On 31 March 1889, after two years, two months and five days of construction the world welcomed the newest addition to the Paris skyline: the Eiffel Tower. Its creator, Gustave Eiffel, unfurled the Tricolore on the third level, signalling that the wrought-iron edifice was now open. Lit by 10,000 gas lamps, it was a spectacle unlike anything the world had seen before; today it is one of the most visited monuments on Earth, welcoming almost seven million people every year.
Out of 107 proposed designs, Eiffel’s tower was chosen to represent the 1889 World’s Fair (the Exposition Universelle), and commemorate the centenary of the French Revolution. The fair was to be a showcase of technology and innovation, and it was suggested that a suitably awe-inducing structure be built to demonstrate French technological prowess - and, by virtue of its position on Champ de Mars, serve as a gateway to the exhibition.
The tower was the brainchild of entrepreneur Gustave Eiffel, architect Stephen Sauvestre, and engineers Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier. Eiffel’s reputation preceded him - he owned a metal works business and was the genius behind the steelwork frame of New York’s Statue of Liberty, built three years earlier.