The Eiffel Tower Officially Opens | March 31, 1889 | History On This Day

On March 31, 1889, the Eiffel Tower officially opened in Paris. From the article:

"The Eiffel Tower Officially Opens | March 31, 1889

Today on March 31st 1889, the Eiffel Tower officially opens for the World Exposition after two years of construction.

The Eiffel Tower is named after its master engineer, Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the iconic structure. The tower was commissioned to be the centerpiece of the 1889 World Fair held in Paris. The celebration was particularly special as it marked the centennial anniversary of the French Revolution. At 2:35 pm on the opening day, government officials hoisted a large Tricolour flag to the accompaniment of a 25-gun salute. At the time, it surpassed the Washington Monument to become the world’s tallest structure, a title it held for more than forty years.

The iron lattice tower is located on Champ de Mars in the French capital of Paris. It was the architectural centrepiece of the Exposition Universelle (World Expo), and served as the entrance to the fairgrounds. Interestingly, the tower was not originally meant to be permanent, but rather to be dismantled ten years after the expo. Many of France’s leading intellectuals and architects criticized the tower for its poor and lifeless design. However, since then it has become one of the most famous and recognizable architectural icons of the world. Today, it is a leading tourist attraction in France and the most-visited paid monument in the world.

A few interesting facts. The tower reaches an impressive height of 324 meters and is still the tallest structure in Paris. After the Nazis captured Paris in 1940, the locals cut the elevator cables so that Hitler and his entourage would have to climb the stairs. The tower was originally designed for Barcelona but was rejected by the city. A woman named Erika married the Eiffel Tower in 2007. There are more than 30 replicas of the Eiffel Tower around the world with seven million people ascending the original tower each year."