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The builder of the Eiffel Tower died at the age of 91, after a long and successful career as an engineer, businessman and patron of scientific research. But his most famous monument, the main postcard of Paris and France, ended up eclipsing his vast production throughout the world. His name is associated with more than 500 works in more than 30 countries. On the centenary of his death, RFI reviews the legacy of this universal Frenchman who went down in history as the “iron wizard”.
By Patrice Martin and Florian Riva
The impact of the development of the railway in Europe and the world in the 19th century can be compared to that of the invention of the Internet in the 20th century. Just as the web spawned and prospered the computer giants, the expansion of the railways spurred bridge-building companies, actively participating in the Industrial Revolution.
In the mid-19th century, hundreds of “infrastructural masterpieces” (bridges and viaducts) were built in various countries, with great creativity and sometimes considerable financial investment. In this context, the young Gustave Eiffel (12/15/1832 – 12/23/1923), just graduated from the prestigious Central School of Engineers in Paris, was gaining ground on the world market. Thanks to his talent for using iron in his designs and his vocation for business, he earned fame and prestige that still endure.
Bertrand Lemoine, engineer, architect and historian, is one of the experts on the life and work of Gustave Eiffel. He is a scientific advisor to the Gustave Eiffel Heirs Association and the author of a biography, published in 1984. In an interview with RFI on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower, Lemoine stressed that the French engineer created his company at the age of 32 and He also distinguished himself as an excellent businessman.
“He mastered the subtleties of metal construction, which was emerging at the time, but he was also able to manage a company, choose collaborators, associate with good partners and find the right political support,” says the biographer.
technical achievements
The technical and architectural feats he envisioned were built at the four cardinal points. Monuments with the Eiffel brand dominate the landscape of several European cities, but also in America, Asia, Africa and Oceania. His most numerous constructions date from the 1870s, such as the Maria Pia bridge, in Porto (Portugal); the Garabit viaduct in west-central France, the Ungheni bridge between Moldova and Romania and the Trang Tien bridge in Vietnam. In the same decade the railway station of Budapest (Hungary), the cathedral of Arica (Chile) or the revolutionary Observatory of Nice (south of France) were built.
One of Eiffel’s geniuses, and key to his success, was creating prefabricated designs, made in his factory in Levallois-Perret, on the outskirts of Paris, and easy to export. “Kits of metal elements were transported by train or ship, and then assembled on site“, explains Lemoine.
Few know that the internal iron structure of the Statue of Liberty was designed by him in 1881, as was the system of locks for the Panama Canal between 1887 and 1889. That same year, its most famous monument, the tower of 300 meters that bears his name, erected in Paris for the Universal Exposition, which commemorated the centenary of the French Revolution. “The Eiffel Tower was really the highlight of his career as a builder. It allowed him to enter the pantheon of great men and engineers and have a name that is now almost universally known,” says Bertrand Lemoine.
Throughout the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st, several replicas of the Eiffel Tower were made around the world, such as in Santos Dumont (Brazil) or in Tianducheng (China).
The scandal of the bankruptcy of the Panama Canal
The famous French engineer was also implicated in one of the biggest scandals of the 19th century, that of the bankruptcy of the Panama Canal. He was indicted for the case, but before the Justice acquitted him in 1893, the scandal meant the end of his company and the Eiffel brand. Morally affected, the builder dedicated the last years of his life to science. Despite his advanced age, the engineer was still fascinated by scientific innovations.
Much of the public does not know it, but to prevent the Eiffel Tower from being dismantled, its builder transformed the top floor of the monument into a laboratory that contributed to many technological advances in the fields of wireless telegraphy, radio broadcasting, meteorology, aerology and aeronautics. His interest in aviation, at birth, brought Eiffel closer to the Brazilian Santos Dumont, who made the first certified flight in history in Paris.
The Gustave Eiffel Heirs Association is organizing various events throughout 2023 to commemorate the centenary of his death. The main one will be an exhibition on the legacy of the “iron wizard”, sponsored by Unesco. The exhibition will open in Paris in May.