Pitched Unfairly

G. Eiffel et Cie Constructeurs · Levallois-Perret

300 metres of iron for your Exposition.

A proposal to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in answer to the competition of 1 May 1886

Drawing 1Elevation300 m

01 / Your goal

You want 1889 remembered, not just attended.

An exhibition fills a summer. A landmark fills the next century.

What we heard

The occasion
The centenary of 1789, in front of the world.
The site
The Champ de Mars, on the Seine.
The test
One centrepiece every visitor sees, from anywhere in Paris.

Success looks likeThe world goes home talking about French iron.

02 / Your requirements

Six asks. Six ticks.

6 / 6 Requirements met

107 entries received. One answers every line.

  1. Made of metal Wrought iron, every piece made in our Levallois-Perret works
  2. Four-sided Four lattice legs that meet in one shaft
  3. A square base, 125 m a side 125 m, corner to corner, leg to leg
  4. 300 metres high 300 m. The current world record is 169.
  5. On the Champ de Mars At the Seine end, four arches as the gateway
  6. Ready for May 1889 Finished before opening day, with weeks to spare

03 / Our solution

Four legs, three platforms, 300 metres.

Height

300 m

The top

Engineering by Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier. Architecture by Stephen Sauvestre.

Today's record: Washington Monument, 169 mRecord: 169 m
57 m First platform
115 m Second platform
276 m Third platform
300 m Top

04 / Why us

We have built iron at this scale. Our rivals have drawn it.

Maria Pia Bridge

Porto, 1877

160 m

iron arch over the Douro, a record span when built

Garabit Viaduct

Cantal, 1884

165 m

iron arch, the deck 124 m above the Truyère

Statue of Liberty

For New York, from 1881

46 m

of copper statue, held up by our iron pylon, first erected in our Paris yard

  • Maurice KoechlinChief engineer, first sketch
  • Emile NouguierEngineer, co-designer
  • Stephen SauvestreArchitect, the arches
  • The patentOurs. We bought it from them.

05 / How we build

Every part is drawn before it is made.

Made in our works at Levallois-Perret. Bolted on site. Riveted where it stands.

2.5 million
rivets, every hole drilled before the iron leaves the works
Iron parts
18,038
General drawings
1,700
Detail drawings
3,629
Rivet-hole tolerance
1 mm

06 / Plan and timeline

Twenty-six months from first dig to flag.

28 Jan 1887Break ground

18 Jul 1887Iron goes up

20 Mar 1888First platform, 57 m

21 Aug 1888Second platform, 115 m

31 Mar 1889300 m. Flag up.

Exposition opens6 May 1889

300 m
188718881889

07 / Pricing and terms

You pay 1.5 million. We finance the rest.

In return we run the tower for 20 years. Then it belongs to Paris.

Estimated cost
6.5M francs
We finance
5.0M francs
Ticket rights we ask
20 years

Our offer. Signed, it is the cheapest landmark in Europe.

08 / Risks

Four things could stop the tower. Each has an owner.

RiskWhat could go wrongHow we handle itStatus
WindOwner: Koechlin At 300 m, wind is the load that decides everything. The legs curve to follow the wind's force. Open lattice lets it pass straight through. Designed in
The artistsOwner: G. Eiffel Famous names will call it useless and monstrous, in print. Our reply is drafted: nobody calls the Pyramids useless. Reply ready
Year twentyOwner: G. Eiffel The permit ends in 1909 and Paris may take it down. Make it indispensable: weather, physics, and wireless signals from the top. Planned
Opening dayOwner: the works The Exposition will not wait for a late tower. Every part prefabricated, every hole drilled to the millimetre. On track

09 / What you get

The world's tallest structure, mostly on us.

  • The tallest structure on Earth300 m of iron, finished for the Exposition
  • A gateway for the ExpositionFour arches at the Seine end of the Champ de Mars
  • Three public platformsRestaurants on the first, lifts to the top
  • A laboratory 300 m upWeather, physics, and signals, at no extra cost
  • The keys, in 1909After 20 years it passes to the City of Paris