, that the Eiffel Tower actually was targeted by terrorists years before September 11^th, and France warned the United States that it would likely itself be targeted in such a manner. Just another unusual chapter in the history of a structure that is rich in history, and stood tall throughout, even when Hitler was visiting, triumphant in his victory over France. There was talk even of relocating it once, for Montreal's World Fair, Expo '67 (where the late baseball team derived it's name "Montreal Expos" from), but that obviously did not happen. What did happen, however, was that a replica of it was built in Las Vegas, on the exact model and specifications of the original designs of the original tower. Yet, this is not nearly as high as the original, nor as beautiful in my humble opinion, since it is more crowded with building all around it. Part of the beauty of the Eiffel Tower in Paris would be the open spaces around it, from which you can get many different angles of the tower. Also, since the cirty is not dominated with skyscrapers, like many North American cities are, you can pretty well see the tower from much of the city and the surrounding area. When in New York City, there may be points where you are a block away or so from the Empire State Building, and still can't see it and would never know it's there.

So, it is a fascinating history that this tower has. It no longer is anywhere near the tallest manmade structure in the world, and indeed, it is not even the tallest manmade structure in France any longer. Yet, it has a rich history and beauty that few other structures can even come close to, let alone parallel. It is a history that would be too long to get into here, in a brief piece on the tower, but there are some numerous fascinating elements to it's history.

Mostly, though, it is a beautiful structure to be admired and appreciated.