On this day, March 31, 1889, the Eiffel Tower was inaugurated in Paris, a project led by its creator, the engineer Gustave Eiffel.

The ceremony was attended by the French Prime Minister Pierre Tirard, several other dignitaries, as well as 200 workers who took part in the construction of the tower.

The tower was preceded by a competition announced on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution, when the government the French planned an international exhibition on the Champ-de-Mars. Out of more than a hundred proposals, Eiffel’s plan was chosen for an open tower of wrought-iron mesh, almost 300 meters high, making it the tallest man-made structure in the world. Eiffel, already famous for building bridges, was also a master of metal structures, and he also worked on the framework for the Statue of Liberty.

Although critics considered it unaesthetic and structurally unsafe, Eiffel completed the tower in a record time of two years and under budget. Only one worker lost his life during construction, which was extremely low by the standards of the time. The light and airy structure quickly became a technological marvel and, over the decades, an architectural masterpiece.

The tower consists of four stone bases supported by four columns, which connect into a single vertical tower. There are viewing platforms on three levels and the elevators are designed according to curved columns, in collaboration with the American Otis Elevator Company. The first elevators were not ready on March 31, so Eiffel and a few entourage used the stairs to raise the French tricolor flag to the tower’s mast, while fireworks were shot from another platform.

The Eiffel Tower served as the gateway to the Paris International Exhibition in 1889 and remained the tallest building in the world until 1930, when the Chrysler Building was completed. Amazingly, the tower was on the brink of demolition when the 20-year lease on the exhibition grounds expired in 1909, but its function as a radio antenna saved it from destruction.

Today, more than 130 years later, the Eiffel Tower still attracts millions of tourists from around the world, symbolizing Paris and remaining one of mankind’s most recognizable architectural masterpieces.

See more below the story of the Eiffel Tower:

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Source: prizrenpost